Is Your Laundry Detergent Making You Sick?
Doing the laundry is something we all do regularly and there is little better than relaxing into those freshly washed sheets at night.
However, do you know exactly what ingredients are in your favourite laundry detergent?
Did you realize that your health and that of your family could be compromised by “unsuspected villains” in that detergent?
Just like cosmetics, personal care products and other household cleaners, your laundry detergent can be filled with toxic chemicals. Unless you are consciously using toxic free products, you are washing and draping yourself with a mantle of hazardous substances on a daily basis.
Laundry detergents, along with brighteners, fabric softeners and dryer sheets typically contain hazardous ingredients such as
- sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS)/sodium laureth sulfate (SLES)
- 1,4-dioxane
- NPE (nonylphenol ethoxylate)
- dichlorobenzene
- fragrance/parfum and
- phosphates.
To name just a few.
These are endocrine (hormone) disruptors, carcinogens, respiratory irritants, allergy inducers, teratogens (cause birth defects), are fertility destroyers and are bio-accumulative.
Things best to stay clear of don’t you think? But what alternatives are there?
A little research will yield plenty of safer, non-toxic alternatives.
For a start –
For information on the types of toxins in laundry detergents and their likely impact on your health, take a look at these.
For natural, toxin free products start here –
TIPS
BECOME A LABEL READER.
- “Does not contain” – greener companies will be happy to tell you what is or is not in their product.
- “biodegradable” – less likely to contain harmful ingredients and environmentally sound
- “phosphate free,”
- “no bleach,”
- “SLE free”
- “NPE free”
MAKE YOUR OWN. That way you know exactly what it contains. And will be a fraction of the price. Try this recipe.
HANG IT OUT TO DRY. Forget about the dryer and safe on power. Try solar and wind power instead! Fresh air and sunlight do wonders.
