How to wash clothes if you have allergies or sensitive skin

Avoiding allergy and sensitive skin pitfalls in your home means keeping your clothes and fabrics particularly clean. Learn how Downy Free & Gentle freshens and softens fabrics while being gentle on sensitive skin.

Wash new clothes before wearing them

To boost their appearance in stores, clothes and fabrics can have finishes applied that can trigger allergies and sensitive skin reactions. So wash all new clothes before wearing to remove these finishes.

Pour the right amount

Always take care to accurately follow dosage levels on detergent packaging and read garment labels to ensure you’re using the right amount of detergent, correct temperatures/cycles, etc.

Use a gentle detergent

Some detergents have perfumes and dyes that can irritate sensitive skin or trigger allergic reactions. For a laundry regimen that’s dye and perfume free, wash with Tide^® Free & Gentle^™ Detergent to provide a deep clean that’s also gentle on sensitive skin.

Give it an extra rinse

To make sure there isn’t any detergent residue or allergens still lingering in the wash, use your washer’s second or “extra rinse” setting (if it’s equipped with one).

Use dye-free and scent-free fabric conditioner

Downy^® Free & Gentle^™ Fabric Conditioner has no perfumes or dyes, which is great for those with sensitive skin. Downy also softens and protects your clothes from stretching, fading, and fuzz.

Throw in a dryer sheet

Finally, drop a Bounce^® Free & Gentle^™ Dryer Sheet into the dryer. Free of perfumes and dyes, it also helps to repel pet hair for those with pet hair allergies.