Poll - Do You Wash New Clothes Before Wearing?

[Excelsior! Academy]

No.  We probably should and I am kinda a germaphobe about everything else, but alas we already have too much laundry.  Washing first would put me over the edge.

[Farrar]

13 minutes ago, SeaConquest said:

Oh G-d, like we don't have enough anxiety! Now I have to worry about this, too! How do I change my answer?

Someone else pointed out it was because they were in a truck with fertilizer. So I think the lesson was supposed to be don't buy knock off designer clothes from guys on the street or something. It's so funny how many people remember that episode. It's really not a rational worry though. Of course, rationality never stops a worry, right?

[Arcadia]

July 2019 article https://time.com/5631818/wash-new-clothes/

“Allergic rashes aren’t the only health issue associated with clothing chemicals. In a 2014 study, a group of researchers from Stockholm University in Sweden tested 31 clothing samples purchased at retail stores, and that were “diverse in color, material, brand, country of manufacture, and price, and intended for a broad market.” They found a type of chemical compound called “quinoline” (or one of its derivatives) in 29 of the 31 samples, and the levels of this chemical tended to be especially high in polyester garments. Quinoline is used in clothing dyes, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has classified it as a “possible human carcinogen” based on some studies linking it to “tumor-initiating activity” in mice—though the agency also states that no human studies have been conducted to assess the cancer-causing potential of quinoline.

Ulrika Nilsson, a member of the Stockholm University group and a professor of analytical chemistry, also calls out nitroanilines and benzothiazoles, two more chemical compounds that turn up in clothing and that lab and animal evidence has linked to potential adverse health effects, including cancer. While some of these chemicals may remain locked away in the fibers of your clothing, others may slowly work their way out onto your skin or into the air you breathe as your clothing ages and degrades. Unfortunately, Nilsson says, “these chemicals are so far not well studied regarding skin uptake or related health effects” in humans, so it’s not clear whether exposure to these chemicals in your clothing could make you sick.

David Andrews, a senior scientist with the nonprofit Environmental Working Group who has investigated the use of chemicals in the textile industry, says clothing is often treated with stain-repellents, color-fasteners, anti-wrinkle agents, softness-enhancers, and any number of other chemical treatments. Clothing manufacturers don’t have to disclose any of these to customers, and many of the chemicals, including a popular type of waterproofing chemical called fluorosurfactants (often referred to as PFAS), have little or no research backing their safety. Not only could these chemicals pose health risks to people, but they also end up in the air and water supplies, where they could do further harm.

“It’s always in your best interest to wash clothing before wearing,” he says. Nilsson agrees, saying washing new clothes “reduces the content of chemicals,” especially residual chemicals that may be left over from the manufacturing process.

But even so, that doesn’t prevent clothing chemicals from breaking down and leaching out of your clothing and onto your skin or into the air you breathe. And, unfortunately, there’s no easy way to point people toward clothing items that may be safer, Andrews says. Some of the research on clothing suggests synthetic materials may be treated with more chemicals than natural fibers such as cotton. But there’s really no label indicator or certification that signals a garment is chemical-free, he says.

“What’s maddening for the consumer is that you buy a shirt that says ‘100% cotton,’ and yet you’re given no information about any of the chemicals or additives that have been used.””

[Danae]

1 hour ago, SeaConquest said:

Oh G-d, like we don't have enough anxiety! Now I have to worry about this, too! How do I change my answer?

Before they figured out it was because the clothes had been contaminated by fertilizer they thought the cause might have been contaminated laundry detergent. It’s a no win situation.