Do you use fabric softener? For this reason you should rather leave it alone. Fabric softener is not good for you or your laundry
A lot of people still use fabric softener these days. Advertisements always say that you can’t wash without fabric softener – after all, the laundry smells as fresh as flowers and gets as clean as possible. But is that true? We looked at what fabric softener is actually made of and were pretty shocked!
We think that you too will think twice after reading this.
If you read what’s on the packaging properly, you’ll quickly find out that the fabric softener contains some substances that aren’t all that fresh. In fact, we couldn’t find a single reason why you should soil your clean laundry with these chemicals! We have listed a few of them below.
1. Alpha Terpineol – This dangerous chemical can cause health problems like dizziness, headaches, memory loss and even facial numbness and pain in the neck and back.
2. Benzyl Acetate – A toxic chemical linked to pancreatic cancer. The vapors can cause irritation of the eyes and respiratory tract.
3. Benzyl Alcohol – Benzyl alcohol can cause many health problems, such as central nervous system disorders, headaches, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, and extreme drops in blood pressure.
4. Chloroform – Chloroform is a potent carcinogenic neurotoxin and can cause many health problems such as loss of consciousness, nausea, headache, vomiting and/or dizziness and drowsiness.
5. Linalool – This is a sedative known to cause breathing difficulties and loss of muscle coordination.
All of those nasty chemicals are in fabric softener! Not only that, the stuff is also very expensive and very bad for the environment.
Of course we understand that you still want nice, fresh and soft laundry. Fortunately, there is a very good natural alternative.
Vinegar
So we found out that it is better not to use fabric softener. But with detergent alone, the laundry just doesn’t smell that good and it doesn’t get super soft either. So what is a good alternative to chemical fabric softener? Of course, everyone’s favorite natural cleaning product: vinegar! Vinegar is a true miracle cure: you can use it for so many different things, and it’s also completely natural. In addition to vinegar, you can also add a little ammonia.
To wash
Add a cup of vinegar to your laundry with a dash of ammonia. Pour it into the fabric softener compartment and just add a normal amount of detergent. The ammonia keeps the detergent from sticking to the fabric of the clothes or towels, while the vinegar does the same—just for the minerals. Together, these two ingredients ensure that your laundry is sure to come out soft and fresh. If you don’t want to use ammonia, you can simply use the vinegar without the addition of ammonia. Whichever you choose, both variants are clearly better than fabric softener!
