Tide Free And Gentle Review - Great For Relieving Laundry Allergies

by Taylor

Here is my Tide Free And Gentle laundry detergent review, since my son suffers from many allergies, including laundry allergies.

I recently had the opportunity to speak with Dr. Jeanine Downie, a dermatologist. During this video interview I discussed the topic of laundry detergent allergies with her, since this is a problem my son suffers with in my own home.

The interview was sponsored by Procter & Gamble, the makers of Tide laundry detergent, so she discussed the Tide Free And Gentle detergent during the interview.

Here is the video for those of you interested.



If you noticed, within the interview itself I also discussed how we use this laundry detergent (formerly called Tide Free And Clear) within my home.

I have had good results with the detergent for my normal laundering, and also for some stains, although I have also used other products to help remove these stains sometimes.

*** Update -- I did a test to see how well this detergent works to remove some really tough stains, all by itself. It confirmed that you really do need to use some laundry stain removers with the product. You can see the before and after pictures here, for Tide as a stain remover. ***

I myself like scents in my laundry, and this detergent does not have any scents or dyes. However, these scents and dyes are what cause many people, apparently including my son, to develop laundry allergies. (Although, as I've gotten used to no-scent products, I have noticed I tolerate strong scents less and less.)

Therefore, I now use this product for all my laundry, for everyone and everything in the home, and have really liked it.

He does not break out when I use it, but has been known to develop hives or excema when I use laundry detergent if I'm visiting someone else's house, like my Moms, for example.

I have not used any other free and clear detergents from other brands, but I suspect they would work just about as well and still not bother his allergies too much.

*** Update - I've now had the chance to review many other free and clear detergent versions over the years doing this website, and I am sure this statement is now true -- there are some much lower cost detergents available that, in my opinion work just as well and still don't have dyes or scents added. ***


I would love to hear from you regarding your experience with Tide Free And Gentle, either in the powder or liquid form. (We use the liquid, because I live in an area with very hard water.) You can share your review here, for this scent or any other version of the product, or read other reviews already submitted.

Also, if you suffer from laundry allergies yourself please share in the comments what type of either homemade or commercial laundry detergent you use which works well for you. You can share your laundry detergent review here.

Tide Free & Gentle Is Similar To Other Enzyme Detergents In Regard To Stain Removal

by SR101 Reader

This SR101 Reader has responded to my article about uses Tide detergent as a stain remover, so if you want to know exactly the context in which she is talking about this hypoallergenic version of the detergent I would suggest reading the linked article first.

SR101 Reader says:

The test you performed with the Tide Free & Gentle on a variety of tough stains yielded the results I would expect with most enzyme detergents.

Even the instructions for using Tide indicate that you should pretreat stains by rubbing in some of it before washing.

Ideally it would be nice to not have to think about stains and just throw the clothes in the washer with this detergent and have all the stains removed.

Truthfully, the tough stains you noted, at a minimum should be pretreated with either the Tide or another enzyme pretreater before washing.

In my opinion if I needed to handle the stains you mentioned (multiple and severe) I would have presoaked them overnight with either BIZ or Oxiclean powder before even attempting to wash them.

Based on your website you are also an advocate of presoaking stains so I believe that your point in your test was to just push the limits of Tide.

Actually I am surprised that the blood, grass, and iodine came out in one wash without pretreating!

I always presoak grass and blood stains with Tide liquid and have great results. Tide has always worked well on protein type stains like blood and grass.

With that said I do like the Tide Free detergent as several members of my household have sensitive skin and no one has had an adverse reaction to this product.

For small stains I will pretreat them directly by rubbing in some Tide and letting it sit for about 10 minutes before washing.

I also use it as a presoak. It really depends on the type of stain(s) and the severity of stain(s) on the garment as to how long I presoak.

I have also used the Wisk Free detergent with decent results, i.e. no allergic reactions and good stain removal capabilities.

Tide Free and Clear Versus Tide Free And Gentle Review

by Carrie

Carrie shared the consequences to her of Tide's recent switch from "free and clear" to Tide Free and Gentle.

Carrie says:

I used Tide Free and Clear for over a year with great results.

I have allergies to most detergents and I was OK with the original Tide Free. Once they changed it to Tide Free and Gentle I started experiencing allergies.

I started looking online and representatives from Tide claimed it was only a name change and not a product change. I found this confusing because even the ad claims that it now cleans better and how would it clean any differently with only a change in name?

I switched to Sunlight Sensitive and so far I'm OK. I even found that the ingredients for homemade laundry soap contained a lot of unwanted chemicals, so I'm not sure if I even want to take that route.

I'm also looking into brands sold by the Bulk Barn (Simply Clean) because they use alternative natural cleaning ingredients.

Taylor says:

Thanks Carrie for sharing your experiences once Tide changed from the green capped Free And Clear and changed the name to Tide Free and Gentle, with a light blue cap.

