Contaminants in Bath Products | ||
Does baby shampoo need to contain cancer-causing chemicals? No – but it often does. Product tests released by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics in March 2009 found two known carcinogens, 1,4-dioxane and formaldehyde, in dozens of bath products for babies and kids, including Sesame Street character brands and even the iconic "pure and gentle" Johnson & Johnson's baby shampoo. This report followed up on test results released in February 2007, which found the chemical 1,4-dioxane in 18 popular baby soaps, bubble baths and shampoos. None of the products tested in either round listed 1,4-dioxane or formaldehyde on the label. As with many chemicals of concern used in cosmetics, the companies that make these products argue that it's "just a little bit" of 1,4-dioxane in the baby shampoo. Unfortunately, the same baby may be exposed to 1,4-dioxane from the bubble bath, the shampoo, the body wash and many other sources in the same day. Formaldehyde contaminates personal care products when common preservatives release formaldehyde over time in the container. Common ingredients likely to contaminate products with formaldehyde include quaternium-15, DMDM hydantoin, imidazolidinyl urea and diazolidinyl urea. In May 2009, we delivered a letter to Johnson & Johnson asking for safe products, which was signed by 40 groups representing more than a million nurses, moms, physicians and environmental advocates. Testing by author David Steinman released in March 2009 found lower levels of 1,4-dioxane than previously found in an array of products – proof that it's possible to make products without this contaminant. An August 2008 lawsuit filed by the California Attorney General's office against several companies for making products with toxic levels of 1,4-dioxane. Source from, |
Friday, October 30, 2009
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