Organic Cotton

Organic cotton is the same seed-hair fiber as conventional cotton, grown without synthetic pesticides, and the difference that matters for your skin is the processing rules that follow it from field to finished garment.

Conventional cotton is not the innocent default you have been sold. Lab analysis of conventional cotton textiles has found pesticide residues including malathion, deltamethrin, and endosulfan, some of which survive repeated washing and sit against your skin. Conventional finishing also routinely adds formaldehyde, a known carcinogen linked to skin irritation and allergic reactions. The GOTS standard is the lever here: it bans formaldehyde, azo dyes, heavy-metal dyes, and flame retardants across the whole supply chain, not just the fiber. So organic on a hangtag without certification can still hide a conventionally dyed, resin-finished garment.

Look for GOTS certification, which governs chemistry from fiber to finished piece, and use OEKO-TEX STANDARD 100 as a backstop confirming the final garment was screened for harmful residues.

Organic cotton avoids synthetic pesticides, though cotton remains a thirsty crop.