Toxins in babies’ diapers: NGOs call on EU Commission to act

In December 2020, the French national authorities on food, environment, and work safety (ANSES) made a proposal to ban certain chemicals from children’s diapers. The chemicals concerned by the restriction are formaldehydes, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), dioxin s, furans and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB). Formaldehydes and PAHs are identified cancerogenic, mutagenic, and reprotoxic chemicals (identified as such by EU legislation on packaging & labelling [CLP]).

Furthermore dioxines, furans and PCBs are not only persistent organic pollutants (POP) but also have endocrine disruptors. To sum it up, these chemicals should not be in products for infants! Because of the bleaching process used for the fluff of diapers – mainly imported from the US (who do not have regulations on the matter),- these hazardous substances can be found in diapers. When in contact with urine, these hazardous substances can get into contact with the skin of the babies.

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