The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics recently contracted an independent laboratory to test for two cancer-causing chemicals that might be in some of the leading brand baby shampoos and soaps.  The results are in and they suggest cause for concern.

The lab tested 48 of the most popular children’s bath products sold in the United States for two chemicals linked to cancer - formaldehyde and 1,4-dioxane.  Some of the products tested included soaps and shampoos from Johnson’s, L’Oreal, and Pampers.

Of the 48 samples tested, 28 of them were tested specifically for formaldehyde and 23 of them, about 82%, tested positive.  Formaldehyde is not deliberately added to the products but is a by-product that forms when a preservative breaks down.  The preservative is added to prevent growth of bacteria and to extend shelf life of the product.

Formaldehyde is commonly used to embalm corpses and as glue in chipboard manufacturing.  Pampers Kandoo, a foaming hand soap, tested positive for enough formaldehyde to trigger skin reactions in people with sensitive skin.

The US National Cancer Institute says workers exposed to formaldehyde on the job face the heightened risk of developing cancers that affect the brain, nasopharynx, and nasal sinuses, as well as the possibility of leukemia.

Tests revealed the presence of 1,4-dioxane in 32 of the 48 products tested for it, or about 67%.  This chemical is often added as a foaming agent in bath products but the Environmental Protection Agency and the US Department of Health and Human Services both identify it as carcinogenic in animals and probably a human carcinogen as well.

Of the 28 products tested for formaldehyde, 23 of them contained the chemical.

Stacy Malkan, speaking on behalf of the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, says that even though the products were found to have these chemicals in low levels, anything that causes cancer in animals should not be used on babies’ heads.  Children are especially vulnerable to chemical toxins and even small quantities of a known carcinogen can add up with repeated or extended exposure.