Disclosure: This consumer study is released in partnership with Environmental Health News. Donations were provided by Environmental Health News and Mamavation community members. Mamavation has only “spot-checked” the industry and thus we cannot make predictions about brands and products that we have not tested. Products and manufacturing aides can change without notice so buyer beware. This post contains affiliate links, with some to Amazon, which means Mamavation will receive a portion of those sales and we will use that to pay ourselves back for the testing. You can also give a tax-deductible donation to our consumer studies here through Environmental Health Sciences. Thank you!  Copyright © 2026 Mamavation — All Rights Reserved

Mamavation Finds Indications of PFAS in Paper Towels

PFAS “forever chemicals” are per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances used as stain-resistant, water-resistant, & oil-resistant chemicals in commerce. They have been used for decades inside consumer products, manufacturing, and building materials. There are over 15,000 different chemicals in the PFAS chemical class (including PFOA & PTFE), and because there are so many of them, they are incredibly hard to identify and test for. The biggest problem with PFAS is their staying power–they do not leave the environment or our bodies for many many years, which is the reason they are dubbed “forever chemicals.”

Mamavation sent 16 paper towel products to an EPA-certified laboratory to test for organic fluorine, which is a marker for PFAS “forever chemical” compounds. We included as many types of paper pulp as we could, such as bamboo, recycled, and conventional wood pulp.

Here are the main findings from Mamavation’s paper towels PFAS Consumer Study:

• 31% of paper towels tested at Mamavation’s EPA-certified lab had indications of PFAS “forever chemicals”, while 69% of paper towels tested did not. In other words, 5 out of 16 products contained indications of PFAS “forever chemicals.”
• According to our lab, levels of organic fluorine, a marker for PFAS, were found between 6 parts per million (ppm) to 37 parts per million (ppm).
• 80% of the products with detectable levels of organic fluorine were recycled paper products. In other words, 4 out of 5 detectable products were made from recycled pulp
• (UPDATE: 5 additional brands were updated to this investigation in 3/2026. They are not reflected in the percentages above.)

When PFAS is detected in paper towels in the amounts we are seeing they are unlikely added on purpose but are more likely present due to manufacturing or packaging contamination of some kind in the supply chain. 

PFAS “Forever Chemicals” Have Problematic Health Effects

PFAS “forever chemicals” are problematic for human health and the environment. They are considered ubiquitous, persistent, and toxic. Many of these PFAS chemicals can last for years or decades in our bodies. The health effects of exposure to PFAS on the skin in sensitive areas like breast tissue are unknown. It’s also unknown what happens when it is absorbed into our tissues and travels around in our bodies. However, we do know that these areas can be vulnerable to toxic chemicals like PFAS “forever chemicals.” Therefore, it’s imperative to reduce the amount of PFAS you are exposed to from food, water, and consumer products. Mamavation is dedicated to helping you do that when you are shopping for paper towels.

Here are some of the health effects of different PFAS “forever chemicals:”

• Reduction in immunity
• Reduced vaccination response
• Increased risk of allergies & asthma in young children
• Affected growth, learning, and behavior of infants and older children
• Increase cholesterol levels
• Metabolic diseases like obesity & diabetes
• Cardiovascular disease
• Lowered a woman’s chance of getting pregnant
• Lowered male fertility
• Increased risk of kidney & testicular cancers
• Causes endocrine disruption
• Disrupted normal thyroid function
• Increases risk of acute lymphoblastic leukemia in children 

It’s also very clear based on biomonitoring evidence from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) that PFAS are in all Americans. Therefore, these exposures can harm most Americans.

Other Categories of Products Mamavation Has Tested for Indications of PFAS “Forever Chemicals”

Before we launch into the raw data from our lab, we wanted to remind you about all the other studies we have done on indications of PFAS “forever chemicals” inside the food and consumer products you may bring inside your home. Each one of these studies were done in a similar fashion as this study with brands sent independently to the lab and raw data of those labs at the bottom of the post.

• Deodorants
• Nursing Bras
• Activewear (Yoga Pants)
• Sports Bras
• Dental Floss
• Toilet Paper
• Period Underwear
• Tampons
• Sanitary Pads, Pantiliners, & Incontinence Pads
• Soft Contact Lenses
• Green Beauty Makeup
• Lip Balm
• Condoms & Lubricants
• Powdered Electrolytes
• Butter Wrappers
• Pasta & Tomato Sauces
• Nut Butters (Peanut butter, etc.)
• Ketchup
• Parchment Paper
• Cupcake Liners
• Plastic-Free Straws
• Fast Food Packaging
• Children’s Probiotics
• Kids’ Backpacks
• Baby Strollers

All additional consumer studies are posted here.

Mamavation’s Investigation of Paper Towels & Indications of PFAS “Forever Chemicals”

Paper towel products were donated in 2024 & 2025. For this consumer study, most products were purchased by community members and sent to us in original packaging.

Testing: Mamavation’s EPA-certified laboratory uses marker testing to identify the potential presence of PFAS “forever chemicals” in paper towels. Organic fluorine is a marker for PFAS because all PFAS chemicals are carbon-based compounds that contain fluorine. The specific lab method used to test for total fluorine was the Determination of Total Fluorine by Oxygen Flask Combustion and Ion-Selective Electrode. If total fluorine was observed at a detection level of 10 ppm or greater, the lab did the Determination of free Fluoride Ion in the product by Ion-Selective Electrode and then subtracted that from the Total Fluorine to determine the amount of organic fluorine. This marker testing is likely to show the presence of PFAS. Organic fluorine can also capture other fluoropolymers, pharmaceuticals, and common hydrofluorocarbon refrigerants, such as 1,1,1,2-tetrafluoroethane (commonly known as R-134a) and 2,3,3,3-tetrafluoropropene (commonly known as HFO-1234yf), which are all also PFAS.

Product Brands We Tested
To help our community make safer choices, Mamavation sent a wide range of popular paper towels to our EPA-certified laboratory for organic fluorine testing.

Below is the complete list of paper towels included in our investigation.

Paper Towel Products Tested by Mamavation

• Aware (Amazon) 100% Bamboo Paper Towels
• Bounty Paper Towels
• Brawny Tear-A-Square Paper Towels
• Caboo Tree Free Paper Towels Made from Sustainable Bamboo
• EcoFirst Sustainable Paper Products Paper Towels
• Ever Spring 100% Recycled Paper Towels
• Green Forest 100% Recycled Paper Towels contains 80% post-consumer recycled paper
• Grove Co. Tree-Free Paper Towels
• Kirkland Signature Premium Towel
• Natural Value 100% Recycled Quilted Kraft Paper Towels 80% Post Consumer Recycled Content
• Natural Value 100% Recycled Paper Towels
• Purafide 100% Bamboo Paper Towels
• Seventh Generation 100% Recycled Paper Towels Minimum 85% Post-Consumer Recycled Paper Whitened without Chlorine Bleach
• Seventh Generation Unbleached Paper Towels 100% Recycled to Save Energy & Water Minimum 80% Post-Consumer Recycled Paper
• Sprouts Farmers Market Recycled Strong & Absorbent Paper Towels Unbleached
• Sprouts Farmers Market Strong & Absorbent Paper Towels
• Reel Premium Tree Free Kitchen Towel Made from 100% Recycled Fiber 
• Reel Sustainable Bamboo Paper Towels
• Repurpose Ultra Strong Bamboo Paper Towels
• Up & Up (Target) Premium Quality Paper Towels
• Viva Multi-Surface Cloth Paper Towels

Want full access to the raw data, organic fluorine levels, and our recommendations for the safest mouth tape products? Join MAMAGATE and get free access to the complete buying guide below, with detailed lab results for every product.

The post Paper Towels Tested for Indications of PFAS “Forever Chemicals” — Guide appeared first on MAMAVATION.

Disclosure: This consumer study is released in partnership with Environmental Health News. Scientific review was performed by Dr. Craig Downs, Executive Director of Haereticus Environmental Laboratory. Donations were provided by Environmental Health News and Mamavation community members. Note that Mamavation has only “spot-checked” the industry and thus we cannot make predictions about brands and products that we have not tested. Products and manufacturing aides can change without notice so buyer beware. This post contains affiliate links, with some to Amazon, which means Mamavation will receive a portion of those sales and we will use that to pay ourselves back for the testing. You can also give a tax-deductible donation to our consumer studies here through Environmental Health Sciences. Thank you!  

Mamavation Finds PFAS “Forever Chemicals” in Organic Garden Soils

Mamavation’s EPA-certified laboratory found per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS “forever chemicals”) in 18 popular garden soils. These chemicals are linked to serious health effects, which we will discuss later. Because PFAS “forever chemicals” are so problematic to normal hormone action, Mamavation has commissioned our own scientific studies on PFAS in food products to make recommendations for the safest garden soils. Continue reading Mamavation’s article on these products to find which brands have the safest garden soils according to our laboratory.

For this consumer study, Mamavation sent 18 popular garden soils from 11 brands to an EPA-certified laboratory looking for specific PFAS compounds. Because Mamavation only tested one product per brand, we cannot claim to know if these issues are, in fact, industry-wide or brand-wide. However, based on our “spot-check” of the industry, this is what we found:

• 83% of garden soil had detectable PFAS “forever chemicals” according to our lab. That’s 15 out of 18 garden soil products tested had PFAS.
• 61% of garden soil had quantifiable levels of PFAS “forever chemicals” according to our lab. This means the levels of PFAS found were high enough to quantify. That’s 11 out of 18 garden soil products.
• 80% of organic gardening soil had detectable PFAS “forever chemicals“, which ends up being 8 out of 10 Organic products tested.
• One brand of organic Miracle-Grow had over 20 types of PFAS.

Dr. Craig Downs, Executive Director of Haereticus Environmental Laboratory, had this to say after his scientific review, “PFAS contamination of garden soils is extremely worrisome. A number of scientific studies have shown that PFAS contaminants in the soil can be taken up by the plants and sequester in the leaves (e.g., spinach), fruit (e.g., tomatoes), and roots (e.g., carrots). Studies have shown that PFAS contaminants can accumulate in vegetables above the recommended attention and action limits. This potentially poses a risk for everyone who consumes produce from plants grown in contaminated soil.”

Recent Studies & Lawsuits on PFAS Have Demonstrated Widespread Contamination in Garden Soils

The last five years have seen lots of study and movement around PFAS “forever chemicals” and soil. Not only have two very popular garden soil companies been sued, but many studies have found PFAS in garden soil.

• Miracle-Gro Lawsuit filed in 2025 says Scott’s falsely represents that the Products are organic even though they contain synthetic, nonorganic, and harmful forever chemicals known as perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).
• The Kellogg Organics Lawsuit, filed in 2025, alleges that Kellogg falsely represents that its products are “organic” despite containing PFAS such as PFOA and PFOS.
• The National Collaborative PFAS Project was released in January 2025 with Phase I findings. They found PFAS in biosolids and soil nationwide. The study is designed to evaluate the incidence and mobility of PFAS in soils with a history of land application of municipal biosolids. Partners from 23 sites in 17 states across the country provided soil samples from land application and control plots (no biosolids applied). Samples represented a variety of different soil types, depths to groundwater, climates, and irrigation methods.
• Study in 2024 found the release potential of PFAS from a commercial biosolid-derived compost.
• Australian study in 2022 looked at 19 different commercially available composts, garden soils, and potting mixes for the presence of 38 per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). The concentration of 38 PFAS in all the products ranged from 1.26 to 11.84 µg kg. The concentrations of legacy PFAS such as PFOA, PFOS, and PFHxS in all the tested samples were (mean concentration 0.47, 0.60, and 0.58 µg kg.)

How Do PFAS “Forever Chemicals” Get Into Garden Soil

There are many known sources of PFAS that can find their way into garden soil. This may not be an exhaustive list, but here are many ways we believe the contamination may find itself present.

• Biosolids: Where does all that sewage go? When sewage from households and businesses is sent to a wastewater treatment plant, the liquids are separated from the solids, producing a semi-solid, nutrient-rich product known as “sewage sludge” or “biosolids”. It’s then treated according to the regulatory requirements set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and returned to the land. How? Farmers are sold biosolids as soil conditioners or fertilizers, which can have high amounts of PFAS.
• Compost: Biosolids are the #1 reason why compost may contain PFAS. Many commercial garden composts, soil amendments, and “organic” bagged mixes include or are made from biosolids, which can contain PFAS. Then breaking down packaging known to contain PFAS can contaminate compost as well. Grease-proof wrappers, plates, pizza boxes, and takeout containers (even some labeled “compostable”) contain PFAS for water/oil resistance. When food scraps and contaminated packaging go into commercial compost streams, the PFAS tranfers to the final product.
• Manure: PFAS gets into manure by first contaminating water, soil, or animal feed on the farm. Crops absorb PFAS and Horses and cows consume what is present on the farm and that comes out in their manure.
• Other organic materials like peat, worm castings, or plant-based fertilizers may have low background levels from environmental exposure.
• Irrigation with Contaminated Water: Water is contaminated in several ways. Industrial discharges & discharges from toxic products we bring into our homes find their way into rivers, streams, and groundwater. Products such cosmetics, non-stick cookware, stain-resistant fabrics, food packaging, cleaning products, pesticides, & old carpeting contaminate drains and sewers. Aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF) used at airports, military bases, and fire-training sites also contain very high PFAS levels, which can find it’s way into groundwater, etc. Then farmers & home gardeners draw from surface water (rivers, lakes, canals, ponds), groundwater wells, and municipal reclaimed water systems, which all could contain PFAS.
• Atmospheric Deposition and Airborne Sources: Airborne sources of PFAS are very common.They start as direct emissions and indirect release of volatile precursors. Industrial facilities release both particle-bound PFAS and gases. Wastewater treatment plants release PFAS into the air when sludge in aeration basins are burned. Landfills offgas PFAS from contaminated waste. Firefighting foam (AFFF) sites aerosolize PFAS during use of fires at airports and military bases. PFAS is also incinerated when houses or buildings burn. And finally, on urban dust and vehicular emissions from cars and such in cities can all contribute to PFAS found in the urban dust and vehicular emissions — in cities.
• Historical Use of PFAS: Some areas are known to have PFAS “forever chemical” contamination such as airports, military bases, printing presses, landromats, chemical manufacturing plants, semiconductors, textile and carpet mills, petroleum refining. leather tanning, construction, automotive, aerospace, and pharmaceutical industries.

Mamavation’s Investigation of Garden Soil and 40 Analyte PFAS Testing

Garden Soil was purchased between June of 2024 and February of 2025 on the East Coast and then on the West Coast.  Each product was recorded in our database and then sent directly to the lab within its original packaging.

• Perflurobutanoic acid (PFBA)
• Perfluoropentanoic acid (PFPeA)
• Perfluorohexanoic acid (PFHxA)
• Perfluoroheptanoic acid (PFHpA)
• Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA)
• Perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA)
• Perfluorodecanoic acid (PFDA)
• Perfluoroundecanoic acid (PFUnA)
• Perfluorododecanoic acid (PFDoA)
• Perfluorotridecanoic acid (PFTrDA)
• Perfluorotetradecanoic acid (PFTeDA)
• Perfluorobutanesulfonic acid (PFBS)
• Perfluoropentansulfonic acid (PFPeS)
• Perfluorohexanesulfonic acid (PFHxS)
• Perfluoroheptanesulfonic acid (PFHpS)
• Perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS)
• Perfluoronanesulfonic acid (PFNS)
• Perfluorodecanesulfonic acid (PFDS)
• Perfluorododecanesulfonic acid (PFDoS)
• 1H,1H, 2H, 2H-Perfluorohexane sulfonic acid (4:2FTS)
• 1H,1H, 2H, 2H-Perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (6:2FTS)
• 1H,1H, 2H, 2H-Perfluorodecane sulfonic acid (8:2FTS)
• Perfluorooctanesulfonamide (PFOSA)
• N-methyl perfluorooctanesulfonamide (NMeFOSA)
• N-ethyl perfluorooctanesulfonamide (NEtFOSA)
• N-methyl perfluorooctanesulfonamidoacetic acid (NMeFOSE)
• N-ethyl perfluorooctanesulfonamidoethanol (NEtFOSE)
• Hexafluoropropylene oxide dimer acid (HFPO-DA)
• 4,8-Dioxa-3H-perfluorononanoic acid (ADONA)
• Perfluoro-3-methoxypropanoic acid (PFMPA)
• Perfluoro-4-methoxybutanoic acid (PFMBA)
• Nonafluoro-3,6-dioxaheptanoic acid (NFDHA)
• 9-Chlorohexadecafluoro-3-oxanonane-1-sulfonic acid (9CI-PF3ONS)
• 11-Chloroeicosafluoro-3-oxaundecane-1-sulfonic acid (11CI-PF3OUdS)
• Perfluoro(2-ethoxyethane)sulfonic acid (PFEESA)
• 3-Perfluoropropyl propanoic acid (3:3FTCA)
• 2H,2H,3H,3H-Perfluorooctanoic acid (5:3FTCA)
• 3-Perfluoroheptyl propanoic acid (7:3FTCA)

Product Brands We Tested
To help our community make safer choices, Mamavation sent a wide range of popular garden soil to our EPA-certified laboratory for PFAS testing.

Below is the complete list of garden soils included in our investigation. Sign into MAMAGATE below to view all results.

• Back to Roots Organic Potting Soil
• Garden Kellogg Organics Patio Plus Premium Outdoor Potting Mix Organic Plus
• Grow Well Proven Organic Garden Soil Farm Grade Organics for Home-Grown Success Professional Farm-Grade Soil
• Harvest Organics Potting Soil
• Kellogg Garden Organics All-Natural Garden Soil for Flowers & Vegetables
• Kellogg Organic Raised Bed & Potting Mix Premium Outdoor Container Mix Organic Plus
• Miracle-Gro Raised Bed Soil 
• Miracle-Gro Performance Organics In-Ground Soil (Purchased East Coast)
• Miracle-Gro Performance Organics In-Ground Soil  (Purchased West Coast)
• Miracle-Gro Garden Soil for Veg & Herbs 
• Miracle-Gro Potting Mix
• Miracle-Gro Garden Soil for in-ground use
• Miracle-Gro Organic Raised Bed & Garden Soil Quick Release Natural Fertilizer
• ProMix Premium Organic Garden Mix Compressed Pack
• ProMix Premium All Purpose Mix
• StaGreen Flower & Veggie soil plus fertilizer
• Timberline Soil Cow Manure & Compost
• Vigoro All-Purpose Potting Mix Specialty Blended for Indoor & Outdoor Containers & Pots

The post Safest Soil for Gardening Tested for PFAS “Forever Chemicals” — Guide appeared first on MAMAVATION.

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.  

EWG Finds 14 Million lbs. of PFAS “Forever Chemicals” Sprayed on Non-Organic Farmland in California

California produce has a PFAS “forever chemical” problem. Researchers at The Environmental Working Group (EWG) combed through official data from California’s Department of Pesticide Regulation to ascertain how many millions of pounds of pesticides were sprayed on crops in California. After studying all the pesticides, including herbicides, insecticides, and fungicides, which are widely used in the state’s most productive farmland, they were able to create an interactive map.

If you live in the State of California, you are now able to click on this map and find out how many lbs. of PFAS were used in your county and what type of crop it was sprayed on. You’ll notice right away that PFAS were used in all 58 counties, with up to 2.5 million lbs. per year, exposing millions of Californians to hazardous chemicals that will never break down in the environment.

Not only does the State of California permit the use of PFAS in pesticides, but this widespread use has contaminated produce, soil, and drinking water, exposing millions to potential health risks. Two of these pesticides, bifenthrin and trifluralin, have already been banned in the European Union due to health and environmental concerns. Yet they remain in widespread use on California farmland. When you consider that California produces half the produce nationwide, you realize that what happens in California does NOT stay in California. This is, in fact, a nationwide problem.

Crops with the highest amounts of PFAS sprayed:

1. Almonds – 4,176,442 lbs
2. Pistachios – 1,396,225 lbs
3. Structural pest control – 1,094,680 lbs
4. Grapes, Wine – 951,269 lbs
5. Alfalfa – 933,971 lbs

EWG Finds About 40% of California’s Non-Organic Produce Contains PFAS “Forever Chemicals”

EWG then reviewed data from the California Pesticide Residue Monitoring Report to find which produce was most affected by PFAS contamination according to California’s own testing. They found that almost 40% of non-organic fruits and vegetables grown in California were contaminated with PFAS.

In 2023, the state collected over 900 samples of 78 different types of conventional produce, and this subset was the basis for EWG’s analysis. Of the 78 produce categories, 40 types of fruits and vegetables contained PFAS residues. Now, not only can you find out how many lbs. of PFAS were sprayed, but you can learn how much of it had staying power when purchased by consumers. Here were some main findings:

• What’s Being Delivered to Your Grocery Store: 37% of non-organic samples tested by the State of California had traces of PFAS pesticides.
• Category by Category: 51% of the 78 produce categories were contaminated with traces of PFAS
• Stone Fruits. Peaches, nectarines, and plums showed the highest contamination rates, with nine out of 10 samples testing positive for PFAS pesticides
• Strawberries. Contained 10 individual PFAS pesticides, more variety than any other crop
• Grapes and Cherries. Showed lower individual PFAS pesticide detection rates, but are contaminated with several PFAS pesticides
• Other Affected Crops: includes spinach, blueberries, lettuce, lemons, and other popular produce items
• Crops Not Sprayed with PFAS: Sweet potatoes, cauliflower, mushrooms, tomatoes, watermelon, cantaloupe, sweet corn, avocados, and summer and winter squash.
• EU Banned Pesticides: Of the 53 PFAS pesticides approved for use in California, the European Union doesn’t allow 23.

Potential Health Impacts & Why You Should Care Even if You Don’t Live in California

California produces the vast majority of “specialty crops” in the United States. Specialty crops include fruits and vegetables, especially those you would put in a salad, like spinach, romaine, tomatoes, bell peppers, almonds, pistachios, celery, strawberries, oranges, etc. These crops are trucked to grocery stores all over the country and become part of your meal.

PFAS are problematic to human health and the environment. They are considered ubiquitous, persistent, and toxic. Therefore, it’s imperative to reduce the amount of PFAS you are exposed to from food and water and personal care products. Here are the main health impacts of exposure to PFAS:

• Reduction in immunity
• Reduced vaccination response
• Increased risk of allergies & asthma in young children
• Affected growth, learning, and behavior of infants and older children
• Increase cholesterol levels
• Metabolic diseases like obesity & diabetes
• Cardiovascular disease
• Lowered a woman’s chance of getting pregnant
• Lowered male fertility
• Increased risk of kidney & testicular cancers
• Causes endocrine disruption
• Disrupted normal thyroid function
• Increases risk of acute lymphoblastic leukemia in children 
• Cancer

Simple Actions To Lessen the Impact of PFAS Today

PFAS is considered ubiquitous; however, there are many ways you can reduce your exposure through simple changes and product choices. You cannot completely eliminate your exposure to PFAS, but here are some tips to lessen their impact in your home.

