Why Your Cleaning Products May Be Harmful to Health
Who likes to “spring clean?” I know…no one does! I wish the dust bunnies would take the dust away!
Many of us “spring clean” so that we can leave the indoors inside. Once it gets nice outside we want to be outdoors. Warm weather seems such a short time in comparison to cold weather. I want to enjoy the outdoors as much as I can!
I like to think I leave my worries about deep household cleaning as a “done chore” once I move outside. I really Love to Garden. I love my patio! I love my birds! And pool parties!!
However, are you aware that cleaning the inside of your home can put your health at risk!
The toxins in cleaning products put men and women, who work inside the home, at risk. There are obvious toxins in the furniture, carpets, cabinets, and fabrics, etc. inside the home. But then we add the chemicals from cleaning products, disinfectants, and aerosols.
Our quest to make our home clean leads us to trust advertising. Advertising promotes clean odors inside the home. Marketing leads us to believe that our home has to have an odor.
First all: spraying chemicals into the air to create a fragrance is not good for your health. Cleanliness does not smell. Your home should be odor free and a place for your body to rest and restore.
Have you read the labels of spray fragrances?
The primary chemicals enable the product to spray and release from the can.
They commonly include hydrocarbons like propane, butane, and isobutane. All of these are not good to inhale. They are needed to be able to “spray,” but not needed in a clean house. Some of these chemicals can cause an allergy “to be home.”
Who decided that your home had to smell of fragrances?
Clean does not smell. Clean does not have an odor. Your home should not “smell.”
I can’t help but wonder why advertising makes us believe that our son’s room will smell bad? I raised two boys, who shared a room. There never was an odor?
Fragrances can contain many harmful chemicals, including phthalates, parabens, styrene, musk ketone, methylene chloride, limonene, and acetaldehyde. These chemicals can cause health problems and damage the environment. These chemicals can create havoc as we breathe them in.
Let’s look at cleaning products.
You can smell chemicals when you walk down the cleaning aisle at the grocery store. That aisle definitely has an odor. And it really is not a health-friendly or earth-friendly odor.
I wish there was an odor down the cookie aisle!
Do you fill your pail with your favorite smelling cleaning product and water? Then did you dip your hands and cloth into the mix?
What did your hand feel like afterwards? Did your hands sting or feel very dry? Does cleaning create a rash or burning sensation if you don’t use gloves?
Do your hands feel sore after cleaning? Do they need lotion? Are your hands a bit red? Do you HAVE to wear gloves?
The NEED to wear gloves should be an Huge indicator! There is something in that bottle, now in suspension in your cleaning pail, that is not good for you. Why would you have to put a layer of rubber between your hands and the cleaning agent?
To make things Clean, wouldn’t you want no chemicals? How can it be clean if the surface contains chemicals? You will absorb them by touch but needed gloves to put there?
How do these Chemicals get into the water supply?
When you are cleaning, you grab what is familiar for the job and fill your pail. Once the job is done, what do you do with the cleaning agent?
You dump in down the drain or the toilet.
What happens to that bucket of cleaning solution, that you needed gloves on to work with?
Some chemicals cannot be filtered out by your city’s water treatment plant. They end up back in your water supply. This in turn will affect the wildlife and farm animals that drink it. Agriculture will also absorb those chemicals as they are now in the soil.
Endocrine Disruptor:
Are you aware that there are common surfactant cleaning chemicals that are an endocrine disruptor? That means it causes adverse reproductive effects for those in contact or exposed to the polluted water.
Frankly endocrine disruptors frighten me. They can affect fertility today. They can also affect future generations.
Phyhalates and Triclosan are two that are not human friendly.
We read that Triclosan is slowly being discontinued as research for adverse effects becomes more known. It used to be in hand sanitizers, but was removed.
Phthalates are common in air fresheners, and laundry products (part of fragrances). They are now also found in all water sources including rainwater.
Phthalates cause severe reproductive and developmental disruption to aquatic organisms such as bacteria, algae, crustaceans, insects, and even fish. We have not used it long enough to see what it does to humans.
We Need to be Educated! Future generations are depending on us.
Look at OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) for guidance:1
OSHA states:
“Many factors influence whether a cleaning chemical will cause health problems. Some important factors to consider include: (These factors will help to determine what cleaning product is needed. You may only need just soap and water.)
