Paper Towels Pulled From Store Shelves For Toxic Ingredients

Summary:

• The paper towels industry is facing a crisis with toxic chemicals found in popular brands’ products.

• Scott paper towels were found to contain PFAS, everlasting chemicals linked to serious health effects.

• Bounty and other brands faced recalls due to formaldehyde, heavy metals, and other harmful substances – choose safer alternatives.

The paper towels are among the most reliable domestic products in America. However, recent tests conducted by consumer advocacy groups and independent laboratories have shown that something is seriously wrong with a good number of popular brands, in that there are toxic chemicals in them, which nobody ordered to be in them. Everlasting chemicals, everlasting hormone disruptors, here is everything you need to know about the six brands of paper towels that were recalled from the shelf and what to use instead.

Scott — Flagged for PFAS

Scott paper towels were also labelled as having PFAS – per and polyfluoroalkyl substances that are forever chemicals. These chemicals do not degrade in the body or the environment, and they are associated with severe long-term health effects.

Bounty – Formaldehyde Concerns

It was noted that Select Bounty production batches were simply recalled and repackaged following consumer testing groups that reported concerns over formaldehyde residue, which is a chemical used to make paper fibers stiff, and is able to cause serious irritation to the skin and the respiratory system.

Trader Joe’s Recycled Towels

The recycled paper towels that Trader Joe had been using were temporarily taken off the shelf after independent testing found trace levels of heavy metals that were found in the recycled paper sources with colored inks at the time, and immediately changed suppliers and introduced a quality test.

Generic Store Brand Towels

A number of generic and store-brand paper towels were withdrawn following consumer pressure groups discerning optical brighteners, chemicals that render paper whiter but may result in skin irritation and may decompose into alarming, poisonous substances.

Dollar Store Imported Brands

The toxic chemicals that were found on paper towels imported to the United States were recalled by discount stores and the dollar stores because of the presence of industrial chemicals, leftover remains of manufacturing cleaning solutions that were used in the manufacturing process of the towels, which was a bigger risk when the towels came into direct contact with food.

Recycled Brands With BPA

 

The independent lab testing showed that some recycled paper towel brands were found to have quantifiable amounts of BPA and BPS – hormone-disrupting chemicals, which were found to transfer easily on the surface of the skin and foods, leading to reproductive health and hormonal health issues.

Why This Matters Daily

The American household has been working with paper towels to wipe on food, hands, and countertops times a day on average, which makes a cumulative exposure to chemicals, which builds up slowly in the blood system over months and years of consistent regular usage.

PFAS Never Leave Your Body

Even exposure to low amounts of PFAs can be damaging, as confirmed by the EPA. These infinity chemicals are stored in the human tissue permanently, and they incur no withdrawal signs, and therefore the exposure obtained to paper towel on a daily basis serves as a more weighty health risk than the vast majority of Americans are currently unwilling to acknowledge.

What to Look for Instead

Select dye-free paper towels that are not bleached and PFAS-free. Alternatives that are made using bamboo are always cleaner than the traditional brands of wood pulp. Towels used in everyday consumption are the safest and least chemical-free towels available today.

Check Before You Buy

The manufacturing companies do not have to provide listings of ingredients on paper towel packaging at the moment – again putting the consumer in the dark. The best tools you have today to make truly safer choices as far as the home is concerned are independent testing databases and consumer advocacy websites.