Johnson’s Baby Shampoo Boycott Urged Over Harmful Chemicals

A health and environmental group is trying to pressure Johnson & Johnson to remove certain chemicals from the company’s famous baby shampoo, indicating that they may be harmful to children and can cause cancer.  Although the chemicals have been removed from Johnson’s baby shampoo in several countries, it is still present in the product sold in the United States.

The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics has called for a boycott of Johnson & Johnson baby shampoo in order to force the company to remove quaternium-15 and 1,4-dioxane.

Quaternium kills bacteria, but releases formaldehyde, which is a known human carcinogen. The group has also released a new report (pdf) detailing the chemicals’ risks and how they mesh with regulatory standards.

The group says that Johnson’s Baby Shampoo sold in several nations, including Japan and the U.K., do not contain formaldehyde, but shampoo sold to parents of children in the U.S., Australia, Canada, China and Indonesia still contain the cancer-causing agents. The chemicals are not listed on the label.

The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics points out that since there are formaldehyde free versions of Johnson’s Baby Shampoo sold in some countries, that it is not necessary for versions containing the chemicals and potentially endangering children to be sold in any country. The group was joined by several other organizations, including the Breast Cancer Fund, the Environmental Working Group and others, in writing a letter to Johnson & Johnson calling for the company to make a firm commitment by November 15 to remove the chemicals.

The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics has been attempting to get Johnson & Johnson to remove the chemicals for almost three years with what it says was no success. When it released its latest report “Baby’s Tub is Still Toxic,” Johnson & Johnson responded by announcing that it is planning to phase the chemicals out.

“We know that some consumers are concerned about formaldehyde, which is why we offer many products without formaldehyde releasing preservatives, and are phasing out these types of preservatives in our baby products worldwide,” according to the company’s statement.

The company says that the chemicals are safe in the amounts used in its baby products and are there to protect against harmful bacteria growth. The chemicals are approved in every country in which they are used, Johnson & Johnson’s statement claims.