Clean Up Your Indoor Air

PFAS is so common in our environment that it’s been found in dust inside our indoor air. So the average person is breathing PFAS into their lungs based on how much dust is inside the home. PFAS are attracted to dust and attach to it, along with many other hormone-disrupting chemicals like phthalates and fire retardants. PFAS sources include everyday products and materials inside and outside your home. The best way to tackle this issue is with three steps:

1. Get a good air purifier and leave it on all day. But also make sure to open your windows every day and air out your home.
2. Dust your home once a week. Start at the top of the room with fans and finish with flooring. Removing dust means you’ll have less to breathe in daily.
3. Wash your hands before you eat. You’ve been touching dust on surfaces all day long.

Our Mamavation Air Purifier Recommendations

• Air Doctor 5500 (This link will save you at least $400 on a system)
• Air Oasis iAdapt Air 2.0
• AllerAir Airmedic Pro 5 Ultra
• Austin Air Healthmate Plus Air Purifier
• IQAir GC Multigas XE Air Purifier
• IQAir HealthPro Plus Air Purifier

Filter your Water

We do not know how much PFAS you are exposed to in your water because most PFAS cannot be identified by testing. This is the most horrible truth. Most districts are testing for a very limited number of PFAS chemicals. However, there are over 15,000 chemicals in commerce, so it’s very likely some chemicals are being missed in testing. So we recommend filtering your water as if they have already found PFAS, because chances are, that’s true.

These two units have been independently tested to handle the greatest amount of specific PFAS chemicals. While many brands claim to filter PFAS, these companies were independently tested in highly polluted areas and successfully removed numerous specific PFAS. Both companies offer very good under-the-sink and counter versions of their products. Clearly Filtered also offers a very good refrigerator filter.

• AQUATRU Water Filtration Reverse Osmosis — (This link will deduct $100 off a unit for you automatically at checkout.)
• Clearly Filtered with Affinity Filtration Technology — (This link will deduct 10% off purchase.) 

Eat As Much Organic Produce As You Can As Close to “Scratch” as You Can

When it comes to food, the best thing you can do is purchase organic and cook from scratch. This is not always possible for modern families, so doing it as often as you can is the main goal. Mamavation has taken the role of testing the supply chain for PFAS or indications of PFAS for many years to help you with that goal. Here are some of our recent investigations into specific categories of food, beverages, & supplements

• Teas
• Coffee
• Sparkling Water
• Butter Wrappers
• Nut Butters
• Pasta & Tomato Sauces
• Ketchup
• Non-Dairy Powdered Creamers
• Store-bought Pasta
• Electrolytes
• Children’s Probiotics
• Protein Powders
• Children’s Multivitamins
• Women’s Multivitamins

Opt for Organic Wine — We tested Frey Vineyards

The EWG called out grapes and vineyards in their study as a category of crops that have high PFAS pesticide use, so we recommend opting for organic wine (only if you are drinking) as a way to lessen your impact of PFAS. We have already tested Frey Vineyards for glyphosate, and they are a USDA organic vineyard in Northern California.

• Frey Vineyards Organic Cabernet Sauvignon — non-detect glyphosate (Take 15% off Frey Vineyard wines by clicking here.)
• Frey Vineyards Biodynamic Cabernet Sauvignon — non-detect glyphosate (Take 15% off Frey Vineyard wines by clicking here.)
• Frey Vineyards Sun & Rain Organic Chardonnay — non-detect glyphosate (Take 15% off Frey Vineyard wines by clicking here.) 

Eat Organic, Grassfed & Pastured Meats

Unfortunately, alfalfa was also identified as a crop with high PFAS pesticide use in California. Alfalfa is used as animal feed for many animals like cows, pigs, sheep, etc. Alfalfa can also be genetically modified and sprayed with Roundup Ready herbicide. We would recommend sticking to USDA organic and grassfed meats where you know the farmers don’t spray pesticides on their land. We have tested two different meat-producing ranch operations for phthalates in beef suet. We have not tested them for PFAS, but already know they don’t use pesticides on their land. Your other options would be to sticking to organic beef, pork, lamb, chicken, etc., to avoid fluorinated pesticide contamination in your food as often as you can.

• Parker Pastures — Non-detect beef suet for phthalates (Get $25 off your first order of $150 or more by using discount code “LEAH”)
• White Oak Pastures — Non-detect beef suet for phthalates (Get $20 off any order over $150. One use per customer. Use “MAMAVATION” at checkout or click on link for it to be automatically applied.) 

Swap Out Your Non-Stick Cookware

Non-stick cookware is mostly made from a type of PFAS chemical called Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), aka “Teflon.” We highly recommend sticking to stainless steel, cast iron, carbon steel, glass, and non-coated ceramic.

Stainless Steel Cookware Recommendations

Best 304 Stainless Steel (with Nickel)

• 360 Cookware (American Made Steel)(Use discount code “COOKWARE15” for 15% off products not already on sale)
• All Clad D5 Brushed Stainless Steel Cookware
• All Clad D5 Brushed Stainless Steel 4 Quart Pot
• All Clad Copper Core Stainless Steel Cookware
• Demeyere Intense 5-ply with Silvinox Stainless Steel Cookware
• Heritage Steel 5 ply Titanium Cookware Set (not nano)(Made in the USA with global materials)(Use discount code “MAMAVATION” for 10% off) 
• Heritage Steel 5 Ply Eater Series Cookware Set (Made in the USA with global materials)(Use discount code “MAMAVATION” for 10% off) 
• Legends 5 Ply Stainless Steel Cookware Set
• Made In Stainless Steel Cookware (NOT one in TARGET store. Brand in Target store are made of lower quality stainless steel.)
• Misen 5-Ply Stainless Steel Pans & Cookware Sets
• Viking 2 Quart Sauce Pan, 5 Ply
• Viking 5 Ply Stainless Steel Cookware

Best 430 Stainless Steel (without Nickel)

This cookware is a lower-quality stainless steel and should only be purchased by people with allergies or sensitivities to nickel. But if you have a sensitivity to nickel, this is your list.

• HOMI CHEF 5 Quart Stock Pot (18/0 nickel-free)
• HOMI CHEF 8 Quart Extra Large Stock Pot (18/0 nickel free)
• HOMI CHEF 10-Piece Nickel Free Stainless Steel Cookware Set Copper Band (18/0 nickel free)
• HOMI CHEF 14-Piece Nickel Free Stainless Steel Cookware Set (18/0 nickel free)
• Solidteknics nöni Stainless Steel Cookware (18/0 nickel free, however may contain trace amounts of nickel)(Use code “MAMAVATION170” for a free gift of a 7.5″ US-ION Lightening Skillet for any order over $170)
• Solidteknics nöni Stainless Steel 3 Saute Pans (18/0 nickel free, however may contain trace amounts of nickel)(Use code “MAMAVATION170” for a free gift of a 7.5″ US-ION Lightening Skillet for any order over $170)
• Solidteknics Stainless Steel Dutch Oven (18/0 nickel free, however may contain trace amounts of nickel)(Use code “MAMAVATION170” for a free gift of a 7.5″ US-ION Lightening Skillet for any order over $170)

Cast Iron Cookware Recommendations

• Finex Modern Heirloom Pans (seasoned with organic flax oil vs soybean oil)
• Finex Cast Iron Skillets (seasoned with organic flax oil vs. soybean oil) 
• Finex Cast Iron Grill Pans (seasoned with organic flax oil vs. soybean oil) 
• Finex Cast Iron Dutch Oven and Accessories (seasoned with organic flax oil vs. soybean oil) 
• Lodge Cast Iron Combo Set
• Simple Chef 3 Piece Cast Iron Set
• Solidteknics Cast Iron Fry Pans –10 inch fry pan, 12-inch fry pan, & 14-inch fry pan (Use code “MAMAVATION170” for a free gift of a 7.5″ US-ION Lightening Skillet for any order over $170)
• Solidteknics Cast Iron BBQ Sear Ring Camping System (Use code “MAMAVATION170” for a free gift of a 7.5″ US-ION Lightening Skillet for any order over $170)
• Solidteknics Cast Iron Quenched 14 inch Flaming Skillet (Use code “MAMAVATION170” for a free gift of a 7.5″ US-ION Lightening Skillet for any order over $170)
• Solidteknics Cast Iron Quenched Bigga Skillet (Use code “MAMAVATION170” for a free gift of a 7.5″ US-ION Lightening Skillet for any order over $170)
• Universal Housewares Cast Iron Square Grill

Ceramic Cookware Recommendations

Most “ceramic” cookware is actually made from nanoparticles. This brand does not expose you to nanoparticles and has been cleared via Prop.65 in California for safe heavy metal exposure too.

• Xtrema Ceramic Cookware — Mamavation readers get 15% off their products by using “mamavation” at checkout.

Carbon Steel Cookware Recommendations

• Craft Wok Traditional Hand Hammered Carbon Steel
• De Buyer Round Carbon Steel Fry Pan
• ICON Pre-seasoned Wok
• IKEA Vardagen Carbon Steel Frying Pan
• Lodge Carbon Steel Skillet
• Matfer Black Steel Paella Pan
• Mauviel French M’Steel Back Frying Pan
• Mineral B Round Carbon Steel Steak Frying Pan

Bakeware Recommendations

• Xtrema Muffin Pan (Take 15% off bakeware by using discount code “mamavation” at checkout.)
• Xtrema 1.5 Quart Loaf Pan (Take 15% off bakeware by using discount code “mamavation” at checkout.)
• Xtrema Rectangular Baking Dish (Take 15% off bakeware by using discount code “mamavation” at checkout.)
• Xtrema 7-Inch Roasting Rack (Take 15% off bakeware by using discount code “mamavation” at checkout.)
• Xtrema 8-Inch Grill Pan (Take 15% off bakeware by using discount code “mamavation” at checkout.)
• Xtrema Pie Plate (Take 15% off bakeware by using discount code “mamavation” at checkout.)
• Visions 4-Piece Cookware Set
• Visions 5-Piece Dutch Oven Cookware Set
• Visions 6-Piece Glass Saucepan Set
• Anchor Hocking Glass Bakeware Set
• Creo SmartGlass 2 Quart Baking Dish
• Glasslock 4 Piece Square Bakeware Set
• Libbey Bakeware 7 Piece Glass Bakeware & Casserole Set
• Pyrex Bakeware Oven Bakeware Set
• Simax Glass Fluted Bundt Cake Bakeware
• Simax Classic Glass Loaf Dish
• Solidteknics Cast Iron 12 x 10 Bakeware Sheet (Use code “MAMAVATION170” for a free gift of a 7.5″ US-ION Lightening Skillet for any order over $170)
• Solidteknics Cast Iron 20 x 13 Bakeware Sheet (Use code “MAMAVATION170” for a free gift of a 7.5″ US-ION Lightening Skillet for any order over $170)

Swap Out Your Other Small Kitchen Appliances

Mamavation has conducted numerous studies on small kitchen appliances and has reached out to these brands to find out what materials they use. Each one of these investigations will help you avoid PFAS.

• Air Fryers & Air Fryer Ovens
• Juicers
• Kitchen Stand Mixers
• Rice Cookers
• Waffle Makers
• Indoor Kitchen Grills & Paninis
• Blenders
• Nut Milk Makers
• Food Processors
• Toasters & Toaster Ovens
• Outdoor Grills & BBQs
• Ice Cream Makers
• Slow Cookers
• Espresso Machines & Mokas
• Electric Kettles

Swap Out Your Makeup & Other Personal Care Products

We have conducted many investigations to help you avoid PFAS. For some of these investigations, we have done testing, while for others, we have done an ingredient review to help you avoid problematic chemicals.

• Makeup
• Lotion
• Hand Cremes
• Anti-Acne Products
• Anti-Aging Creams
• Soap & Body Wash
• Liquid Hand Soaps
• Sunscreens
• Body Oils
• Nail Polish
• Face Wash & Moisturizers
• Hair Styling Products
• Hairsprays
• Detanglers
• Leave-In Conditioners
• Hair Dye
• Deodorant
• Dry Shampoo
• Shampoo & Conditioner
• Shampoo Bars & Conditioner Bars
• Toothpaste
• Dental Floss
• Razors
• Mouthwash
• Toilet Paper
• Bandages like “Band-Aids” 
• Head Lice Treatment Products
• Hair Relaxers
• Peel-Off Facial Masks, Sheet Facial Masks, & K-beauty Facial Masks
• Beard Oil
• Self-Tanning Products
• Contact Lenses
• Condoms & Lubricants

Feminine Care

We’ve tested these feminine care products for indications of PFAS “forever chemicals” to help you clean up the feminine care products you use.

• Period Underwear
• Tampons
• Sanitary Pads & Incontinence Pads

Food Packaging

We’ve tested these food packaging categories for indications of PFAS “forever chemicals” to help you clean up your home.

• Disposable plates & foodware
• Cupcake Liners
• Plastic-Free Disposable Straws
• Sandwich Bags like Ziploc
• Paper Plates
• Paper Towels

Clothing & Activewear

Clothing we have tested for indications of PFAS “forever chemicals.”

• Yoga Pants & Workout Leggings without PFAS
• Sports Bras without PFAS
• Bras without PFAS
• Nursing Bras without PFAS

Stain Resistant Carpet & Upholstery

Older carpets and upholstery would typically contain PFAS. As you remodel your home, ask about PFAS free carpet and flooring. We have not done testing of carpets, but we have done testing of furniture swatches for you here.

Mattresses

Here are our highest-rated organic mattresses that do not contain PFAS.

• Happsy—  (Use discount code “MAMAVATION10” for 10% off your total purchase. While supplies last. Cannot be used with other promo codes. Cannot be applied to past purchases. Valid one time per customer. Other restrictions may apply.)
• Lifekind
• Naturepedic— (Use discount code “MAMAVATION15” for 15% off your total purchase. While supplies last. Cannot be used with other promo codes. Cannot be applied to past purchases. Valid one time per customer. Other restrictions may apply.)
• Obasan— (Use discount code “MAMAVATIONBED” for two free complimentary pillows of your choice when you purchase an adult mattress. Make sure they are in your cart. )
• Organic Mattress Incorporated (OMI)
• Savvy Rest

Rugs

These rug brands do not use chemicals that intentionally expose you to PFAS. However, please note that we have not been able to test any of them.

• CICIL Home (Sign up for their newsletter and get 10% off your order!) 
• Loomy
• Lorena Canals Rugs (Use discount code “MAMAVATIONXLC10″ for 10% off products!)
• Oh! Happy Home (Goodweave Certified) (Use discount code “MAMAVATION” for 10% off products!)
• Organic & Healthy
• *Organic Weave (GOTS Organic) (Use discount code “MAMAVATION” for 10% off products!) 
• Rawganique 
• Rugs by Roo (Goodweave Certified) (Use discount code “MAMAVATION15” for 15% off products!) 
• Safavieh (natural selections, not all selections)(OEKO-TEX Standard 100 Certified)
• Sage & Wild (GOTS Organic)(Use discount code “MAMAVATION” for 10% off products!) 
• The Citizenry

The post 40% of California’s Produce May Contain PFAS “Forever Chemicals” Says Report appeared first on MAMAVATION.

Disclosure: This post was medically reviewed by Sondra Strand, RN, BSN, PHN. This post also contains affiliate links. 

Americans Spend Billions Because Our Pets Are Important to Us

Actually, they’re not just pets, they’re members of the family. 70% of U.S. households own a pet, which equates to 90.5 million homes. So much so that pet owners in the United States spent $50 billion on pet food in 2020 alone according to the American Pet Products Association. And that’s just food!

Overall, we spent a massive $103.6 billion on our pets over the course of a year. Surprisingly, very little is known about pet food ingredients and accompanying laws, but there’s a wave of awakened pet owners who are eager to become informed on the matter.

Mamavation is about to cover these topics to help you make better & safer consumer choices in terms of dog food. We will focus on product contamination, ingredient quality, and a shocking lack of oversight by the Feds. Then at the end of this investigation, we will share our rankings of all the most popular dog food brands.

Environmental Working Group (EWG) Finds Toxic PFAS “Forever Chemicals” in Cat Food Packaging

The Environmental Working Group (EWG) released a pet food consumer study where they tested eleven bags of the most popular dog and cat food brands for indications of PFAS “forever chemicals” inside the packaging. They found indications of PFAS “forever chemicals” in the packaging and that is concerning because of its ability to leach into the cat or dog food and expose your pet to PFAS. PFAS is toxic and persistent and linked with numerous health problems like cancer, immune system dysregulation, and weight gain in humans.

The following dog food and cat food products were tested by EWG:

Dog Food Packaging Results

• Blue Buffalo Life Protection Formula Puppy Chicken and Brown Rice Recipe — 140 parts per million (ppm) total fluorine
• Iams Lamb and Rice Recipe — 12 parts per million (ppm) total fluorine
• Kibbles ‘n Bits Bacon & Steak Flavor — 590 parts per million (ppm) total fluorine
• Pedigree High Protein Beef and Lamb Flavor — 15 parts per million (ppm) total fluorine
• Purina Dog Chow — Non-detect total fluorine
• Purina Puppy Chow High Protein Complete with Real Chicken — non-detect total fluorine

Cat Food Packaging Results

• Blue Buffalo Blue Adult Indoor Health with LifeSource Bits — 71 parts per million (ppm) total fluorine
• Iams Proactive Health Healthy Adult with Chicken — 60 parts per million (ppm) total fluorine
• Meow Mix Tender Centers Salmon & White Meat Chicken — 630 parts per million (ppm) total fluorine
• Purina Cat Chow Complete Chicken — 310 parts per million (ppm) total fluorine
• Rachel Ray Nutrish Super Premium Food for Cats Real Salmon & Brown Rice Recipe — 77 parts per million (ppm) total fluorine

Mamavation has ensured these products and brands made it to our “not our favorite” category based on potential exposure to PFAS “forever chemicals” down at the bottom.

Clean Label Project Tests for Heavy Metals & Phthalates

Clean Label Project released a report in 2026 that gave us some additional information on heavy metals, phthalates and acrylamide in dog food. They didn’t share specific labs data, but they were able to give us general information on trends. Good news is they were able to share which brands had the lowest heavy metals and phthalates and we updated our study below with their findings. Here’s what they found.

Dangerous Contaminants and Adulterated Ingredients in Pet Food

There are many examples of recalled pet food due to ingredient contamination. In a recent case brought by Purina, the United States District Court in St. Louis handed down a verdict on Wilbur-Ellis Feed and Diversified Ingredients ordering them to pay a whopping $7 million for their involvement in selling poultry feathers, heads, bones, feet, and entrails as high-quality poultry meal to Blue Buffalo and other pet food manufacturers.

There’s a problem with toxic chemical contamination as well. According to research conducted by Cornell University, glyphosate (the active ingredient in RoundUp) is pervasive in the pet food industry. Scientists tested 18 different commercial cat and dog foods, and ALL of them contained detectable glyphosate. Their findings also connected the presence of glyphosate to the fiber content of the food which suggests a plant-based origin. This is not surprising because we already know that crops are often sprayed heavily from beginning growth to end harvesting, and this is just more proof that this toxic, persistent herbicide remains in the final product.

Surprisingly, the concentration of glyphosate in pet foods could very well result in exposures up to 12x higher than that of humans! Scientists also noted the limited available information about the effects on glyphosate on cats and dogs which means we really have no idea how bad this is affecting them. Unfortunately, the brands that were tested have not been released. Don’t worry, we made sure to ensure all our “best” brands use only organic legumes.

In addition, there are other dangerous contaminants like pentobarbital, the drug used to euthanize animals. In fact, the FDA put out a report that says, “There appear to be associations between rendered or hydrolyzed ingredients and the presence of pentobarbital in dog food. The ingredients Meat and Bone Meal, Beef and Bone Meal, Animal Fat, and Animal Digest are rendered or hydrolyzed from animal sources that could include euthanized animals.” This led us to an automatic demotion of any brand with products that contained any of these ingredients.

Dog Food Ingredients to Avoid

These are ingredients commonly found in dog foods across the board. Many of them are principal ingredients and originate from unknown sources which makes them inherently dangerous for consumption. The truth is dogs have sensitive stomachs and digestion and depending on what nutrients you feed them or whether they have food allergies or sensitivities, you can make them pretty miserable. Pay close attention to the breed of your dog and what types of health conditions they suffer from to give them the best food.

Here are some basic principles to guide you when you are looking for wet dog food, dry kibble, or whatever else you need for your dog. Please talk to your veterinarian about your dog’s diet before making any changes.

• All types of meat by-products, by-product meals, meat meals, and meat and bones meals can be sourced from any number of places including diseased animals, non-slaughtered dead animals, euthanized animals, or decomposing animals, which means they may also be contaminated with the euthanasia drug, pentobarbital. By and large, the source of the meat is a mystery and high-quality dog food will never include this.
• Poultry and animal fat, animal digest, and porcine/pork plasma have unknown origins and can be sourced from diseased animals, non-slaughtered dead animals, euthanized animals, or decomposing animals, which means they may also be contaminated with the euthanasia drug, pentobarbital, and the porcine epidemic diarrhea (PED) virus. High fat diets can also cause pancreatitis in dogs.
• BHA and BHT are toxic preservatives and endocrine disruptors and are reasonably anticipated to be carcinogenic as stated by the NIH National Toxicology Program.
• Natural flavors is an umbrella term that legally hides an alarming variety of ingredients (some chemically distilled) through laws designed to protect trade secrets. By definition, it’s any product of roasting, heating or enzymolysis, which contains the flavoring constituents derived from a spice, fruit or fruit juice, vegetable or vegetable juice, edible yeast, herb, bark, bud, root, leaf or similar plant material, meat, seafood, poultry, eggs, dairy products, or fermentation products thereof, whose significant function in food is flavoring rather than nutritional. That can include a LOT of different substances.
• Carrageenan is irritating to the digestive system and can cause diarrhea
• Garlic & Onions can be poisonous & toxic to your pup in larger quantities. Onions & garlic contain disulfides and sulfoxides (thiosulphate), both of which can damage red blood cells and cause anemia in your dog. Signs may include weakness, vomiting, and trouble breathing.
• Yeast can cause digestive discomfort to dogs with lots of gas and farting. In severe cases, too much yeast can lead to rupturing the stomach and intestines.
• Artificial colors and flavors should be avoided because they’re synthetic ingredients that can come from anything that is inedible (even petroleum) and is processed to create chemicals of flavorings and colors.
• Too Much Liver or other organ meats can be problematic too. You can give a little bit to your pup, but liver contains quite a bit of vitamin A, which can adversely affect your dog’s joints and cause gastrointestinal problems. Unfortunately, this was too common in dog food to avoid, so we suggest you vary flavors when you feed your pup.
• Too Much Pea Ingredients and other legumes can have other ingredients that interfere with glucose regulation and lead to intestinal irritation if eaten in large quantities over long period. Because of the “grain-free” dog food movement, this is impossible to avoid, so we again suggest you vary flavors. Also, make sure if you see legume-based ingredients, they are using an organic ingredient because glyphosate is high in legumes.

