Fabric softener is actually bad for your clothes (Image: Getty)
It’s part and parcel of every laundry cycle along with washing powder, but households are being urged to consider ditching their fabric softener entirely.
People are being warned that fabric softener, while it can make your seem softer and fresher, could potentially be having all manner of unintended consequences for water safety and for the life expectancy of your clothing, too.
Many fabric softeners contain all sorts of added chemicals, and are also sold in plastic bottles, a double whammy for the , while many will actually reduce the longevity of garments too.
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Some of the dyes in fabric softeners can end up polluting waterways, while other ingredients come from fossil fuel sources.
Kathryn Kellog, of Going Zero Waste.com, says: “Traditional [fabric] softeners are typically a petroleum-based product which doesn’t biodegrade easily.
“Petroleum is a fossil fuel, and its combustion contributes to polluting emissions, especially of carbon dioxide — one of the most dangerous of the greenhouse gases.
“Some softeners have a palm oil base.
“Several other ingredients make up fabric softener, like glutaral (or glutaraldehyde), which is toxic to marine life.
“Dyes are also frequently used in fabric softeners. During manufacturing, about a tenth of all dye products are discharged into our waterways. Even just a little added color in waterways can block sunlight and prevent plant photosynthesis, which disrupts the entire aquatic ecosystem.”
Environmental science and research group the EWG (Environmental Waste Group) has also issued a warning about fabric softeners.
It says: “There are nearly 4,000 fragrance ingredients in common household products, and scarcely any way to know what they are.
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“Your fabric softener may contain phthalates, which disperse scent; synthetic musks such as galaxolide, which accumulate in the body; and much more.
“Fragrance mixes can cause allergies, skin irritations such as dermatitis, difficulty breathing and potential reproductive harm. Research shows that scents may also cause health problems when vented outdoors, especially for asthmatics and those sensitive to chemicals.”
And according to Consumer Reports.org, fabric softener can cut your clothes’ life expectancy too. It says: “Fabric softeners work by depositing a layer of electrically charged chemical compounds on fabric. This coating causes the fibers on clothes to fluff up, thus making fabric feel softer and gentler on the skin.
“They also neutralize electric charge, which is what makes your clothes shock you or cling together. But it comes at a cost: Fabric softener can reduce flame resistance on children’s sleepwear, and the residue buildup in the machine can create a healthy environment for mildew to grow in. It can even diminish workout clothes’ wicking ability.”
Instead, people are being urged to try one of several other options which won’t cause any harm to your clothes or to the world.
Try adding distilled white vinegar to your washing machine during the rinse cycle. This won’t leave any smell on your clothes but softens naturally.
Or try 100 percent wool dryer balls. Makers of these solid balls of felted wool, or felted wool wrapped around a fibre core. Generally these are safe for sensitive skin and babies, and the balls also lift and separate clothes in the dryer, shortening drying time and saving energy, so it saves you money as well.