The Toxic Danger of Fabric Softener and Dryer Sheets, by SixWise.com
Although they may make your clothes feel soft and smell fresh, it turns out that fabric softener and dryer sheets are some of the most toxic products around. Read why now!
(PRWEB) February 21, 2005 -- Many people will remember a famous TV ad where a
woman races to her washing machine, fabric softener in hand, only to arrive just
as the wash ends. This woman who "forgot to ad the fabric softener" was actually
doing herself and her family a favor.
Although they may make your clothes
feel soft and smell fresh, fabric softener and dryer sheets are some of the most
toxic products around. And chances are that the staggering 99.8 percent of
Americans who use common commercial detergents, fabric softeners, bleaches, and
stain removers would think twice if they knew they contained chemicals that
could cause cancer and brain damage.
Here is a list of just some of the
chemicals found in fabric softeners and dryer sheets:
• Benzyl acetate:
Linked to pancreatic cancer
• Benzyl Alcohol: Upper respiratory tract
irritant
• Ethanol: On the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Hazardous
Waste list and can cause central nervous system disorders
• A-Terpineol: Can
cause respiratory problems, including fatal edema, and central nervous system
damage
• Ethyl Acetate: A narcotic on the EPA's Hazardous Waste list
•
Camphor: Causes central nervous system disorders
• Chloroform: Neurotoxic,
anesthetic and carcinogenic
• Linalool: A narcotic that causes central
nervous system disorders
• Pentane: A chemical known to be harmful if
inhaled
So how could products with pretty names like Soft Ocean Mist,
Summer Orchard and April Fresh be so dangerous?
The chemicals in fabric
softeners are pungent and strong smelling -- so strong that they require the use
of these heavy fragrances (think 50 times as much fragrance) just to cover up
the smells. Furthermore, synthetic fabrics, which are the reason fabric
softeners were created in the first place, do not smell good either when heated
in a dryer or heated by our bodies ... hence the need for even more hefty
fragrances.
In other words, remove all the added fragrance that endears
people to fabric softeners and -- like the cliché wolf in sheep's clothing --
the real smells of the chemical-laced fabric softener and the synthetic fabrics
they were designed around may prompt people to shoot their laundry machines and
be done with it.
Are "Soft" Clothes Worth It?
Fabric softeners are
made to stay in your clothing for long periods of time. As such, chemicals are
slowly released either into the air for you to inhale or onto your skin for you
to absorb. Dryer sheets are particularly noxious because they are heated in the
dryer and the chemicals are released through dryer vents and out into the
environment. Health effects from being exposed to the chemicals in fabric
softeners include:
• Central nervous system disorders
• Headaches
• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Dizziness
• Blood pressure reduction
•
Irritation to skin, mucus membranes and respiratory tract
• Pancreatic
cancer
Soften Your Clothes Safely With These Tips:
Even if you don't
feel the effects of these chemicals today, they can affect you gradually over
time, and children, whose systems are still developing, are particularly at
risk. There's really no reason to expose yourself to these risky chemicals when
natural alternatives exist. Not only are they safer for you, your family and the
environment, but they're much more economical too:
• Add a quarter cup of
baking soda to wash cycle to soften fabric
• Add a quarter cup of white
vinegar to rinse to soften fabric and eliminate cling
• Check out your local
health food store for a natural fabric softener that uses a natural base like
soy instead of chemicals
It's likely that fabric softeners and dryer
sheets aren't the only toxic products in your home. Many household products that
consumers regard as safe are also full of toxic chemicals. Our past articles on
PEG Compounds in Cosmetics and Phenols in Common Household Cleansers are two of
the all-time most popular articles on SixWise.com and will make you more aware
of the pervasiveness of harmful chemicals that can be eliminated from your
home.
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Source : http://www.prweb.com/releases/2005/2/prweb210883.htm