Lack of Oversight in Pet Food Manufacturing

Can you believe the FDA has actually admitted that they don’t actively enforce the law with pet food? The United States law, Title 21, Chapter 9, Subchapter IV, Section 342 states that food (including animal/pet food) is considered adulterated if it is sourced from a non-slaughtered animal.

But in 2016, the FDA openly stated they will continue to “…allow animals that have died other than by slaughter that are further processed; we will allow those ingredients in pet food [because] processed pet food, including pet food consisting of material from diseased animals or animals which have died otherwise than by slaughter, goes through a kill step, such as heat processing, which is designed to kill harmful bacteria.” Nasty.

Any pet food containing one of the following ingredients could contain diseased animal material, non-slaughtered dead animal material, euthanized animal material, and/or decomposing animal material, and there’s no source requirement: chicken by-products, chicken by-product meal, turkey by-products, turkey by-product meal, meat meal, beef meal, lamb meal, venison meal, meat and bone meal, animal fat and animal digest.

Another problem is regulations do not require pet food to disclose what percentage of the total pet food is present. That information is considered a ‘recipe’ and would be proprietary. What they do mandate is that pet food ingredients be listed in order of pre-cooking weight, with the heaviest ingredient first.

What do “natural” and “organic” Labeling Terms Mean on Dog Food Labels?

According to the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO), the definition of “natural” means the following:

“a feed or feed ingredient derived solely from plant, animal or mined sources, either in its unprocessed state or having been subject to physical processing, heat processing, rendering, purification, extraction, hydrolysis, enzymolysis or fermentation, but not having been produced by or subject to a chemically synthetic process and not containing any additives or processing aids that are chemically synthetic except in amounts as might occur in good manufacturing practices.”

Typically this really means the product is “free-from” corn, wheat, soy, food processing byproducts, and artificial colors. But because this marketing term is not regulated, it could really mean anything, so make sure to read the ingredients to be sure you understand what you are buying.

Organic to the rescue! In terms of “organic,” there are very specific definitions and terms regulated by the USDA. AAFCO explains that to be labeled “organic,” animal foods must meet the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s production and handling standards for organic foods. This is primarily concerned with human-grade food, but in terms of dog food is the same.

USDA organic products must contain at least 95% organic ingredients to receive the organic seal. These ingredients must be grown without certain pesticides, artificial fertilizers, genetic modification, irradiation, or sewage sludge. Organic animal ingredients, including meat & eggs, must come from animals raised on organic feed, given access to the outdoors, and not treated with antibiotics or hormones.

FDA Has Concerns About “Grain-Free” and “Exotic” Dog Foods

There may be a problem with all this “grain-free” dog food. The FDA is looking into a possible link between DCM (dilated cardiomyopathy) in dogs and the ingredients in certain boutique and grain-free pet foods.

In a 2018 article in the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association, they explained the issue is not just grain-free diets, but rather, “BEG” diets (boutique companies, exotic ingredients, or grain-free diets). It’s an entire movement of new ingredients.

“The apparent link between BEG diets and DCM may be due to ingredients used to replace grains in grain-free diets, such as lentils or chickpeas, but also may be due to other common ingredients commonly found in BEG diets, such as exotic meats, vegetables, and fruits,” Freeman wrote.

Canine DCM is a heart disease in which the chambers of the heart become dilated and later the heart muscle becomes weakened and leading to heart attacks. Typically, this was only a genetic disease that was seen in Boxers, Great Dane, Newfoundlands, Irish Wolfhounds, Saint Bernards, and Doberman Pinschers, but now that isn’t the case.

Grain-free diets are full of legumes, which are also known to have higher levels of glyphosate, an herbicide also used for the desiccation of crops. Therefore, do not change your dog’s diet without a recommendation from your veterinarian.

Wanna Try DIY Dog Food?

Have you ever considered making your dog’s food? You’ll need to consider how many vitamins, like vitamin e or vitamin a, niacin, calcium, minerals, fatty acids, omega-3s, & calories they are eating. You’ll also need to involve your veterinarian for additional monitoring and advice. However, when you make the dog food yourself, you won’t need to worry about fillers or pesticides (if you are using USDA organic food). You’ll be able to use some of the best ingredients like barley, brown rice, organic chickpeas, bison, lentils, and free-range chicken.

Maintenance Energy Requirement

The first thing to do is to confirm how many kilocalories your dog requires to be fed on a daily basis. This is referred to as the Daily Energy Requirement or DER. You then take the total calorie requirement and divide it by the number of meals (usually 2 plus snacks) fed to your dog daily. Make sure to include all treats and snacks in the total.

It is always recommended that before making changes to a dog’s current diet you discuss this plan with your veterinarian.

Dog’s Activity Level

Most pet foods come with feeding guidelines that are located on the packaging. It usually provides a large range of weight from “30 to 50 lbs.” Other dog food companies ask about activity levels like “average or highly active” but what is the most important part of the scenario is not really all this, but two things:

• • How much your dog weighs.
  • Body Condition Score (scores from 1 severely underfed to 9 severely 0bese): The body condition score is a hands-on assessment of weight and the dog’s physique. It’s based on a dog’s frame as opposed to body mass.

Obviously, a dog having a higher body condition score will not need as much food. Purina has a body condition score chart and scores the dogs in three groups of underweight, overweight, and ideal weight.

• 1-3 is considered underweight or too thin.
• 4-5 is considered ideal.
• 6-9 is considered overweight or too heavy.

Monitoring Dog While DIY Feeding to Ensure They Get Proper Nutrition

It’s important to monitor your dog if you decide to DIY feed them. You’ll need to stay in close contact with your veterinarian regarding changes you’ve noticed about your pup, good or bad. Here are some of what you will need to do:

• Weigh your dog once per week
• Give your dog a body condition score every week
• Monitor closely for vomiting or diarrhea, which could mean your dog is sensitive to an ingredient. Contact the office with news about changes.

However, don’t sweat it. If you are committed to this change, you’ll work it out. But we do not recommend something like this unless you involve your veterinarian.

Basic Nutrition for Dogs — Dog Food 101

Just like us, dogs need certain types of nutrients each day to thrive. Human needs are very different than dog needs, so it’s important for your dog to get his own food. Feeding an incomplete or imbalanced diet can lead to vitamin and nutrient deficiencies.

Each dog needs enough calories to meet its energy requirements. A dog’s daily caloric need depends on the dog’s life stage and activity level.1 Your veterinarian can help you determine how many calories your dog needs each day.

• 10% protein, such as chicken, turkey, fish, lean beef, salmon, bison, venison, or other such meat.
• Up to 50% carbohydrates, such as rice, certain types of pasta, potatoes, sweet potatoes, and pumpkin. This also provides some fiber
• About 2.5-4.5% fiber, which can come from vegetables like organic peas, green beans, carrots, spinach, squash, or other veggies. It’s important to ensure the legumes are organic to avoid high levels of glyphosate.
• Vitamins and mineral supplements are important to ensure dogs are getting everything they need. If this is not included, talk to your vet about what is needed to supplement.

If you are ready to get started cooking for your dog, the first step is to talk to your veterinarian. Your vet may have recipes for you to try. We’ve also collected some books for you here on how to get started.

• 300 Dog Food Recipes by Dr. Amy Cousino
• Easy Dog Food Recipes by Scott Shanahan
• 90 Healthy & Easy Dog Food Recipes by Hellen Davis
• Homemade Healthy Dog Good by Emma Rover
• Dr. Becker’s Real Food for Healthy Dogs & Cats by Beth Taylor and Karen Shaw Becker
• Dinner Pawsible by Cathy Alinovi, DVM and Susan Thixton.
• Dr. Greg’s Dog Dish Diet by Greg Martinez
• Feed Your Best Friend Better by Rick Woodford
• Chow by Rick Woodford

Supplementation for Dogs

Dog may need additional supplementation when their dog food does not include it. Make sure to talk to your vet about what your specific breed needs. Some common supplements include:

• Calcium
• Vitamin E
• Sardines in water or fish oil capsules daily

Overweight Dogs–Weight Management Tips

When dogs become overweight, they suffer from some of the following health conditions:

• Diabetes – Carrying extra weight leads to insulin resistance, which is when the body doesn’t normally respond to insulin.
• Arthritis – Being overweight puts unnecessary stress on joints and discs in the spine, which can lead to joint degeneration.
• Respiratory Issues – It becomes harder to breathe when our dogs have extra fat around their airways and chest. They have to work harder to breathe.

Obviously, no one wants their dog to suffer. There are simple tips and tricks to helping your dog maintain a more healthy weight.

• Increase their activity level.
• Measure their food on a kitchen scale.
• Try to find additional ways you can treat your pup that don’t include treats. Perhaps a long walk?
• Instead of packaged treats, try substituting them with some real foods.
• Stay clear of salt
• Make sure the entire family is on board and isn’t sneaking them treats.

Mamavation’s Investigation of Dog Food Brands

Now we get to the nitty-gritty. We looked at over 260 different products and each one is assigned to one category: “not our favorite,” Better, Best — according to ingredient content. Note that we looked at 1-3 samples of each brand’s adult dog food formulas, both wet and dry when possible, however, there are other formulas offered by each company. Please note that some brands found products in several categories so please pay attention to products and ingredients.

Not Our Favorite Dog Foods

The massive list. This is the category for products that contain the worst ingredients. Every one of them has multiple ingredients from unknown and/or potentially contaminated sources including animal fat, animal digest, flavors, by-products and meat meals, toxic preservatives, added sugar, carrageen, and possible GMO ingredients including corn, soy, and canola. We found that many dry dog foods contain mysterious meat meals which automatically knocked them down to the bad category. We also added products that were tested by the Environmental Working Group and found to have indications of PFAS “forever chemicals.” Unfortunately, this list includes the most affordable brands that you find in common pet and grocery stores around the country. Also interestingly, a convincing label that has phrases like ‘all-natural,’ ‘ultra-premium,’ and ‘complete nutrition’ had little to do with the quality of ingredients. Please note that some brands have products in each category, so pay attention.

• 4Health Grain-Free Puppy Digestion Chicken Dry Dog Food
• 4Health Untamed All Life Stages Grain-Free Buffalo & Lentils Dry Dog Food
• 4Health Wholesome Grains Lamb & Rice Adult Dry Dog Food
• ACANA Limited Ingredient Duck & Pear Recipe Dry Food
• ACANA Puppy & Junior Recipe Dry Dog Food
• ACANA Red Meat Recipe Dry Dog Food
• ACANA Wholesome Grains Small Breed Recipe Dry Food
• ACANA Wild Atlantic Recipe Dry Dog Food
• American Journey Active Life Puppy Formula (Salmon, Brown Rice, & Vegetables)
• American Journey Active Life Wet Dog Food (Turkey & Vegetables)
• American Journey Dry Dog Food (Salmon & Sweet Potato)
• American Journey Grain-Free Dry Dog Food (Duck & Sweet Potato)
• ASPIRE Chicken & Rice Formula
• Authority High Performance All Life Stages -Turkey, Pea, Duck, & Salmon, Grain Free
• Authority Sensitive Stomach & Skin All Ages Dry Dog Food – Lamb & Rice
• Authority Tender Blends Small Breed Chicken & Rice
• Black Gold Grain Free Game Bird with Turkey & Quail
• Black Gold Mature 7+ Formula
• Black Gold Puppy Formula
• Blue Buffalo Life Protection Formula Puppy Chicken and Brown Rice Recipe — 140 parts per million (ppm) organic fluorine found in packaging.
• Blue Buffalo Basics Limited Ingredient Grain-Free Adult Dog Food – Lamb & Potato (packaging concerns)
• Blue Buffalo BLUE Wilderness Rocky Mountain Recipe Bison  (packaging concerns)
• Blue Buffalo BLUE Wilderness Turkey & Chicken Grill Grain-Free Puppy (packaging concerns)
• Blue Buffalo Freedom Grain Free Adult Dog Food- Chicken (packaging concerns)
• Blue Buffalo Life Protection Adult Dry Dog Food  (packaging concerns)
• Canadian Naturals Grain-Free Value Series Chicken Small Breed
• Canadian Naturals Lamb & Rice Value Series
• Canadian Naturals Sweet Potato & Venison Limited Ingredient Diet Grain-Free
• Canadian Naturals Turkey & Salmon Senior
• Canidae All Life Stages Chicken Meal & Rice formula
• Canidae PURE Grain Free Limited Ingredient, Salmon & Sweet Potato
• Cesar Rotisserie Chicken Flavor & Spring Vegetables Dry Food
• Diamond Hi-Energy formulated for sporting dogs
• Diamond Naturals All Life Stages Dog Chicken & Rice Formula
• Dr. Gary’s Best Breed Holistic All Breed Dry Dog Food
• Earthborn Holistic Great Plains Feast Grain-Free
• Eukanuba Adult Small Bites Dry Dog Food
• Evangers Super Premium Chicken & Brown Rice Recipe Dry Dog Food
• First Mate Cage-Free Duck Meal & Pumpkin Formula
• FreshPet Vital Grain-Free Beef & Bison Fresh Dog Food
• FreshPet Vital Grain Free Chicken, Beef, Salmon, & Egg Recipe
• Fromm Puppy Gold Dog Food
• Gentle Giants Adult Dry Dog Food – Chicken
• Gentle Giants Dog Food – Salmon
• Halo Elevate Grain-Free Chicken Recipe Dry Food
• Hi Standard Premium Performance Puppy Food
• Hi Standard Pure Grain Free Dog food
• Hill’s Prescription Diet Digestive Care i/d Low Fat Canine
• Hill’s Prescription Diet Gastrointestinal Biome Chicken Dry Dog Food
• Hill’s Prescription Diet Kidney Care k/d with Lamb Wet Dog Food
• Hills Science Diet Adult Large Breed Chicken & Barley Recipe Dry Dog Food
• Hills Science Diet Sensitive Stomach & Skin Small & Mini Adult Dry Food
• Holistic Select Adult Health Lamb Meal Recipe Dry Dog Food
• Iams Lambe & Rice Recipe — 12 parts per million (ppm) organic fluorine inside the packaging.
• IAMS MiniChunks Chicken & Whole Grains (packaging concerns)
• IAMS Proactive Health Pate’ with Lamb & Rice Canned (packaging concerns)
• Inception Pork Recipe Dry Dog Food
• Instinct Raw Boost Whole Grain Real Lamb & Oatmeal Recipe Freeze-Dried Kibble + Raw
• KASIKS Free Range Lamb Meal Formula
• Kibbles ‘n Bits Bacon & Steak Flavor — 590 parts per million (ppm) organic fluorine in packaging, which is indicative of PFAS.
• Kibbles ‘n Bits Savory Beef & Chicken Flavors (packaging concerns)
• Kirkland Nature’s Domain Signature Puppy Formula Chicken, Rice, & Vegetable
• Life’s Abundance Small & Medium Breed Puppy
• Merrick Healthy Grains Freeze-Dried Raw-Coated Kibble Real Beef + Brown Rice
• Merrick Healthy Grains Real Lamb + Brown Rice with Ancient Grains
• Midwestern Pet Food SportMix Dog Food
• Natural Balance Limited Ingredient Duck & Brown Rice Dry Dog Formula
• Nature’s Domain Beef Meal & Sweet Potato Dog Food
• Nature’s Domain Turkey Meal & Sweet Potato Dry Food
• Nature’s Logic Canine Turkey Feast
• Nature’s Logic Distinction Grain-Free Red Recipe
• Nature’s Logic Original Canine Lamb Meal Feast
• Newman’s Own Organics Grain-Free Chicken Dinner Canned Dog Food
• Now FRESH Shredded Turkey Recipe with Bone Broth Gravy
• Nulo Freestyle Grain-Free Kibble Turkey & Sweet Potato Recipe
• Nutri Life Grain Free Beef Dog Food
• NutriSource Adult Chicken & Rice Recipe
• NutriSource Grain Free Lamb Meal & Peas Recipe
• NutriSource Pure Vita Limited Ingredient Venison & Red Lentils Entree Grain Free
• Nutro Hearty Stew Turkey, Sweet Potato & Green Bean Cuts in Gravy Canned Dog Food
• Nutro Limited Ingredient Grain-Free Salmon & Lentils
• Nutro So Simple Adult Chicken & Rice Recipe
• Open Farm Wild-Caught Salmon & Ancient Grains
• PawTree Real Turkey & Sweet Potato Recipe
• Pedigree High Protein Beef and Lamb Flavor — 15 parts per million (ppm) organic fluorine in packaging which is indicative of PFAS.
• Pedigree Adult Complete Nutritional Grilled Steak & Vegetable Flavor Dry Dog Food (packaging concerns)
• Pedigree Chopped Ground Dinner with Chicken Canned Dog Food (packaging concerns)
• Pure Balance Wild & Free Grass-Fed Beef & Wild Boar Recipe Grain-Free
• Purina ALPO Prime Cuts Savory Beef Flavor Dry Dog Food
• Purina Bella Pate
• Purina Beyond Superfood Blend Wild-Caught Salmon, Egg, & Pumpkin Recipe Dry Food
• Purina Dog Chow Dry Dog Food Complete Adult with Real Chicken
• Purina Pro Plan Adult 7+ Complete Essentials Shredded Beef & Rice
• Purina Pro Plan Bright Mind Large Breed Formula Chicken & Rice
• Purina Pro Plan Sensitive Skin & Stomach Salmon & Rice
• Purina Pro Plan Small Bites Lamb & Rice
• Purina Puppy Chow
• Rachael Ray Nutrish – Beef & Brown Rice
• Rachael Ray Nutrish – Chicken & Brown Rice
• Rachael Ray Nutrish Zero Grain Dog Food – Salmon & Sweet Potato
• Rayne Adult Optimal Choice Dry Canine Bag
• Simply Nourish Natural Chicken & Rice Adult Dry Dog Food
• Solid Gold Star Chaser Chicken & Brown Rice with Vegetables Adult Dry Dog Food
• Solid Gold Sunday Sunrise Grain-Free Lamb, Sweet Potato, & Pea Dry Dog Food
• Stella & Chewy’s Wild Red Raw Coated Kibble Wholesome Grains Read Meat Recipe
• Taste of the Wild Southwest Canyon Grain-Free Dog Food
• TLC Whole Life Dog Food
• Trisha Yearwood All Natural Chicken & Vegetables Recipe
• Wellness Complete Health Deboned Chicken & Oatmeal
• Wellness Complete Health Grain Free Lamb & Lamb Meal
• Wellness Complete Health Pate’ Just for Puppy
• Wellness CORE Digestive Health Puppy Chicken & Brown Rice
• Wellness CORE Pate’ Beef, Venison, & Lamb
• Wellness CORE RawRev Grain-Free Wild Game + 100% Raw Lamb
• Wellness CORE RawRev Wholesome Grains Puppy Food Formula + 100% Raw Turkey
• Whole Foods Market Whole Paws Grain-Free Salmon & Pea Recipe
• Whole Foods Market Whole Paws Lamb Dinner Dog Food
• WholeHearted Grain Free All Life Stages Lamb & Lentil Recipe
• WholeHearted with Whole Grains Pate’ Beef & Brown Rice Recipe
• Wysong Optimal Adult Dry Dog Food
• Zignature Duck Formula Limited Ingredient Grain-Free Dog Food

Better Dog Food

The Better category contains products that have very few questionable ingredients. These foods aren’t perfect, but they’re far better for dogs than those listed in the “not our favorite” category and are nutritionally acceptable. Here’s where we start seeing a sharp uptick in wet vs dry dog food. It’s clear that wet foods have better quality ingredients, fewer additives and would seem to be overall healthier with the added water content. Please note that some brands had products in each category so please pay attention.

