What Happens When I use Conventional Cleaning Products?

More than you might realize! Today’s conventional cleaning products are made from an eye-popping number of toxic chemicals. When we use these products in our homes, the chemicals they contain can stay suspended in the air for hours or even days after the product has been used, and can easily be inhaled. These chemicals may also remain behind as residues on surfaces that include kitchen and bathroom counters. In this way, they can be easily absorbed through the skin. In addition, when chemicals from different cleaners accidentally come into contact with each other, they sometimes react to form new toxic substances. This unintentional mixing can magnify potential health effects.

Each year there are more than 5 million household product poisonings reported, most of them involving children. With all these chemicals, it’s no wonder that the EPA found the air quality in our homes to be 5 times to 10 times more toxic than the air outside, and typically contaminated by anywhere from 20 to 150 different pollutants. Much of this pollution comes from petrochemical cleaners.

Read more: http://www.seventhgeneration.com/learn/guides/guide-toxin-free-home 

Want to learn more about the potential hazards related to the cleaning products you are currently using?

If you would like to find out about some of the chemicals in the cleaning products you use, www.scorecard.org provides ‘chemical profiles’ that allow you to type in the name
of a chemical (just look on the ingredient list of a cleaning product to find one) and find out the health hazards associated with it. Household bleach, for example, is a neurotoxicant and blood toxicant. This website - www.scorecard.org - also allows you to look at the health effects of certain chemicals. It provides lists of chemicals that are associated with cancer, reproductive toxicity, and many other dangerous side effects and illnesses. Unfortunately, most all of the commonly used cleaning products contain many toxic ingredients. Even products that have a ‘natural’ or ‘safe’ or ‘organic’ stamp on the bottle are not necessarily completely natural. Many of them contain one or two natural ingredients – along with several toxic ingredients (or the other way around). To be sure you are getting a completely natural cleaning product, use the below links for ready-made natural cleaning products – or – go to your local co-op and ask for assistance. If you are not using a 100% natural product, you are probably using dangerous chemicals.

Another website that allows you to enter specific cleaning products and see their health warnings is http://householdproducts.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/household/prodtree?prodcat=Inside+the+Home

Interested in finding ready-made natural cleaning products?

Below are a list of companies that offer safe and consistent alternatives to chemical cleaning products:

Shaklee – www.shaklee.com

BioKleen – www.biokleenhome.com

Citra-Solv – www.citra-solv.com

Eco’s – www.ecos.com

Want to make your own cleaning supplies?

A lot of inexpensive and regularly used household items are also great for cleaning. See the below recipe-list for some common items and what they can be used to clean. Here are some easy to make, 100% natural cleaning solutions you can make at home:

Window Cleaner
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon liquid detergent
3 tablespoons vinegar
2 cups water
Put all the ingredients in a spray bottle, shake it, and use as you would a commercial brand. The detergent in this recipe is important--it cuts the wax residue left by products you might have used in the past.

All-Purpose Spray Cleaner
1/2 teaspoon washing soda
dab of liquid soap
2 cups hot tap water
Combine the ingredients in a spray bottle and shake until the washing soda has dissolved. Apply and wipe off with a sponge or rag.

Furniture Polish
1/2 teaspoon oil, such as olive (or jojoba, a liquid wax)
1/4 cup vinegar or fresh lemon juice
Mix the ingredients in a glass jar. Dab a soft rag into the solution and wipe wood surfaces. Cover the glass jar and store indefinitely

Mold Killer
2 teaspoons tea tree oil
2 cups water
Nothing natural works as well as this spray for mold and mildew. I've used it successfully on a moldy ceiling and shower curtain, and a musty bureau and rug. Tea tree oil is expensive, but a little goes a very long way. It also has a very strong odor, but that dissipates in a few days. Combine tea tree oil and water in a spray bottle, shake to blend, and apply to
problem areas. Do not rinse. Leave in the bottle-it has a long shelf life.

Seattle Natural Cleaning uses a variety of natural cleaning products – both ready-made (from the above list) and home-made (from the above list). We also recycle our cleaning containers and use recycled cleaning towels.

206.307.2270

info@seattlenaturalcleaning.com