Follow Our Easy 5 Step Guide To Ensure You Are Limiting Your Exposure To Harmful Toxins
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Introduction
Do you want to maximize the positive impact you have on the environment and your health while ensuring you're avoiding harmful toxins in your clothing?
If the answer is yes...
...We started out in a similar place but didn't know exactly where to start.
Over the past few years, we've researched every available textile fiber in the world and we found that there are currently only a handful of plant-based, toxin-free, and sustainable fibers that contain the properties needed to make great activewear.
It's ok if you're not an expert on apparel. This guide is simple and designed to provide an easy to understand roadmap to help you get where you're trying to go. We're here to help teach you the foundations necessary to avoid harmful toxins in clothing because there was a time when we weren't experts either.
To change the world, you need to take the first step. So let's dive in!
5 Ways To Avoid Toxins In Clothing
- Educate yourself on the materials used in most apparel
- Know which materials are most commonly associated with harmful toxins
- Learn about the difference between sustainability and toxin-free
- Understand which brands actually make toxin-free and sustainable activewear verses those that pander to the crowd
- Ensure you're actually choosing toxin-free activewear
1) Educate Yourself On The Materials Used In Most Apparel
Synthetic Materials
According to The Guardian, nearly 70% of clothes are made of synthetic fibers such as polyester, nylon, elastane, rayon, and acrylic. Textile Exchange asserts that over 50% of all fiber production is polyester based, so it's safe to say that the majority of clothing is made from synthetic fibers.
Synthetic fibers like polyester and nylon are typically derived from fossil fuels. Aside from the harmful effects these chemicals have on our environment, you wouldn't want to be wearing apparel made from gasoline, would you?
Despite the obvious answer, most of us do this every day. Go check your wardrobe for your favorite sports bra or pair of leggings and check the label. Odds are you will see either polyester or nylon (or polyamide, which is another name for nylon) in many or close to all of them.
Popular activewear brands like Lululemon, Athleta, Alo Yoga, and dozens more use synthetic materials like polyester or nylon, which have been found to contain dangerous levels of BPA in addition to other harmful toxins like PFAS, flame retardants, lead, phthalates, and azo dyes, and the process of manufacturing these materials is also bad for the environment.
Negative effects of BPA, PFAS, and the other toxins mentioned above include:
- Infertility
- Hormone disruption
- Anxiety and/or depression
- Increased likelihood of breast cancer
- Increased blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular disease
You Can Do This
While your first instinct may be to go and throw all your apparel made from synthetic material, Rome wasn't built in a day. Start with the items closest to your skin like bras, underwear, shirts, and pants.
Now that you know what materials to avoid, you are one step closer to avoiding exposure to harmful toxins, but...
...Simply avoiding apparel made from synthetic fibers doesn't necessarily guarantee it's toxin-free.
Recycled Materials
If you're like us, you recycle whenever you can. Repurposing or recycling material helps avoid landfills from overflowing and allows material that's already been manufactured to be put to productive use, so there is a serious upside to using recycled materials whenever we can.
You may have seen some brands promoting rPET, recycled polyester, recycled nylon, recycled cotton, econyl, and clothing made from other recycled materials. But are recycled materials safe? While repurposing already existing materials has irrefutable environmental benefits, the fact remains that many of the issues that plague synthetic fibers like polyester remain with rPET and other recycled materials.
If harmful toxins like BPA and PFAS have been found in synthetic fibers and synthetic fibers are usually derived from fossil fuels, it stands to reason that the same risks associated with those synthetic fibers exist in their recycled versions as well.
Afterall, recycling something doesn't change the composition of the core material. It simply reuses it and puts it to productive use.
It's Complicated
Fibers like bamboo and modal are a bit more complicated, and both have their benefits. The majority of bamboo is made through a similar process as rayon, which is relatively chemical and water-intensive.
Ultimately, it comes down to whether the bamboo is natural bamboo (aka bamboo linen) which is processed in a similar way to fabric made from flax or hemp and is therefore sustainable verses conventional bamboo which uses more chemicals and water in the processing part of the manufacturing process.
While there are more sustainable versions of modal such as Tencel™ Modal, manufactured by Lenzing, it's important to understand the differences between regular modal and Lenzing's Tencel™ Modal, which is more sustainable based on both chemical use and raw material sourcing.
If you stick with TENCEL™ Modal or a modal produced with an accompanying FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) or PEFC (Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification) certification, you will ensure that the modal was produced in a sustainable manner and contains little to none of the harmful toxins found in many textile fibers.
Plant-Based Materials
The top plant-based fibers include:
- TENCEL™ Lyocell
- Organic Cotton
- Organic Hemp
- Organic Linen Fabric
The above plant-based materials are the most sustainable and toxin-free materials on the market today. Each of these materials contains elements that may be better suited for specific apparel depending on its intended purpose.
For instance, we chose TENCEL™ Lyocell for our sports bra and tanks because it contains superior softness, breathability, stretchiness, and moisture-wicking abilities compared to organic cotton, organic hemp, or organic linen. That's not to say that these other fibers aren't better suited for future activewear we may role out or other kinds of clothing with a different purpose.