• 4Health Special Care Adult Sensitive Skin Grain-Free Salmon Dry Food
• 4Health Special Care Special Care Adult Sensitive Stomach Grain-Free Chicken Wet Dog Food
• Acana Freeze-Dried Free-Run Chicken Recipe Morsels
• Acana Freeze-Dried Ranch-Raised Beef Recipe Patties
• Acana Premium Chunks, Lamb in Bone Broth
• American Journey Grain-Free Wet Dog Food (Lamb & Sweet Potato)
• B.A.R.F. Freeze-Dried Raw Beef Nuggets
• B.A.R.F. Frozen Chicken Nuggets
• B.A.R.F. Frozen Land & Sea Raw Meat Chubs
• B.A.R.F. Frozen Raw Lamb Diet – Patties
• BIXBI LIBERTY Freeze-Dried Lamb Recipe
• BIXBI LIBERTY Rancher’s Red Fresh Beef, Lamb, & Goat Dry Food
• BIXBI RAWBBLE Freeze-Dried Chicken Recipe
• Chippin Wild-Caught Silver Carp Dog Food
• Darwin’s Intelligent Design Joint & Muscoskeletal Formula
• Evangers Super Premium Duck & Sweet Potato Dinner Canned
• Farmina N&D Ancestral Grain Lamb & Blueberry Medium & Maxi Adult Dry Food
• Farmina N&D Prime Lamb & Blueberry Canned Dog Food
• First Mate Cage-Free Chicken & Rice Formula Pate
• Fromm Four-Star Grain Free Beef Frittata Veg Recipe
• Fromm Heartland Gold Grain Free Large Breed Puppy
• Gather Endless Valley Vegan Dry Dog Food
• Gather Free Acres Organic Chicken Dry Dog Food
• Gentle Giants 90% Beef Grain-Free Wet Dog Food
• Inception Fish Recipe Canned Dog Food
• KASIKS Wild Caught Coho Salmon Formula Wet Food
• Natural Balance Limited Ingredient Freeze-Dried Raw Chicken & Sweet Potato Recipe
• Natural Balance Limited Ingredient Grain-Free Sweet Potato & Venison
• Nature’s Logic Lightly Cooked Frozen Beef Recipe
• Nature’s Logic Raw Frozen Chicken Feast
• Nom Nom Chicken Cuisine
• Northwest Naturals Chubs Beef & Trout
• Northwest Naturals Dinner Bars Bison & Beef
• Northwest Naturals Freeze-Dried Raw Diet
• Northwest Naturals Nuggets Lamb
• Now FRESH Red Meat Recipe for Adult Dogs (Grain-Free)
• Nulo Freestyle Turkey, Salmon, & Chickpeas Adult Dog Food
• NutriSource Grain Free Lamb & Lamb Liver Protein
• Open Farm Grass-Fed Beef Recipe Freeze-Dried Raw Morsels
• Open Farm Harvest Chicken Rustic Stew Wet Dog Food
• ORGANIX Grain-Free Organic Chicken & Sweet Potato Recipe
• ORGANIX Healthy Grains Organic Chicken & Oatmeal Recipe
• Organomics Turkey, Duck, & Chicken Grain-Free Pate Wet Dog Food
• ORIJEN Original Grain-Free Dry Dog Food
• ORIJEN Regional Red Grain-Free Freeze-Dried Dog Food or Topper
• Party Animal Original California Chicken & Oats (70% Organic) Dry Dog Food
• Rayne Kangaroo-Maint in Broth Wet Food
• Rayne Kangaroo Meatballs
• Royal Canin Veterinary Diet Adult Hydrolyzed Protein Dry Dog Food
• Small Batch Freeze Dried Beef Batch
• Small Batch Frozen Raw Duck Batch Patties
• Small Batch Lightly Cooked Chicken Batch
• Sundays Everyday Food for Dogs Beef Recipe
• Tender & True Organic Grain-Free Chicken & Liver Recipe Dry Dog Food
• Tucker’s Freeze-Dried Raw Pork-Lamb-Pumpkin
• Tucker’s Raw Frozen Pork-Bison-Pumpkin
• V-Dog Kind Kibble
• Vital Essentials Freeze-Dried Beef Mini Nibs Raw Food
• Vital Essentials Freeze-Dried Chicken Dinner Patties Raw Food
• Wellness CORE Air Dried TEnder Bites Original
• Weruva Wok The Dog with Chicken, Beef, & Pumpkin in Gravy
• Wysong Archetype Chicken Formula Freeze-Dried Raw Dog & Cat Food
• Wysong Epigen Duck Canine/Feline Formula Grain-Free Canned Food
• Ziwi Peak Air-Dried Lamb Recipe
• Ziwi Peak Free-Range Chicken Recipe Canned Dog Food

Best Dog Food

As usual, our Best category is the shortest list. These dog foods make the cut because they have more quality, whole food ingredients, no additives, and are meat-based. Some of them also contain organic meat and vegetables, but you’ll not find meals or by-products. All legumes here are organic in order to avoid high levels of glyphosate contamination. You’ll notice that there are no conventional dry foods in this section. We also wanted to warn you that most of these brands do not include additional vitamins & minerals. Some of them do, but not all of them. Please contact your Veterinarian to see if supplementation of additional vitamins and minerals are needed. [Update: We’ve also added products tested & cleared for heavy metals and phthalates by Clean Label Project in 2026.]

• Answers Raw Beef Detailed Formula for Dogs
• Answers Raw Duck Straight Formula for Dogs
• Big Country Raw Pure Lamb
• Big Country Raw Turkey Dinner
• Big Country Raw Turkey Salmon Lamb Blend
• Carna4 Easy Chew Lamb Nuggets
• Carna4 Grain-Free Duck Nuggets
• Carna4 Quick Baked Air Dried Chicken Nuggets
• Darwin’s BioLogics Beef
• Darwin’s Intelligent Design Cancer Support Formula
• Darwin’s Intelligent Design Kidney Support Formula
• Darwin’s Natural Selections Lamb (Antibiotic & Grain-Free)
• Dr. Harvey’s Oracle Grain-Free Freeze-Dried Raw Complete Diet
• Dr. Harvey’s Paradigm A Green Superfood Pre-Mix
• Dr. Marty Nature’s Blend
• Dr. Mercola Healthy Pet Essentials Dehydrated Raw Grass-Fed Beef Entree
• Grandma Lucy’s Artisan Chicken Grain-Free Freeze-Dried Dog Food
• Grandma Lucy’s Moxie Beef Recipe Freeze-Dried Dog Food
• Instinct Original Grain-Free Puppy Real Chicken Wet Dog Food
• Instinct Raw Cage-Free Chicken Recipe Patties
• Instinct Raw Real Beef Recipe Bites
• Just Food for Dogs Beef & Russet Potato Recipe (Grain-Free)
• Just Food for Dogs Fresh Turkey & Macaroni
• Just Food for Dogs PantryFresh Lamb & Rice Recipe (Gluten-Free)
• KOHA Limited Ingredient Diet Lamb Entree (Grain & Potato Free)
• KOHA Pure Shreds Shredded Chicken Breast & Duck Entree
• KOHA Raw Life Freeze-Dried Raw Bites Pork Entree
• Ollie Dog Food
• Maev Raw Food for Dog Anxiety Calming Formula (Tested low metals by CLP)
• Nulo Freestyle Freeze-Dried Raw Duck with Pears
• Nulo Freestyle Medalseries Chicken, Duck, & Kale in Broth
• Nulo Duck & Quinoa Adult Dog Food (Tested low heavy metals by CLP)
• Nulo Turkey & Green Beans Adult Dog Food (Tested low heavy metals by CLP)
• OC Raw Dog Freeze Dried Chicken & Produce Meaty Rox
• OC Raw Dog Lamb & Produce
• Ollie — Pork Dog Food (Tested low for heavy metals by CLP)
• Oma’s Pride Lamb & Veggie Signature Canine Mix
• Oma’s Pride Woof Complete Canine Chicken Meal
• Pet Plate Barking Beef Entrée (Tested low for heavy metals by CLP)
• Primal Freeze-Dried Nuggets Turkey & Sardine Formula
• Primal Pronto Raw Frozen Canine Chicken Formula
• The Farmers Dog Food
• Real Meat Air-Dried Turkey & Venison
• Sojos Complete Freeze-Dried Raw Beef Recipe
• Stella & Chewy’s Freeze-Dried Raw Chicken Dinner Patties
• Stella & Chewy’s Freeze-Dried Raw Duck Duck Goose Meal Mixers
• Steve’s Real Food Beef Prey Model Raw Diet
• Steve’s Real Food Frozen Turducken Recipe Nuggets
• Steve’s Real Food Lamu Recipe Raw Freeze-Dried
• Tender & True Organic Turkey & Liver Recipe Grain-Free Canned Dog Pate’
• The Honest Kitchen Chicken & Oat Whole Food Clusters
• The Honest Kitchen Chicken Recipe Dehydrated Dog Food
• We Feed Raw Chicken (Tested low for heavy metals by CLP)

The post Natural, Organic & Non-Toxic Dog Food Purchasing Guide appeared first on MAMAVATION.

Disclosure: This consumer study is released in partnership with Environmental Health News. Donations were provided by Environmental Health News and Mamavation community members. Note that Mamavation has only “spot-checked” the industry and thus we cannot make predictions about brands and products that we have not tested. Products and manufacturing aides can change without notice so buyer beware. This post contains affiliate links, with most to Amazon, which means Mamavation will receive a portion of those sales and we will use that to pay ourselves back for the testing. You can also give a tax-deductible donation to our consumer studies here through Environmental Health Sciences. Thank you!  Copyright © 2026 Mamavation — All Rights Reserved

Mamavation Found Arsenic, Lead, & Cadmium in Rice

How much arsenic is in a typical cup of rice? Let’s find out. Previous studies found high levels of arsenic in most rice products, so we created a rice consumer study based on the exact needs of Mamavation community members. Mamavation sent 57 rice & rice noodle products to an EPA-certified laboratory to test for total arsenic, lead, cadmium, & mercury. Because rice is the most significant source of arsenic (other than drinking water) most Americans have daily, we relied on donations from our audience to test exactly what they were already using.

Jasmine rice, basmati rice, brown rice, long-grain rice, parboiled rice, sushi rice, heirloom rice, forbidden rice, & ramen rice noodles were all sent to the laboratory and had various levels of arsenic and other heavy metals present. Here are some of the main findings:

• 98% of rice samples contained detectable total arsenic. That’s 56 out of 57 rice products. And, 100% of brown rice had detectable total arsenic.
• Brown rice arsenic levels ranged from 0.046 ug/g  to 0.136 ug/g total arsenic. This can also be described as 46 to 136 parts per billion (ppb).
• The average brown rice product contamination was 96 ppb total arsenic; however, the average rice product contamination from the entire rice group was 113 ppb total arsenic.
• Highest Arsenic Products: Mamavation sent two products with over 10 mcg of total arsenic for every 45 mg of rice for more testing of inorganic arsenic. Neither of those products were Basmati rice, but they came back with concerning levels of inorganic arsenic– 175 ppb and 222 ppb total inorganic arsenic. These samples were from China, Heilongjiang Province, and Louisiana.
• Geography of Highest Arsenic: Rice products with the highest total arsenic were from China, Thailand, Louisiana, Texas, & South Carolina.
• Geography of Lowest Arsenic: Rice products with the lowest total arsenic were from California, India, Korea, Vietnam, Thailand, & China.

Linda S. Birnbaum, Scientist Emeritus and Former Director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and National Toxicology Program & Scholar in Residence at Duke University, Adjunct Professor at the University of North Carolina, & Yale University had this to say after she reviewed this consumer study: “Pay close attention to how much arsenic is in your rice if you are raising young children or are pregnant. Mamavation has made this easy for you to navigate with their rice testing. Overall, this is a big problem for women who are pregnant, feeding small children, and people who consume lots of rice. So if you eat lots of rice, it’s best to opt for safer brands or types of rice lower in arsenic.”

Health-Related Impacts Linked to Overconsumption of Arsenic

Arsenic is a carcinogen that, in chronic exposure, is linked to bladder, lung, and skin cancers. Its most toxic form, inorganic arsenic, is found in the environment and around industrial processes. Early-life exposures to inorganic arsenic in utero are especially dangerous. Here are some additional health-related impacts linked to overconsumption of arsenic.

• Spontaneous abortion & stillbirths
• Increase in preterm births
• Neurodevelopmental disorders
• Behavioral disorders
• Cancer (bladder, lung & skin cancers)
• Skin lesions
• Cardiovascular disease
• Diabetes

For most of the world, exposure to arsenic is through contaminated groundwater. Inorganic arsenic is naturally present at high levels in the groundwater in regions of Argentina, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Chile, China, India, Mexico, Pakistan, the United States of America, and Vietnam.  Acute poisoning results in vomiting, abdominal pain, and diarrhea, followed by numbness and tingling of the extremities, muscle cramping, and even death, in extreme cases. Children are especially vulnerable to arsenic, and in such rare cases, they are referred to a medical toxicologist, Poison Control Center, or Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Unit for possible chelation therapy. You can check to see the arsenic levels in your public water district here through the Environmental Working Group Tapwater Database.

How to Lower Asenic Exposure for Children

If you are pregnant or caring for small children, lowering your exposure to arsenic is important. There are many things you can do, and we would love to help you get started!

• Drinking Water: The official recommendation from health professionals is to consider drinking bottled water in areas with elevated levels of arsenic in drinking water. You can check the water in your area here. Unfortunately, boiling water does not remove arsenic. However, we also worry a bit about exposing children to the microplastics in bottled water, so perhaps the best solution is getting a good water purifier for your home. Finding a good water purifier that can reduce arsenic levels is tricky. Most systems do not filter arsenic well, but we have linked some sound systems that can tackle that below. Here are our three water filter recommendations specifically for handling arsenic in water:
  •  Clearly Filtered 3 Stage Under the Sink Water Filtration System with Affinity Filtration Technology (or you can alternatively use their Clearly Filtered Water Pitcher with Affinity Filtration Technology)  (This link will deduct 10% off purchase.) 
  • AquaSauna SmartFlow Reverse Osmosis (Use discount code “MAMAVATION” for 10% off purchases!)
  •  AQUA TRU Countertop Water Filtration Reverse Osmosis or Under the Sink model (This link will automatically deduct $100 off a unit for you at checkout.)
• Diet: Generally, varied diets from whole foods are recommended instead of relying on prepackaged rice products.
  • Limit consumption of anything derived from rice, like rice syrups or rice cereals. Check the ingredients in your packaged foods and limit the amount of food consumed that contains rice.
  • Iron-fortified rice cereal is not the best first grain introduced to infants; instead, other options like oats, barley, and multigrain cereals should be introduced. These alternative grains can become a staple among older kids too.
  • Preparing Rice: When preparing rice for children, rinse it before cooking. Cook the rice in plenty of water, similar to how you would cook pasta. The arsenic will pull out of the rice into the water, and you can dump it out. This will lower the total arsenic you are exposed to.
• Limit consumption of fruit juices, especially grape and apple. Here are our recommendations for the safest apple juice brands based on a prior study released by Consumer Reports looking at arsenic levels:
  • 365 Everyday Value (Whole Foods) Organic Apple Juice, 100% Juice
  • Juicy Juice Organics 100% Juice, Apple (single juice box)
  • Honest Kids Organic Juice Drink, Goodness Grapeness (single juice box)
  • Simply Balanced (Target) Organic Apple Juice, 100% Juice
• Avoid Chromated Copper Arsenate (CCA) when treating wood or decking and opt for safer alternatives. Here are some better options for decking and furniture.
  • Vermont Natural Coatings Bohme’s Terra Plus Exterior Deck Stain
  • Vermont Natural Coatings Penetrating Waterproofer Infused with Juniper
  • Vermont Natural Coatings PolyWhey Exterior Penetrating Stain
  • Rubio Monocoat Hybrid Wood Protector
• Avoid allowing your children to play in dirt around industrial areas, especially locations with smelters, welders, woodworkers, chemical plants, glass manufacturing, and maintenance crews.

Types of Rice — What We Tested

There are two main types of rice: Indica and Japonica. Indica rice, better known as long-grain rice, such as Basmati and Jasmine rice, is long and slim. Japonica rice is a medium to short-grain rice and is stickier, shorter, or rounder. Wild rice is not true rice because it comes from a grass family, but we know you eat it so we won’t be splitting hairs here. Here are the types of rice we tested, broken into categories:

• Basmati Rice — Basmati rice is a long-grained rice with a nutty flavor and aroma. This type of rice becomes very fluffy when cooked and used in South Asian and Middle Eastern cuisines.
• Jasmine Rice — Jasmine rice is another long-grained rice with a floral scent and slightly sweet flavor, native to Southeast Asia. Jasmine rice from Thailand is also known as “Thai Horn Mali”.
• Brown Rice — Brown rice is a whole grain rice containing the rice kernel, including the germ and the endosperm. This rice is higher in fiber. Technically, any other rice that maintains its structure can be a brown rice. Brown rice typically has more arsenic than white rice because of the hull.
• Black “Forbidden” Rice is considered a whole grain because it has retained its bran, germ, and endosperm. It’s very dark in color and not as popular in the US as other rice categories.
• Wild Rice — This rice has more fiber and protein than other rice. The colors can vary.
• Rice Noodles — We included this category as noodles made from rice. Some products are transparent about what type of rice they use, while others are not.
• Parboiled — This rice is partially cooked in the husk, and then the husk is removed. This is also referred to as “easy cook” rice.
• Sushi & Other Short-Grain Rice — This category is a general section where we have to stuff many additional types of rice, like sushi rice and sticky rice.

How Arsenic Finds Its Way Into Rice & Rice Cereals

How does arsenic contaminate rice? The answer to that question is both complicated and straightforward. Rice is the number one source of arsenic for most Americans, but if you eat lots of chicken, mushrooms, or seafood, your arsenic levels may be even higher. Here are the main exposure pathways for arsenic in rice:

• Geographic locations and farming practices in that area can affect arsenic levels in rice. For instance, rice from California may have less arsenic than rice from Texas or Louisiana.
• Rice paddies take up more arsenic than other plants, so the naturally present arsenic will increase in rice in a way that doesn’t happen in other plants.
• The local water supply could have higher arsenic levels, and if used for irrigation, it will increase the amounts in rice. Certain areas like Los Angeles, Houston, & Spokane have higher levels of arsenic in the water.
• Legacy Pesticide Use: Rice farms that used to be other crops, such as cotton or tobacco, could already have arsenic contamination in the soil from previous pesticide use.
• Most rice paddy farms are heavily irrigated, turning them into mud patches that never dry out and, over time, concentrate arsenic.
• Arsenic-containing drugs: Sometimes arsenic-containing drugs and feed additives are fed to chickens to keep them from getting sick, but this also increases arsenic in their feces. This arsenic-filled chicken poop can be used in composting, which can get into the general food supply and can be taken up by plants or eaten by farm animals.

Best Rice Cookers

We’ve been researching the safest cookware and small kitchen appliances for years, so we wanted to share with you the safest rice cookers free from PFAS “forever chemical” coatings. Most rice cookers are coated with PFAS “forever chemicals” or different coatings containing nanoparticles. The safest options for rice cookers are stainless steel, cladding materials, or uncoated ceramic, and they can make perfect rice with a fluffy texture. The stainless steel inner rice bowl should be dishwasher-safe, not the entire machine. Not all accessories are approved if they are made of plastic, such as a plastic steamer basket or plastic rice paddle. Most of these machines have a tempered glass lid and a safe heating element, but they can also be placed in warm mode to keep warm. Increasing the water ratio in the rice cooker and later tossing the excess water helps reduce the arsenic in each rice bowl.

• Aroma Housewares Select Stainless Rice Cooker & Warmer
• Aroma Housewares Black Select 6 Cup Stainless Rice Cooker & Warmer
• Aroma Housewares Red Select 6 cup Stainless Rice Cooker & Warmer
• Buffalo Classic Rice Cooker (with Clad Stainless Steel Inner Pot) – 5 Cups
• Buffalo White IH Smart Cooker, Rice Cooker & Warmer 
• Elite Gourmet 6 Cup Rice Cooker
• Tatung Stainless Steel Rice Cooker
• Vita Clay 2-n-1 Chef Rice Cooker (Use discount code “MAMAVATION” for $30 off products)
• Vita Clay Smart Organic Rice Cooker (Use discount code “MAMAVATION” for $30 off products)(This brand has low levels of lead inside the ceramic. All public migration labs commissioned by brand have been non-detect. However, the amounts of lead found by independent bloggers are below 90 ppm on food contact surfaces, which are considered very low for ceramic. Because the State of California bases exposure of lead on migration testing for small kitchen appliances, this brand does not require a Prop. 65 warning because it doesn’t leach lead over the amounts that are concerning. So can you find lead in there? Yes. Is it leaching in a concerning way? The State of CA would say no.)

Interested in other small kitchen appliances and cookware investigations? Here are some additional studies we have done you may be interested in:

Cookware & Bakeware

• Cookware
• Ceramic Cookware
• Stainless Steel Cookware
• Cupcake & Muffin Pans
• Baking Sheets, Cookie Sheets, and Sheet Pans

Other Kitchen Accessories

• Glass Measuring Cups
• Kitchen Utensils
• Cutting Boards
• Reusable Water Bottles

Small Kitchen Appliances

• Water Filters
• Air Fryers & Air Fryer Ovens
• Juicers
• Kitchen Stand Mixers
• Rice Cookers
• Waffle Makers
• Indoor Kitchen Grills & Paninis
• Blenders
• Nut Milk Makers
• Food Processors
• Toasters & Toaster Ovens
• Outdoor Grills & BBQs
• Ice Cream Makers
• Slow Cookers
• Espresso Machines & Mokas
• Electric Kettles

Food Packaging

• Disposable plates & foodware
• Cupcake Liners
• Plastic Free Disposable Straws
• Sandwich Bags like Ziploc

Serving & Plating

• Dishes & Dishware
• Silverware

Mamavation’s Investigation on Brown Rice Tested for Arsenic, Lead, Cadmium, & Mercury

To recap, Mamavation sent 57 rice products to an EPA-certified laboratory for testing for arsenic, cadmium, mercury & lead. 98% of rice products had detectable amounts of total arsenic. However, 100% of the rice products contained some detectable heavy metal.

Mamavation accepted rice donations from women across the United States in the following categories: jasmine rice, basmati rice, sushi rice, long grain rice, brown rice, rice noodles, forbidden rice, wild rice, and parboiled rice. After receiving the rice, we recorded the information, took pictures, and sent the products to an EPA-certified laboratory for analysis. Rice that was above 0.22 mcg/g (10 mcg of arsenic per 45-gram serving), was sent back for more inorganic arsenic testing. We then estimated inorganic arsenic in other products by using a summary assessment of inorganic arsenic in rice published in 2024. Based on that study, we estimated that inorganic arsenic accounts for 72.7% of the total arsenic found. We included those estimations with all the products in the raw data below.

We are releasing the raw data in different categories:

• jasmine rice,
• basmati rice,
• long grain rice,
• brown rice,
• rice ramen and rice noodles,
• sushi & short-grain rice
• all rice products together

The final rice-related investigation that will be posted will be a compilation of all rice products together. The raw data released in this investigation will focus on Brown Rice. We divided the rice products into 3 categories according to contamination levels. These levels reflect the overall levels of heavy metal contamination in each product but do not follow specific government recommendations.

• ug/g = 1 ppm = 1000 ppb
• ug/kg = 1 ppb
• <MRL means less than “maximum residue limit,” which means it can be found, but it’s so small it can’t be quantified.
• ND = non-detect

Product Brands We Tested
To help our community make safer choices, Mamavation sent a wide range of popular brown rice to our EPA-certified laboratory for heavy metal testing.

Below is the complete list of brown rice included in our investigation. Sign into MAMAGATE below to view all results.

• Azure Market Organic Heirloom Rice Basmati, Brown 
• Azure Market Organic Brown Basmati Rice Imported 
• Koda Farms Organic Biologique Kokuho Rose Medium Grain Brown Rice Riz Complet Au Terrior Heirloom Rice California Grown (BLUE)
• Koda Farms Organic Biologique Kokuho Rose Medium Grain Brown Rice Riz a Grain Moyen Au Terrior Heirloom Rice California grown (Green/Yellow) 
• Lotus Foods Organic Brown Jasmine Rice 
• Lotus Foods Organic Brown Basmati Rice Regenerative Organic Certified 
• Lundberg Family Farms Organic Brown Rice Short Grain Regenerative Organic Certified
• Lundberg Family Farms Organic Sprouted Brown Basmati Gourmet Rice
• Lundberg Family Farms Organic California Brown Gourmet Rice BASMATI
• Massa Organics Brown Rice
• Now Food Organic Raw Sprouted Brown Rice
• Planet Rice Organic Sprouted Brown Medium Grain Rice

The post Brown Rice Tested for Arsenic & Lead — Guide appeared first on MAMAVATION.

