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Fabric Softener
Fabric softener is a product used while laundering to make clothes soft and eliminate static cling. Depending on the brand of fabric softener one purchases, it can be added at the beginning of the laundry cycle at the same time detergent is dispensed or during the rinse cycle. Fabric softener can also come in sheets to be placed in the dryer.
The benefits of fabric softener
There are many benefits of fabric softener-
- It reduces the static cling of clothes with each other. Your socks will not stick to sweaters after you dryer them together.
- Fabric softener reduces wrinkles of clothes. It means lowering the cost of ironing.
- The softener makes the clothes better in feel. The softness is quite evident on the laundry items like the towels and sheets that are left hanging outside.
- The harshness and stiffness of some clothes may not be felt ever with regular use of softener.
- It gives you pleasant experience of wearing soft clothes, sleeping under the nice and soft set of sheets and drying off after bath with a fluffy towel.
Dangers and health hazards
Fabric softener is one of the most toxic products. As the fabric softeners are made in a way that they stay in the clothes for a long time. The chemicals are gradually released in the air and you inhale the toxic chemicals or make them touch your skin to be absorbed.
The chemicals used in the fabric softening solutions are acrid and have strong smell. They are so strong that it becomes important for them to use about 50 times more of the fragrance to cover up the foul smell of the chemicals. The chemicals that form to be the ingredient of these softeners are Benzyl acetate, Benzyl Alcohol, Ethanol, Limonene, A-Terpineol, Ethyl Acetate, Camphor, Chloroform, Linalool, Pentane and other dangerous chemicals. Most of them are narcotic, anesthetic, respiratory tract irritant, narcotic, anesthetic neurotoxic and carcinogenic.
The health effects from being exposed to the chemicals in fabric softeners include-
- Central Nervous system problems
- Fatal edema
- Headaches
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Dizziness
- Blood pressure reduction
- Skin irritation
- mucus membranes
- Respiratory problems
- Pancreatic cancer
Precautions
Here are some precautions that the fabric cleanser users must bring into consideration -
- If you are prone to allergy or have sensitive skin, you may have severe problems in using fabric softener, mainly due to the ingredients. You can otherwise use a non-fragrant softener.
- Choose from the assortment of fabric softener products as per your preferences and price range.
- It is better to follow the trial and error method to see which brand is better for the needs of your family.
- Brand doesn't matter much as the soft feel on the clothes and the reduced side effects from the softener.