Based on the observation that thousands of chemicals are used in the manufacture of our clothes, researchers at Stockholm University (Sweden) examined and tested 60 clothes.
Carcinogenic toxic substances
A first analysis found thousands of toxic products in the laundry. About a hundred of them have been identified. Several of these substances were not included in the composition of clothing and could be related, according to the researchers, to residues, chemicals mixed during transport or by-products.
However, the consequences generated by these substances on human health and the environment can be very serious. “Some of them are suspected of being carcinogenic and others, of pollute the waters“, explains Giovanna Luongo, Doctor of Analytical Chemistry at Stockholm University.
Toxic products in organic cotton clothing
These toxic substances were divided into four groups and then analyzed. The highest concentrations of two of them, quinolines and aromatic amines, were found in polyester. the cotton, although organic, contained benzothiazoles.
The researchers washed the clothes and then measured the levels of toxins. Some of these substances left with the wastewater, risking polluting aquatic environments. Others remained in textiles, becoming a potential source ofskin exposure long-term. Scientists do not know, however, whether the levels of these products are high enough to be dangerous.
“We wear clothes day and night throughout our lives. We need to know if these substances in the laundry get into our skin and what that means for our health,” says Conny Östman, professor of analytical chemistry. Further research is therefore to be expected.
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