Question from K.H.
Debra,
Recently, I read this article that explained that natural products contain carcinogenic by products as well as the regular ones. Obviously this has worried me. At that point aren’t the cheaper big brand cleaning products equal to these more “natural” ones such as 7th generation, if all of them have carcinogenic chemicals? Here is the article:
articles.latimes.com/2008/mar/14/business/fi-natural14
What type of soap product do you recommend to clean dishes and detergent to use in the dishwasher?
Thanks and hopefully you can help me sort out my confusion!
Debra’s Answer
Sigh…this is what happens when reporters who don’t understand the subject write about things…
This article is written in a way that shows confusion. Yes, there was a study that showed that nearly half of the natural cleaning products tested contained some 1,4-dioxane, which causes cancer. The confusing part is that parts of this article make it sound like it is purposefully added as an ingredient. And more than half of the products tested DIDN’T contain this contaminant, but these were not mentioned at all.
1,4-dioxane is a byproduct of the combination of two petrochemical ingredients, which occurs in the product after it is manufactured. So you won’t find 1,4-dioxane on the label, but it may be in the product.
The study showed that all products certified by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Organic Program were free of 1,4-dioxane. In order to receive the seal, 95% or more of the ingredients have to be organic. In addition, brands found not to contain 1,4-dioxane included Burt’s Bees, Clorox Green Works, Avalon Organics and Dr. Bronner’s.
Personally, I use Dr. Bronner’s to wash my dishes. I use the one with the natural peppermint oil and it smells wonderful. And gets my dishes really clean. It’s just pure soap.
I don’t have a dishwasher, but there’s a big discussion of dishwasher detergents at Q&A: Dishwasher Detergent.
