Complain about a product or service

Group Raps "Toxic" Bubble Bath

Products tested for carcinogenic chemicals

March 13, 2009

• Study: Pregnant Women 'Contaminated With Chemicals' From Everyday Products • Study Claims Phthalates Exposure In Pregnancy Diminishes Masculinity • Study Finds Sexual Problems in Human Males Exposed to High BPA Levels • Feds Launch New Study of BPA Safety, Industry Critics Blast Consumer Reports Study • Tests Find Wide Range Of BPA In Canned Soups, Juice And More • More Kids' Products Found Containing Unsafe Chemicals • Study: BPA Exposure in Pregnancy May Cause Aggressiveness in Girls • California Senate Votes to Ban BPA In Food Containers • Harvard Study Raises BPA Concerns • Emails Suggest Cozy FDA-BPA Industry Relationship • Chinese Lawsuit Claims Toxins in American Soap, Shampoo • Babies, Bathtime, and Cancer? • Group Raps "Toxic" Bubble Bath • Six Companies Stop Using Bisphenol-A In Bottles • Judge Orders Feds to Stop Sale of Toxin-Laden Toys • Lawsuit Seeks Immediate Ban on Toxic Toys • Advisory Panel Blasts FDA Over Bishphenol-A Stand • Soon-To-Be-Banned Plastic Toys Flooding the Market • States Act On BPA in Baby Bottles • Unstable Furniture Poses Deadly Danger To Children • California Sues Baby Furniture Manufacturers • Study Links BPA with Various Diseases • FDA Again Finds BPA Safe Despite Critics' Concerns • Consumer Advocates Blame Lobbyists for Delays in New Toy Safety Rules • Shower Curtains May Be Hazardous to Your Health • ‘Killer Cribs’ Study Finds Toxins in Common Baby Products • FDA Not Worried About BPA but Critics Demand Moratorium • Wal-Mart Bans BPA, Other Retailers Likely to Follow • War on Plastic Toys Escalates • Plastic War Hits The Toy Industry • Groups Warn Baby Bottles Leach Toxic Substance • Study Warns Chemical In Baby Shampoo May Cause Harm • 'Toxic' Water Bottles Take Top Spot in Dubious Data Awards • Group Hits Apple Over 'Toxic' iPhone • California Bans Plastic-Softening Chemical in Toys • Group Warns of Polluted Air Inside Cars • Watch Out for Hidden Toy Hazards

Babies across America are sitting in bubbles tainted with cancer-causing chemicals and other toxins linked to serious health effects, according to a consumer group.

The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics says it hired an independent lab to test bubble bath, baby lotion and other products intended for babies and children — purchased in cities across the U.S. — for 1,4-dioxane and formaldehyde. Both chemicals are contaminants that do not appear on product labels, and both are carcinogenic; formaldehyde can also trigger rashes in those with sensitive skin.

The lab tested 48 kids' products for 1.4-dioxane and reportedly found it in 67 percent of the products. Of the 28 products tested for formaldehyde, 82 percent were said to be positive.

Seventeen products were contaminated with both 1.4-dioxane and formaldehyde. Many of the contaminated products are advertised as "gentle," "pure" or "naturally refreshing."

"We know that cosmetics can be made without hazardous ingredients and contaminants," the group said in a statement. "So what's going on? How is it legal for companies to sell baby and kids' skincare products that contain toxic chemicals used in embalming fluid, fumigants and automotive coolant? Worse yet, these chemicals aren't even on the label, so even the most ingredient-conscious parents wouldn’t know whether the product is safe."

Consumer product companies, such as Johnson & Johnson, dismissed the report as alarmist and misleading.

"The FDA and other government agencies around the world consider these trace levels safe, and all our products meet or exceed the regulatory requirements in every country where they are sold," Johnson & Johnson said in a statement. "We are disappointed that the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics has inaccurately characterized the safety of our products, misrepresented the overwhelming consensus of scientists and government agencies that review the safety of ingredients, and unnecessarily alarmed parents."

The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics cites the National Academy of Sciences in reporting several factors that can contribute to children's special vulnerability to the harmful effects of chemicals:

• A child's chemical exposures are greater pound-for-pound than those of an adult.

• Children are less able than adults to detoxify and excrete chemicals.

• Children's developing organ systems are more vulnerable to damage from chemical exposures.

• Children have more years of future life in which to develop disease triggered by early exposure.

The chemicals were not disclosed on product labels because they're contaminants, not ingredients, and therefore are exempt from labeling laws.

Formaldehyde contaminates personal care products when common preservatives release formaldehyde over time in the container. Common ingredients likely to contaminate products with formaldehyde include quaternium-15, DMDM hydantoin, imidazolidinyl urea and diazolidinyl urea, the group said.

1.4-dioxane is a byproduct of a chemical processing technique called ethoxylation, in which cosmetic ingredients are processed with ethylene oxide. The group says manufacturers can easily remove the toxic byproducts, but are not required by law to do so.

The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics is a national coalition of nonprofit health and environmental organizations. It says its goal is to protect the health of consumers and workers by requiring the personal care products industry to phase out the use of chemicals linked to cancer, birth defects and other serious health concerns, and replace them with safer alternatives.

Report Your Experience
If you've had a bad experience -- or a good one -- with a consumer product or service, we'd like to hear about it. All complaints are reviewed by class action attorneys and are considered for publication on our site. Knowledge is power! Help spread the word. File your consumer report now.

Share		Follow us on Twitter.