Is Down Alternative Toxic? (The Toxicants it Contains)

What is “Down Alternative”?

Down alternative is usually a fluffy polyester fill, this is especially true if the only description of the product is “down alternative”.

It’s usually a polyester microfiber.

There are natural fibers that can be used as an alternative to real down to fill duvets, pillows, etc., but if anything but conventional polyester is used, the exact fiber will be mentioned.

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Chemicals in Polyester “Down Alternative”

Formaldehyde

Polyester itself can give off very low levels of formaldehyde (when it’s brand new) in the 35 ppb (parts per billion range) according to EarthShade even though polyester fabric can be certified as zero VOC (perhaps due to less sensitive testing).

PLA however, a natural type of polyester, has been able to pass formaldehyde-free UL testing, and is often preferred by the chemically sensitive.

If the down alternative is PLA it will be mentioned in the description. More on PLA in a section below.

Other Concerns

Polyester does usually contain trace antimony (used as a catalyst), it off-gasses extremely low levels of VOCs (and those do dissipate fairly fast), and like all plastics, it can create microplastic particles as it wears down.

Because alternative down is usually polyester microfibers, which are already so small, they have the potential to become microplastics more easily than larger plastic items that need to break down over time.

Concerns with Recycled PET

I am a little more concerned about recycled polyester (recycled PET aka recycled water bottles) than non-recycled polyester, because it can contain phthalates and more metals.

PrimaLoft is a polyester microfiber, some of their products are made from recycled materials including water bottles.

For those with Chemical Sensitivities

Personally, I do use polyester, I even used it when I was very chemically sensitive. Some chemically sensitive people don’t do well with it.

Better Down Alternatives

PLA

PLA, Polylactic acid, a more natural biobased form of polyester, is certainly preferred to regular polyesters.

Most chemically sensitive folks don’t pick up offgassing odors from PLA and have generally liked the Naturepedic PLA products.

Other specs:

• PLA doesn’t use antimony as a catalyst but instead uses tin or a non-metal catalytic (source).
• It does not offgas formaldehyde (based on UL testing results).
• It does not break down into microplastics (source).
• It’s technically biodegradable, but actually only under very specific conditions not found in nature (source).

Natural Fibers

Of course, natural fibers can also be used in duvets, pillows, cushions, and other products where “down alternative” can be used.

Natural fibers will be listed however, and could include rayon, wool, and silk.

Corinne Segura is an InterNACHI-certified Healthy Homes Inspector with certifications in Building Biology, Healthier Materials and Sustainable Buildings, and more. She has 10 years of experience helping others create healthy homes. You can book a consult here.