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links and was fact-checked by Rebecca Elizabeth Sherrick Harks, Registered Nurse. 

Toilet Paper Is Incredibly Problematic to The Environment. It Disrupts The Largest Carbon Sink We Have In The World–The Canadian Boreal Forest.

Americans use close to 8 million tons of toilet paper per year according to Consumer Reports. Paper production like toilet paper, paper towels, baby wipes, tissue paper, coffee filters, & writing paper are incredibly toxic to the environment, leaves a huge carbon footprint, and deplete forests all over the world. In fact, this industry is the 3rd largest polluter.

The National Resources Defense Council reports:

“The pulp and paper industry may contribute to more global and local environmental problems than any other industry in the world. Paper manufacturers reach deep into species-rich forests for virgin timber, razing trees, polluting waterways and destroying precious wildlife habitat. Pulp and paper mills that use virgin timber are major generators of hazardous air pollutants, including dioxins and other cancer-causing chemicals. And the industry is the third largest industrial emitter of global warming pollution.”

One of the most important regions in the world for capturing carbon is the Boreal Forest in Canada in North America. Your toilet paper and toilet roll likely started there like a tree in the largest carbon sink in the world. Cutting down on toilet paper made from wood pulp and looking for alternatives like bamboo & sugarcane helps this effort. Watch how your choice of toilet paper helps fight climate change.

According to a report by the National Resources Defense Fund, “industrial logging claims more than a million acres of boreal forest every year, equivalent to seven National Hockey League rinks each minute, in part to meet demand for tissue products in the United States.” Long story short, if you want to become part of this solution, looking for alternatives would be the way to go. They are only logging the Boreal forest because we demand toilet paper made from wood pulp. Start demanding toilet paper made from bamboo & sugarcane instead. Not only is it a good thing to do for the planet, but also for your health, which we will get to now.

Are There Toxins in Your Toilet Paper? Pay Attention Especially If You Are Female. 

Thousands of chemicals are used to process commercial paper products like baby wipes & toilet paper. And as a woman, what I put inside me to wipe can have an impact on my health because I’m very vascular down there. One of the worst chemicals used in the processing of toilet paper is chlorine. So it’s important to be cognizant of what chemicals touch our most porous area because toxic substances can easily enter our skin and get into our bloodstream. Selecting toilet paper that does the least amount of harm to both our bodies and the environment is wise.

Toilet paper has also been suspected of chronic irritation of the vulva. In a 2010 study, they found that toilet paper may be the blame for chronic irritation of the vulva because formaldehyde was found present to improve the strength of the toilet paper. Formaldehyde is a known carcinogen.

3 key areas where toilet paper can cause you harm:

1. Toxic additives
2. Bleaching with chlorine
3. Recycled paper and surprise contaminants–bisphenols (BPA & BPS)

Toxic Additives Don’t Belong In Toilet Paper

Toilet paper with scents or lotions and flushable wipes likely contain problematic ingredients that enter as ingredients or as part of the manufacturing process.

• PEGs: This was a problem with flushable wipes. Many of them contained a variety of PEG compounds.  Ethoxylated ingredients (like PEGs) on their own are of low concern to humans, however, the process of ethoxylation can leave behind trace amounts of carcinogens: ethylene oxide and 1,4-dioxane.
• Undisclosed fragrances: Because there’s no way to know what components are in the fragrance, we have no way to know if the ingredients are harmful or can cause an allergic reaction. Synthetic musks and phthalates typically hide in hidden “fragrance” that is undisclosed. Phthalates are potent endocrine-disrupting chemicals linked to obesity, hyperactivity in children and degraded sperm quality.
• Paraffin wax: This is made from petroleum by-products and can be absorbed into the skin. It may also be contaminated with carcinogens.

The Bleaching Process of Toilet Paper Is a Bummer! 

Bleaching is the process by which toilet paper is whitened. Most companies do this process because unbleached products are typically harsher to the touch. Bleaching often involves the use of chlorine, which can produce dioxins. Dioxins are extremely toxic, with risks including reproductive and developmental problems, damaging the immune system, acting as endocrine disruptors, and can be a carcinogen.

The best course of action is to go with the least amount of chlorine as possible, so chlorine dioxide is better. Avoiding dyes & inks is also important. After interviewing some brands we discovered that it’s not possible to avoid chlorine derivatives all the time when it comes to alternative fibers. It’s just not available yet. For fibers like bamboo pulp, manufacturers are all doing chlorine dioxide instead of the harsher elemental chlorine. Sugarcane fibers have the ability to be bleached without the use of chlorine derivatives. As this becomes a more popular selection, I’m sure there will be more options. We’ve recognized this difficulty when making our selections.

The American Forest & Paper Association (AFPA) recognizes these ways of bleaching:

• Elemental Chlorine Free (ECF): While they don’t use the harsh element chlorine, they do use a chlorine derivative like chlorine dioxide. This process is far less toxic than using elemental bleach to process.
• Process Chlorine Free (PCF): This process is typically used by recycled paper products that have not been re-bleached with chlorine-based compounds.
• Totally Chlorine Free (TCF): No chlorine or chlorine compounds were used to bleach the pulp. Unfortunately, TCF is primarily done in China, which uses poor and unsafe standards.
• Unbleached: Means it’s untreated and typically very rough to the touch.

The Trouble With Recycled Paper & Suprise Contaminants–BPA Hiding In Your Receipts Contaminates The Recycled Toilet Paper. 

While recycled paper is, of course, the best option for the planet, there is one dirty little secret it is hiding–bisphenols like BPA and BPS. Bisphenols like BPA have been discovered as a hideaway inside recycled toilet paper. This is because thermal receipt paper, which is contaminated with bisphenols BPA & BPS, ends up finding its way into recycled paper products like toilet paper. Bisphenols like BPA are endocrine disruptors and studies have linked them to reproductive problems, early puberty, low sperm count, and breast cancer.

Mamavation Finds Indications of PFAS “Forever Chemicals” in Some Popular Toilet Paper

Mamavation sent 17 different toilet paper products off to an EPA-certified laboratory to look for indications of PFAS “forever chemicals.” The products consisted of conventional toilet paper, FSC certified toilet paper, bamboo toilet paper, and bamboo & sugarcane blended toilet paper. We did not purchase any products specifically for septic tanks or septic systems, but some of these products are considered septic safe.

Here are the main findings from Mamavation’s Toilet Paper PFAS Consumer Study:

• 24% of toilet paper tested at Mamavation’s EPA-certified lab had indications of PFAS “forever chemicals”, while 76% of toilet paper tested did not. In other words, 4 out of 17 products contained indications of PFAS “forever chemicals.”
• According to our lab, levels of organic fluorine, a marker for PFAS, were found between 10 parts per million (ppm) to 35 parts per million (ppm).
• 50% of the products with detectable levels of organic fluorine were bamboo products. In other words, 2 out of 4 detectable products were made from bamboo, one was made from conventional wood pulp, and one was made from recycled paper.

When PFAS is detected in personal care products, such as toilet paper, in the amounts we are seeing they are unlikely added on purpose but are more likely present due to manufacturing or packaging contamination of some kind in the supply chain. 

Mamavation’s lab used marker testing to identify the potential presence of PFAS “forever chemicals” in toilet paper products. Organic fluorine is a marker for PFAS because all PFAS chemicals are carbon-based compounds that contain fluorine.  The specific lab method used by Mamavation tested for total fluorine was the Determination of Total Fluorine by Oxygen Flask Combustion and Ion-Selective Electrode. If total fluorine was observed at a detection level of 10ppm, the lab did the Determination of free Fluoride Ion in the toilet paper by Ion-Selective Electrode and then subtracted that from the Total Fluorine to determine the amount of organic fluorine. This marker testing is likely to show the presence of PFAS, but other possibilities are things like fluorinated pesticide residue and fluorinated pharmaceuticals.

Scott Belcher, Ph.D. & Associate Professor with the Center for Environmental & Health Effects of PFAS at North Carolina State University says “fluoropolymers, such as polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) or Teflon®, are extremely common forms of PFAS that could be contributing to the organic fluorine found in food products. Methods used for detecting individual PFAS, such as PFOA or GenX, cannot directly identify PTFE. However, the analysis of total organic fluorine does account for all PFAS contaminants in food, including PTFE. Therefore, this serves as a good ‘spot-check’ of consumer products.”

Mamavation’s Toilet Paper Investigation

Mamavation scoured the internet for the most popular conventional and alternative toilet papers. We also enlisted help finding brands from our Facebook group & interviewed some experts to create standards and categorize brands.

Here’s our rankings based on materials & processing used. We’ve also included raw data from lab-tested products below.

Not Our Favorite Brands for Your Booty

These products contain additives or are bleached with chlorine. Chlorine bleaching exposes us to dioxins and furans which build up inside our bodies. Some of these brands could also be using formaldehyde. Most of these brands are made from virgin wood fibers, so they do not contain trace amounts of bisphenols but they are also not sustainable. These brands are cutting down the Boreal Forest in Canada, which is the largest carbon sink in the world.

• Aria Toilet Paper: No recycled products; ECF or PCF but no further details.
• Cashmere Envirocare Toilet Paper: No recycled products: ECF or PCF but no further details.
• Charmin Ultra Products: Undisclosed conditioners and processed with ECF. Charmin Ultra Gentle also contains paraffin wax, a petroleum by-product.
• Charmin Flushable Wipes: PEG and undisclosed fragrance.
• Cottonelle Flushable Wipes: PEG and undisclosed fragrance.
• Purek Envirocare Toilet Paper: No recycled products; ECF or PCF but no further details.
• Scott Flushable Wipes: PEG and undisclosed fragrance.
• Wegman’s Toilet Paper: No recycled content. ECF or PCF but no further details.
• White Cloud Toilet Paper: No recycled content. ECF or PCF but no further details.

Additional Brands Tested for PFAS “Forever Chemicals”

According to lab tests, these products contain organic fluorine, which is a marker for PFAS “forever chemicals.” We do not recommend you purchase from this category.

• Charmin Ultra Soft Toilet Paper — 13 parts per million (ppm) organic fluorine
• Seventh Generation 100% Recycled Bath Tissue — 35 parts per million (ppm) organic fluorine
• Tushy Bamboo Toilet Paper — 10 parts per million (ppm) organic fluorine
• Who Gives a Crap Bamboo Toilet Paper — 11 parts per million (ppm) organic fluorine

Better Brands for Your Booty

These brands are light years better, but there are some issues. This is where it gets murky. These brands contained recycled paper, bamboo or sugarcane. Using chlorine dioxide is preferable to elemental chlorine, so we recognize that. These products are either 1) recycled so we assume it could contain trace amounts of bisphenols like BPA/BPS, 2) are made with bamboo using elemental chlorine free (ECF) processing or 3) are made from unbleached trees or bleached with hydrogen peroxide.

• Bambootiful: 100% bamboo toilet paper likely using ECF bleaching process
• BimBamBoo Toilet Paper: 100% bamboo paper bleached using ECF
• Best Value: Recycled paper but uses PCF.
• Brandless: Use hydrogen peroxide instead of chlorine to bleach.
• Dream Bright 100% Bamboo Toilet Paper: Uses 100% bamboo likely bleached with ECF
• Kirkland Signature (Costco Brand): Uses PCF in recycling and ECF for pulp, most likely with chlorine dioxide. 0 to 50% recycled, depending on where purchased.
• Marcal: All recycled pulp but avoid receipts as much as possible.
• Noo Trees 100% EcoLuxe Bamboo Toilet Paper: Uses 100% bamboo likely processed with ECF
• Quilted Northern EcoComfortTM: Uses virgin pulp but plants 3 trees for every one used, so this would be an example that was alluded to in the video above. Bleaches using ECF.
• Silk & Soft No Trees Bamboo Toilet Paper: Bamboo toilet paper likely bleached via ECF
• White Cloud Green Earth Toilet Paper: 100% recycled content possibly containing trace amounts of bisphenols like BPA/BPS
• WholeRoll Organic Bamboo Toilet Paper: Uses 100% bamboo likely bleached with ECF
• 365 Everyday Value 100% Recycled Bath Tissue: Uses recycled paper which is likely contaminated with trace amounts of bisphenols like BPA or BPS

Additional Brands Tested for PFAS “Forever Chemicals”

These products did not contain detectable organic fluorine but are not made of sustainable materials. These brands are very likely consuming materials from the Boreal Forest in Canada or a similar forest which is contributing to deforestation and adding more carbon to the atmosphere. Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) is preferred over Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) certification for fibers.

• Angel Soft 230+ Sheets Double Roll Toilet Paper (made with Sustainable Forestry Initiative certified fiber)– non-detect organic fluorine
• Cottonelle Mega Ultra Comfort Care — non-detect organic fluorine
• Kirkland (Costco) Bath Tissue — non-detect organic fluorine [updated on 10/22]
• Presto (Amazon) Ultra-Soft Septic Safe Toilet Paper — non-detect organic fluorine [updated on 10/22]
• Scott 1000 Sheets Per Roll Toilet Paper (made with FSC Certified fiber)– non-detect organic fluorine
• Signature Select (Albertsons) Mega Ultra Premium Bath Tissue — non-detect organic fluorine
• Trader Joe’s Super Soft Bath Tissue The Big Roll — non-detect organic fluorine [updated on 10/22]
• Quilted Northern Ultra Plush Soft & Strong Premium Comfort Toilet Paper  (made with FSC certified fiber) — non-detect organic fluorine
• Up & Up Soft & Strong Bath Tissue — non-detect organic fluorine (made with FSC certified fiber) [updated 3/26]
• Value Corner (Safeway) Bathroom Tissue — non-detect organic fluorine

Best Brands for Your Booty

These products did not contain detectable organic fluorine according to our lab and are also made of more sustainable materials like 100% recycled wood pulp, bamboo, and cane sugar. Because sometimes recycled papers can contain trace amounts of bisphenol S (BPS) or bisphenol A (BPA), we prefer you choose from the bamboo or cane sugar versions. Processing is either chlorine-free or elemental chlorine free and fragrance-free.

• Azure Market Ultra Soft & Strong Bath Tissue Bamboo — non-detect organic fluorine [updated 3/26]
• Betterway Soft on the Planet 100% Bamboo Toilet Paper — non-detect organic fluorine [updated on 3/26]
• Bumboo Bamboo Toilet Paper — non-detect organic fluorine [updated on 9/25]
• Caboo Tree-Free Bamboo Bath Tissue — non-detect organic fluorine (Use discount code “EHN25” for 25% off product!)
• Cheeky Panda Eco-Friendly Natural Bamboo Toilet Paper — non-detect organic fluorine [updated on 10/22]
• Cloud Paper Bamboo Toilet Paper — non-detect organic fluorine [updated on 10/22]
• ECOS Treeless Bamboo & Sugarcane Bathroom Tissue — non-detect organic fluorine
• Honeycomb Soft & Sustainable Toilet paper — non-detect organic fluorine [updated on 9/25]
• Natural Value 100% Recycled Bathroom Tissue — non-detect organic fluorine [updated 3/26]
• Nature Z Way Bamboo Bath Tissue — non-detect organic fluorine
• Open Nature 100% Recycled Paper Bathroom Tissue — non-detect organic fluorine
• Plant Paper Bamboo Bathroom Toilet Paper — non-detect organic fluorine (Updated lab on 4/2025) (Use discount code “MAMAVATION20” for 20% off orders!)
• Public Goods Toilet Paper (Bamboo & Cane Sugar) — non-detect organic fluorine (Use discount code “MAMAVATION20” to get 20% off your order!) 
• Reel Bamboo Toilet Paper — non-detect organic fluorine [updated on 3/23] (Use discount code “MAMAVATION” for 20% off the product!) 
• Repurpose Ultra Soft Bamboo Toilet Paper — non-detect organic fluorine [updated 3/26]
• Rosey (Thrive Market) 100% Recycled Bath Tissue 50% Post consumer recycled paper — non-detect organic fluorine [updated 3/26]
• Seedling by Grove Tree-Free Toilet Paper (made with FSC certified bamboo)– non-detect organic fluorine
• Sprouts 100% Recycled Toilet Paper — non-detect organic fluorine

Alternatives to Toilet Paper–The “Family Cloth”

There are alternatives to toilet paper. Some more eco-minded families have ditched the toilet paper altogether for rags instead. An entire cottage industry on Etsy has sprouted up touting the sustainability of using “family cloths” instead of toilet paper. These are basically cloth rags you use, then store safely, rewash and keep using. You don’t really need to purchase special ones. Cutting up old clothes and towels will suffice just fine. Go browse Etsy if you want to see the creativity.

If you are going the reusable route, I also recommend our laundry detergent investigation so you know which laundry detergents are the least problematic to your health and the health of our environment. But be aware of the contamination. Make sure to store used “family cloths” in a bucket next to the toilet in a solution of vinegar, water & essential oils. That way, it stops the spread of most of the bacteria. The utmost precaution must be made when transferring the “family cloths” out of the bucket lest not contaminate any other part of your home. Simply dump the bucket into the laundry machine and make sure the setting is very hot.

But these rags would suffice if you wanted to purchase them on Amazon:

• Colors of the Rainbow Reusable Baby Wipes
• Christmas themed 12 pack of family cloths
• 60 simple cotton washcloths

Have You Ever Used a Bidet? It’s Pleasant & Gets You Very Clean.

If you’ve ever traveled in Europe, the Middle East, or Asia, you may have crossed by a bidet. The bidet uses warm water to perform a similar function to toilet paper, but cleaner. Some bidets are stand-alone washbasins that are located close to the toilet, while other bidets can be hooked up to a regular toilet.

Here are some bidets to check out to cut down on toilet paper use:

• • Hello Tushy Classic Bidet (This is the one I have! Use discount code “NUMBERTWO2” for 20% off purchases.)
  • Lux Self-Cleaning Bidet
  • Lux NEO Bidet 185 Plus
  • CRX Smart Toilet Bidet 
  • SmartBidet Electronic Bidet Seat
  • BioBidet Bliss Elongated Toilet Seat
  • SmartBidet Electric Bidet Seat
  • Brondell Swash Elongated Bidet
  • Brondell Advanced Bidet
  • BLAUX Electric Portable Bidet
  • Sanamity Toilet with Bidet & Dryer

The average American uses over 50 lbs. of paper pulp and close to $250 every year on toilet paper. We hope you have some good options to chose from for a safer wipe!

Additional Mamavation Investigations To Help Your Family

Mamavation has been working hard to discover where to find PFAS “forever chemicals” inside food & other products we purchase and bring inside our homes. This is why we have decided to commission our own consumer studies on indications of PFAS in different consumer categories and share that information with you.

• Pasta & Tomato Sauces
• Nut Butters (Peanut butter, etc.)
• Cooking Oils (olive oil, almond oil, canola oil, etc)
• Activewear (Yoga Pants)
• Sports Bras
• Green Beauty Makeup
• Toilet Paper
• Period Underwear
• Ketchup
• Parchment Paper
• Bamboo Flooring
• Baby Strollers

We also have other non-toxic investigations on products for your children or the rest of your family. Here are some that we thought you may like.

• Best Yoga mats 
• Best Organic Mattresses
• Best Air purifiers
• Best Cookware
• Best Plant-Based Milks
• Best Water Filters for PFAS Filtration
• Best Collagen
• Best Electrolyte Replacement Drinks, Sports Drinks, & Coconut Water
• Best Infrared Saunas
• Best Bubble Bath

Click here for a complete list of product investigations.

The post How Toxic Is Your Toilet Paper? Investigation of Brands appeared first on MAMAVATION.

Disclosure: This consumer study is released in partnership with Environmental Health News. Scientific reviews were performed by (1) Terrence Collins, Teresa Heinz Professor of Green Chemistry & Director of Institute for Green Sciences at Carnegie Mellon University, (2) Linda S. Birnbaum, Scientist Emeritus and Former Director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and National Toxicology Program, (3) Pete Myers, Chief Scientist at Environmental Health Sciences, Adjunct Professor of Chemistry at Carnegie Mellon University, and Co-Author of Our Stolen Future, & (4) Scott Belcher, Associate Professor with the Center for Environmental & Health Effects of PFAS at North Carolina State University. This post was medically reviewed by Sondra Strand, RN, BSN, PHN. Donations were provided by Environmental Health News and Mamavation community members. Mamavation has only “spot-checked” the industry and thus we cannot make predictions about brands and products that we have not tested. Products and manufacturing aides can change without notice so buyer beware. This post contains affiliate links, with some to Amazon, which means Mamavation will receive a portion of those sales and we will use that to pay ourselves back for the testing. You can also give a tax-deductible donation to our consumer studies here through Environmental Health Sciences. 

Mamavation Finds Indications of PFAS in Toilet Paper

PFAS “forever chemicals” are per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances used as stain-resistant, water-resistant, & oil-resistant chemicals in commerce. They have been used for decades inside consumer products, manufacturing, and building materials. There are over 15,000 different chemicals in the PFAS chemical class (including PFOA & PTFE), and because there are so many of them, they are incredibly hard to identify and test for. In fact, it’s only really possible to identify about 100 or so in a really good commercial laboratory.

The biggest problem with PFAS is their staying power–they do not leave the environment or our bodies for many many years, which is the reason they are dubbed “forever chemicals.”

Mamavation sent 17 toilet paper products (with many additional products added later) to an EPA-certified laboratory to test for organic fluorine, which is a marker for PFAS “forever chemical” compounds. We included as many types of toilet paper we could such as bamboo, sugarcane, recycled, and conventional wood pulp. We purchased the products between October 2021 and June 2022 from Amazon.com, using Instacart, or in-store from retailers in Los Angeles. (Updated purchases up to 3/2026)

Here are the main findings from Mamavation’s Toilet Paper PFAS Consumer Study:

• 24% of toilet paper tested at Mamavation’s EPA-certified lab had indications of PFAS “forever chemicals”, while 76% of toilet paper tested did not. In other words, 4 out of 17 products contained indications of PFAS “forever chemicals.”
• According to our lab, levels of organic fluorine, a marker for PFAS, were found between 10 parts per million (ppm) to 35 parts per million (ppm).
• 50% of the products with detectable levels of organic fluorine were bamboo products. In other words, 2 out of 4 detectable products were made from bamboo, one was made from conventional wood pulp, and one was made from recycled paper.

When PFAS is detected in personal care products, such as toilet paper, in the amounts we are seeing they are unlikely added on purpose but are more likely present due to manufacturing or packaging contamination of some kind in the supply chain. 

