Last week I wrote about how Johnson & Johnson had agreed to remove formaldehyde-releasing chemicals from it's Johnson's baby shampoo thanks to pressure from the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics. One of the things that was troubling me is that they were not giving a timeline in which they would accomplish this.
However, yesterday I got a call from Stacy Malkan of the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics telling me that they had just spoken to J&J and were waiting for an official letter from them committing to remove all formaldehyde-releasing chemicals from their baby products across all of their brands within the next 2 years. They also said that they already completed the removal of phthalates from their baby products last year. Additionally, they are working to reduce 1,4 dioxane to <1 to 4ppm an to look for new technologies that do not release 1,4 dioxane in the manufacturing process.
This is great news and will no doubt have a ripple effect throughout the industry. The removal of formaldehyde, 1,4 dioxane and phthalates goes a long way towards protecting the health of our children and we should celebrate it.
However, we should also keep it in perspective. First of all, I find the 2 year time frame problematic. It's not like they need to reformulate the product. They are already producing Johnson's Baby Shampoo, and likely their other baby products without these ingredients in other countries. All they have to do is produce it here. My guess is they want to use up the chemicals they've already purchased before switching production over to safer products.
Also, we should note that while they are removing these chemicals from all of their baby products, they aren't removing them from their adult formulations. Some of the brands they own that are geared for adults include Aveeno & Neutrogena. If you haven't already read my articles about Aveeno's greenwashing you can read about it here, here, here, and here. You can find a full list of Johnson & Johnson's brands here. They also still didn't commit to removing the rest of their ingredients with negative health implications. So while this move certainly does make their baby products safer. I wouldn't exactly say they are safe.
What's really important for parents to remember is that there are safer baby products out there from reputable companies that are sincerely committed to nontoxic products and supporting the long term health of babies and mothers. The two that I trust the most are Miessence and Earth Mama Angel Baby. Both of these brands were formulated by mothers committed to protecting children.
Also remember...when we band together to demand safer products, corporations will give them to us to protect their business.
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