Are we exposing our kids to harmful chemicals in the bathtub? Turns out that many common baby shampoos and bubble baths contain known carcinogens—formaldehyde and 1,4 dioxane, according to a recent study by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics.
Even more shocking is that the same companies that tout their products as "gentle" and "pure" are not required by the Food and Drug Administration to list these harmful chemicals, because they aren't considered ingredients in the products, but rather contaminants that develop post-manufacturing, according to the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics. Common preservatives release formaldehyde over time, according to the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics. And 1,4 dioxane is a by-product of a chemical-processing technique called ethoxylation, in which cosmetic ingredients are processed with ethylene oxide.
If you're outraged, you are not alone. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, the 42-year-old Democrat from New York and a mother of two, is taking action. She recently introduced the Safe Baby Products Act, which directs the FDA to investigate and regulate hazardous contaminants in personal-care products marketed to or used by children.
We caught up with the senator to find out what she's doing to make bathtime safe again.
Q: What is the Safe Baby Products Act trying to address?
A: The Safe Baby Products Act is common-sense legislation to make sure the FDA has the authority and resources to protect our children from harmful chemicals in baby products. I have two young kids at home, a 1-year-old named Henry and a 5-year-old named Theodore. And when I received the report from the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, I was quite alarmed because many of the products that were mentioned in their report are products that I've been using on my sons since they were born. So as a parent and a legislator, I want to ensure that we have the oversight and accountability that's necessary to keep our kids safe.
Q: The report from the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics shows wide ranges in the levels of the two contaminants. Are low levels relatively safe?
A: What we have is evidence that these chemicals exist in these products, so the next step is to find out whether it can affect children who use these products normally. This is what we want the FDA to determine: It is very good at assessing whether food and drugs are safe, and it should be doing the same for baby products.
Q: Why shouldn't all personal-care products (not just baby products) be required to list or ban these contaminants as in other countries?
A: All products should be safe for use, which is why I'm working on a comprehensive bill with Senator Diane Feinstein (D-California). However, because of the unique vulnerability of infants and children to toxic chemicals in personal-care products, my focus right now is to make sure those products are safe.
Q: There has been a lot of information recently about other toxins, from BPA to parabens, in children's and adults' products. Are you involved with any other legislation to keep families safe from toxins?
A: Protecting our families from toxins is one of my top health-care priorities, and I will continue to fight to make sure that our food, water, and other products are safe. I am a cosponsor of two bills to establish a federal ban on BPA in all food and beverage containers. I also passed legislation in the Senate's Environment and Public Works Committee to investigate trace amounts of pharmaceutical drugs found in New York drinking water and study the long-term health effects on children and families.