In summary, if you're looking to minimize your potential exposure to harmful toxins, these materials are your best option.
2) Know Which Materials Are Most Commonly Associated With Harmful Toxins
Synthetic Materials
As we discussed, materials like polyester, nylon, elastane, rayon, and acrylic are typically derived from fossil fuels and have been found to contain harmful toxins and dangerous levels of BPA.
For a more thorough analysis of materials to avoid, check out our analysis of textile materials here.
And here's a list of brands that CEH found dangerous levels of BPA in.
3) Learn About The Difference Between Sustainability And Toxin-Free
If you Google "sustainability definition" the top result is: the ability to be maintained at a certain level" and "avoidance of the depletion of natural resources in order to maintain an ecological balance."
So it makes complete sense that recycling and minimizing the harm to our environment during textile manufacturing would both fit in to that definition of sustainability. However, you may have noticed that there is no mention of toxin-free in the definition of sustainability.
This is because while the two concepts are often thought of as the same thing, that is not always the case. Just because something is sustainable, doesn't mean it is toxin-free and vice versa.
This is why understanding the difference between the two is critical if your goal is to have both.
4) Understand Which Brands Actually Make Toxin-Free & Sustainable Activewear
Many brands have sustainability pledges that make consumers feel good about supporting that particular brand, but in order to cut through the noise, one must evaluate whether these brands are simply pandering to your desire to help the planet or actually taking action to create meaningful change.
Any brand that presents a sustainability pledge but is selling apparel made from synthetic materials is likely misleading you. For instance, on Lululemon's site, they talk about sustainability and even release an annual sustainability report, but each year since releasing the report, their total emissions have increased.
Last year, Lululemon reported that their manufacturing related emissions increased by over 20%. Furthermore, Lulu makes the vast majority of their clothing from synthetic materials like polyester and nylon, although they use fancy trademarked names like Nulu and Luxtreme for their fabrics made from synthetic fibers.
Over 80% of activewear is made from synthetic fibers, which are not sustainable and have been found to contain harmful toxins like BPA, PFAS, Formaldehyde, and many more. Read more about the brands here.
Bottom line is if a brand is using synthetic fibers, they're not living up their sustainability pledge, and you're running the risk of exposure to harmful toxins.
Why would you want to wear anything other than the best, most comfortable, most sustainable, and toxin-free materials on the market?
Helpful tips and questions to ask when evaluating brands:
Do brands list their materials and are they transparent about it?
What are they blending the primary fabrics with? (e.g. most activewear is primarily made with polyester or nylon and then blended with spandex. Spandex is also called elastane. It's the same material. Because activewear needs stretch, a certain amount of spandex is needed and therefore almost always used. Are brands using bio-based spandex? Recycled spandex? Regular spandex? There is only one brand in the U.S.A. that we're currently aware of that is using bio-based spandex, which is certified SGS certified guaranteeing that it's made with plant-based materials and is produced in a harmless and eco-friendly environment. Hint: this brand's logo is at the top of this site.)
Beware of brands that make vague claims about their "sustainability" or "eco-friendly" practices but are still primarily using synthetic fibers for their apparel.
Look out for brands that are not using OEKO-TEX STANDARD 100 or GOTS certified materials, Bluesign certified dyes, or other reputable certifications ensuring they've been tested for harmful toxins.
5) Ensure You're Actually Choosing Toxin-Free Activewear
There is only one guaranteed way to ensure your activewear is free of harmful toxins, and that is for brands to test each finished product through a third party lab before releasing to market. Since you don't likely want to pay thousands of dollars to test every piece of apparel you buy with a third party for harmful toxins, it's helpful when apparel companies do that testing for you.
As far as we are aware, there is only one brand that actually tests their products before releasing to market. Hint: it's the same brand that is using Tencel Lyocell and bio-based spandex in their activewear.
However, there are also a number of other reputable certification bodies that textile manufacturers can apply and be approved for. Fashion certification organizations can be geared towards a specific area of concern. There are organizations that handle holistic certifications, environmental certifications, certifications for organic materials, animal rights certifications, social responsibility certifications, recycling certifications, and more.
The environmental certifications can also include testing for harmful toxins in fibers. Some of the more commonly known certifications include OEKO-TEX STANDARD 100, Bluesign, Cradle to Cradle (C2C), and Forest Stewardship Council. Common organic certifications in fashion include GOTS and Organic Content Standard (OCS).
While it's not necessary for brands to carry all of the above certifications, choosing brands that use certified materials limits your exposure to harmful toxins. If you don't see any certifications, this is a red flag that the brand is not prioritizing sustainability and toxin-free clothing.
Conclusion
Ultimately, the best way to avoid harmful toxins in your apparel is to ensure that it's been tested for these dangerous chemicals by a third party lab. Since most of us would rather not spend thousands of dollars testing each piece of clothing we buy, choosing brands that test for these toxins ensures that they are not present.
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