Generally enzymes are ingredients of both laundry and dishwasher detergents. They are very biodegradable natural substances, efficient in washing specific kinds of soil: protease is effective in removing proteic soil (as egg or blood stains, etc.), amylase for starch incrustations (from pasta, corn, etc.), lipase for grease, mannanase for certain thickeners used in food industry (they are ingredients of icecreams and of some confectionery). There is also cellulase, that renovates split fibers of cotton). Environmentally speaking, they don’t fail.
From the toxicity point of view, instead they show some concerns. Why must their presence be declared in detergent label? Because they are allergens, that is they’re strong sensitizers for a large segment of population.
In addition, in our opinion subtilisin (protease generally used in detergency, actually the more useful enzime among those we have seen) shows various similarities with papain, a food protease used in many products for topical use (ointments for wounds and dermatitis). FDA (U.S. Food & Drug Administration) found allergic problems (also severe ones) in populations resulting from using those products and it banned their use; furthermore there are many concerning data about papain reproductive toxicity and teratogenicity (toxicity against foetus). Subtilisin, someway similar to papain, in spite of its widespread distribution was very little investigated. Precautionary Principle leads us to avoid to expose consumers to it.
Bensos doesn’t use enzimes as ingredients of products.
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