Chapter 4: Bleaches and brighteners · Part 1: Oxygen bleaches
Hydrogen peroxide
- Poison schedule (Australia)
The worst fact: a 16-month-old boy died 10 hours after swallowing about 230 g of 3% hydrogen peroxide, the strength sold in pharmacies. At high strength it's worse: in 10 years of US poison-centre cases, 1 in 7 people with symptoms after swallowing peroxide above 10% showed signs of gas bubbles blocking blood vessels, and 1 in 15 died or still had a disability when their case was closed.
Why brands use it: it bleaches and removes stains, and breaks down to water and oxygen. Household laundry products contain about 4 to 8%.
Take care if: you have young children. And never drink "food grade" 35% peroxide: the US Food and Drug Administration has never approved it to be taken internally and considers it dangerous even used as directed. In Australia it's a Schedule 5 Poison above 3% and a Schedule 6 Poison above 6%.
Comes from: hydrogen and oxygen, joined using a recycled helper chemical (2-ethylanthraquinone) and a palladium catalyst.
Myth check: "Food-grade hydrogen peroxide is a health tonic": false. The FDA warns it "can cause serious harm or death when ingested".
Contaminants: nil.
Fair to say: the only real concern Europe's risk assessment found for household products was skin and eye irritation. Used as directed, it raises no safety concern.
Correct as of November 2026. What the badges mean
Sources
- Australian Government. Poisons Standard October 2026 (SUSMP), F2026L01327: chlorinating compounds, dichloroisocyanuric acid, hydrogen peroxide, sodium percarbonate, peracetic acid, ammonia.
- Safe Work Australia. Hazardous Chemical Information System (HCIS): classifications for each chemical, and for borax. hcis.safeworkaustralia.gov.au
- NICNAS. IMAP Tier II assessments: sodium percarbonate (2016); hydrogen peroxide (2014); perborates (2018); peracetic acid (2013). industrialchemicals.gov.au
- HERA. Risk assessments: sodium percarbonate (2002); hydrogen peroxide (2005); sodium perborate (2002); TAED (2003); FWA-1 (2004); FWA-5 (2003). heraproject.com
- US FDA. FDA warns consumers against drinking high-strength hydrogen peroxide for medicinal use (2006).
- Hatten BW et al. Outcomes after high-concentration peroxide ingestions. Ann Emerg Med 2017;69(6):726-736.
- Hawley B et al. Respiratory symptoms in hospital cleaning staff exposed to a product containing hydrogen peroxide, peracetic acid and acetic acid. Ann Work Expo Health 2017;62(1):28-40.
The full source list is at the end of Chapter 4.