They’re powerful enough to eliminate static cling and can leave a load of laundry smelling like a field of fresh lavender or a mountain breeze, but using dryer sheets to keep your baby’s clothes cuddly soft, could be a potential hazard.
The majority of children’s sleepwear is labeled “Flame Retardant”. But ingredients in fabric dryer sheets and other fabric softeners may mask the flame retardancy of 100% polyester sleepwear. For that reason, companies like “Arm and Hammer”, caution consumers about the dangers of using their fabric softener products on flame resistant fabrics.
Also, babies are especially sensitive to chemical irritants, and sometimes even the slightest residue from detergents and fabric softeners will lead to irritation. But, it is the dryer sheet that can cause the most harm. Even if you are not using them on your baby’s clothes, studies show, that if you use dryer sheets on your own laundry, the sheets leave a residue on the inside of the dryer which can affix itself on the next load of laundry. Which means if you run a load of towels with a dryer sheet, remove the towels and the dryer sheet and immediately put in a load of your baby’s laundry, chances are the residue will come off on the baby’s clothes. In fact, studies show, the residue can persist for several loads after the dryer sheets are used. The solution: avoid ALL potential irritants; this means that you may have to eliminate using dryer sheets all together.
However, if that is not an option, consider using re-usable dryer sheets. The sheets are made of specially woven cloth. The manufacturer says it’s the weave of the cloth that allows re-usable dryer sheets to “conduct” static out of your laundry. They’re hypoallergenic, fragrance-free and recommended for infants and people with eczema.