Frequent clothes shopping can turn into a nightmare if care is not taken. Experts warn that newly purchased clothes must be washed.
If newly purchased clothes are not washed, bacterial infection, viral infection and scabies can occur. An average of 10-15 minutes of contact with the clothes of a person with scabies is enough to transmit the parasitic infection to the clothes. In order to prevent this, the experts stating that the newly purchased clothes should be washed at high temperatures above 60 degrees and recommend washing with delicate washing detergents.
“Especially since the skin of babies and children is more sensitive, we encounter these problems more often in children”
Dr. Necla Eryılmaz, Dermatology Specialist at Medicana Konya Hospital, told the İhlas News Agency (İHA) correspondent about the damages caused to the skin if the new clothes bought from the store are not washed. Eryılmaz said, “We buy the clothes we buy from the store as if they are clean. But when they are worn unwashed, there are some problems we encounter. Especially since the skin of babies and children is more sensitive, we encounter these problems more often in children. What can these be? Some dyes are used in the production of textile products. Again, dyes are fixed with some chemicals. For this reason, when they are worn unwashed, they can unfortunately cause some skin rashes and irritations, especially in atopic children and people with sensitive skin. For this reason, we should definitely wash the clothes we have just bought in the machine or by hand, even in warm water if possible. We prefer to wash with sensitive washing detergents, especially for children.”
“For people who we are sure have scabies, we ask that clothes be washed at over 60 degrees”
Necla Eryılmaz said that the danger in unwashed clothes is not only chemical pollution or dye pollution, “Unfortunately, since internet shopping has increased a lot today, clothes are tried on in the store. More attention is paid, but the clothes bought on Instagram or decided through social media are bought and sent back and they are tried on at home. They are tried on by one person or more than one person. If the person who tries them on has a bacterial infection, a viral infection or a disease called scabies, which is one of the parasitic infections that has been very challenging in the last few years, if that person has it, it can be transmitted to the second person who tries it on by contact through clothing. Unfortunately, one of the first things we ask when we say that this is an allergic reaction or bacterial infection in patients who apply to our outpatient clinic is whether you have tried on a piece of clothing, whether you have stayed in a different place. For this reason, especially scabies is a parasitic infection that we have unfortunately encountered very frequently in recent years and is confused with many diseases. On average, 10-15 minutes of contact with the clothes is enough. We do not know how long the person who bought and tried on the clothes before kept it on. Therefore, the clothes should be washed. For people who we are sure have scabies, we want the clothes to be washed at over 60 degrees. If we suspect scabies, we want them to be washed at high temperatures. But washing all clothes at high temperatures can disrupt the structure, especially in new clothes. First of all, we strongly recommend washing in warm water in a way to remove detergent residues.”
Citizens also stated that they do not wear the new clothes they buy without washing them, and that many people try on the clothes in stores and that they should be washed because they put them on and take them off.
