Baby Products: Now With Formaldehyde!
More than half of the baby products recently tested by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics were found to contain trace levels of formaldehyde and dioxane. Though the study didn’t accuse Johnson & Johnson of dumping barrels of the potential carcinogens directly into their baby products, the dangerous chemicals can form during the manufacturing process as other ingredients break down. The full list of 48 tested baby shampoos, lotions, soaps, and wipes—including some well-known products you probably have on your shelf—inside.
The government hasn’t banned the use of dioxane in baby products or cosmetics, even though they can seep through lotions into the skin. The FDA believes that trace amounts of carcinogens are acceptable, and might even toughen up American babies to survive any financial downturn.
“The levels we’ve found are relatively low, and the industry often says there’s just a little bit of carcinogen in my product,” Malkan said. “The problem is, we’re finding a little bit of carcinogen in many products. Many of these products are used every day, so we’ve got repeated and frequent exposure to these low levels of chemicals. They’re not the safest and purest products, and parents ought to know that.”
In addition, government studies have not examined the effect of chemical exposure on the particular vulnerabilities of infants and children, whose bodies are still developing, the advocates said.
So which products contain the probable carcinogens? Here’s the full list:
| Product Name and Company | 1,4-dioxane (in parts per million) | Formaldehyde (in parts per million) |
| Lotions | ||
| American Girl Hopes and Dreams Shimmer Body Lotion (Bath & Body Works) | ND* | 310 |
| Baby Magic “Soft Baby Scent” Baby Lotion (Ascendia Brands, Inc) | ND* | 570 |
| Baby Magic “Soft Baby Scent” Baby Lotion (Ascendia Brands, Inc) | 0.92 | 610 |
| Baby Magic “Soft Baby Scent” Baby Lotion (Ascendia Brands, Inc) | ND* | 330 |
| Johnson’s Bedtime Lotion Natural Calm Essences (Johnson & Johnson Consumer Companies) | ND* | Not tested for this chemical |
| Mustela Baby Body Lotion (Laboratories Expanscience) | ND* | Not tested for this chemical |
| Tinker Bell Body Lotion (Goldie LLC) | ND* | 220 |
| Shampoos | ||
| CVS Baby Shampoo (CVS/Pharmacy) | 0.92 | 350 |
| Johnson’s Baby Shampoo (Johnson & Johnson Consumer Companies) | ND* | 200 |
| Johnson’s Baby Shampoo (Johnson & Johnson Consumer Companies) | 1.1 | 210 |
| L’Oreal Kids Extra Gentle 2-in-1 Fast Dry Shampoo – Burst of Cool Melon (L’Oreal USA) | 0.95 | 260 |
| Suave Kids 2-in-1 Shampoo – Wild Watermelon (Unilever) | 0.69 | ND* |
| Liquid Shower Soaps | ||
| American Girl Hopes and Dreams Glistening Shower and Bath Wash (Bath & Body Works) | 14 | Not tested for this chemical |
| American Girl Real Beauty Inside and Out Shower Gel – Apple Blossom (Bath & Body Works) | 6.3 | 210 |
| American Girl Real Beauty Inside and Out Shower Gel – Apple Blossom (Bath & Body Works) | 5.7 | 220 |
| American Girl Real Beauty Inside and Out Shower Gel – Apple Blossom (Bath & Body Works) | 18 | 150 |
| American Girl Real Beauty Inside and Out Shower Gel – Sunny Orange (Bath & Body Works) | 35 | ND* |
| Bath Washes | ||
| Aveeno Baby Soothing Relief Creamy Wash (Johnson & Johnson Consumer Companies) | 1.4 | Not tested for this chemical |
