Kudos diapers test negative for PFAS

Dear Kudos community,

At Kudos, our mission has and always will be to bring you the cleanest, safest, most skin and planet-friendly disposable diaper ever. Given my own training as a material scientist and engineer, I am next level nerdy when it comes to what is in our Kudos diapers. In fact, the team and I spent over 3 years in research and development before launching Kudos, because we knew we could do better and didn’t want to go to market with anything less than the best for your baby.

That’s why, when, a few weeks ago, a study came out claiming a small amount of PFAS chemicals in size 4 Kudos diapers, we took it very seriously.

Upon closer examination of the methodology of the study, as well as the extremely small sample size, inconsistency within the findings, and lack of clarity around how tested samples were shipped, stored, and handled, we immediately had our doubts as to the validity of the claims – even though we appreciated the motivation behind the study. Because we know how important it is that you trust what’s touching your baby’s skin (that’s why we created Kudos in the first place!) we didn’t want to stop there, however. So we sent our size 4 diapers into a trusted third party for independent testing.

We just got back the results (you can see the signed report below) and are very happy (though not surprised) to share with the community that Kudos diapers came back negative for PFAS.

We know there are probably a lot of questions about the initial study, and this new testing, so we’ve done our best to share some answers below. If you have any further questions, email us at hello@mykudos.com and we will get back to you.

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Where did you do your testing?

We sent our diapers to one of the industry’s most respected third-party labs, Vartest, for testing. Vartest specializes in textile and materials testing across numerous industries, including healthcare, hospitality, retail, and even the military. Kudos has no business interest ties to Vartest, and this testing was done completely independently.

What methodology did you use to test your diapers?

We conducted Total Organic Fluorine testing on the diapers, which is the same testing method relied on by Mamavation to detect the trace amounts of PFAS in Kudos diapers. 

What are PFAS?

PFAS are an extremely large group of over 12,000 chemicals that are commonly used in industrial and commercial use, such as food packaging, nonstick cookware, water-resistant clothing, and other common household products. In fact, most forms of PFAS have not been found to present safety issues. And, the PFAS that do present safety issues, PFOA and PFOS, were not found to be present in Kudos products.

Why do you think your testing came back different than the testing in the Mamavation report?

There are a number of reasons why we think the testing mentioned in the Mamavation report had flawed results:

• PFAS testing is widely known to be susceptible to cross-contamination, especially when it comes to the shipping, storing, and handling of samples. This is because the use of PFAS chemicals is very common.
• Our size 5 diapers, which are made with the exact same materials and at the same facility as all of our diapers, tested negative for PFAS chemicals.
• The diapers that did test slightly positive showed a wide variation that could not be explained, undermining the testing methodology, which was not fully described.
• An extremely small number of diapers was tested, which means the results are not statistically significant and prone to error.

Why were only size 4 diapers tested?

In the initial report that was released, only size 4 Kudos diapers reportedly tested positive for PFAS. Other sizes tested negative.

Had you tested Kudos diapers before for PFAS?

In order to receive the OEKO-TEX® STANDARD 100 certification, which Kudos has and is widely considered the gold standard of safety for baby products, products must prove that all of their materials are free of PFAS.

Can we see the report results?

You can see the signed, verified report below.

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We know how much consideration goes into choosing brands that you trust for your baby, and earning and maintaining that trust is a responsibility we do not take lightly. We’re honored to have you in this community.

Sincerely,

Amrita Saigal

Founder & CEO, Kudos