Green Parenting: What’s up with green laundry detergent?

By Elise Jones, babybites blog editor

There has been a lot of detergent juggling going on over in my house lately. It all started well over a year ago when I finally got rid of all of my Costco-bulk-detergent purchases and began searching for a green detergent.

After multiple brands including Seventh Generation, Trader Joe’s, Method and Greenworks to name a few, I became convinced Method was the best for this family. We tend to have some tough laundry and it did the trick consistently without having to soak and repeat wash as often. Although I’m finding it is now not working as well as it once did…

Anyway, it got me thinking, what exactly makes up a green detergent, do they work and are they really good for sensitive skins. Here’s what I found:

• Almost every single detergent on my list had some sort of scent. The one with the faintest scent was Seventh Generation. So if this is something that irritates your skin, keep that in mind.
• Stains were not usually removed from all types of clothing and I had to rewash stained clothes multiple times (or soak them and use another product to get the stain out).
• National Geographic’s TheGreenGuide.com, recommends detergents that contain plant-based enzymes or ethanol rather than solvents and use compounds like sodium carbonate or sodium bicarbonate rather than phosphates for cleaning.
• The Environmental Protection Agency has a labeling system called DfE (Designed for the Environment) for products that help protect the environment and are safer for families. Here is their list of brands that have the DfE label.
• Another good piece of advice is to think about the packaging. Ultimately if one product is replaced more frequently than another, the packaging and manufacturing of the product are harming the environment too.
• And a final great resource to check the impact of your consumer products is the Good Guide. Their database is extensive and very informative in almost everything you buy. It bases each product’s score from the following categories: health, environment & society impact.

Now onto my next brand of green, scent-free detergent. Here’s hoping this one works!

*PS- None of my laundry “tests” were scientific in any way. Just used them as I had them and kept going until I found one that seemed to work.

Have any suggestions or questions for our Green Parenting blog? Email elise@babybites.com.

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Like what you see? Here are some more Green Parenting columns:

• The Peanut Butter Jar
• November 15 is America Recycles Day!
• Lead Testing & Why It Matters
• Green TV Shows
• The Story of Stuff

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