Caveat emptor . . .

— 5-chloro-2-(2,4-dichlorophenoxy)phenol —

CHECK THE LABELS on your household cleaning stuff, as well as toiletries like toothpaste, for Triclosan, because evidence is showing that it's nasty, dangerous stuff — and it's everywhere, it seems. According to Disinformation, new reports from front-line outfits like University of California-Davis and Johns Hopkins, among others show cause for concern:

“Triclosan is found in virtually everyone’s home and is pervasive in the environment,” said Isaac Pessah, professor and chair of the Department of Molecular Biosciences in the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine and principal investigator of the study. “These findings provide strong evidence that the chemical is of concern to both human and environmental health.”

Triclosan is commonly found in antibacterial personal-care products such as hand soaps as well as deodorants, mouthwashes, toothpaste, bedding, clothes, carpets, toys and trash bags. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in 1998 estimated that more than 1 million pounds of triclosan are produced annually in the United States, and that the chemical is detectable in waterways and aquatic organisms ranging from algae to fish to dolphins, as well as in human urine, blood and breast milk.

And according to the LA Times, Triclosan may not do that great a job:

Concerns about triclosan aren't new. According to a statement released by UC Davis, Pessah's team has previously linked the chemical to problems with reproductive hormones and brain activity. In a 2010 article from the Los Angeles Times, writer Jill U Adams reviewed the case against the chemical.  One big problem, she wrote, is that antibacterial soaps that contain triclosan don't do any better killing germs on your hands than plain old soap and water. 

To me, the scariest part is that it is an ingredient in toothpaste . . .

The UC Davis research team has previously linked triclosan to other potentially harmful health effects, including disruption of reproductive hormone activity and of cell signaling in the brain.
The team also found that triclosan impairs heart and skeletal muscle contractility in living animals. Anesthetized mice had up to a 25-percent reduction in heart function measures within 20 minutes of exposure to the chemical.

“The effects of triclosan on cardiac function were really dramatic,” said Nipavan Chiamvimonvat, professor of cardiovascular medicine at UC Davis and a study co-author. “Although triclosan is not regulated as a drug, this compound acts like a potent cardiac depressant in our models.”