Hohenstein Institute Develops Effect-Based Allergen Test for Textiles

March 27, 2009

Scientists at Hohenstein Institute have developed a textile testing procedure that determines the allergenic potential of textile products. The test is a selective effect-based in vitro cell culture procedure that reliably predicts a textile product’s potential to irritate human skin. Hohenstein will certify successfully tested textile products as “Skin-friendly- suitable for allergy sufferers.”

The Hohenstein test will be particularly helpful for textile products that use dyes, dye components or other chemicals for which no sensitivity data exist.

“U.S. consumers are recognizing the role hypoallergenic textiles can play in successfully managing allergies and sensitivities,” says Sam Moore, U.S.-based manager of Hohenstein America, Inc. “When textile products are certified ‘skin-friendly’ that will be very meaningful to people who seek to minimize irritants in their living environment.” The new test is also expected to be very useful to manufacturers and retailers of children’s clothing and bedding products and performance apparel brands where a positive textile-to-skin interaction is critically important.

The new text method is a complementary addition to the Oeko-Tex Standard 100 which evaluates textiles for more than 100 chemicals believed to be harmful to humans, including lead and phthalates as required under the new CPSIA regulations. Hohenstein’s new allergy test provides a fourth prong to their established textile product safety test portfolio. The other three components of the program include tests for cell damage (cytotoxicity), DNA damage (genotoxicity), and irritation.

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