You just bought a new shirt. It looks clean and crisp, and you’re tempted to wear it right out of the bag.
Don’t. It’s a bad idea.
I know it’s tempting to skip the laundry room and head straight out the door, but the reality is that your brand-new clothes aren’t nearly as clean as they look. Between the manufacturing process, international shipping, and the retail floor, garments pick up a lot of baggage before they ever reach your closet.
If you’re looking for a reason to run a quick wash cycle, here’s exactly what’s hiding on your unwashed new clothes.
The hidden grossness of brand-new clothes
1. They’re covered in chemicals: Clothing manufacturers regularly treat fabrics with chemical finishes to keep them looking fresh during transit. One of the most common is formaldehyde resin, which is used to prevent mildew and wrinkling while clothes sit in humid cargo ships.
According to dermatologists cited by Time magazine, this chemical is a known skin irritant that can trigger severe allergic reactions, especially in areas where the clothing rubs against your skin.
2. The dyes can wreck your skin: Many synthetic fabrics are colored with disperse dyes. If a garment hasn’t been washed, the excess, unfixed dye can easily transfer directly onto your body when you sweat.
This is a primary culprit for textile contact dermatitis, which leaves you with itchy, red patches. Washing the garment first helps strip away that loose dye.
3. Other people tried them on: Unless you’re buying vacuum-sealed underwear, chances are someone else wore that item before you bought it. Fitting rooms are revolving doors. When people try on clothes, they leave behind dead skin cells, sweat, lotions, and sometimes even viruses or bacteria.
You wouldn’t wear a stranger’s unwashed gym shirt, so you shouldn’t wear the pants they just spent 10 minutes struggling into at the mall.
4. They travel through industrial grime: Clothes aren’t made in sterile laboratories. They’re cut, sewn, and packaged in massive factories. From the factory floor to the shipping container to the backroom of your local department store, these items accumulate dust, dirt, and airborne pollutants.
How to properly wash your new clothes
You don’t need to boil your new jeans to make them safe. A standard wash cycle is usually enough to clear out the factory chemicals, excess dye, and fitting room germs.
Just turn the garments inside out to protect the color and wash them on cold. If you’re worried about the cost of running extra loads, there are plenty of frugal ways to save money on laundry, like washing on the coolest setting or doing it during off-peak hours.
The minor expense of a little detergent and water is entirely worth it to keep your skin safe and avoid walking around in someone else’s dead skin cells.