If newly purchased clothes are not washed, there is a risk of bacterial infection, viral infection and scabies. An average of 10-15 minutes of contact with clothes by a person with scabies is enough to transmit the parasitic infection to the clothes. To prevent this, experts state that newly purchased clothes should definitely be washed at high temperatures above 60 degrees, and recommend washing with delicate detergents.
MUST BE WASHED
Dermatology Specialist Doctor Necla Eryılmaz explained the damage that new clothes bought from stores can cause to the skin if they are not washed. Eryılmaz said, “We buy clothes from stores as if they were clean. However, when these are worn without being washed, we encounter some problems. Since the skin of babies and children is more sensitive, we encounter these problems more in children. What could these be? Some dyes are used in the production phase of these textile products. Again, the dyes are fixed with some chemicals. Therefore, when worn without being washed, it can unfortunately cause some skin rashes and irritations, especially in atopic children and people with sensitive skin. For this reason, we should definitely wash the clothes we buy, even in warm water, in the machine or by hand. We prefer to wash them with delicate washing detergents, especially for children.”
INCREASED IN RECENT YEARS
Necla Eryılmaz, who said that the danger in unwashed clothes is not only chemical pollution or dye pollution, said, “Unfortunately, since online shopping has increased a lot today, clothes are tried on in stores. More attention is paid, but clothes bought from Instagram or by deciding on them through social media are bought and sent back and they are tried on at home. They are tried on by one person or more than one person. If the person trying them on has any bacterial infection, viral infection or a disease called scabies, which has been a parasitic infection for the last few years, during the trying on, it can be transmitted to the second person trying them on through contact with the clothes.
When patients apply to our clinic and we say it is an allergic reaction or bacterial infection, one of the first things we ask is, have you tried on a piece of clothing, have you stayed in a different place? That’s why scabies in particular is a parasitic infection that we have encountered very frequently in recent years and that is confused with many diseases. An average of 10-15 minutes of contact with clothing is enough. We don’t know how long the person who bought that clothing before and tried it on kept it on.
Therefore, the clothes purchased need to be washed. In people who we are sure have scabies, we want the clothes to be washed at over 60 degrees. If we suspect scabies, we definitely want them to be washed at high temperatures. However, washing all clothes at high temperatures, especially new clothes, can damage their structure. First of all, we definitely recommend washing them in warm water to remove detergent residue,” he said.
Citizens also stated that they do not wear the new clothes they buy without washing them, and that many people try on the clothes in stores and that they need to be washed because they wear them and take them off. (İHA)