It seems like each day a trusted “clean company” sells our to big corporations who go back to adding in cheap toxins to their ingredients.
The latest (2018): Did you know that Seventh Generation sold out to big corporations!?!?
Lets look at the toxin du jour that is being used in Seventh Generation cleaning products:
𝙈𝙚𝙩𝙝𝙮𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙖𝙯𝙤𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙤𝙣𝙚
It’s pretty easy to spot on an ingredient label since it’s so lengthy and typically towards the end of the list.
This ingredient is a powerful biocide, which is a chemical substance that can control or kill harmful microorganisms. It is often found in antibacterial products, and became more popular as an alternate preservative to parabens when people started to recognize all the negative effects of parabens.
Unlike other synthetic chemicals, however, this one is not just a mild skin irritant:
The biggest concern came to light when researchers conducted two recent laboratory studies on rat brain cells, and found that 𝙈𝙚𝙩𝙝𝙮𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙖𝙯𝙤𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙤𝙣𝙚 caused damage to brain and nerve cells. The researchers stated, “a brief exposure to it is highly toxic to cultured neurons.” The scientists went on to state that these toxic effects had been reported previously, and because of their widespread use, the consequences of chronic human exposure need to be evaluated. 𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙢𝙤𝙨𝙩 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙘𝙚𝙧𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙨𝙩𝙪𝙙𝙮 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙚𝙭𝙥𝙤𝙨𝙪𝙧𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙤𝙣𝙡𝙮 10 𝙈𝙄𝙉𝙐𝙏𝙀𝙎 𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙜.
Sadly, the Cosmetic, Toiletry, and Fragrance Association (CFTA) issued a response stating that 𝙈𝙚𝙩𝙝𝙮𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙖𝙯𝙤𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙤𝙣𝙚 is safe as it is already widely used in cosmetic formulas.
In 2004 Europe limited the use of 𝙈𝙚𝙩𝙝𝙮𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙖𝙯𝙤𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙤𝙣𝙚 to 0.01 percent, or 100 parts per million (ppm), but in the USA it is still completely UNREGULATED. (Shocker!)
Additional studies have shown 𝙈𝙚𝙩𝙝𝙮𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙖𝙯𝙤𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙤𝙣𝙚 to cause dermatitis, and a 2012 a study found it to be toxic during neural developmental stages to fetus, increasing the risk of seizures and visual abnormalities.
The EWG also states that 𝙈𝙚𝙩𝙝𝙮𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙖𝙯𝙤𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙤𝙣𝙚 is a skin sensitizer and irritant, which means that it can cause contact allergies such as eczema.
This is one among many such chemicals that pollute our health, beauty and cleaning products, but this one can be avoided for the most part! It is simply not worth the risk, my friends. Safe and effective alternatives are readily available, so consider ditching this toxin and take proactive steps towards reducing your total body toxin burden and living well!
Here are other greenwashed companies:
Ditch all of these- and learn to make your own or how to eliminate the need for them! Follow us for DIYs on some of these products!
- ECOS
- Seventh Generation
- Mrs Meyers
- UltraBeauty
- Hemp
- Aveeno
- Method
