For many of us, laundry is a household chore we do on autopilot. At some point in our lives, we learned a technique and stuck with it. But like any method, the way we do our laundry is worth re-evaluating from time to time. This is to ensure we’re doing it most efficiently and in the healthiest way for our bodies and planet. The best place to start is cleaning up your laundry detergent.

A solution meant to clean our clothes of toxins, grime, body odors, and pollutants, detergents can cause more harm than good in the long run when they’re laden with potentially harmful chemicals. Common additives linked to health concerns, such as sulfates and fragrances, can break down clothing, seep into our pores, irritate the skin, and pollute the earth.

Here, our PrimaFoodie Laundry Detergent Guide clarifies why it’s important to choose a clean detergent and the main toxic culprits to avoid. Plus, we rounded up our top picks for the cleanest detergents available today.

Toxic Detergent: Why It’s Important to Clean Your Clean

Perhaps you’ve chosen to use clean skin care products. Maybe you’ve rid your pantry of plastics. But what’s lurking in your laundry room? Our detergent seems to be a final frontier when we’re aiming to reduce our toxic load—and it makes sense why: We don’t apply this directly to our skin like we do other products, so the harm detergents can cause may seem a more distant threat. But a deeper look reveals the harm these solutions can cause.

Most conventional laundry detergents (think: Tide, Arm & Hammer) contain surfactants (also called emulsifiers) that strengthen a solution’s foaming power and emulsification. These are linked to human health and environmental concerns. The Environmental Working Group, a third-party independent organization that fastidiously researches ingredients, finds certain anionic surfactants used to remove grease to be linked to severe skin irritation, eye rashes, and pervasive environmental pollution. The European Union Ecolabel organization shows certain emulsifiers to be “chronically” harmful to aquatic life. (In the early 90s, a federal ban on the use of laundry detergent phosphates, another popular emulsifier, took place in the US. Sadly, phosphates are still allowed in dish soaps and other products.)

Laundry detergents are also ground zero for fragrance. The fresh scent associated with a clean load can harbor toxins that are downright terrible. As in any personal care product, when you read “fragrance” or “natural fragrance,” it is most likely a cryptic umbrella term a company is using to include various additives without having to disclose what they are. As the EWG has long stated, think of “fragrance” as “hidden chemicals”: “A major loophole in FDA's federal law lets manufacturers of products like shampoo, lotion, and body wash include nearly any ingredient in their products under the name "fragrance" without actually listing the chemical,” states EWG.

Dirty on Clean: Common Laundry Detergents Additives to Look Out for

Individually, each ingredient in a detergent can potentially cause harm to you or the planet. When combined with others, your cleaning solutions suddenly become harmful pollutants. Here are the main culprits to avoid:

Fragrance or Natural Fragrance

As mentioned, this is an umbrella term that hides many potentially harmful chemicals.

Parabens

A group of chemicals used as artificial preservatives in household and personal care products since the 1920s. Most commonly called: Butylparaben, isobutylparaben, propylparaben, and isopropylparaben

Ammonia

An inorganic gas that has a harsh odor, ammonia is used to break down grime. Studies link ammonia to having a corrosive effect and can lead to respiratory, kidney, and liver issues.

Chlorine Bleach

This classic cleaner is used to kill bacteria, mold, odors, and fungus, and to eradicate dirt. Researchers have found the cumulative use of chlorine bleach to be toxic to the lungs, liver, and kidneys.

Phthalates

A group of common chemicals used in personal care and household products, phthalates are synthetic compounds used to make things softer. (Phthalates are commonly added to plastics to make them more pliable.) Study after study deems various phthalates as endocrine disruptors that are detrimental to our health. Common names include: diethyl phthalate, DBP (di-n-butyl phthalate) DEP (diethyl phthalate), DEHP (di-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate or bis (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate), BzBP (benzyl butyl phthalate), DMP (dimethyl phthalate)

Dyes

There is no need to have dyes in detergent, just as there is no need to have it in foods.

Choosing a Clean Detergent

The key in finding a laundry detergent is to read the ingredients list, which should be short and transparent. Beware of falling for marketing claims on labels such as “natural” or “organic,” as these can trick you into thinking the solution is cleaner than it is.

The following is a short list of six clean laundry detergents we stand behind. Each one boasts an EWG score of EWG Verified, which means it meets the organization’s strictest standards for health and transparency, or EWG A, which means there are very few or no known suspected hazards in the ingredients. (We vetted each and chose those rated EWG A to have the least ingredients, all of which are free of known suspected hazards.)

To avoid any hidden scented additives, we suggest always choosing a detergent that is fragrance-free, which these are. Some clean detergents available do scent their solutions with pure essential oils, but we still opt out of those to ensure we’re grabbing the most limited-ingredient, pure solution there is.

Editor’s Note: We only stand behind the mentioned product and not the entire brand or company’s collection, as offerings vary in terms of ingredients. As always, be sure to vet and test each product yourself. Your susceptibility to a product or ingredient is paramount and can only be verified by your and/or a medical expert.

Molly’s Suds Laundry Powder

EWG Rating: A

Dropps Sensitive Skin Laundry Detergent Pods, Unscented

EWG Rating: A

Hello Bello Organic Concentrated Laundry Detergent, Unscented

EWG Rating: A

** While this solution is excellent, we are regretful it comes in a plastic bottle.

Nellie’s Laundry Soda

EWG Rating: A

Dirty Labs Bio Laundry Detergent – Free and Clear

EWG Rating: Verified

Blueland Laundry Tablets, Fragrance Free