Potential Health Impacts of Exposure to PFAS “Forever Chemicals” in Toilet Paper

PFAS “forever chemicals” are problematic to human health and the environment. They are considered ubiquitous, persistent, and toxic. Many can last for years in our bodies. Therefore, it’s imperative to reduce the amount of PFAS you are exposed to from food and water and personal care products such as toilet paper. No one knows the direct impact of using toilet paper with indications of PFAS, but that doesn’t mean there is no danger.

However, we do know what the health impacts are when exposure to PFAS through water and food and they are listed below:

• Reduction in immunity
• Reduced vaccination response
• Increased risk of allergies & asthma in young children
• Affected growth, learning, and behavior of infants and older children
• Increase cholesterol levels
• Metabolic diseases like obesity & diabetes
• Cardiovascular disease
• Lowered a woman’s chance of getting pregnant
• Lowered male fertility
• Increased risk of kidney & testicular cancers
• Causes endocrine disruption
• Disrupted normal thyroid function
• Increases risk of acute lymphoblastic leukemia in children 
• Cancer

Special Consideration: Toilet Paper Touches Our Most Intimate Parts

Thousands of chemicals are used to process commercial paper products like baby wipes, toilet paper, and paper towels. But most importantly, what we put next to our body, especially touching our vascular private parts, has the potential to have an impact on our health.

There isn’t a lot known about dermal exposure of PFAS “forever chemicals” to our intimate parts, but that doesn’t mean that there is no danger; it really just means we don’t know the extent of the danger. But we do have some clues from studies that were done on dermal exposure and that potential problem:

• One study found that dermal exposure to PFBA demonstrated effects on the liver and showed similar results to oral PFBA and PFOA exposure.
• One study looking at PFAS in infant car seats found that PFAS can migrate from fabric to sweat, suggesting a potential risk of dermal exposure.
• Another study found that dermal exposure is similar to oral exposure to PFOA and can be immunotoxic.

Linda S. Birnbaum, Scientist Emeritus and Former Director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and National Toxicology Program says “PFAS cause effects in males and females of animals and people in nearly every organ and at every life stage. Because toilet paper is created to rub up against such vascular parts of the body, it’s logical to be concerned with this exposure.”

Bleaching — More Potential Health & Environmental Risks

Toilet paper has also been suspected of chronic irritation of the vulva because of bleach. Dyes made from petroleum can also be used to change the color of the toilet paper. In a 2010 study, they found that toilet paper may be to blame for chronic irritation of the vulva because a carcinogen, formaldehyde, was found present to improve the strength of the toilet paper. That’s concerning for any toilet paper using that type of bleaching method.

The American Forest & Paper Association (AFPA) recognizes these ways of bleaching and as you can see there are benefits and drawbacks to most methods:

• Elemental Chlorine Bleaching: Elemental chlorine is used to bleach and soften toilet paper. This process can pollute the environment. Most products manufactured in North America do not use this process anymore, however paper products manufactured overseas are more likely to use this method.
• Elemental Chlorine Free (ECF): While they don’t use the harsh element chlorine, they do use a chlorine derivative like chlorine dioxide. This process is far less toxic than using elemental bleach to process.
• Process Chlorine Free (PCF): This process is typically used by recycled paper products that have not been re-bleached with chlorine-based compounds. Because it’s recycled with the PCF method, it’s impossible to know whether the virgin papers were bleached with elemental chlorine or chlorine dioxide.
• Totally Chlorine Free (TCF): No chlorine or chlorine compounds were used to bleach the pulp. Instead, they use oxygen-based agents or hydrogen peroxide. Unfortunately, TCF is primarily done in China, which is unregulated and sometimes uses poor and unsafe standards.
• Unbleached: Means it’s untreated and typically very rough to the touch.

Additional Toxic Additives That Don’t Belong In Toilet Paper

Toilet paper with scents or lotions and flushable wipes likely contain problematic ingredients that enter as ingredients or as part of the manufacturing process. We are unsure at this point if the use of PFAS is part of how these additional ingredients are used or manufactured themselves. But it’s clear that these types of products are not considered eco-friendly toilet papers or sustainable toilet papers.

• Polyethylene Glycol (PEGs): This was a problem with flushable wipes. Many of them contained a variety of PEG compounds.  Ethoxylated ingredients (like PEGs) on their own are of lower concern to humans, however, the process of ethoxylation can leave behind trace amounts of carcinogens: ethylene oxide and 1,4-dioxane.
• Undisclosed fragrances: Because there’s no way to know what components are in the fragrance, we have no way to know if the ingredients are harmful or can cause an allergic reaction. Synthetic musks and phthalates typically hide in hidden “fragrance” that is undisclosed. Phthalates are potent endocrine-disrupting chemicals linked to obesity, hyperactivity in children, and degraded sperm quality, among many other health problems.
• Paraffin wax: This is made from petroleum by-products.

Therefore, selecting toilet paper that does the least amount of harm to both our bodies and the environment is wise.

Bisphenol A (BPA) or Bisphenol S (BPS) Can Contaminate Recycled Toilet Paper

While recycled paper is, of course, the best option for the planet, there is one dirty little secret it is hiding–bisphenols like BPA and BPS. Bisphenols like BPA have been discovered as a hideaway inside recycled toilet paper according to a study published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology. Researchers found BPA levels in paper that were 100 to 1 million times higher than amounts detected in canned and packaged foods.

This is because thermal receipt paper and shipping labels, contaminated with bisphenols BPA & BPS, end up finding their way into recycled paper products like toilet paper. Bisphenols like BPA are endocrine disruptors and studies have linked them to reproductive problems, early puberty, low sperm count, obesity, and breast cancer.

(Luckily, thanks to Mamavation you no longer need to worry about bisphenols like BPA or BPS on the receipt paper at Target. A few years back, we petitioned Target to make their receipts safer and after gathering over 50,000 petition signatures and meeting with Target, they did so in 2020. Trader Joe’s, Best Buy, CVS, and other brands have followed suit, however not all brands have fixed their receipts so it’s still a big problem.)

Estimation of How Much Potential PFAS Exposure is Possible Through Toilet Paper

Every year the average American consumer uses 12.7 kg of toilet paper, according to statistics from 2018, and that toilet paper ends up in sewage every year. If all toilet paper had 10 ppm, the average person flushed in 2018 in the US 12.7 kg = 12,700 g = 12,700,000 mg. (12,700,000 mg paper 0.000001 mg PFAS/mg paper)/person = 12.7 mg PFAS/person)

The population in the US in December 2018 was 328,082,386 persons. Therefore, 2018 National Releases = 12.7 mg PFAS/person x 328,082,386 persons = 4166646302.2 mg = 4166 kg = 4.165 tonnes of PFAS released to environment.

So not knowing how much PFAS-contaminated toilet paper was used (only know 4 brands had between 10-35 ppm), let’s use the lower limit and examine what the amount would be if 10% of the tissue used in 2018 was PFAS contaminated at 10 ppm and all toilet paper went to sewage. Therefore, about 0.4165 tonnes would be released to the environment through sewage sludge and municipal wastewater.

One of our main advisors has some context for you to share:

“The movie Dark Waters documented hideous injustice around the PFAS compound, perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA). In bringing this injustice to light, Robert Bilott, the lawyer who did battle with DuPont over the PFOA poisoning of the Parkersburg citizenry, has become a magnificent American hero. His work led to the biggest epidemiological study of all time which found that PFOA is capable of immense health impacts at tiny doses.

Other PFAS compounds are known to share PFOA’s injurious properties. And because PFAS compounds tend to be impossible for nature to degrade on any meaningful time scale, the American people cannot seem to escape the impacts. It has become unacceptable that measurable amounts of PFAS should be found in everyday consumer products such as toilet paper” says Terrence Collins, Teresa Heinz Professor of Green Chemistry & Director of Institute for Green Sciences at Carnegie Mellon University.

Sustainable Issue–TP Production Disrupts Largest Carbon Sink in World

There are some additional considerations when selecting your toilet paper that have to do with the health of our Planet–most American toilet paper comes from the Canadian Boreal Forest, the largest carbon sink in the world.

Americans use close to 8 million tons of toilet paper per year according to Consumer Reports. Paper production like toilet paper, paper towels, baby wipes, tissue paper, coffee filters, & writing paper are incredibly toxic to the environment, leave a huge carbon footprint, and deplete forests all over the world. In fact, the paper production industry, according to the National Resource Defense Council, is the 3rd largest polluter.

One of the most important regions in the world for capturing carbon is the Boreal Forest in Canada in North America. Your toilet paper and toilet roll likely started there as a tree in the largest carbon sink in the world. Cutting down on toilet paper made from wood pulp and looking for alternatives like bamboo & sugarcane helps this effort. Watch how your choice of toilet paper helps fight climate change.

According to a report by the National Resources Defense Fund, “industrial logging claims more than a million acres of boreal forest every year, equivalent to seven National Hockey League rinks each minute, in part to meet demand for tissue products in the United States.” Long story short, if you want to become part of this solution, looking for alternatives would be the way to go. They are only logging the Boreal forest because we demand toilet paper made from wood pulp. Start demanding toilet paper made from bamboo & sugarcane instead.

Alternatives to Toilet Paper for Your Home — The Bidet

If you’ve ever traveled in Europe, the Middle East, or Asia, you may have come across a bidet. The bidet uses water to perform a similar function to toilet paper, but cleaner. Some bidets are stand-alone washbasins that are located close to the toilet, while other bidets can be hooked up to a regular toilet. No need for a pack of toilet paper or to buy any toilet paper in bulk when you have these systems.

Here are some bidets to check out to cut down on toilet paper use:

• • Hello Tushy Classic Bidet
  • Lux Self-Cleaning Bidet
  • Lux NEO Bidet 185 Plus
  • SmartBidet Electronic Bidet Seat
  • BioBidet Bliss Elongated Toilet Seat
  • SmartBidet Electric Bidet Seat
  • Brondell Swash Elongated Bidet
  • Brondell Advanced Bidet

Product Brands We Tested

To help our community make safer choices, Mamavation sent 17 different toilet paper products to our EPA-certified laboratory to screen for total fluorine, a marker for PFAS “forever chemicals.” Products included conventional toilet paper, FSC-certified options, bamboo paper, and bamboo/sugarcane blends.

Below is the complete list of toilet paper products included in our investigation.

Toilet Paper Brands Tested by Mamavation

• Charmin Ultra Soft Toilet Paper

• Seventh Generation 100% Recycled Bath Tissue

• Tushy Bamboo Toilet Paper

• Who Gives a Crap Bamboo Toilet Paper

• DeBella Bamboo Septic Safe Bath Tissue

• Purafide 100% Tree Free Bamboo Toilet Paper

• Angel Soft 230+ Sheets Double Roll Toilet Paper

• Cottonelle Mega Ultra Comfort Care

• Kirkland (Costco) Bath Tissue

• Presto (Amazon) Ultra-Soft Septic Safe Toilet Paper

• Scott 1000 Sheets Per Roll Toilet Paper

• Signature Select (Albertsons) Mega Ultra Premium Bath Tissue

• Trader Joe’s Super Soft Bath Tissue The Big Roll

• Quilted Northern Ultra Plush Soft & Strong Premium Comfort Toilet Paper

• Value Corner (Safeway) Bathroom Tissue

• Bumboo Bamboo Toilet Paper

• Caboo Tree-Free Bamboo Bath Tissue

• Cheeky Panda Eco-Friendly Natural Bamboo Toilet Paper

• Cloud Paper Bamboo Toilet Paper

• ECOS Treeless Bamboo & Sugarcane Bathroom Tissue

• Honeycomb Soft & Sustainable Toilet Paper

• Nature Z Way Bamboo Bath Tissue

• Open Nature 100% Recycled Paper Bathroom Tissue

• Plant Paper Bamboo Bathroom Toilet Paper

• Public Goods Toilet Paper (Bamboo & Cane Sugar)

• Reel Bamboo Toilet Paper

• Seedling by Grove Tree-Free Toilet Paper

• Sprouts 100% Recycled Toilet Paper

• Betterway Soft on the Planet 100% Bamboo Toilet Paper
• Azure Market Ultra Soft & Strong Bath Tissue Bamboo
• Natural Value 100% Recycled Bathroom Tissue
• Repurpose Ultra Soft Bamboo Toilet Paper
• Up & Up Soft & Strong Bath Tissue (Target)
• Rosey 100% Recycled Bath Tissue (Thrive Market)

Want full access to the raw data, fluorine levels, and our recommendations for the safest toilet paper? Become a Member and get Free Access to the complete buying guide with detailed lab results for every brand.

The post Indications of Toxic PFAS “Forever Chemicals” Found in Toilet Paper — Report appeared first on MAMAVATION.

Disclosure: Mamavation independently paid for laboratory testing to look for potential contamination in this brand. We will now use any affiliate funds we receive from purchases of Seed to pay ourselves back for this testing. This post contains affiliate links. Mamavation receives a small portion of sales. We thank you for your support! 

Mamavation Sent Seed to the Laboratory to Test for Contaminants

Mamavation has been scrutinizing and testing Seed DS-01 since 2018. This year, we were not able to budget much for a comprehensive probiotic investigation with dozens of products, but we did want to make sure we sent the same probiotic from our last probiotic investigation to the laboratory for a series of tests.

So, Mamavation sent the Seed DS-01 to an EPA-certified laboratory for testing for contaminants. We tested for four types of heavy metals: lead, cadmium, arsenic, & mercury. We also tested for indications of PFAS “forever chemicals,” glyphosate, AMPA, and phthalates. The results were very positive.

Lab Results of Seed Daily Synbiotic DS-01

Here are the total results we got from the lab, along with some context we have provided below.

• Indications of PFAS “Forever Chemicals”: non-detect organic fluorine
• 40 PFAS “Forever Chemical” Assays: Non-detect
• Glyphosate: Non-detect
• AMPA (Aminomethylphosphonic Acid): Non-detect (breakdown chemical of glyphosate)
• 300+ Additional Pesticides: Non-detect
• Phthalates: 242 ppb total phthalate (Context: this is lower than the lowest of women’s multivitamins)
• Lead: 0.01 mcg/serving (No prop. 65 warning needed)
• Cadmium: 0.01 mcg/serving (No Prop. 65 warning needed)
• Arsenic: 0.03 mcg/serving (No Prop. 65 warning needed)
• Mercury: Non-detect

Seed DS-01 has been one of the cleanest supplements Mamavation has independently tested. According to the laboratory, no glyphosate, AMPA, 300+ additional pesticides, specific PFAS “forever chemicals,” or organic fluorine (indications of PFAS “forever chemicals”) were detected.

One quick note on phthalates: Mamavation has found phthalates in almost every supplement we have tested, including those we have not yet been able to publish yet. (More supplement consumer studies are coming!) Therefore, we know what lower phthalates look like in the supplement industry right now. We found low levels of phthalates in Seed DS-01. However, note that they were lower than the lowest of women’s multivitamins. Therefore, they would be slotted in our “best” category. We do have one caveat. The only place Mamavation has found non-detect phthalate results in supplements is with some “gummies” and “chews” in children’s multivitamins, but we have not found this to be the case with solid supplements. All solid supplements tested have had phthalate detections thus far. (Including supplements in upcoming consumer studies.) Shining a light on this, with the help of consumers, can only make it better.

The four basic heavy metals our lab tested for were lead, cadmium, arsenic, & mercury. All detections were far below Prop. 65 warning levels. Therefore, Seed DS-01 would not require any warnings regarding heavy metals, according to the State of California, which has the strictest lead restrictions in the country.

Special Offer to Mamavation Community From Seed

Seed is celebrating by offering a special discount to the Mamavation community. Get 30% off your initial month of Seed by using this link.  (This is good till March 31st, and after that time will go back to 20%)

More About Seed DS-01 & Bacterial Strains Clinically Tested

The DS-01 is a daily probiotic + prebiotic clinically proven to relieve bloating, gas, and irregularity—plus long-term benefits for immune, skin, and heart health. Seed contains 24 bacterial strains, totaling 53.6 billion AFU. They are tested by Seed for quality, pesticides, and allergens.

These specific bacterial strains, when used together, have been proven in clinical trials to be very beneficial to your gut, immune, skin, and heart health.

DS-01 Bacterial Strains

These are the 24 bacterial strains & species contained in DS-01:

Bifidobacterium longum SD-BB536-JP, Bifidobacterium breve SD-BR3-IT, Lactobacillus plantarum SD-LP1-IT, Lactobacillus rhamnosus SD-LR6-IT, Lactobacillus reuteri SD-LRE2-IT, Bifidobacterium longum HRVD90b-US, Bifidobacterium lactis RD-BS5-IT, Lactobacillus casei HRVD300-US, Bifidobacterium breve HRVD521-US, Bifidobacterium lactis HRVD524-US, Lactobacillus rhamnosus HRVD113-US, Bifidobacterium lactis SD-150-BE, Lactobacillus rhamnosus SD-GG-BE, Lactobacillus reuteri SD-RD830-FR, Bifidobacterium adolescentis SD-BA5-IT, Lactobacillus crispatus SD-LCR01-IT, Lactobacillus fermentum SD-LF8-IT, Lactobacillus plantarum SD-LPLDL-UK, Bifidobacterium lactis SD-MB2409-IT, Lactobacillus salivarius SD-LS1-IT, Bifidobacterium lactis SD-CECT8145-SP, Bifidobacterium longum SD-CECT7347-SP, Lactobacillus casei SD-CECT9104-SP.

The post Seed DS-01 Synbiotic Testing Results appeared first on MAMAVATION.

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.

What is Red Light Therapy

Red Light Therapy uses non-invasive treatments with near-infrared light emitted by LED lights or low-energy lasers called photobiomodulation, to treat a number of ailments like acne, hair loss, pain, wrinkles, and other conditions like inflammation. The red light energy changes your body at the cellular level by delivering low-level wavelengths (600 ~ 1,000 nanometers) of red or near-infrared light to targeted areas according to scientific evidence.

For a treatment, you position your body in the pathway of a device. It will not burn your skin because it does not contain UV radiation from the sun. It simply penetrates the skin, reaching underlying tissues and entering cells. The mitochondria of your cells are stimulated to produce more energy, mostly adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which helps you heal faster and decrease inflammation.

Typically, your local dermatologist will have the most powerful tools available as medical devices, but there are some decent red light therapy devices for home use as well. Actual lasers are more likely to be used in a professional setting than at home for people with a medical condition. Medical-grade treatment time and precise wavelengths vary inside the clinic. Dermatologists also offer red light therapy, often combined with creams, microneedling, or chemical peels.

Side Effects of Red Light Therapy

Red Light Therapy appears to be safe in the short term. As with many products, we do not yet have long-term data on these products because they have not been around long enough to study their impacts. Unlike ultraviolet (UV) light, which can cause skin cancer, red light has not been linked with any form of cancer or similar ailments.

The most common side effects of red light therapy are mild and include temporary pain or skin irritation. Therefore, red light therapy is not a good fit for everyone.

It’s also important to note that most studies on red light therapy have been of low quality, so there is no consensus on the exact wavelength parameters, treatment durations, and related details for many health conditions. Please consult your doctor before starting any treatments.

However, there are some unique risks to people with darker skin tones. People with darker skin tones are more sensitive to visible light, such as red light. This increased sensitivity can lead to hyperpigmentation, resulting in dark spots. Please consult your physician before attempting any red light therapy regimes.

Types of Red Light Therapy Machines

Many at-home devices are available for red light therapy. At-home use is common for the treatment of fine lines and wrinkles, hair regrowth, and chronic pain. Here are the options we considered within this investigation.

• Red Light Face Masks: These masks fit over your face and target fine lines and wrinkles
• Red Light Panels: These panels can be mounted on the wall or placed on a table.
• Red Light Wands: These handheld devices are used to pass over specific areas of your body you want to treat.
• Red Light Beds, Blankets & Bags: These are tanning beds & bags that expose the entire body.
• Red Light Caps & Helmets: These devices fit over your head and target your hair follicles for regrowing hair
• Red Light Alternative Incandescent Options: These devices use incandescent bulbs instead of LED technology for low to no EMFs

Do These Devices Really Work? Studies on Red Light Therapy

Do red light therapy devices work? Yes, for most people, they do; however, studies are limited and of lower quality, and thus, more is needed. Don’t get me wrong: if you search Google Scholar for red light therapy, you’ll find thousands of studies; however, more research is still needed. Let’s review what we know about how red light therapy devices help with specific ailments.

Hair Regrowth

Heredity/hormonal hair loss is the most common type of hair loss. It’s also referred to as male pattern hair loss for men and female pattern hair loss for women. It’s also known as androgenetic alopecia and can be treated with red light therapy caps & helmets. Dermatologists’ studies on low-level laser therapy found it to be just as effective as minoxidil at regrowing hair in patients with hereditary hair loss. This study is the reason why the FDA cleared red light therapy for hair regrowth.

Needed wavelengths: Red 630-650 nm and NIR 808 nm

Fine Lines & Wrinkles

Researchers found red light therapy masks result in an improvement in skin quality, reduced visible signs of aging, and overall found an improvement after three months of use. The FDA has cleared red light therapy devices for treatment of the following:

• Dark spots
• Discoloration
• Fine lines and wrinkles
• Loose skin

Needed wavelengths: Red 630-670 nm and NIR 810-850 nm

Acne

Light therapy has long been used to treat acne, with blue light used to kill bacteria, and red light therapy has now been approved for acne treatment. Red light therapy stimulates biological responses deep within the skin, promoting healing and reducing inflammation without damaging the skin.

Researchers found that mild to severe acne improved with a series of six treatments administered every two weeks. They found red light therapy resulted in the following:

• Decrease in the secretion of skin oil
• Improvements in acne lesions
• No adverse effects

Wavelength needed: Red only 630-670 nm, blue only 414-445 nm, combined red and blue 415 nm blue & 630-660 nm red

Improve cognitive function

Red light therapy was found to improve cognition in patients with dementia, suggesting it can enhance cognitive function after six minutes of daily use for eight weeks.

Another study looked at headsets and helmets and how they transmit near-infrared light through the skull and nostrils. They found that patients with nostrils showed improved cognitive function with intranasal and transcranial red light therapy.

Wavelength needed: 630-660 nm Red, 810-1064 nm NIR

Ease Chronic Pain

Red light therapy may be effective in reducing pain and inflammation, as indicated by a meta-analysis of existing studies. Many studies have examined the efficacy of red light therapy in alleviating chronic pain and its effects on cerebral blood flow, neuronal bioenergetic functions, neuroinflammation, oxidative stress, neural apoptosis, neurogenesis, neurotrophic factors, and intrinsic brain networks.

