Summer reading?
Not really, this issue of Elle has been patiently waiting on my desk since the end of March for me to tell you about it.
Sarah Bony's excellent article "These clothes that poison us" immediately caught my attention and reading it lived up to the promises hinted at by its title.
One observation: 25% of online clothing sales come from ultra-fast fashion. These clothes pose a serious health risk to those who wear them, to such an extent that the journalist mentions a young woman undergoing fertility treatment who was advised by doctors, among other recommendations, to be vigilant about the composition of her clothing.
Indeed, clothing contains endocrine disruptors that are harmful to health and detrimental to fertility. (Similar to the use of non-stick pans, the author notes).
Some associations are trying to raise awareness among influencers to explain to them that fast fashion, in addition to copying brands with impunity, directly harms health.
The article gives the example of treatments applied to clothes to make them wrinkle-free and waterproof, which use the same toxic substances as those in the famous frying pans (called eternal pollutants) that have been much talked about recently.
Other examples include formaldehyde used in synthetic clothing to make it resistant, and dimethyl fulmarate used to store textiles (antifungal) which causes allergic reactions and respiratory problems (banned in Europe but commonly found in clothing).
The problem of clothing toxicity is less well known than that of cosmetics, adds the journalist, who advises at a minimum to wash clothes before wearing them, to favour natural materials and second-hand (a few years ago clothes carried fewer toxic substances), and to take extra care for pregnant women and young children.
Before concluding, after food, it's time to think about what we wear.
My opinion: kudos to ELLE for this awareness-raising effort; the article is clear and unambiguous. It effectively simplifies the subject and confirms what I've been aware of for many years.
I would like to add that (ultra) fast fashion is far from being the only culprit. Brands, even high-end ones, provide little to no information about the safety of the clothes they produce. They seek to minimize costs and are probably not very well informed.
It is the entire textile industry that is responsible for removing highly toxic substances from its clothing, which we are only just beginning to talk about.
In the meantime, it is up to consumers to read labels, to learn about the philosophy of brands; every purchase is a highly meaningful act with multiple consequences. And there is an urgent need for action! Source: ELLE, March 29, 2025. Infertility and childhood cancers: when clothes poison us. Sarah Bony
