Americans Actually Agree on Something — They Want Products Free of Harmful Chemicals

As we near midterm elections, a new poll has done the unthinkable: found an issue that doesn’t divide us. Americans want government and industry to get harmful chemicals out of our products, according to a survey of 1,200 registered voters commissioned by the Program on Reproductive Health and the Environment at the University of California, San Francisco.

April 1, 2023 | Source: Environmental Health News | by Brian Bienkowski

As we near midterm elections, a new poll has done the unthinkable: found an issue that doesn’t divide us.

Americans want government and industry to get harmful chemicals out of our products, according to a survey of 1,200 registered voters commissioned by the Program on Reproductive Health and the Environment at the University of California, San Francisco. More than 90% of those surveyed supported the notion that the government should require products be proven safe before they are put on the market.

“At a time when most issues are politically polarized, the issue of keeping people safe from harmful chemicals finds widespread agreement among Democrats, Republicans and Independent voters,” said Celinda Lake — president of Lake Research Partners, which conducted the poll — in a statement.

A majority of those polled are even willing to pay more for protection from toxics: 93% agree (57% strongly agree) that it’s important to remove harmful chemicals from our homes, workplaces and schools even if it increases the costs of some products.