I myself use this brand (see my review above) because of my son's laundry allergies, and I personally did not notice anything when the change occurred. However, each person is different and your reaction and my son's therefore cannot be compared exactly.

I would love to hear your review of Sunlight laundry detergent, or any other laundry detergents you choose in your quest to find one that is natural and won't bother your allergies.

Here is my list of available hypoallergenic laundry detergents, in case you need to look for one for yourself or a family member.

In addition, I would love to hear any other reader's laundry reviews. You can share your reviews here, or read other reviews already submitted.

In addition, you can share what you believe is the best laundry detergent here, sharing your reviews of which ones work well (or which ones don't make the cut in your opinion).

Agree That Free & Gentle Different Than Free & Clear

by Sherry
(Morristown, NJ)

Sherry says:

Thank you for this site!

I have been experiencing contact dermatitus for a couple of months and have finally come to the conclusion it must be the detergent.

I switched to Tide free and clear about 6 years ago when our son suffered from excema brought on by dyes and perfumes in detergent. Until I found this sight I didn't even realize Tide had changed to Free & Gentle.

No one else is having a reaction thank goodness, but I'll need to switch to something else.

Based on your reviews I'm going to try Cheer dye free and scent free, hopefully that will help! Thank you again.

Taylor says:

Glad to help Sherry.

Sorry to hear the Tide isn't working for you, but everyone is different so experimentation is sometimes necessary. As you can see from my review of Cheer I liked it, but if you still need more help finding a new scent and dye free detergent don't forget to check out the scent free laundry detergent reviews here.

Nightmare Allergic Reaction To This "Hypoallergenic Detergent"

by Jen
(Bc )

This detergent gave me shoulder to toes and EVERYWHERE ELSE all intimate areas SEVERE ITCHY AS HELL HIVES!!

I haven't slept since I started using it and I am on all kinds of steroids and topical creams.

I am so happy I figured it out and I will NEVER use Tide again.

I have used the regular stuff my entire life. I hear All or Purex are good.

Developed Sudden Allergy To Tide Free & Gentle

by SR101 Reader

I've been using Tide for years, and switched to Free and Gentle a couple of years ago. Until recently I've been quite happy with it. My clothes get clean and I don't itch.

A few months ago I started getting terribly itchy skin and it never occurred to me that it could be the detergent. But after I'd eliminated everything else, I decided to add vinegar to the rinse water and then to run my clothes through an extra rinse cycle.

Problem solved! I don't yet know whether it was the vinegar or the rinse cycle, so I'll have to do some more experimenting.

Bye-bye Tide.

This Hypoallergenic Detergent Caused Hives & Worsened Asthma

by Amy
(Monroe, Ohio)

I bought this version of Tide detergent a couple months ago.

I have soap allergies so I thought buying a "free and clear" detergent was a good idea.

I have been breaking out in the worst hives cases everyday from head to toe. It also has worsened my asthma cough I get.

This detergent has been terrible for my allergies.

I am scared about what to try now. I used to use just regular Tide, but am scared to go back to it as well!

My Child Developed Allergy To Powder Form Over Time

by Cindy
(Dallas, NC)

I've used the Tide Free and Gentle in powder form for probably close to 10 years and never had a problem.

Last summer my daughter broke out in what looked like hives and I had no idea what it could be.

Her next breakout didn't occur until 7 months later...she then had about four different incidents until finally I was able to get her to an allergist.

He felt sure it was an allergic reaction to something she was coming in contact with . . . possibly the detergent.

I was shocked to think that the free and gentle detergent I had been using for all of these years could be the problem.

After mentioning my daughter's issue with a friend of my husband, he said that their kids had gotten similar rashes with "free and clear" detergents.

He said after trying many different brands, they found that the Free and Clear Purex was the answer to their prayers. Also, not using dryer sheets.

I have washed all of my child's clothes and sheets and after a few days I can already see a great improvement. I noticed that the Purex is hypoallergenic...I don't know if that makes a difference, but thought I would mention it.

Tide Free Causing Allergic Reactions

I've gotten a couple of comments from people sharing how Tide Free is causing them allergy problems. Fortunately I have not experienced this myself, but it appears it may be more common than I originally realized. Here's what various readers have said.

SR101 Reader says:

When I used this product I got terrible contact dermatitis. Now I'm using Ecos and the dermatitis is slowly going away.

Ravalli says:

Although Tide states there have been no ingredient changes, I have begun to notice that clothing washed in the new product (Free & Gentle) are causing an allergic reaction on my skin. I will regretfully be switching to another company's product after many years using Tide Free.

Taylor says:

Thanks to both commenters for sharing their opinions of this product.

I'd love to hear from even more people who have used this or any other scent free detergent, designed for allergy sufferers. You can share your laundry detergent review here for this or any other brand, telling me what you like, or don't, about it and why.

Obviously, it is not only the Tide made for people with allergies that readers are allergic to though. Instead, I've also gotten lots of reviews sharing how other versions of Tide caused them allergies as well.

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