Toxic Substances in Clothing - Klartext Translated

What Are We Absorbing Through Our Clothing?

How often, and for how long each day, does the modern person spend time completely naked? Our skin comes into contact with all kinds of textiles nearly around the clock. Conventional wool, silk, cotton, linen, or synthetic fibers—the materials our clothing is made of—contain a cocktail of chemicals that can trigger allergic reactions, weaken our immune system over the long term, and increase the likelihood of cancer.

What do we absorb through our clothing?

Residues of fertilizers and pesticides used during cultivation
Bleaching, lightening, and dyeing agents.
The often long transport routes from raw material suppliers to processing factories are also fraught with toxicity: To protect natural fibers from mold and insects, they are typically packed in boxes treated with wood preservatives and impregnated with insecticides.
The textile industry uses over 3,000 dyes that can be mixed together; they color fibers through chemical reactions, adhere to them, or accumulate in the fibers’ cavities. Some of these are fat-soluble, meaning they can be absorbed through the skin.
Added to this are synthetic substances that make a textile wrinkle-free, water-resistant, flame-retardant, more grippy, softer, or sturdier.

How many people realize that synthetic clothing, especially fleece fabrics, also pollutes the air we breathe? Whether clothes made of polyethylene, polyamide, polyester, and similar materials, or recycled textiles made from synthetic fibers: Not just during washing, but simply when shaking them out, putting them on, or taking them off, thousands upon thousands of microscopic plastic particles are released and float around us. When we inhale them, they become lodged in the lungs; via the bloodstream, they reach all other internal organs. There, they can trigger chronic inflammation.

Every synthetic material that comes into contact with our skin releases chemicals into it. This applies to handkerchiefs and tissues, pillows, bedding, and blankets, and even to the gloves we slip on, as well as to all kinds of footwear we slip into barefoot. Switching from plastic to high-quality leather goods reliably increases expenses, but not safety. Up to 20 kilograms of chemicals are needed to treat a bull’s 40-kilogram hide until it is ready for use. Tanning, the process intended to preserve the leather, is an extremely chemical-intensive production process involving many problematic substances. In addition to substances with unpronounceable names like dimethyl fumarate or alkylphenol ethoxylates, this also includes chromium VI. These substances can not only trigger allergies but, with frequent prolonged skin contact, also increase the risk of cancer and cause acute symptoms of poisoning. (According to estimates by the Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR), over half a million people in Germany are already sensitive to chromium VI.) Of 84 leather samples examined by the Berlin-Brandenburg State Laboratory in 2013, one in four exceeded the permissible maximum level of chromium VI, which currently stands at three milligrams per kilogram of leather.

Solutions: Switch to clothing made from chemically untreated fibers, using renewable raw materials (cotton, wool, silk, hemp, linen) sourced from certified organic farming without synthetic fertilizers or pesticides. Switch to leather goods tanned using purely plant-based methods. Look for eco-labels. Be wary of cheap imported goods as a general rule.

Published by Editor