A recent study has found that several popular washing up liquids contain potential endocrine disrupting chemicals, but it is possible to shop for alternative products free from these chemicals.

It may feel at times that reducing your exposure to toxic chemicals is a task worthy of a herculean fable. While it is true, these chemicals have permeated just about every aspect of our lives, chinks of hopeful light do exist. Where one product contains a toxic chemical, a safer alternative will often exist.

A recent study by The Danish Consumer Council THINK Chemicals illustrates this with washing up liquid. They selected 29 washing up liquids, including brands such as ‘Shine’ and ‘Fairy’, and scoured the ingredients list for unwanted chemicals, such as suspected endocrine disruptors, and potential allergenic substances. A chemical rating of A, B, or C was assigned to each product tested.

Five of the washing up liquids were given the lowest possible chemical score of C. This score was attributed to products which contained allergenic preservatives or suspected endocrine disrupters. Products earning a C rating included Fairy P&G Platinum and Fairy P&G Ultra Original.

While many washing up liquids received a B rating as they contained perfumes, which can cause allergies, over a third of the products tested received a first-place podium finish with an A rating. These products are the friendliest to human health and the environment.

This study demonstrates that while harmful chemicals often inhabit the products on our supermarket shelves it is possible to shop for safer products.

There are several steps you can take to reduce your risk from endocrine disruptors and other harmful chemicals in cleaning products. Buying fewer cleaning products, and making your own cleaning liquids reduces the number of potential avenues for you to encounter harmful chemicals.

When you are buying cleaning products, look out for eco-labels that indicate a product meets certain environmental standards.

It’s also important to stop endocrine disruptors and other harmful chemicals from building up in your home. You can take simple steps to reduce chemical accumulation, such as vacuuming and dusting with a damp cloth frequently and ventilating your home with open windows.

Ultimately, you shouldn’t have to arrive at the supermarket equipped with a magnifying glass, ready to scrutinise the labelling on your purchases, just to prevent toxic chemicals from entering your home. It’s time for lawmakers to clean up their act and put in place strong legislation to deal with harmful chemicals in consumer products. That’s why CHEM Trust is calling on the UK government and EU authorities to protect their citizens from harmful chemicals by introducing robust legislation to phase out the most harmful chemicals from consumer products by 2030.