NPR, Fresh Air Interview… Toxic Performance Clothing

Wow…very scary stuff.  Thanks for posting.

Sadly, throw in climate change, etc. and the human world is probably doomed.    Hope I’m wrong.

I am begining to think I won’t live forever.

@ John… yea… not living forever is a given in all times… I just want to be as healthy as possible on the way… hard to enjoy life when you are sick…

Thanks for sharing the interview, I listened with real interest.

The realities discussed in the interview reinforce my decision to not use down treated with hydrophobic chemical treatments which seems to be the trend lately…

rashes, hair falling out

I had to listen to it (the first half of the podcast) a few times, but the situation sounds awful.

Granted the airline uniforms that spurred attention seemed full of different chemicals to make them stainfree, wrinkle-proof, fire-resistant, wicking, etc.. (probably told some fabric chemists to have a field day), … but then it extends to problems other people have had with simpler bits of clothes.  Either go natural or for next to skin, go with high quality.  Think for backpacking, rain shells, etc.. should be as safe as the baselayers that touch the skin.

With PFAS (chemicals) now under scrutiny hope that better quality clothing is on the way.  Noticing more backcountry selections are now “undyed” .. probably more for environmental than anything.

I wonder if washing your clothes reduces the problem

Of course, the creatures in the water your wash water ends up in wont appreciate it.

I never put hot water in plastic and then consume it.  Who knows what chemicals might leach out of it

I wonder if washing your clothes reduces the problem ..

In the case of the airline clothes part of the treatment was to put off any laundering due to their flight schedules.

Of course with dirty smelly hiking clothes put away until the next adventure for many weekend type backpackers, don’t think over-laundering will be a thing.

Even washing clothes in a gas station bathroom sink won’t affect many treatments (or much dirt for that matter).

Jerry… I remember reading or listening to a study that said that even leaving your water or soft drink out in the sun on a hot day substantially increased the plastics leaching into the liquid. Thing to avoid: hot food/liquid in plastics… and old plastics (think, reusing water bottles for years)… both heat and age break down plastics… including those plastics lining cans…

Noticing more backcountry selections are now “undyed” .. probably more for environmental than anything.

Hk…. er… We ARE the environment! And we are totally dependent on the part of the environment that is not us humans.

that makes sense to me DWRD.

I still eat food out of cans that are lined with plastic and then heated to leach out the chemicals, but I try to do this less.  Canning in glass wouldn’t be so bad but that isn’t used for a lot of food.

“Think for backpacking, rain shells, etc.. should be as safe as the baselayers that touch the skin.”

Hk… not sure what you are intending to say… are you saying that rain shells are safe or that base layers are safe?

I’m not chemist, but I believe the DWR coatings on rain gear are definitely NOT safe… certainly not for the environment (which is us)… and especially if you are spraying them with DWR coating renewals… And as for base layers… er… many, if not most, are chemically treated to make them feel softer and to not hold moisture, and to wick moisture… not to mention colors and lord knows what else…
As I recall from the interview their recommendations were:
1) Choose natural fibers like cotton if possible… or at lease high percents of cotton and low percent of synthetics… (I know wool is natural, but wonder about the chemical treatments that make it softer for base layers)
2) Don’t buy these off brand bargain synthetics that come from China there is no regulation and they don’t care about their reputation or being liable.
3) Do buy from name brand companies…. like Patagonia, etc… they do care about their reputation and liability and seem to respond pretty quickly when certain chemicals prove to be harmful…

We live in a sea of chemicals, I guess best we can do is to try to minimize the damage…

Hk… not sure what you are intending to say… are you saying that rain shells are safe or that base layers are safe?

Gotta wear something.  I’m not in the habit of wearing a rain jacket next to skin, and avoid rainy conditions anyways after a close call with lightning.  Not to mention the whole “wet” thing.  Sun-wise, I’ve had a dermatologist scoop some of my face for a biopsy  (benign mole luckily), so not about to go shirtless in the sun.

Baselayer-wise it’s been Patagonia just due to fabric feel for “technical clothing” and they with others have been addressing PFAS, etc.. There’s also merino wool, but that often gets blended with synthetics for more properties.

That said one day we all bite the dust.  It’s nice to be healthy but something will get us in the end.