Batiste Dry Shampoo Lawsuit Filed Over Undisclosed Leukemia and Cancer Risk from Benzene

The manufacturer has failed to do internal testing of its products even though Valisure first warned of potential benzene contamination in dry aerosol spray products nearly a year earlier, plaintiffs say

According to allegations raised in a class action lawsuit brought this week, Church & Dwight, Co. has sold Batiste dry shampoo without disclosing that the aerosol spray products were contaminated with high levels of benzene, which may increase the risk of leukemia and other cancers.

The complaint (PDF) was filed by Eden Amadril and Ariana Skurauskis in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California on November 8, raising allegations that the manufacturer knew or should have known that Batiste dry shampoo contained benzene, yet it continued to market the spray cans as safe and effective to use as an alternative to washing your hair in the shower.

Benzene is an industrial chemical which has long been linked to fatal forms of leukemia and other cancers such as AML, Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia (CML), Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia (ALL), Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL), Hairy Cell Leukemia (HCL), Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, Multiple Myeloma, Myelodysplastic Syndrome (MDL), Myelofibrosis and Myeloid Metaplasia, Aplastic Anemia and Thrombocytopenic Purpura.

Failure to Disclose Batiste Dry Shampoo Cancer Risk

According to the complaint, Amadril and Skurauskis both purchased a variety of Batiste dry shampoo products, including Batiste Hint of Divine Dark Dry Shampoo and Batiste Floral & Flirty Blush Dry Shampoo, at retail outlets in San Jose, California.

Like other consumers, the plaintiffs indicate they regularly used the product without knowing it contained cancerous or toxic chemicals which were not displayed on the ingredient list, nor disclosed by the manufacturer.

Amadril and Skurauskis allege the manufacturer knew or should have known about the risk of benzene contamination in its aerosol dry shampoo products for nearly a year, after the online pharmacy Valisure released a report in October 2021, raising concerns of elevated levels of benzene in similar Proctor & Gamble and Suave aerosol based dry shampoo products.

However, rather than performing internal testing to protect the safety of its customers and issuing a prompt dry shampoo recall, the manufacturer intentionally ignored the possibility that the products could be exposing individuals to a chemical known to cause acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL), chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), multiple myeloma, and non-Hodgkin lymphoma

The Batiste dry shampoo class action lawsuit alleges that Church & Dwight Co. failed to fulfill their duty to adequately test its products and disclose to consumers and regulators that its dry shampoo products contained unsafe levels of benzene, pursuing claims for unjust enrichment, violations of false advertising laws and violations of state consumer fraud acts.

Amadril and Skurauskis complaint seeks dry shampoo settlement benefits for all individuals who purchased the recalled Batiste dry shampoo products, and were unknowingly exposed to benzene.

Dry Shampoo Recalls

In late October, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced an Unilever dry shampoo recall , instructing consumers to stop using certain Dove, Nexxus, Suave, TIGI and TRESemmé dry shampoo products, which contain elevated levels of benzene contamination from the propellant used by the manufacturer.

The recall included 19 different brands of dry shampoo, including many popular products such as Dove Dry Shampoo Volume and Fullness, Dove Dry Shampoo Fresh Coconut, Nexxus Dry Shampoo Refreshing Mist, Suave Dry Shampoo Hair Refresher, Tresemme Dry Shampoo Volumizing, Bed Head Oh Bee Hive Dry Shampoo and many others.

In December 2021, a similar Proctor & Gamble dry shampoo recall was issued, which impacted 32 separate lines of aerosol shampoo and conditioner products that may contain elevated levels of benzene. The products impacted by the recall include the popular brand names Pantene, Aussie, Herbal Essences, Old Spice and Waterless.

Since the dry shampoo products in both recalls are intended to be applied directly to the hair and scalp, health officials warned that benzene could enter an individual’s bloodstream through inhalation, orally, and through the skin, which, over time and repeated use, could result in adverse health effects from benzene exposure.

On November 1, the independent online pharmacy Valisure announced it has found high levels of benzene in most dry shampoo spray products it tested.

After reviewing the results of its own benzene testing, Valisure filed an FDA Citizen petition to have the products pulled from store shelves for public safety.

Aerosol Spray Sunscreen & Deodorant Lawsuits

The series of dry shampoo recalls and lawsuits comes manufacturers already face a number of individual claims and class action lawsuits over high levels of benzene in other aerosol spray products sold in recent years, including sunscreen, deodorant and antiperspirant sprays.

In May 2021, the online pharmacy Valisure issued a report that found benzene in 78 spray sunscreen and after-sun care products in their inventory, indicating that more than a quarter of the sunscreen contained the cancer-causing chemicals at levels that exceed what the FDA considers safe.

Weeks later, Johnson & Johnson issued a massive Neutrogena and Aveeno sunscreen recall, and other companies followed suit with Coppertone sunscreen recalls, Banana Boat sunscreen recalls and other spray sunscreen being removed from the market due to benzene contamination.

Manufacturers have already reached agreements to settle class action claims brought over sunscreen and deodorant products, and dozens of individual cancer lawsuits are being pursued by consumers diagnosed after routinely covering large areas of their body with the benzene-contaminated spray.