Attack on Fragranced Laundry Products: ‘Non-Scents’

Groups representing laundry product and fragrance manufacturers rebutted statements regarding fragrances in laundry products based on a study that fails to meet the basic principles of scientific investigation.

The American Cleaning Institute, Consumer Specialty Products Association, International Fragrance Association-North America, and the Research Institute for Fragrance Materials, Inc. reiterated the safety and effectiveness of scented laundry products that are attacked by University of Washington professor Anne Steinemann in her latest paper and press release.The paper makes unsubstantiated claims about emissions from dryer vents after using certain laundry products.

“Consumers should not be swayed by the sensationalist headlines that may come across the Internet related to this so-called research,” the groups said.“Fragranced fabric care products are safe when used as directed.The safe and responsible manufacture and use of cleaning products is an absolute top priority within our industry.”

The manufacturer groups expressed disappointment that the paper’s authors exploited their findings of volatile organic compounds emanating from dryer vents based on a dataset of such limited size and plagued by the confounding effects of their study design.Their own data could equally support the conclusion that most of the trace compounds could come from sources other than laundry products.

The industry groups noted that the information provided in the paper is far short of being detailed enough to replicate the study – a standard measure of any truly scientific study – let alone judge the applicability of the findings to how consumers use the products investigated in the study.The information is lacking a number of factors that could impact the fate of the ingredients in the products studied:

·The brands and models of the washers and dryers used in the study.
·The operational settings of the washers and dryers during the study
·The types of dryers – gas vs. electric
·The number of controls used in the study is limited. They should include non-fragranced products as well as using detergent or dryer sheets alone.


Regarding the special attention that was given to the findings on benzene, the authors have stretched beyond the limits of imagination and speculation, according to the groups. Regarding trace elements of acetaldehyde that was found: acetaldehyde is emitted from a wide range of natural sources, including apples and people’s breath, added the groups in their joint statement.