Don’t like doing laundry? It’s
about 1,000 times better than
contracting lice, eczema, or
scabies. According to
dermatologists, you’re at risk
for all of the above by wearing new clothes without running
them through the washing
machine at least once. Dr. Donald Belsito of Columbia
University Medical Center
says that the type of clothing
dye and traces of
formaldehyde commonly
found in many articles of factory-made clothing can
often have severe impacts on
human skin. (Urea
formaldehyde resins are used
to prevent cotton-polyester
blends from wrinkling and to limit mildew). Allergic contact dermatitis and
irritant contact dermatitis, both
forms of eczema, can be
caused by wearing fabrics
containing the anti-wrinkle
chemical. The symptoms are similar – flaky skin and rashes. Furthermore, because there is
no real way of knowing how
many hands have touched an
article of clothing before you
buy it, Belsito notes: “I have
seen cases of lice that were possibly transmitted from
trying on in the store, and
there are certain infectious
diseases that can be passed
on through clothing … The
other infestation I’ve seen from clothing is scabies.” So go ahead and wash your
new jeans immediately!