The findings reported significant improvements in pain associated with

• Fibromyalgia
• Knee osteoarthritis
• Non-specific low back pain
• Surgery

However, in many instances, the chronic pain returned within weeks of ending therapy.

Wavelength needed: 640-905 nm NIR dominant

How The FDA Regulates Red Light Therapy Devices

Don’t let anyone convince you that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is useless in this category. FDA compliance signals the seriousness of the brand you are about to consider, how safe the electronics are, and how effective they are compared to other models. Fly-by-night red-light therapy devices lack FDA clearance. The FDA has cleared several red-light therapy devices for home use to treat various ailments. The general recommendation is to look for FDA-cleared & registered devices for safety and efficacy.

• FDA Registered: Required for all device makers. This is required at the bare minimum.
• FDA-Cleared: As for safety, you’ll see “FDA-cleared” on many red-light devices that you can buy. This means that the FDA considers that device to pose a low risk to the public. Keep in mind that FDA-cleared doesn’t tell you anything about how effective the device is. It means the device is considered safe.
• FDA Approved/Certified: Very rare Premarket Approval (PMA) process. Most of the time, this claim is fraudulent. This section would be for legit medical devices like pacemakers, implants, or life-sustaining equipment. This never happens for red light therapy devices.

In terms of FDA “cleared” devices, we’ve found there are actually two types:

1. FDA “cleared” devices that are truly cleared using their own products and design, or
2. FDA “cleared” devices that are using a substantial equivalence to an existing cleared LED/red light device from suppliers. In other words, they did not seek the FDA clearance originally themselves. It’s based on the clearance of another model.

We found that many brands and products have clearance that cannot be verified in the database. This does not mean they are not “cleared,” rather it means their clearance is based on a product that is the substantial equivalence to an existing cleared LED device. The brands you are choosing may have improved on the device they are being cleared under, but they were not the original company that received that clearance with their original product. Is that bad? Not really; it just makes verification more difficult.

The best situation is when a red light therapy device is cleared and registered, and this is verifiable in the FDA database. But as we said, this isn’t always the case and doesn’t mean the product is better or worse than the original. But at the very least, you need a product that is cleared and registered.

EMFs & Red Light Therapy

EMFs are the reason why some people avoid red light therapy. Most scientific research on red light therapy (photobiomodulation) benefits — such as tissue healing, reduced oxidative stress, and anti-inflammatory effects — relies on LEDs or lasers at specific wavelengths (e.g., 660nm red and 850nm near-infrared) and therefore, light EMF exposure and red light therapy go hand in hand.

There is some good news though. Reviewers monitoring EMFs in red-light therapy devices have reported that current EMF levels are much lower than in previous years. However, it’s important to understand that you cannot produce true “no EMFs” with LED technology. There are claims, but they are unlikely to be true. The best you can do is use a “low EMF” or an “ultra low EMF” machine while standing at least 6 inches away from an LED panel. It may be impossible to avoid EMFs when you are using a mask, helmet, blanket, etc, because of how close they are to your skin. This is why those products are typically a bit weaker than panels. We’ve done our best to source “Low EMF” options for you in case you want them, especially for panels. Panels are considered the safest route in terms of EMFs because you can stand 6 inches away, which is also exactly how the medical benefits were reached in studies.

Another option for those concerned about EMFs is incandescent lighting. But be mindful that this is not a perfect solution. Incandescent sources emit a broader, less targeted spectrum and generate significant heat. These issues can limit their equivalence or effectiveness across many of the applications studied. So if you are concerned with EMFs, you’ll need to make some compromises. Regardless, we’ve given you some great options for incandescent lighting.

Simple Best Practices for Red Light Therapy Devices

What should you be looking for when purchasing red light therapy devices? Not all red light therapy devices are equal, so it’s important to pay attention to details.

First, they need to cover a range of highly specific wavelengths, based on scientific evidence. You want to seek out devices that are well-studied and use effective wavelengths for visible red and near-infrared (NIR) light. The “gold standard” combination for red light therapy is the following:

• Red: 630–660 nm (optimal for surface-level cellular stimulation, collagen production, anti-inflammation, and mitochondrial activation).
• NIR: 810–880 nm (deeper penetration for tissue repair, blood flow, and enhanced effects).

Second, there are several additional things you should look for. Most of this we’ve already done for you in our investigation below.

• Products are “cleared” by the Food & Drug Administration (FDA)
• Received 510 (k) pre-market notification from the Food & Drug Administration. It’s not the end of the world if they are not in the database because they could be relying on the clearance of an identical product, which is completely legal.
• Any other type of certification or public testing offered
• Found registered in the FDA establishment registration and product registration database
• Manufactured in the United States (this is not common, btw)
• No flickering problems
• Are “low EMF”
• Panels are likely the best type of red light therapy device because they cover the largest body area and allow EMF control.

Mamavation’s Investigation of Red Light Therapy Devices

Not Our Favorite Red Light Therapy Devices

These devices are not recommended. Most of them are not certified or registered by the FDA, or we found some issues with materials, EMFs, or something similar.

Not Our Favorite Red Light Panels & Pads

• Flikeze Direct 2025 Advanced Red Light Therapy for Face and Body $279
• EMR-TEC Firewave Panel $209
• SpinLife Redluxe Full Body Red Light Therapy Panel – Redluxe Technology $1,099

Not Our Favorite Red Light Masks

• Verfubo Red Light Therapy for Face & Neck, Red Light Mask $116
• FOLOKE LED Light Therapy Mask $79
• SUERBEATY Red Light Mask For Face $53
• Temu 7 in 1 Red Light Therapy Mask
• Aysuny Red Light Therapy Mask

Not Our Favorite Red Light Helmets, Caps & Combs

• FIVORRA Red Light Cap $84
• CWTUL Laser Hair Growth Cap
• RELEXNOW Red Light Therapy Cap 
• Instyle Egg Laser Hair Growth Cap
• Oaze Hair Boom Laser Helmet for Hair Regrowth

Not Our Favorite Red Light Bed, Blankets & Bags

• The Miracle 5040 Professional Red Light Therapy Bed
• Iovank Red Light Therapy Mat $759

Not Our Favorite Red Light Wands & Small Hand-Held Devices

• LITECARE Red Light Therapy Wand $49
• UTK Red Light Therapy Wand $85
• Morfone Handheld Red Light Therapy Device $109
• CAREMORR Handheld Red Light Therapy Device $85
• PRFCTLIFE Red Light Therapy Wand $39

Better Red Light Therapy Devices

These red light therapy devices are better than the previous group, but not superior yet. We put products here that may have been registered but not “cleared” by the FDA. We also put brands here that are registered and claim to be “cleared” but we cannot find them in the 510 (k) premarket database at the FDA. This means they could be relying on the clearance of another product similar to theirs. This does not make it inaccurate. This just makes it harder to confirm exactly what they are claiming with public documents. And thus we put those brands here if they did not have other certifications or studies to hand us. We referred to this as “possibly relying on predicate/OEM clearances” below. Brands stayed here if we didn’t find other attributes about their products that were impressive OR if we found something to keep them here.

Better Red Light Therapy Panels & Pads

• Lumara Systems Illuminate RED $1,799 (Registered, but can’t confirm clearance, likely predicate/OEM clearances)
• Joovv Mini® 3.0 Panel $1,299 (Use discount code “MAMAVATION” for $50 off products!) (3rd parties are concerned with EMFs without grounding pin, has additional certification from Intertek. Registered, but not cleared by FDA.)
• NovaaLab NOVAA LIGHT PAD $350-$600 (Registered, but can’t confirm clearance, likely predicate/OEM clearances)
• Swirise Flexible Red Light Therapy Panel $199 (Registered, but not cleared.)
• Red Therapy Company RedRush 400 Pulse Panel $1,099 (3rd parties concerned about EMF readings up close)
• Vital Red Light Pro Panel $479 (Registered, but can’t confirm clearance, likely predicate/OEM clearances)

Better Red Light Therapy Masks

• Bon Charge Red Light Therapy Mask $394 (independent customer sent us readings on product which looks not to be low EMF, Registered, but can’t confirm clearance, likely predicate/OEM clearances)
• DRx SpectraLite FaceWare Pro 3-Minute LED Device $455 (Clearance & registered, but brand unsure about EMFs)
• Foreo UFO 3 $179 (Cleared & registered, but wavelengths are not as good as others in mask category, so was put here)
• GYH Cloud S Wireless Infrared/Red & Blue LED Light Therapy Face Mask $135 (Registered, but can’t confirm Clearance, likely predicate/OEM clearances)
• INTEO Red Light Therapy Mask $93 (Registered, but no clearance)
• JOV 4D Laser Light Therapy Mask $629 (This facemask may not be “low EMF” because they make no claims for this specific product; however, it’s highly rated for wrinkles.)
• Nicebeam LED Light Therapy Time Machine for Face & Full Body $999 (Registered, but can’t confirm Clearance, likely predicate/OEM clearances)
• Shark CryoGlow LED Face Mask $549 (Cleared, however, they have disclaimer about EMFs: “Do not use if you have a pacemaker or other electronic implanted.”)
• Wavytalk Red Light Therapy Mask for Face $149 (Registered, but can’t confirm clearance, likely predicate/OEM clearances)

Better Red Light Therapy Helmets, Caps & Combs

• Bon Charge Red Light Cap $449 (Registered, but can’t confirm clearance, likely predicate/OEM clearances)
• HigherDOSE Red Light Hat (Registered, but not specifically cleared for hair growth)
• Kinreen Red Light Therapy Cap (Registered, but can’t confirm clearance for hair growth)
• Swirise Red Light Therapy Cap (Registered, but not cleared for hair growth)
• Wellue Laser Hair Growth Helmet (Registered and confirmed clearance, however, not low EMFs)

Better Red Light Therapy Beds, Blankets, & Bags

• Prism Light Pod Red Light Wellness Miracle 5040 (and similar models)(Registered, but does not have clearance)
• American Wellness Authority Infrared Sauna Blanket $149 (Registered, but does not have clearance.)
• ARRC LED Elysium Device $150,000 (Registered, but does not have clearance)
• Boncharge Red Light Therapy Blanket $1,999 (Registered, but does not have clearance.)
• NovoTHOR® full body red light therapy bed (Registered, but does not have clearance)
• Swirise Red and Near-Infrared Light Therapy Bag for Whole Body $3,299 (Registered, but does not have clearance.)
• The SmartSun Therapy® SST28 (Registered, but does not have clearance)

Better Red Light Wands & Small Hand-Held Devices

• Kineon MOVE+ Pro LED & Laser $699 (Registered, but can’t confirm clearance, so likely predicate/OEM clearances)
• Lifepro Lumicure Torch $59 (Registered, but not cleared)
• Nanoleaf 6-in-1 Light Therapy Wand $99 (Registered, but can’t confirm clearance, so likely predicate/OEM clearances)
• Solawave 4-in-1 Radiant Renewal Skincare Wand with Red Light Therapy $118 (Registered, but cleared under another product, the mini.)

Best Red Light Therapy Devices

We recommend the products in this category as they were the easiest to verify, qualify, and assess efficacy. The vast majority of these brands have clearance and are FDA-registered, and this’s verifiable in the FDA database. In addition, we’ve added brands that had additional certifications, research studies, great reviews, or other value we believed made them special enough to belong in this category of recommendations.  *indicates this brand has produced studies on its own products.

Best Red Light Therapy Incandescent Lighting Options

• HealthLighting Radiant Energy Incandescent + Infrared Light Therapy Lamp (tends to sell out!)
• SaunaSpace Shower Sauna Conversion Kit (Uses incandescent lights and “clean” materials. It’s not cleared by the FDA. This makes a near infrared sauna out of your shower with incandescent lights, not LED) This brand is great for people with smaller spaces who cannot commit to a wooden infrared sauna. (Use the stackable discount code “MAMAVATION” for 10% off your purchase!)
• SaunaSpace Firelight Sauna (Uses incandescent lights, & “clean” materials. It hasn’t been cleared by the FDA. It’s made from GOTS organic cotton & bamboo.) This brand is great for people with smaller spaces who cannot commit to a wooden infrared sauna. (Use the stackable discount code “MAMAVATION” for 10% off your purchase!)
• Therabulb NIR-A Near Infrared Bulb

Best Red Light Therapy LED Panels & Pads

• BestQool Red Light Therapy, Dual Chip Elite Grade LED Red Infrared Light Device $160 (low budget friendly)
• BestQool Red Light Therapy Panel $289
• BestQool Red Light Therapy Pro 300 Panel $879
• Block Blue Light Red Light Therapy PowerPanel Mini $499.95 (Registered, but not cleared)
• Block Blue Light Red Light Therapy Power Panel $1,499 (Registered, but not cleared. (Low EMF verified by 3rd parties.)
• *Celluma Pro Large 3 Mode Panel $1,799 (Brand used in clinics for targeted treatments)
• *Celluma NOVA LED Light Panel $1,615 (Brand used in clinics for targeted treatments)
• *Celluma Sport LED Light Panel $1,265 (Brand used in clinics for targeted treatments)
• GembaRed Beacon 3.0 Red & NIR Panel $499 (Low EMF verified by 3rd parties)
• Heavenly Heat Heavenly Pro Panel $1,699 (Use discount code “MAMAVATION” for 6% off products!)
• Heavenly Heat Heavenly Mid Panel $750 (Use discount code “MAMAVATION” for 6% off products!)
• Hooga200 Red Light Therapy Panels $149
• Hooga1500 Red Light Therapy Panels $899
• MitoPRO X Red Light Panel Series $449-$1099 (Use this link for 5% off products!) (Low EMF verified by 3rd parties, Has additional certification from Intertek, Low EMF, registered, but can’t confirm clearance, likely predicate/OEM clearances.)(Or alternatively purchase on Amazon here)
• Platinum LED BIOMAX 9th Generation $659 (Take 5% off products with this link!) (Low EMF verified by 3rd parties, publishes low EMF studies, registered, but can’t confirm clearance, likely predicate/OEM clearances)
• Rojo Refine Red Light Therapy Panels $459-$3,699

Best Red Light Therapy LED Masks

• Blue Block Red Light Therapy Face Mask $349
• CurrentBody LED Red Light Therapy Face Mask: Series 2 $469
• HigherDose Red Light Therapy Face Mask $418
• Hooga Red Light Therapy Face Mask $199
• Inia Red Light Therapy Face Mask $109
• Lumara VISO Red Light Therapy Mask $599
• MitoGLOW LED Red Light Therapy Mask $699 (Use this link to save 5% off products!) (Has intertek certification, registered, but can’t confirm clearance, likely predicate/OEM clearances)
• Nanoleaf LED Light Therapy Face Mask $249
• *Omnilux Contour Face Therapy Mask $395
• Project E Beauty LumaLux Red Light Therapy Mask $369
• Rojo Dorado 3D Contoured Red Light Therapy Face Mask $360
• Qure Light Therapy RED LIGHT MASK Q-REJUVALIGHT PRO $399
• Sunlighten Therapy Mask (or Radiant Face Mask) $639 (Registered, this specific product is not cleared, but others in portfolio are)
• TheraFace Mask Glo $349
• Ulike ReGlow LED Light Therapy Mask $299

Best Red Light Therapy LED Helmets, Caps, & Combs

• Theradome PRO LH80 $995
• Bosley Revitalizer Flex Cap $799
• Capillus Spectrum Cap $2,699
• Capillus Pro Cap $1,699
• *CurrentBody LED Hair Growth Helmet $859
• GroWell Red Light Therapy Cap $689
• HairMax PowerFlex 272 Laser Cap $1,699
• iGrow-II (TOPHAT655) helmet $269
• Illumiflow 272 DualWave Cap $899
• Kiierr 272 DualWave Cap 
• LaserCap HD+
• MitoMIND Red Light Therapy Helmet $2,199 (Use this link for 5% off products!)
• REVIAN Lyte Hair Growth Device $995

Best Red Light Therapy LED Beds, Blankets, & Bags

• HigherDose Far Red Light Mat $697
• Hooga Red Light Therapy Blanket Pod $1,299
• Megelin Red and Infrared Light Therapy Bag $1,449
• Lifepro Red Light Therapy Blanket $1,399
• LightStim LED Bed

Best Red Light Therapy LED Wands & Small Hand-Held Devices

• Block Blue Light Red Light Therapy Target Torch $199.95 (Registered, but not cleared)
• *Celluma POD S2 Hand-Held Light Therapy Device $499
• *LightStim for Wrinkles $249
• Lume Box 2.0 Handheld Panel $629 (Use discount code “MAMAVATION” for 40% off products!) (Manufactured in the United States with 3rd party tested low EMF & no flicker. High irradiance. Registered, not cleared by FDA.)
• dpl (LED Technology) LumaGlow Clinical Handheld Full Body $105
• KALA Therapy Wand (Model: KALA-03) $199

The post Safest Red Light Therapy Devices — Shopping Guide appeared first on MAMAVATION.

Disclosure: This consumer study is released in partnership with Environmental Health News. Scientific reviews were performed by (1) Terrence Collins, Teresa Heinz Professor of Green Chemistry & Director of the Institute for Green Sciences at Carnegie Mellon University. Donations were provided by Environmental Health News and Mamavation community members. Note that Mamavation has only “spot-checked” the industry and thus we cannot make predictions about brands and products that we have not tested. Products and manufacturing aides can change without notice so buyer beware. This post contains affiliate links, with most to Amazon, which means Mamavation will receive a portion of those sales and we will use that to pay ourselves back for the testing. You can also give a tax-deductible donation to our consumer studies here through Environmental Health Sciences. Thank you! Copyright © 2026 Mamavation — All Rights Reserved

Mamavation’s EPA-Certified Laboratory Finds Heavy Metals, PFAS, Pesticides, & Phthalates in Popular Women’s Multivitamins

Mamavation sent ten popular women’s multivitamins to two EPA-certified laboratories testing for PFAS analytes, and other chemicals of concern, including PFOA/PFOS, phthalates, heavy metals, glyphosate, and 500+ additional pesticides. The contamination results were surprising considering how expensive most of these products were. Here’s the outcome of contaminants that were found according to our labs:

• 40% of women’s multivitamins contained specific PFAS chemicals. That’s 4 out of 10 products.
• 100% of women’s multivitamins contained ortho-phthalates. That’s 10 out of 10 products.
• None of the women’s multivitamins had levels of heavy metals (lead, arsenic, cadmium & mercury) that would require a Prop. 65 warning in California. All 10 products had lower levels of heavy metals. However, no product had zero heavy metals.
• None of the women’s multivitamins we tested had detectable levels of glyphosate at the lowest standardized level.
• 30% of the women’s multivitamins we tested had other detectable pesticides present at the lowest standardized level. That’s 3 out of 10 products.
• One USDA Organic brand tested positive for several detectable pesticides. 

Terrence Collins, Teresa Heinz Professor of Green Chemistry & Director of the Institute for Green Sciences at Carnegie Mellon University had this to say after his scientific review:

Women’s and children’s multivitamins are purchased with hope, care, and trust. Women choose these products to support their own health and vitality. And many do so with an eye toward the health of the children they hope to have or already care for. These choices are often made thoughtfully and repeatedly, over months or years, grounded in the belief that taking a supplement is an act of protection and responsibility.

Because of that trust, the expectation that these products be free from well-recognized toxic contaminants should be absolute. This should be the bedrock of the supplement industry; non-negotiable, foundational, and assumed.

Mamavation’s findings suggest that this bedrock is not as solid as it must be. That is not merely disappointing; it is deeply concerning. Women should never be put in the position of wondering whether products marketed to support health, today or in the future, might quietly undermine it.

This moment calls for leadership and care from supplement companies. Trust cannot be built or sustained through marketing language. It must be earned through rigorous sourcing, meaningful purification, and transparent, routine chemical testing. The responsibility is real, and so is the opportunity: to honor women’s trust by ensuring that products intended to support health across the lifespan do exactly that, to the best of our honest understanding, without hidden risks.

Contaminants Included in Mamavation’s EPA Certified Laboratory Testing

Mamavation sent ten women’s multivitamins to two different EPA-certified laboratories looking for specific problematic contaminants that would not be listed on an ingredient panel. These ingredients are never found on an ingredient label because they are not considered “intentionally added” and would instead be considered more of a contaminant from manufacturing, transportation, storage, and/or agricultural practices. However, just because these contaminants are not “intentionally added” doesn’t mean they won’t impact your health over time and usage. With regular, long-term use, even low-level contaminants can matter for health. That’s why independent testing and transparent sourcing practices are important for both consumers and the companies they trust.

Our labs tested for the following contaminants and found some of them present in women’s multivitamins we tested to varying degrees:

• 40 specific PFAS “forever” chemicals
• Glyphosate
• 500+ additional Pesticides
• Phthalates
• Lead — heavy metal
• Arsenic — metaloid
• Cadmium — heavy metal
• Mercury — heavy metal

PFAS “Forever Chemical” Analytes Tested, Including PFOA & PFOS

PFAS “forever chemicals” are per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances used as stain-resistant, water-resistant, & oil-resistant chemicals in commerce. They have been used for decades in consumer products, manufacturing, and building materials. Here are some of the health effects associated with different PFAS “forever chemicals:”

• Reduction in immunity
• Reduced vaccination response
• Increased risk of allergies & asthma in young children
• Affected growth, learning, and behavior of infants and older children
• Increase cholesterol levels
• Metabolic diseases like obesity & diabetes
• Cardiovascular disease
• Lowered a woman’s chance of getting pregnant
• Lowered male fertility
• Increased risk of kidney & testicular cancers
• Causes endocrine disruption
• Disrupted normal thyroid function
• Increases risk of acute lymphoblastic leukemia in children 
• Cancer

It’s also very clear based on biomonitoring evidence from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) that PFAS are in virtually all Americans. Therefore, these exposures can harm most Americans.

