Dinged by Dryer Sheets

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Annie B. Bond

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

You know if you are one of those sensitive to dryer sheets and fabric softeners. (I think this is the No. 2 consumer complaint behind perfume.) You are sad that you don’t like to walk in your neighborhood on Saturday mornings because of the offensive smell wafting from neighbors’ dryer vents. If someone uses them in your home you may have a nightmare of burning skin, respiratory irritation, anxiety attacks and irritability. I have one friend who became so sensitive to the fumes that he had to sleep in a chair until he could get new bedding! What is the problem with these laundry products? Plenty.

How I would love to have full disclosure of ingredients in consumer products. Given how many people complain about getting sick from dryer sheets and liquid fabric softener, it is disturbing that there is so little research available for the general public about the ingredients in the products. Dry sheets and fabric softeners actually waterproof your clothes to make them feel softer! I have found information on waterproofing and there are few safe ways to do that.

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and industry-generated Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) from the 1990s, the following is a list of chemicals in fabric softener products, most in untested combinations. Liquid fabric softeners additionally may contain formaldehyde.

* Benzyl acetate: Linked to pancreatic cancer.
* Benzyl Alcohol: Upper respiratory tract irritant.
* Ethanol: On the EPA’s Hazardous Waste list and can cause central nervous system disorders.
* Limonene: Suspected Gastrointestinal or Liver Toxicant, Immunotoxicant, Kidney Toxicant, Neurotoxicant, Respiratory Toxicant, and Skin or Sense Organ Toxicant.
* 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.

To hide the chemical smell, companies load dryer sheets full of chemical fragrances, which are potentially carcinogenic.

Dryer sheets are designed to stay on clothing for a long period of time and slowly release their chemicals throughout the day, which leads to prolonged exposure to toxic chemicals.

The toxins in dryer sheets and their chemical fragrances enter the body both through inhalation or are absorbed through the skin.

Some of the symptoms experienced from prolonged exposure to the chemicals in dryer sheets include headaches, nausea, vomiting , dizziness, central nervous system disorders, blood pressure reduction, fatigue, difficulty breathing, skin irritation, difficulty concentrating and remembering, cancer, irritation to skin, mucus membranes and respiratory tract, and liver damage.

Alternatives point to successfully substituting vinegar in the rinse water of the laundry cycle. We’ve received quite a few comments from our readers finding this approach works well. There are also a number of alternative products on the market. Read my article Fabric Softener: Easy Greening.

Fabric softeners are static cling busters, mostly. One easy way to avoid using them is to use natural fibers.

Green living expert Annie B. Bond is the best-selling author of five books and the editor of greenchicafe.com.

The opinions expressed here are solely those of the author and not necessarily those of Healthy Child Healthy World.

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Posted by Dawn on 02/25/2011 at 08:16 PM

I switched about three years ago to these laundry products. My son was two at the time. They work wonderful and no more burning or rashes for my kids.
http://liveclean4u.myshaklee.com/us/en/category.php?main_cat=HomeCare&sub_cat=GetCleanLaundry

Posted by Tiffany@MommyGoesGreen on 04/15/2010 at 07:17 PM

For the past several years, I never used dryer sheets as I’ve never felt I needed them. I wash (almost) everything in cold water and hang (almost) everything to dry. I do keep Seventh Generation dryer sheets on hand for the occasional load of towels and for guests to use. They don’t have any scent and they are totally recyclable.

Posted by Irene on 04/14/2010 at 12:14 PM

And with our skin being the largest organ… putting chemicals all over our bodies, 24 hrs a day. No wonder people have sensitivities to fabric softeners

Posted by Liz Amason on 04/14/2010 at 09:26 AM

Shaklee makes a great dryer sheet that doesn’t have all that toxic stuff in them AND they go in your recycle bin to boot!

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