Hazards at the Laundromat?

I've known for a long time that choosing a laundry detergent that doesn't contain petroleum products was a green idea. And foregoing dryer sheets, softener and bleach are also healthier for the environment. But I didn't realize the full impact of the choice we make when it comes to our laundry.

Living in an apartment, I have used a laundromat now for almost 10 years. The sickeningly sweet smell of massive fragrance I'm hit with when I walk through the door is disturbing at best. Really, I made my husband do the laundry for most of my daughter's infancy because I refused to keep her in the laundromat for an hour inhaling so much scary stuff.

For the last 5 years, we have opted for safer soap. But I just realized that the brand I thought was a good option contains optical brighteners. Listed as 'cellulose optical brightener' it's one of the easier ingredients to spot on the label. My understanding is that this bonds to the fabric (and potentially your skin?) and reflects light making you see clothes that are brighter and whiter. I understand that much of the UV protective clothing on the market is treated with optical brighteners as well.

We have had to choose our detergent carefully when caring for cloth diapers. Certain ingredients can leave residue that reacts to urine and can cause painful rashes on baby, so it is important to know what's in your soap for lots of reasons.

I'm all for clean clothes, but I believe that we use far too much laundry science in the process. We have to remember what re-enters our water supply as well as how chemicals that are next to our skin all day long might be doing to our hormonal health.

Some detergents that make it easier to avoid the scary stuff (petrochemicals, surfactants, optical brighteners, phosphates, dyes and perfumes) are:

Ecover

Bio-Kleen

Seventh Generation

Earth Friendly Products ECOS

These are becoming more and more available in grocery and box stores. Labels can be misleading and many corporations are greenwashing their products, so be careful what you purchase.

Yes, many of these products are more expensive than other options. But I believe most of us use more soap than we need and thus end up with more soap residue in our clothes. When fragrance from the person who used the wash machine before me ends up on my clothes, it seems an excess! So perhaps the compromise with a more expensive product is to adjust the amount used per load and stretch it out.

Grist has a concise piece on the subject complete with product specs and costs.