For this investigation, we elected to test for forty specific PFAS analytes listed below using EPA method 1633:

• Perfluorobutanoic acid (PFBA)
• Perfluoropentanoic acid (PFPeA)
• Perfluorohexanoic acid (PFHxA)
• Perfluoroheptanoic acid (PFHpA)
• Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA)
• Perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA)
• Perfluorodecanoic acid (PFDA)
• Perfluoroundecanoic acid (PFUnA)
• Perfluorododecanoic acid (PFDoA)
• Perfluorotridecanoic acid (PFTriA)
• Perfluorotetradecanoic acid (PFTeA)
• Perfluorobutanesulfonic acid (PFBS)
• Perfluoropentanesulfonic acid (PFPeS)
• Perfluorohexanesulfonic acid (PFHxS)
• Perfluoroheptanesulfonic Acid (PFHpS)
• Perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS)
• Perfluorononanesulfonic acid (PFNS)
• Perfluorodecanesulfonic acid (PFDS)
• Perfluorododecanesulfonic acid (PFDoS)
• Perfluorooctanesulfonamide (FOSA)
• NMeFOSAA
• NEtFOSAA
• 4:2 FTS
• 6:2 FTS
• 8:2 FTS
• NEtFOSA
• NMeFOSA
• NMeFOSE
• NEtFOSE
• 9Cl-PF3ONS
• HFPO-DA (GenX)
• 11Cl-PF3OUdS
• ADONA
• 3:3 FTCA
• 5:3 FTCA
• 7:3 FTCA
• NFDHA
• PFMBA
• PFMPA
• PFEESA

Glyphosate — Testing Details

Glyphosate [N-(phosphonomethyl) glycine] is the active ingredient in glyphosate-based herbicides (GBH) and is the most popular herbicide in the world. Its environmental presence increased sharply after the introduction of “Roundup Ready” crops in 1996, which allowed glyphosate to be sprayed onto crops such as soy, corn, and cotton without killing them. Beyond agriculture, glyphosate is extensively used in landscaping, roadside maintenance, golf courses, and vegetation control in fire-prone areas.

Glyphosate was originally patented as a chelator and an antibiotic, which means it binds minerals and interferes with microbial systems. These properties have fueled concern that long-term exposure may disrupt nutrient absorption, alter the gut microbiota, and increase antibiotic resistance.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has classified glyphosate as a probable carcinogen, and California lists it under Proposition 65 for cancer and reproductive harm.

Because glyphosate is not an intentionally added ingredient, it does not appear on supplement labels. However, its absence from ingredient panels does not guarantee absence from the product itself. Contamination can occur through agricultural practices, raw material sourcing, manufacturing, transportation, or storage—making independent testing a critical safeguard.

To evaluate potential exposure, Mamavation sent ten women’s multivitamins to an EPA-certified laboratory for testing. Samples were analyzed for glyphosate, glufosinate, and AMPA using liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) with a detection limit of 10 parts per billion (ppb), which is the lowest level routinely achievable through standardized commercial testing. While some academic laboratories may reach lower limits, those methods are not widely available or standardized for consumer product screening.

500+ Additional Pesticide Laboratory Tests for Children’s Multivitamins — Testing Details

Ten women’s multivitamins were sent to our EPA-certified lab and analyzed using two different methods, which totaled testing for 587 pesticides down to the lowest standardized level, which was mostly 10 ppb. However, there are a few chemicals where the detection limit was between 18 and 25 ppb. Our laboratory did not find any traces of pesticides at any of these detection levels. The first method looked at the following pesticides:

• 2,4,6-Trichloroanisole
• 2,4,6-Trichlorophenol
• 2-phenylphenol (SP)
• 8-hydroxyquinoline (SP)
• Acetochlor
• Acrinathrin
• Alachlor
• Aldrin
• Alpha Endosulfan
• Alpha-HCH
• Ametryn
• Anthraquinone
• Atrazine
• Beflubutamid
• Benalaxyl
• Benfluralin
• Beta Endosulfan
• Beta-HCH
• Bifenazate-Bifenazate Diazene
• Bifenox
• Bifenthrin
• Biphenyl
• Bitertanol
• Bromophos-ethyl
• Bromophos-methyl
• Bromopropylate
• Bupirimate
• Captan
• Captan (Sum)
• Carbophenothion
• Chinomethionat
• Chlordane (Sum)
• Chlorfenapyr
• Chlorfenson
• Chlorfenvinphos
• Chlormephos
• Chlorobenzilate+Chloro propylate
• Chlorothalonil
• Chlorotoluron
• Chlorpropham
• Chlorpyrifos
• Chlorpyrifos-methyl
• Chlorthal-dimethyl
• Chlorthion
• Cinidon-ethyl
• Cis-Chlordane
• Cyfluthrin
• Cyproconazole
• Cyprodinil
• DDD-pp+DDT-0p
• DDT (Sum)
• DEET
• delta-HCH
• Deltamethrin
• Desethyl atrazine
• Diafenthiuron
• Diazinon
• Dichlobenil
• Dichlofenthion
• Diclobutrazol
• Dicloran
• Dicofol (Sum)
• Dicofol 0,p
• Dicofol p,p
• Dicrotophos
• Dieldrin
• Dieldrin (Sum)
• Dicofol o,p
• Dicofol p,p
• Dicrotophos
• Dieldrin
• Dieldrin (Sum)
• Difenoconazole
• Diflufenican
• Dimefox
• Dimoxystrobin
• Diniconazole
•  Dinobuton
• Diphenylamine
• Disulfoton (SP)
• Disulfoton (Sum)
• Disulfoton Sulfone
• Disulfoton Sulfoxide
• Ditalimfos
• Endosulfan (Sum)
• Endosulfan-Sulphate
• Endrin
• EPN
• Epsilon-HCH
• EPTC
• Ethalfuralin
• Ethion
• Ethofumesate (SP)
• Ethoprophos
• Etridiazole
• Etrimfos
• Fenarimol
• Fenazaquin
• Fenchlorphos (SP)
• Fenchlorphos (Sum)
• Fenchlorphos Oxon
• Fenitrothion
• Fenpropathrin
• Fenson
• Fenthion (SP)
• Fenthion Oxon
• Fenvalerate
• Flucythrinate
• Flumetralin
• Fluopicolide
• Fluopyram
• Fluotrimazole
• Flutamone
• Fluvalinate
• Folpet
• Folpet (Sum)
• Fonofos
• Furalaxyl
• Heptachlor (SP)
• Heptachlor (Sum)
• Heptachlor Epoxide A
• Heptachlor Epoxide B
• Heptenophos
• Hexachlorobenzene
• Hexaclorobutadiene
• Hexacanazole
• Iodofenphos
• Iprobenfos
• Iprodione
• Iprovalicarb
• Isazofos
• Isofenphos
• Isophenfos-methyl
• Kresoxim-methyl
• Lambda-Cyhalothrin
• Lindane
• Malaoxon
• Malathion (SP)
• Mefenpyr Diethyl
• Mepronil
• Metalaxyl-M (Mefenoxam)
• Methacrifos
• Methidathion
• Methacrifos
• Methidathion
• Methoxychlor
• Metribuzin
• Mevinphos
• Mirex
• Molinate
• Myclobutanil
• Naled
• Naled (Sum)
• Napropamide
• Nitrofen
• Nitrothal Isopropyl
• Nuarimol
• o,p-DDD
• o,p-DDE
• Ofurace
• Oxadixyl
• Oxychlordan
• Oxyfluorfen
• p,p-DDT
• p,p-DDE
• Paraoxon Methyl
• Paraoxon-ethyl
• Parathion Methyl (SP)
• Parathion Methyl (Sum)
• Parathion-ethyl
• Parathion-ethyl (Sum)
• Penconazole
• Pendimethalin
• Pentachloroaniline
• Pentachloroanisole
• Pentachlorobenzene
• Pentachlorobenzonitrile
• Pentachlorophenol
• Permethrin
• Phenthoate
• Phorate
• Phosalone
• Phthalimide
• Piperonyl butoxide
• Pirimiphos-ethyl
• Pirimiphos-methyl
• Procymidone
• Profenofos
• Profluralin
• Prometryn
• Propazine
• Propetamphos
• Propyzamide
• Prothiofos
• Pyrazophos
• Pyridaben
• Pyridaphenthion
• Pyrifenox
• Pyrimethanil
• Pyriproxyfen
• Quinalphos
• Quintozene
• Quintozene (Sum)
• Silthiofam
• Simazine
• Tebuconazole
• Tebufenpyrad
• Tecnazene
• Tefluthrin
• Terbacil
• Terbumeton
• Terbuthylazine
• Terbuthylazine Desethyl
• Terbutryn
• Tetrachlorvinphos
• Tetracanazole
• Tetradifon
• Tetrahydrophthalimide (THPI)
• Tetramethrin
• Tetrasul
• Thiometon
• Tolclofos-methyl
• Trans-Chlordane
• Transfluthrin
• Triadimefon
• Triadimenol
• Tri-allate
• Triamiphos
• Trifluralin
• Uniconazole
• Vinclozolin
• Zeta-cypermethrin

The second group was analyzed using the LC-MS/MS technique for 360 pesticides and included the following:

• 3-OH carbofuran (SQ)
• Abamectin
• Acephate
• Acequinocyl
• Acetamiprid
• Acibenzolar-S-methyl (SP)
• Alcarb (SP)
• Aldicarb (Sum)
• Aldicarb Sulfone
• Aldicarb Sulfoxide
• Ametroctradin
• Aminocarb
• Amitraz (SP)
• Atrizine Desisopropyl
• Azaconazole
• Azadirachtin
• Azamethiphos
• Azimsulfuron
• Azinphos-ethyl
• Azinphos-methyl
• Azocyclotin and Cyhexatin (SQ)
• Azoxystrobin
• Ben-Carb-TPN (Sum)
• Bendiocarb
• Bentazone (SP)
• Bentazones-methyl
• Benthiavalicarb
• Bioallethrin
• Bixafen
• Boscalid
• Bromacil
• Bromoxynil (SP)
• Bromuconazole
• BTS 44595
• BTS 44596
• Buprofezin
• Butachlor
• Butocarboxim
• Butoxicarboxim Sulfoxide
• Butralin
• Buturon
• Cadusafos
• Carbaryl
• Carbendazim and Benomyl
• Carbetamide
• Carboxin (SP)
• Carfentazone-ethyl (SP)
• Chloratraniliprole
• chlorbromuron
• Chlorfluazuron
• Chloridazon
• Chloroxuron
• Chlorsulfuron
• Chlorthiophos
• Clethodim (SP)
• Clethodim Sulfoxide
• Clofentezine
• Clomazone
• Clopyralid
• Clothianidine
• Coumaphos
• Crimidine
• Cyanazine
• Cyantraniliprole
• Cyazofamid
• Cyclanilide
• Cycloate
• Cycloxydim (SP)
• Cyenopyrafen
• Cyflufenamid
• Cyflumetofen
• Cyhalofop-butyl
• Cymoxanil
• Cyromazine
• Demeton S
• Demeton-S-methyl
• Demeton-S-Methylsulfone
• Demeton-S-sulfoxide
• Desmedipham
• Desmetryn
• Dialifos
• Dichiofluanid
• Dichlormid
• Dichloroprop
• Dichlorvos
• Diclofop (SP/SQ)
• Diclofop (Sum)
• Diclofo-methyl (SP/SQ)
• Diethofencarb
• Diflubenzuron
• Dimefuron
• Dimethachlor
• Dimethenamid-P
• Dimethoate
• Dimethoate (Sum)
• Dimethomorph
• Dimethylaminosulfotoluidide (DMST)
• Dinotefuran
• Diuron
• DNOC
• Dodemorph
• Dodine
• Edifenphos
• Emamectin B1a
• Epoxiconazole
• Ethaboxam
• Ethiofencarb
• Ethiofencarb sulfone
• Ethiofencarb sulfoxide
• Ethiprole
• Ethirimol
• Ethoxyquin (SQ)
• Etofenprox
• Etoxazole
• Famoxadone
• Fenamidone
• Fenamiphos (SP)
• Fenamiphos (Sum)
• Fenamiphos Sulphone
• Fenamiphos Sulphoxide
• Febnuconazole
• Fenbutatin oxide
• Fenhexamid
• Fenobucarb
• Fenoxycarb
• Fenpiclonil
• Fenpropidin (SP)
• Fenpropimorph
• Fenpyrazamine
• Fenpyroximate
• Fensulfothion
• Fensulfothion Oxon
• Fensulfothion Oxon Sulfone
• Fensulfothion Sulfone
• Fenthion (Sum)
• Fenthion Oxon Sulfone
• Fenthion Oxon Sulfoxide
• Fentin (SP/SQ)
• Fenuron
• Fipronil (SP)
• Fipronil (Sum)
• Fipronil Sulfide
• Fipronil Sulfone
• Flamprop
• Flazasulfuron
• Flonicamid (SP)
• Flonicamid (Sum)
• Florasulam
• Fluazifop-methyl (SP)
• Fluazifop-P (SP)
• Fluazifop-P-butyl (SP)
• Fluazinam
• Flubendiamide
• Fludioxonil
• Flufenacet
• Flufenacet (Sum)
• Flufenacet ESA
• Flufenacet OA
• Flufenoxuron
• Flumioxazin
• Fluometuron
• Fluoxastrobin
• Flupyradifurone
• Fluquinconazole
• Fluoxypyr (SP)
• Fluroxypyr-meptyl
• Fluroxypyr-meptyl
• Flusilazole
• Flutolanil
• Flutriafol
• Fluxapyroxad
• Foramsulfuron
• Forchlorfenuron
• Formetanate (SP)
• Formothion
• Fosthiazate
• Fuberidazole
• Halosulfuron methyl
• Haloxyfop (Sum)
• Haloxyfop-2-ethoxyethyl
• Haloxyfop-methyl (SP)
• Haloxyfop-R (SP)
• Hexaflumuron
• Hexazinone
• Hexythiazox
• Imazalil
• Imazapic
• Imazappic
• Imazapyr
• Imidacloprid
• Indaziflam
• Indoxacarb
• Iodosulfuron-methyl (SP)
• Ioxynil (SP)
• Isocarbophos
• Isoprocarb
• Isoprothiolane
• Isoproturon
• Isopyrazam
• Isoxaben
• Isoxathion
• Ivermectin
• Lenacil
• Linuron
• Lufenuron
• Mandipropamid
• Matrine
• MCPA (SP)
• Mecarbam
• Mepanipyrim
• Meptyldinocap
• Mesosulfuron-methyl
• Mesotrione
• Metaflumizone
• Metamitron
• Metazachlor (SP)
• Methiocarb (Sum)
• Methoprotyne
• Methoxyfenozide
• Metobromuron
• Metolachlor and S-Metolachlor
• Metolcarb
• Metoxuron
• Metrafenone
• Metsulfuron-methyl
• Milbemectin SQ (Sum)
• Milbemycin A3 (SQ)
• Milbemycin A4 (SQ)
• Monocrotophos
• Monolinuron
• monuron
• Neburon
• Nicosulfuron
• Nitenpyram
• Norflurazon
• Novaluron
• Omethoate
• Oxadiargyl
• Oxydiazon
• Oxamyl
• Oxasulfuron
• Oxathiapiprolin
• Oxycarboxin
• Paclobutrazol
• Pencycuron
• Penthiopyrad
• Phenmedipham
• Phorate (Sum)
• Phorate Oxon
• Phorate Oxon Sulfone
• Phorate Oxon Sulfoxide
• Phorate Sulfone
• Phorate Sulfoxide
• Phosmet (SP)
• Phosmet (Sum)
• Phosmet oxon
• Phosphamidon
• Phoxim
• Picolinafen
• Picoxystrobin
• Pinoxaden
• Pirimicarb
• Pirimicarb Desmethyl
• Pirimicarb Desmethyl Formamide
• Prochloraz (SP)
• Prochloraz (Sum)
• Promecarb
• Propachlor
• Propamocarb (SP)
• Propanil
• Propaquizafob
• Propargite
• Propham
• Propiconazole
• Propoxur
• Proquinazid
• Prosulfocarb
• Prosulfuron
• Prothiocaonazole
• Pydiflumetofen
• Pymetrozine
• Pyracarbolid
• Pyraclostrobin
• Pyraflufen
• Pydiflumetofen
• Pymetrozine
• Pyracarbolid
• Pyraclostrobin
• Pyraflufen
• Pyraflufen-ethyl (SP)
• Pyraflufen-ethyl (Sum)
• Pyridalyl
• Pyridate (SP)
• Quinclorac
• Quinoxyfen
• Quizalofop-ethyl (SP)
• Rimsulfuron
• Rotenone
• Saflufenacil (SP)
• Sebuthylazine
• Sethoxydim
• Spinetoram
• Spinosad
• Spirodiclofen
• Spiromesifen
• Spirotetramat (SP)
• Spirotetramat (Sum)
• Spirotetramatenol-glucoside
• Spirotetramat-enol
• Spirotetramat-ketohydroxy
• Spirotetramat-monohydroxy
• Spiroxamine
• Sulcotrione
• Sulfosulfuron
• Sulfotep
• Sulfoxaflor
• Tebufenozide
• Teflubenzuron
• Tepraloxydim (SP)
• Terbufos
• Terbufos (Sum)
• Terbufos Sulfone
• Terbufos Sulfoxide
• TFNA
• TFNG
• Thiabendazole
• Thiacloprid
• Thiamethoxam
• Thiamethoxam (Sum)
• Thidiazuron
• Thifensulfuron-methyl
• Thiobencarb
• Thiocyclam
• Thiodicarb
• Thiofanox
• Thiofanox Sulfone
• Thiofanox Sulfoxide
• Thiophanate-methyl
• Tolfenpyrad
• Tolylfluanid (SP)
• Tolyfluanid (Sum)
• Triasulfuron
• Triazophos
• Triazoxide
• Trichlorfon
• Tricresyl phosphate
• Tricyclazole
• Tridemorph
• Trifloxystrobin
• Triflumizole (SP)
• Triflumizole (Sum)
• Triflumizole FM-6-1
• Triflumuron
• Triforine (SQ)
• Triticonazole
• Vamidothion
• Zoxamide

Phthalates — Testing Details

Phthalates are linked to a range of adverse health effects in numerous studies involving both animals and humans. They are especially concerning because phthalates are associated with disruption of the endocrine hormone system. Hormones act at extremely low concentrations and play essential roles in development–determining how cells, tissues, and organs form–as well as in metabolism, reproduction, and immune function; even small disruptions can therefore have outsized biological consequences. Epidemiological studies have shown that phthalate exposure can alter hormone levels in ways that interfere with these critical processes. Several health outcomes associated with phthalate exposure are summarized below.

• Weight gain & obesity
• Shorter height
• Precocious puberty
• Asthma
• Allergies
• Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) 
• Lower IQ
• Social impairment
• Type II diabetes and insulin resistance
• Poor cardiovascular health
• Thyroid function and increased risk of thyroid cancer
• Females: pregnancy loss and preterm birth, low birth weight, earlier menopause
• Males: genital development, semen quality, reduced “masculine” play, Inhibits testosterone production, Shortened anogenital distance, or shortened “taint” , Shortened length of penis

Mamavation’s EPA-certified lab tested for the following phthalates. This is not a complete list of all the phthalates that are allowed to be present as an indirect food additive according to the FDA, however, this list goes above and beyond what is already restricted by the European Union or the State of California.

• Diethyl phthalate (DEP)
• Di-n-propyl phthalate (DPP)
• Diisobutyl phthalate (DIBP)
• Dibutyl phthalate (DBP)
• Dihexyl phthalate (DnHP)
• Benzyl butyl phthalate (BBP)
• Dicyclohexyl phthalate (DCHP)
• Diisononyl phthalate (DINP)
• Di-n-octyl phthalate (DnOP)
• Diisodecyl phthalate (DIDP)
• bis(2-Ethylhexyl)phthalate (DEHP)
• Dimethyl phthalate (DMP)
• Bis(2-propylheptyl) Phthalate (DPHP)
• Didecyl phthalate (DDP)

Heavy Metals: Lead, Cadmium, Mercury & Arsenic — Testing Details

Our EPA-certified laboratory tested each women’s multivitamins for the following metals:

• lead,
• arsenic,
• cadmium,
• mercury

Mamavation then adjusted the lab results to align with California’s Proposition 65 by converting them into micrograms per day (ug/day) based on typical serving sizes. California uses some of the most health-protective exposure limits in the country. Instead of banning products outright, Proposition 65 requires companies to warn consumers when exposure to certain harmful chemicals exceeds established safety thresholds.

Proposition 65 has set “safe harbor” levels for several heavy metals tested in this study, including arsenic, cadmium, lead, and mercury. When exposures go above these levels, companies selling products in California must provide a warning label to inform consumers of potential risks related to cancer, birth defects, or other reproductive harm.

This approach is designed to put information directly in consumers’ hands, enabling informed choices about what they use and encouraging companies to reduce harmful contaminants whenever possible.

Here are the No Significant Risk Levels (NSRL) and the Maximum Allowable Dose Levels (MADL) established by the State of California for the heavy metals we tested:

• Arsenic: 0.06 ug/day (inhalation), 10 ug/day (except inhalation)
• Cadmium: 0.05 ug/day (inhalation), 4.1 ug/day (oral)
• Lead: 0.5 ug/day level for reproductive toxicity, 15 ug/day (oral) for carcinogens
• Mercury: no established levels in California, so the Federal maximum contaminant level for mercury would be followed instead.

Mamavation’s Raw Data From Our EPA-Certified Laboratory Ranked

Mamavation sent two sets of nine children’s multivitamins to different EPA-certified laboratories looking for traces of contaminants:

• 500+ pesticides (which is more comprehensive than other testing we’ve seen)
• Glyphosate
• 40 PFAS “forever chemical” analytes like PFOA & PFOS. (This is different from our other studies where we measured total organic fluorine.)
• Heavy metals (lead, cadmium, mercury, & arsenic)
• Phthalates

If you would like to donate to our efforts, you can do so by giving a tax-deductible donation here through Environmental Health Sciences. You can also support our efforts by shopping our affiliate links. Please note that links below are affiliate in nature and any purchases will pay us back for the testing and allow us to do more testing in the future. 

Product Brands We Tested
To help our community make safer choices, Mamavation sent multiple popular women’s multivitamin brands to EPA-certified laboratories for contaminant testing. We also included several additional products selected by our community to give consumers a broader picture of what families are already purchasing. All products were evaluated for pesticides, PFAS, glyphosate, heavy metals, and phthalates.

Below is the complete list of women’s multivitamin brands included in our investigation.

Women’s Multivitamins Tested by Mamavation

• Ancient Nutrition Women’s Fermented Multi
• Garden of Life Women’s Once Daily Whole Food Multivitamins
• Life Extension Two-Per-Day Multivitamin
• Mary Ruth’s Liquid Morning Multivitamin Raspberry Flavor
• MegaFood Women’s One Daily Multivitamin Dietary Supplements
• Needed Women’s Multi-Dietary Supplement
• New Chapter One Daily Every Woman’s Multivitamin Formulated for Absorption
• Pure Encapsulation O.N.E. Multivitamin Dietary Supplements
• Ritual Essential for Women Multivitamin
• Seeking Health Multivitamin One MF Methyl-Free

Want full access to the raw data, contaminant results, and our recommendations for the safest children’s multivitamins? Sign up to MAMAGATE and get Free Access below. 

The post Women’s Multivitamins Tested for Pesticides, Lead, PFAS, & Phthalates appeared first on MAMAVATION.