Health risk

Second-hand clothing and its dirty secret

Buying second-hand is a trend, but there are risks involved, especially with clothing.

(Bild: stock.adobe.com/[e-mail])

Whether for the sake of the environment, for cost reasons or simply because it's "hip": second-hand is all the rage. However, textiles that have already been worn in particular pose a health risk - here we reveal why and how you can minimize this risk.

"A trend is becoming mainstream: almost every second inhabitant of our country buys second-hand goods several times a year and spends an average of 195 euros a year on them," says Rainer Will, Managing Director of the Austrian Retail Association, summarizing the results of a recent survey on the domestic second-hand goods market. "In total, we currently assume a market volume of around two billion euros per year."

Clothing is one of the most sought-after second-hand goods.

(Bild: Krone KREATIV/Stock Adobe)

According to the survey, second-hand books, films, sound recordings and games (44%) are particularly popular, closely followed by clothing (41%), which is ahead of toys (35%), furniture (32%) and household appliances (28%). However, textiles in particular can pose a health risk - it is therefore crucial to handle used clothing correctly.