There could be toxins in your baby’s diaper — and it’s not poop
By Sandee LaMotte, CNN
(CNN) — The California State Senate passed a bill Thursday to regulate potential toxins in diapers — a product moms, dads and caregivers may use up to 8,000 times before a child is potty-trained.
Once Gov. Gavin Newsom signs Assembly Bill 1901 into law, as he’s expected to do, the legislation will require manufacturers to fully disclose all ingredients in disposable diapers sold in California. Diaper companies will also have to disclose the reason the ingredient is needed. That information must be available online by the end of 2028 and printed on the package label by January 2029.
New York passed a similar bill, which took effect in late 2025; Illinois followed suit with a mandate to disclose all ingredients on diaper labels by January 2027.
It has been up to states to act because “there’s no federal law requiring diaper manufacturers to tell us what’s actually in their products,” said actor Hilary Swank, who lobbied on behalf of AB 1901 in conjunction with the Environmental Working Group, or EWG, a health advocacy nonprofit that cosponsored the legislation.
Swank became aware of the potential dangers of disposable diapers and other baby and pregnancy products when she was pregnant with her twins, Ohm and Aya, now 3.
“I learned I can’t assume a product is safe because it’s marketed to look that way,” Swank told CNN. “Some ingredients found in diapers have been linked to hormone disruption, nervous system effects and skin reactions.”
Because a baby’s developing skin is much thinner and more permeable than that of an adult, experts say the risk of chemical absorption is higher.
“Diapers sit against the baby’s skin all day, 24/7, and because they absorb these chemicals more easily, they’re more vulnerable, obviously, to their effects,” Swank said. “Why do you need that many ingredients in diapers anyway?”
Studies have found these toxins in diapers
Diapers can release volatile organic compounds, or VOCs, vapors released by inks, dyes, adhesives and chlorine bleaching agents. Those vapors can cause skin and lung irritation and allergic reactions.
Some VOCs in diapers are even linked to cancer. Traces of acrylamide — which has been linked to several types of cancer at high doses in rodents — have been found in inner layers of diapers.
Wetness indicators on diapers and diaper wipes can contain QACs, or quaternary ammonium compounds, according to the Environmental Working Group.
Lab and animal studies over the past decade have raised concerns about QACs’ effects on inflammation, the immune and respiratory systems, reproductive hormones, and the developing brain.
“Quaternary ammonium compounds are on track to be the next major toxic chemical story, combining elements of PFAS, phthalates and flame retardants,” Rebecca Fuoco, director of science communications for the Green Science Policy Institute, told CNN previously. The nonprofit institute, based in Berkeley, California, investigates harmful chemicals.
Diapers can also contain phthalates, which are plasticizers used to enhance flexibility. Studies have linked phthalates with reproductive problems, such as genital malformations and undescended testes in baby boys and lower sperm counts and testosterone levels in adult males. Studies have also linked phthalates to asthma, childhood obesity, and cancer in animal studies.
A study published in March found two types of phthalates — Di-2-ethylhexylphthalate, or DEHP, and its cousin diisononyl phthalate, or DiNP — may have been responsible for nearly 2 million premature births and the deaths of 74,000 newborns worldwide in 2018.
Phthalates are often called “everywhere” chemicals because they are used in so many consumer products. The chemicals provide flexibility and lubrication in a wide variety of products, including children’s toys, food storage containers, shower curtains, deodorants, hair gels and body lotions.
A spokesperson for the Center for Baby and Adult Hygiene Products, or BAHP — which represents diaper manufacturers in the United States — told CNN in an email “its members remain confident in the safety of their products and committed to maintaining the trust of parents and caregivers.”
“While we support the goal of greater transparency, we raised concerns with AB 1901 because we believe disclosure requirements should align with established scientific and regulatory practices and promote consistency across states and product categories,” said Giovanna Komst, BAHP’s deputy director. “Transparency works best when it is grounded in established scientific and regulatory practices and provides information that is meaningful and useful to consumers.”
Tips on how to choose safer diapers
Because diaper labels have traditionally been vague, using terms such as “adhesive,” “color,” “fragrance” and “light scent,” even scientists aren’t sure how many chemicals are being used in disposable diapers.
“When this bill goes into effect, we’ll have a lot more information and be able to provide consumers with clearer guidance about how to move forward,” said Susan Little, EWG’s California legislative director.
In the meantime, there are things parent can do to choose a safer diaper, according to EWG, which hosts a database of diapers verified for safety and ingredient transparency.
First, avoid colorful patterns and wetness indicators. Dyes and printing inks can contribute to diaper rash and can occasionally be contaminated with heavy metals, said Sydney Swanson, a senior science analyst at EWG.
“Choose diapers that are undyed and plain, with no wetness indicator. Also try to avoid diapers that contain fragrance,” Swanson said. “None of these are necessary for a diaper, so it’s just additional ingredients and chemicals that are being used.”
Swank suggests looking for diaper brands that are already disclosing their ingredients. As a busy working mom, she relies on third-party verification sites such as EWG.
She also relies on Obnoxiously Crunchy Mommas, one of her favorite online groups where moms swap advice on safer diapers and much more. Sustainable cooking and cleaning products, more natural, nontoxic children’s toys, and clothing with less plastic and heavy metals are all hot topics.
“I’m trying to do all the right things, and I’m in this robe, and I find out that it’s polyester, and I didn’t know at the time that polyester is just plastic,” Swank said. “I was essentially just wearing plastic. And every time I would get warm, and it was on my babies’ skin, and they were getting warm, we were absorbing plastic.”
Swank worked closely with EWG and other California activists last year to pass the first law in the nation requiring manufacturers of prenatal vitamins to use a certified laboratory to test for heavy metals. California Senate Bill 646 mandates that specific levels of arsenic, cadmium, lead and mercury must be published openly on each brand’s website while packages and advertisements must clearly state how heavy metal testing is done. The deadline for action is January 1, 2027.
“I got angry, and so I really wanted to do something about it,” Swank told CNN. “It’s really a simple principle: If something is going into anyone’s body, but especially a pregnant body, people deserve to know exactly what’s in it.”
It’s overwhelming and all too easy to be scared about all the toxins adults and children can be exposed to, Swank said, so she tells moms to start small.
“You don’t have to do everything at once. Focus on the essentials that you’re putting in your body — your prenatal food and where that food is coming from,” she said. “Look at what’s in constant contact with your baby every single day — diapers, wipes, creams — those are the highest impact places to begin.
“And then you have to give yourself grace. You’re not trying to be perfect, you’re trying to be informed and that’s already a huge step,” Swank said. “I’m still learning, and my children are 3. There’s stuff that I could have done differently, but I can’t be hard on myself, because I know I’m trying my best, right?”
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