Hand-me downs are often seen as skungy garments that second and third children get given after the first born has received ‘all the good stuff.’ However, there is actually a hidden benefit that may cause younger siblings to have the enviable position. In a word– formaldehyde.
New clothing is currently smothered with this complex chemical that softens, colour-fastens and beautifies clothing while at the same time posing a potential health risk, especially to young children.
I discovered some this recently when my daughter tried on a new dress from Target without washing it. She literally had the fairy frills on for all of 10 minutes when she started crying that her skin hurt. Within minutes her skin welted up in hives everywhere that the dress had touched. I quickly put her in the shower, but the hives burned for several hours. Only after giving her clarantyne did her scream calm and it was not until the next day that the hives started to ease.
After trolling the internet I came across teams of mums whose children had experienced the same trauma as a result of high levels of formaldehyde on clothing. Not only are children’s clothing more likely to have higher levels of this chemical due to its more effective fire retardation quality, but children are more susceptible to its effects.
Many countries are now banning or harshly restricting the usage of formaldehyde in children’s clothing and bedding however, Australia is not currently one of them.
It takes approximately 10 washes to appropriately decrease formaldehyde levels in children’s clothing and nearly double that for sleep wear. So hand-me downs are not just cost-effective and environmentally responsible but they are also a healthy option for our kids.
And p.s. I did write to Target and received a curt response that their clothing does not have any such chemicals and they cannot explain the ‘coincidence’ of wearing the dress and reacting within 10 minutes.
Happy with Hand-me-downs, Keshena
Happy with Hand-me-downs, Keshena
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wow, that's really interesting, thanks for the info
ReplyDeleteScary! I always wash new clothes before I wear them (ditto for my son) but I didn't realise it took 10 more washes - very very scary!
ReplyDeleteHave you heard of the shop' Hand Me Downs' in The Basin? It's like an op shop JUST for baby/kids/maternity stuff! It's awesome! You can get your 'retail therapy' fix there, not break the bank, support an environmentall-friendly practise AND find lovely clothes for your kids that have probably been washed several times already! Win-win-win!
Keep up the great work, K & T!
Erin xox