Your Laundry Detergent May Now Be Illegal In New Jersey

We expect our laundry detergents to help us feel fresh and clean, not to give us a higher risk of cancer.  You may have to pick a new favorite because some detergents have actually become illegal in New Jersey (and that’s not a bad thing). 

It’s a New Year and safety is the resolution.  In New Jersey, products like laundry detergent will be removed from store shelves if they contain certain now-illegal cancer-causing chemicals. 

The chemical compound 1,4-Dioxane is the culprit and what’s worse, it is hidden.  By that I mean, you won’t find it listed on the ingredients label.  You would only find it if you tested the product in a lab.  It turns out that a few of the most popular detergents have these harmful chemicals in them, specifically an illegal concentration of 1,4 Dioxane.  

The highest concentration was found in Arm & Hammer Clean Burst with more than two times the legal limit!

Some others on the list:

Tide Original

Arm & Hammer Sensitive Skin Free & Clean

This is ironic.  A white pure bottle makes us feel safe, especially with sensitive skin issues but this one is on the list.

Gain Original & Aroma Boost

Thankfully, at the start of the New Year, a new law went into effect that lowers the maximum allowable concentration of the chemical down to 1 part per million.  Of course, there are more natural options out there that don’t have it at all so it may be time for a switch altogether.

You could read more about it here.