it's official. many of the leading so called natural and organic soaps, shampoos, and body washes contain cancer-causing 1,4-dioxane. i've been harping about this for years, but the organic consumers assn. finally did the research. some of the supposedly natural and organic brands found to contain this cancer causing substance are aura cacia, alba, jason pure natural & organic, giovanni organic cosmetics, kiss my face, nature's gate organics, method, origins, grandpa's pine tar shampoo bar, and even whole foods own 365 everyday value brand! sheesh. is nothing sacred anymore?
ethoxylation, a cheap short-cut companies use to provide mildness to harsh ingredients, requires the use of the cancer-causing petrochemical ethylene oxide, which generates 1,4-dioxane as a by-product. to avoid toxic 1,4-dioxane, the OCA urges consumers to search ingredient lists for indications of ethoxylation including: "myreth," "oleth," "laureth," "ceteareth," any other "eth," "PEG," "polyethylene," "polyethylene glycol," "polyoxyethylene," or "oxynol," in ingredient names. or you could just wash with a wild soap bar instead. we'd never do you dirty like that.
ethoxylation, a cheap short-cut companies use to provide mildness to harsh ingredients, requires the use of the cancer-causing petrochemical ethylene oxide, which generates 1,4-dioxane as a by-product. to avoid toxic 1,4-dioxane, the OCA urges consumers to search ingredient lists for indications of ethoxylation including: "myreth," "oleth," "laureth," "ceteareth," any other "eth," "PEG," "polyethylene," "polyethylene glycol," "polyoxyethylene," or "oxynol," in ingredient names. or you could just wash with a wild soap bar instead. we'd never do you dirty like that.
in all fairness though, i would like to note that the USDA certified organic products they tested were all dioxane-free. so at least our government is getting something right.
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2 comments:
Maggie,
Thanks for this information. I am usually suspicious (cautious is probably a better word!) of large companies' organic claims, and I try to go to great lengths to investigate ingredients.
I like your comparison of Aveeno soap to your Honey Oat soap... very enlightening!
Love the new soap shop!
Cindy Hoyt
Pineywoods Herb Farm
Thanks and I agree Cindy. Sometimes it's very hard to get to the bottom of all the media hype. But thanks for reading my blog, and for trying to be an informed shopper. :o)
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