A total of 39 products are not recommended because they are rated D or E. They contain a large quantity of irritating or allergenic substances, such as certain perfumes, as well as substances that are “very harmful to health or the environment”.
Behind the lists of products with often unpronounceable names, a third of household products contain a significant amount of “potentially harmful” substances, says the magazine 60 Millions de Consommateurs in a special issue published Thursday.
The magazine studied the composition of 119 cleaning products from 52 brands purchased in April and July 2021, based on labels, lists of ingredients published by manufacturers on their website and safety data sheets, which indicate the concentration of substances.
It then gave each one a “Ménag’Score” to evaluate them on a scale of A to E, from “products to be used without reservation” to “products strongly advised against, too many problematic substances”.
In total, 39 products are not recommended because they are rated D or E. They contain a large number of irritating or allergenic substances, such as certain perfumes, as well as substances that are “very harmful to health or the environment”, some of which are suspected of being carcinogenic, mutagenic, toxic for reproduction or endocrine disruptors.
These products will not necessarily pose a problem for everyone; people with allergies, for example, will be more sensitive to them,” says Sophie Coisne, editor of this special edition magazine. But manufacturers still have some work to do.
Beware of disinfectant wipes and deodorants
60 Millions de Consommateurs urges consumers to be wary of disinfectant wipes for toilets and multi-surfaces, as 75% are rated D or E. The same applies to disinfectant sprays and deodorants, about half of which the magazine advises against.
You really have to look at the composition and not rely on the indications on the packets such as “eliminates 99% of bacteria” or “natural product”, says Sophie Coisne.
The “Ménag’Score” was developed by experts from the National Institute of Consumption (INC) in 2019, based on the “Nutri-Score” in food, to assess the chemical risk of cleaning products for the environment and health. It gives more weight in its calculation “to the components of greatest concern for human health and the most concentrated ingredients”, says 60 Millions de consommateurs on its website.
The institute had launched a petition in August 2019 to request the affixing of this labelling on household products, which collected more than 38,000 signatures. For its part, the government announced last May that it intended to launch a “Toxi-score” on household products in 2022 to assess their harmfulness.
Source : ici
