Are you actually giving your child the best of everything?

Today, as parents, we spend a great amount of time, attention and money in raising our children.

Obsessing over whether our kid is eating nourishing food to whether the activities he or she participates in helps in his or her development, we are focused on constantly teaching and monitoring our kids to make sure that they turn out to be confident, successful, healthy and kind.

One aspect that is often overlooked is the clothes that our kids wear. Yes, our kids are smartly dressed and are a true reflection of our own personalities. But how many of us have actually paid attention to the label on our children’s clothes? It is horrifying to note that most kids’ apparel available today are made using synthetic fabrics or synthetic blends. Synthetic fabrics could be considered plastic fabrics made of chemically derived fibers. Common synthetic fabrics include polyester, rayon, nylon etc.

Synthetic fabrics have been known to cause health concerns. Children’s skin is significantly thinner and hence more absorbent of substances present in their clothes. Kids are thereby, prone to absorb the harmful chemicals and toxins present in their garments leading to skin rashes, allergies, triggering respiratory disorders, auto-immune diseases etc.

Chemicals can play havoc with the health of children

Apart from the health hazards, synthetic garments take a long time to decompose, creating long-term pollution. They also account for the pollution of water bodies as harmful waste from the production process gets flushed into these. All this, makes the environment more harmful and dangerous as the toxins make way into our food chain causing health issues.

What can you do?

1. Opt for clothing made with natural fabrics like cotton, linen, silk, wool etc.
2. Choose organic cotton garments over conventional cotton. Conventional cotton is grown using chemical fertilizers while organic cotton is grown using natural methods of farming
3. Look for the organic certification label on each garment before buying it. Certifications like GOTS ensure the organic status of raw materials as well as assure that manufacturing processes are environmentally and socially responsible.  Word of caution though – do not get fooled by just GOTS certified cotton. This only means that the organic cotton fabric is certified but the dyes may not be.  Dyes and colors contain harmful metals and formaldehyde.  Make sure that the brand’s final product has the GOTS certification, like how Greendigo does.

Why is organic cotton clothing better?

1. It is soft & breathable, making it very comfortable for kids to wear everyday
2. Organic cotton garments are gentle on skin being devoid of harmful chemicals and colors
3. It is safer for not just kids but also for the environment