Lowering Virus Risk by Lowering Toxin Exposure: Your Laundry Detergent
As our lives have shifted, we are more aware now than ever before on how important it is to live a clean lifestyle. While that means different things to different people, it most definitely does not mean to bleach and sanitize everything. For the love of all the laundry, put down the sanitizers!
We are learning more and more about the truths - the truths within our own health and how so much is determined by what we are putting into and onto our bodies... and our babies' bodies. We are learning that underlying conditions and health problems are what we need to be looking at. These conditions can be caused by thousands of things, of course, but one major player is toxins.
Laundry detergent seems to be one of those products you find a coupon for and throw in your cart every few weeks without thinking much more about it. There are so many options now, and it’s just soap, right? It does its job to clean the clothes – no afterthoughts needed.
It’s time to add laundry detergent to the growing list of products that are causing health problems in our country. To make it worse, this isn’t even new information! Scented detergents contain carcinogens and manufacturers do not have to disclose ingredients used in laundry products!
As everyone is spending so much more time at home lately, one may think they are living an extremely healthy life; however, if you are bleaching everything, eating poorly, not exposing yourself or your baby to regular germs, and washing clothes with toxins, you are creating the perfect storm of opportunity to weaken your immune system, possibly creating lifelong health problems.
Remember that the skin is the largest organ in the human body. It absorbs all that is put on it.
Many detergents include the following:
- Benzene: This causes leukemia and other blood cancers, according to the American Cancer Society.
- Acetaldehyde: Which has been shown to cause nasal and throat cancer in animal studies.
- Proteolytic Enzymes: Linked to occupational asthma.
- Diethanolamine: A skin and eye irritant also linked to developmental and reproductive toxicity.
- Dyes: Linked to ADHD, learning disorders, allergies, etc.
- Sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS)/sodium laureth sulfate (SLES): Linked to neurotoxicity, endocrine disruption and cancer
- 1,4-dioxane: Linked to cancer.
- NPE (nonylphenol ethoxylate): Linked to kidney and liver damage, decreased testicular growth and sperm count, disrupted growth and metabolism, and increased mortality.
Are there
SAFE DETERGENT OPTIONS?
The good news is that the Environmental Working Group has ranked our options for detergents with letter grades A-F, and they have made it EASY for us to figure out what to buy. The bad news is that well-over 1000 products scored a C to F, leaving close to 300 with A to B rankings. (Eye-opening isn’t it?)
You can learn more on EWG.org about your options! There are plenty to choose from, especially if you are ordering online to be delivered to your door!
(Remember to always buy concentrated detergent.)
When you start thinking about just how precious your baby’s skin is – so new to the world. It really makes sense to ensure you are using healthy products around your home. Take the time to learn about the best options and invest in your family’s health... now more than ever before.
Vintage Giraffe
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