WASHINGTON—On Tuesday, July 27, 2010, environmental group National Resources Defense Council (NRDC) filed a lawsuit against FDA and Kathleen Sebelius, secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, for failing to regulate toxic chemicals, i.e., triclosan and triclocarban, found in antimicrobial soap and other personal care products. The lawsuit, filed U.S. District Court in Manhattan, states recent monitoring results show, “residues of triclosan in 75 percent of Americans over the age of 6." NRDC noted the absorption of chemical via skin with traces ending up in human blood, urine and breast milk.
“Washing your hands with so-called antibacterial soap containing triclosan or triclocarban actually does nothing different than using regular soap and water" said Jennifer Sass, a senior scientist in the Health and Environment Program at NRDC. “Using soap containing these chemicals does not provide an additional benefit as consumers might think, but instead actually comes with potential health risks. The FDA needs to prohibit these harmful chemicals from being put into products in the first place."
FDA declined Fox News’ request for comments.