Peninsula All Media Reporter Wang Yuan
Disposable towels, disposable underwear, and disposable bedding have become the necessary "artifact" for travel, and their quality and safety are really reliable? Can disposable underwear ensure hygiene? What will happen if it is used repeatedly? During the 3.15 period, Qingdao Municipal Consumer Protection Commission, Qingdao Quality Inspection Institute, and Peninsula Metropolis Daily jointly created a large-scale life science column "Consumer Laboratory" directly hit 30 batches of disposable products quality and safety testing, and on April 11, the test results were released.
In this comparative test, the staff of the Qingdao Municipal Consumer Protection Committee purchased samples in large supermarkets, convenience stores, daily necessities stores in Qingdao and Jingdong, Tmall, and Pinduoduo e-commerce shopping platforms as ordinary consumers, and purchased a total of 15 batches of disposable towels and bath towels and 15 batches of disposable underwear.
All samples were sent to the laboratory of Qingdao Institute of Product Quality Inspection and Research, and tested in accordance with the requirements of the national standard GB15979-2002 "Hygienic Standard for Disposable Sanitary Products", SN/T 0309-1994 "Inspection Method for Fluorescent Substances in Import and Export Textile Materials", GB/T40276-2021 "Soft Towel", and GB18401-2010 "National Basic Safety Technical Specifications for Textile Products" (Class B Textile Products in Direct Contact with the Skin). There are four test items: microbial indicators, fluorescent substance requirements, formaldehyde content, and pH value. Due to the different standards applicable to disposable towels/bath towels and underwear, they were divided into two categories for testing.
Overall "reliable", 1 batch of disposable underwear pH value exceeded the standardThe results of the experiment showed that the quality and safety of disposables were generally gratifying. In the comparative test, all the indexes of 15 batches of towel bath towel samples met the requirements of national standards; Among the 15 batches of underwear samples, the tested indexes of 14 batches met the requirements of the national standard, and the pH index of 1 batch of samples did not meet the requirements of the national standard.
Judging from the specific test data, the microbial indexes of 30 batches of samples met the requirements of national standards. The microbial indicators included the total number of bacterial colonies, the total number of fungal colonies, coliform bacteria and pathogenic pyogenic bacteria, among which pathogenic pyogenic bacteria referred to Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus and hemolytic streptococcus. The requirements for microbial indicators in the national standard GB 15979-2002 are that the total number of bacterial colonies ≤ 200cfu/g, the total number of fungal colonies ≤100cfu/g, coliform bacteria shall not be detected, and pathogenic pyogenic bacteria shall not be detected.
No fluorescent substances were found in any of the samples (the test samples were irradiated with ultraviolet light with a wavelength of 300~400 nm). Fluorescent substances generally refer to fluorescent dyes and additives, which can be in direct contact with human skin or enter the human body through sweat, saliva, gastric juice, etc., in the case of illegal addition or excessive use, which will cause harm to the human body, such as skin allergies, damage to the immune system, and wounds that are difficult to heal.
The formaldehyde content test results of all samples were not detected (<20 mg/kg), which met the product limit requirements in the standard. Formaldehyde, a colorless gas, is not easily detected at low concentrations and is easily masked by other odors. Formaldehyde has a strong irritating effect on the skin and eye mucosa, if there is excessive formaldehyde in textiles, it will be gradually released during use, and it will be harmful to the human body through the skin and respiratory tract, and mild symptoms are tears, cough, contact dermatitis, etc., and in severe cases, insomnia, dizziness, headache and other symptoms will occur. The national standard GB/T 40276-2021 "Soft Towel" stipulates that the formaldehyde content in towels/bath towel products ≤ 20 mg/kg. The national standard GB 18401-2010 "National Basic Safety Technical Specifications for Textile Products" stipulates that the formaldehyde content of Class B textile products in direct contact with the skin ≤ 75 mg/kg.
In terms of pH value, among the 15 batches of disposable underwear samples, the pH value of 1 batch was 9.2, which did not meet the requirements of the standard, and the distributor has removed this batch of products from the shelves, and the pH test results of 15 batches of disposable towels and bath towel samples met the standard requirements. The surface of human skin is weakly acidic, and the pH value is 5.5~6.0. A weakly acidic environment can inhibit the growth and reproduction of certain pathogenic bacteria, playing a role in protecting the skin from infection. If the pH value exceeds the standard and is too acidic or too alkaline, the weak acidic environment of the human body will be destroyed, which will irritate the human skin, thereby causing skin inflammation or allergies. The national standard GB/T 40276-2021 stipulates that the pH value of the product is 4.0~7.5, and the GB 18401-2010 National Basic Safety Technical Specification for Textile Products stipulates that the pH value of Class B textile products in direct contact with the skin is 4.0~8.5.
According to the analysis of the Qingdao Municipal Consumer Protection Committee, the quality of the 30 batches of samples purchased this time has not changed with the price of the product, that is, the quality of such products is not necessarily related to the price. The test results of the microbial indicators that consumers are more concerned about are lower than the range specified in the national standard, indicating that with the improvement of people's quality of life, the quality awareness of enterprises has been continuously enhanced, and enterprises have paid relatively high attention to the safety and health of products.
Reluctant to throw it away once, the bacteria increase by 2,000 times!The reporter's investigation learned that in the use of disposable products, many consumers are reluctant to throw away once and will use them repeatedly. Can disposable products be used multiple times? What will happen if they are used multiple times? With this question, "Consumer Laboratory" has specially set up a "comparative experiment on the detection of the total number of bacterial colonies after unpacking disposable products".
The staff simulated the daily use of consumers, randomly took out 2 batches of disposable towel samples that were not individually packaged, and placed them in a dry indoor environment and bathroom cabinet for observation after unpacking.
After 24 hours, the total number of bacterial colonies in disposable towels in the dry room increased to 3.1×10²cfu/g, an increase of 310-fold, and the total bacterial colonies in disposable towels placed in the bathroom increased to 4.0×10²cfu/g, a 400-fold increase.
After randomly taking out 1 batch of individually packaged underwear samples, disassembling and placing them in the bathroom cabinet for 24 hours, the total number of bacterial colonies increased to 2.0×10³cfu/g, an increase of up to 2000 times! The total number of fungal colonies increased to 6.0×10²cfu/g, an increase of 600 times, and the pathogenic bacterium - Staphylococcus aureus was detected.
The results show that disposable products can become a "hotbed" for bacterial growth if they are used repeatedly.
Consumer tips: Don't stock up and don't reuseCombined with the results of this comparative test, the Qingdao Municipal Consumer Protection Committee reminded that the purchase of disposable products should be through formal channels. Consumers should pay attention to check whether there is the factory name and address, health license, health standards and related product standards, disinfection methods, production dates and other information on the packaging.
Pay attention to the material identification. If bath towels and towels are only marked with spunlace non-woven fabrics, they may be doped with chemical fibers, so it is recommended to choose products that are clearly marked with raw materials, and products made of pure cotton or plant fibers will be more skin-friendly. It is recommended to choose knitted cotton (100% cotton) material for underwear, which is soft, breathable, skin-friendly and biodegradable.
Buy as you go. Buy as you go, don't stock up, and give preference to products with well-sealed packaging and individual packaging.
Disposables are not recommended for reuse. Especially for children's disposable intimate products, try to minimize the frequency of use to avoid causing damage to the skin. Although disposable products are convenient, from the perspective of environmental protection, they still advocate green and low-carbon consumption.
1. The results of this comparative test are only responsible for the sample, and do not represent the quality of other models and batches of the brand.
2. The "price" of the sample is the purchase price at that time and is for reference only.