J&J Baby Shampoo Contains Carcinogens. What Shampoo Do I Use Now?
From the archive. This post was first published on the original Green Eggs and Moms blog and is kept here as it was.
Just because your baby shampoo is formulated for, well uhh, babies, does it mean it’s safe for them?
No.
There’s been a lot of chatter outside the Phils on how Johnson & Johnson Baby Shampoo uses harmful chemicals in their gentle baby formula. Not so gentle anymore, I suppose.
The culprits? Ioxane and quaternium-15, which can both cause cancer. Now, before you start panicking, J&J said their shampoo product is safe because they comply with US regulations.
Most products we buy from grocery shelves really contain chemicals. Before you say yikes, they need to in order to preserve their product’s shelf life. How do you think your favorite cookie snack, ketchup product or orange juice can stay fresh for so long?
Now, there are laws that specify allowable safety levels for chemicals used in products, but they might not always be followed.
So, to answer the question I posed above, if you are uncomfortable using harmful ingredients on your baby (even at “safe” levels), you can always switch to the green side. There are tons of organic products out there that are not only gentle on baby’s skin, but on the environment too.
Here are local online stores that carry organic baby shampoos:
Kikay Store
Pinoy Baby (scroll to the end of the page to see the shampoo)
Philippines Organic Products
For those outside the Phils, head to Amazon.com or your favorite online retailer. I’m 100% sure you’ll find organic baby products that are truly gentle on a baby’s skin.
Have you used any great organic baby products? Let us know by leaving a comment below.
Photo: Creative Commons from rachel_titiriga