Safer baby shampoo on the way

Thanks to a two-year campaign by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, Johnson & Johnson has announced that it is phasing two carcinogenic chemicals out of its baby products worldwide:  formaldehyde-releasing preservatives and 1,4-dioxane.

The campaign started in March 2009 when the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics released a report, "No More Toxic Tub," that revealed that Johnson's Baby Shampoo, along with many other children's bath products, contained two carcinogens that were not listed on labels.

In addition to the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, the movement involved 40 organizations representing 1.7 million parents, the American Nurses Association and Physicians for Social Responsibility.

Between July and October this year, the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics purchased and reviewed labels of Johnson's Baby Shampoo sold in 13 countries to see if the products contained quaternium-15, a chemical preservative that kills bacteria by releasing formaldehyde.


The organization found that Johnson's Baby Shampoo sold in the United States, Australia, Canada, China and Indonesia contains quaternium-15, while Johnson's Baby Shampoo sold in Denmark, Finland, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, South Africa, Sweden and the U.K. contain non-formaldehyde preservatives.

Another report was released last week, "Baby's Tub Is Still Toxic," and that's when Johnson & Johnson announced that it would phase out the chemicals.

Kudos to the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics for pursuing the issue and to Johnson & Johnson for understanding the importance of healthy babies.

P.S.  On the topic of different products in various countries, perhaps it's time for Coca-Cola to offer its pop formulated with sugar instead of high-fructose corn syrup in the U.S. After all, Pepsi Throwback has become popular. . .