| Aveeno Baby Soothing Relief Creamy Wash (Johnson & Johnson Consumer Companies) | 1.7 | Not tested for this chemical |
| Aveeno Baby Soothing Relief Creamy Wash (Johnson & Johnson Consumer Companies) | 4.6 | Not tested for this chemical |
| CVS Kids Body Wash – Blueberry Blast (CVS/Pharmacy) | 0.75 | 54 |
| Equate Tearless Baby Wash (Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.) | 0.63 | 290 |
| Gentle Naturals Eczema Baby Wash (Del Pharmaceuticals, Inc.) | 6.4 | Not tested for this chemical |
| Grins & Giggles Milk & Honey Baby Wash (Gerber Products Company) | 2.8 | 400 |
| Huggies Naturally Refreshing Cucumber & Green Tea Baby Wash (Kimberly-Clark) | 3.2 | 410 |
| Johnson’s Moisture Care Baby Wash (Johnson & Johnson Consumer Companies) | 3.9 | Not tested for this chemical |
| Johnson’s Oatmeal Baby Wash – Vanilla (Johnson & Johnson Consumer Companies) | 4.2 | Not tested for this chemical |
| Mustela Baby Shampoo (Laboratories Expanscience) | 2.8 | Not tested for this chemical |
| Mustela Dermo-Cleansing Gel for Hair and Body Newborn/Baby (Laboratories Expanscience) | 3.9 | Not tested for this chemical |
| Night-time Bath Baby Wash (Target Corporation) | 3.6 | Not tested for this chemical |
| Bubble Baths | ||
| Barbie Berry Sweet Bubble Bath (Water-Jel Technologies) | 0.65 | 440 |
| Dora the Explorer Bubble Bath (MZB Personal Care) | 1.5 | 130 |
| Hot Wheels Berry Blast Bubble Bath (Water-Jel Technologies) | 2.8 | 100 |
| Mustela Multi-Sensory Bubble Bath (Laboratories Expanscience) | 1.7 | ND* |
| Sesame Street Bubble Bath – Orange Mango Tango (The Village Company) | 2.8 | 340 |
| Tinker Bell Scented Bubble Bath (Goldie LLC) | 11 | 420 |
| Baby Wipes | ||
| Huggies Naturally Refreshing Cucumber & Green Tea Baby Wipes (Kimberly-Clark) | ND* | Not tested for this chemical |
| Huggies Soft Skin – Shea Butter (Kimberly-Clark Global Sales Inc) | ND* | 100 |
| Kirkland Signature Premium Unscented Baby Wipes (Costco Wholesale Corporation) | ND* | Not tested for this chemical |
| Pampers Baby Fresh (Procter & Gamble) | ND* | Not tested for this chemical |
| Pampers Calming – Lavender (Procter & Gamble) | ND* | Not tested for this chemical |
| Hair Relaxers | ||
| Dark & Lovely Kids Beautiful Beginnings No-Mistake Nourishing No-Lye Creme Relaxer, Normal to Course Hair (SoftSheen-Carson, owned by L’Oreal USA) | ND* | Not tested for this chemical |
| Dark & Lovely Kids Beautiful Beginnings No-Mistake Nourishing No-Lye Children’s Relaxer System, Fine Hair Types (SoftSheen-Carson, owned by L’Oreal USA) | ND* | ND* |
| Soft & Beautiful Just for Me! No-Lye Conditioning Creme Relaxer, Children’s Super (Alberto-Culver Company) | 0.27 | ND* |
| Hand Soaps | ||
| Pampers Kandoo Foaming Handsoap – Magic Melon (Procter & Gamble) | 0.49 | 310 |
| Sun Blocks | ||
| Banana Boat Kids UVA & UVB Sunblock Lotion SPF 30 (Sun Pharmaceuticals Corp.) | ND* | Not tested for this chemical |
| No-Ad Sun Pals SPF 45 UVA/UVB Sun Protection (Solar Cosmetics Labs Inc.) | 0.46 | Not tested for this chemical |
| Toothpastes | ||
| Colgate Kids 2-in-1 Toothpaste and Mouthwash – Strawberry (Colgate-Palmolive Company) | ND* | Not tested for this chemical |
| * Not detectable. | ||
Probable Carcinogens Found in Baby Toiletries [The Washington Post]
Probable Carcinogens Found in Baby Toiletries [The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics]
(Photo: bbaunach)
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