Posts Tagged ‘cleaners’
By Stephanie Mitchell
When you buy dish detergent, surface cleaners or bathroom disinfectants, do you know what chemicals you are bringing into your home? Many of the household cleaners that people have been using for years contain toxic, corrosive chemicals that can cause asthma, brain damage, birth defects and cancer, if you’re exposed to them long enough.
Arm yourself with information about the substances you wipe across your kitchen counters or spray onto your carpets – then choose your purchases with care.
Carcinogens
Household cleaning products end up in the air, on your dishes and silverware, and on the counters you and your children touch every day – and you can absorb carcinogens, which cause cancer, by breathing them in, touching them or consuming them.
Carcinogenic cleaning products include air fresheners containing formaldehyde, laundry detergents containing ethoxylated nonyl phenol, and aerosol products containing methylene chloride, and many other common chemicals are currently being tested for carcinogenic effects.
Corrosives and Solvents
Corrosive and solvent chemicals make effective cleaning agents because they dissolve and burn through grease, mildew and grime. They also irritate and burn your skin, eyes, lungs, kidneys and liver, and they can harm your central nervous system.
Breathing in corrosive chemicals can cause dizziness and headaches in the short term; in the long term, they can lead to blindness, depression, memory loss and poor coordination. Children are particularly sensitive to corrosives and solvents – repeated exposure can damage children’s respiratory systems and cause asthma.
Examples include sodium hydroxide, often found in oven cleaners; morpholine, found in scrubbing cleaners and furniture polishes; phosphoric acid, found in bathroom cleaners, dishwashing liquids and mildew removers; ammonia, found in bathroom cleaners and spray cleaners; and sodium hypochlorite, better known as bleach.
Safety
While some of these chemicals cause immediate irritation or pain, others take their toll quietly, over time. Protect yourself and your family by learning all you can about the products on the market and choosing the ones least likely to jeopardize your health. Pregnant women and parents of young children should be particularly cautious. Consider buying only non-toxic, environmentally-friendly cleaning products, which are generally safer for you and your children.
OTHER ARTICLES
Healthy, Natural Cleaning Solutions for Your Home
The Healing Magic of Aromatherapy
Get Beautiful Skin – Naturally!
REFERENCES
- Kewaunee County Emergency Management & LEPC: Solvents & Home Cleaning Products – http://www.kewauneeco.org/lepc/Hazardous%20Waste/solvent.htm.
- National Library of Medicine Tox Town: Solvents – http://toxtown.nlm.nih.gov/text_version/chemicals.php?id=28.
- University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences: Hazardous Household Substances: Alternatives That Are Relatively Free of Toxic Effects – http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/he791.
- Environmental Health Association of Nova Scotia: Guide to Less Toxic Products – http://lesstoxicguide.ca/index.asp?fetch=household.
- GreenLiving: Is Your House Toxic? – http://www.greenlivingonline.com/article/six-household-chemicals-avoid.
The goal of a good, thorough housecleaning is a home that smells fresh, sparkles with cleanliness, and presents a healthful, pleasant environment. Unfortunately, in this day and age you may not be getting quite the results you bargained for!
Most of the cleaning products in stores today are supposed to make house-keeping easier and better, but in reality only make it more complicated and hazardous. This is obvious the moment you take the time to read the labels of these “helpful” products: most give poison center phone numbers, toxic waste disposal information and disclaimers for allergic reactions. They smell bad, may burn your skin and eyes, or can cause headaches, irritability and shortness of breath.
You may be asking yourself, “Isn’t there there a better way?”
Don’t despair! We’ve taken the time to put together some healthy, easy, economical and ecological alternatives:
All-Purpose Spray Cleaner
This all-purpose spray cleaner cleanses and disinfects surfaces. The essential oils have strong anti-bacterial, anti-fungal and anti-viral properties, as well as being tough degreasers. Just combine the following ingredients in a spray bottle and clean away!
6 oz distilled water
2 oz denatured alcohol
¼ tsp lemon, lime or grapefruit essential oil
10 drops tea tree oil
Toilet Bowl Cleaner
Vinegar and baking soda dissolve mineral buildup, while essential oils loosen grime and give a fresh, clean scent. Pour the following mix into the toilet bowl and let it sit for several hours or overnight.
2 tbsp white vinegar
2 tbsp baking soda
½ tsp orange essential oil
½ tsp grapefruit essential oil
1 cup distilled water
Wood Furniture Polish
To clean and condition your wood furniture, warm this mixture slightly and apply to wood in small amounts, then rub with a soft cloth.
2 tbsp white vinegar
1 tbsp olive oil
3 drops lemon essential oil
1½ cups water
Carpet Deodorizer
To deodorize your carpets, mix the following ingredients, sprinkle on your carpets, leave for 10 minutes and vacuum up. (Please check for color fastness. Do not use on wet carpet.)
1 cup baking soda
20 drops of your favorite non-resinous essential oil
Fabric Softener
For fresh and clean smelling laundry, add the following to the final rinse cycle of your wash. The scent of lavender essential oil also has a calming and uplifting effect.
½ cup white vinegar
20 drops lavender essential oil
Window Cleaner
To clean your windows to a sparkle while also discouraging flies and other critters from invading your home, spray this mix onto your windows. Buff with a clean towel and then scrub and shine them with sheets of newspaper (black and white only.)
½ cup vinegar
6 cups warm water
½ tsp peppermint essential oil
½ tsp lemon essential oils
Hand Sanitizer
Here is an all-natural hand sanitizer that really does the job. Be sure to rinse hands with it often to help keep germs at bay.
2 oz denatured alcohol
2 oz distilled water
5 drops lemongrass essential oil