1.Look at the chemical ingredients of the cleaning product. (When was the last time you read the label on your favorite cleaning product?) Make yourself familiar with chemicals you don’t want in your home.
2. How the cleaning product is being used or stored. (There are some products that should not be stored inside your home, let alone under the kitchen sink. If the chemical should not be stored under the sink, what is that indirectly telling us? )
3. Do you open windows when you use cleaning products? Is the bathroom, especially the shower area, well-ventilated when you clean? Ventilation is VERY important with the use of chemicals. (Again, does this mean you can’t inhale it?)
4. What happens if the undiluted chemical is spilled or splashed? (Will it remove paint or finishes from wood?If the chemical removes paint or finish what will it do to your skin? Oh dear!)
5. What happens if the undiluted chemical comes in contact with your skin? (Will your skin be affected? Oh dear!)
6. Are there mists, vapors, or gases released? (This would apply to aerosols. Aerosols are meant to be inhaled. What is it that is going into your lungs?)
These are scary questions. You can find some of these warnings on the labels. Are you paying attention to them?
Do you read the label as to what you can and Cannot mix together? ( Bleach and toilet bowl cleaners are one!)
OSHA recommends:
BEFORE you clean: determine what is needed for the task. Does it need just a thorough cleaning? Does it need to be disinfected? Not all surfaces need to be disinfected every time you clean it.
You may only need soap and water to clean that spot.
When you get into disinfection, you need to read labels.
If a cleaning product is listed: “anti-bacterial” you need to read more and check the ingredients.
If the cleaning product says it kills bacteria, fungi, and mildew, it will also kill algae. Algae is an important element in our water ecosystems and food chain. We sure don’t want our bucket of cleaning product to upset the Food Chain!
Be very careful with disinfectants and especially their disposal. Do your research.
It says: “Green!”
Are you aware that just because it says “GREEN” on the label, it does not mean it is safe? It also does not mean it is chemical free. The word “Green” can be a marketing word.
Marketing can be very misleading. We need to be aware.
Certified Green Cleaners must meet specific criteria as defined by the certifying organization. This is where it becomes quite scientific. A certification, with the certifying label, will indicate whether it has been thoroughly tested.2
This certification will also let you know whether the product is safe for inside your home. Look for a certification label on Green products.
Using Certified Green Products will not only protect your family’s health, but also the environment. Seventy percent of waterway pollution comes from toxic chemicals. 3
What can I use for a cleaning product now?
For general all purpose cleaning: Mix 1/2 cup of vinegar with 1/4 cup of bicarbonate of soda (baking soda). Add 2 gallons of water. This will be a great home-made all purpose cleaner. Now you may have a vinegar smell to contend with, but it is not an unhealthy dilution.
Vinegar and baking soda will work on most surfaces. Most surfaces.
Do Not Use Vinegar on wood surfaces, stainless steel, in irons, and garment steamers. Avoid using it on grout between tiles, inside your washing machine, electronic screens, egg spills, or stains. Do your research before assuming vinegar is your safe all-purpose cleaner. 4
Remember that vinegar will not disinfect.
I choose a certified Green Clean Company.
I would be remiss with this blog if I did not conclude with a recommendation. I’ve done my homework. Fifty years of cleaning my home has led me to one company.
I choose the Shaklee Corporation’s cleaners for my cleaning needs.
Shaklee was one of the very first Earth Day products.5 They are deeply involved in deep ocean explorations and even clean the explorers ships. (To me, that says a Lot!)
Shaklee’s Basic H2 is an all purpose, natural cleaner for all surfaces. It is ph-balanced and is in a concentrate.
Using a different solution, I can clean windows, floors, counters, doors, and even bathe my children in it. What I found amazing is that after a bath, it does not leave your skin dry. You won’t feel like you need a lotion.
I do not have to worry about special products for special surfaces. It is an all-natural all-purpose cleaner. Nature does not harm.
I remember camping in the 70s when we all became aware of chemicals in cleaners that were not our friends. My family was not allowed to bring dish wash detergents into the park. What to do to clean after meals? I was glad I had Basic H.
It was at this time I learned about natural cleaning products. I discovered that cleaning products can be safe for nature. They also do not harm the health of my family and myself.
I, also, learned about the negatives that cleaners can do to our bodies, our homes, and our children.
Once I did the research, it was an easy switch for me.
I cannot eliminate all the toxins in my home. It is not just carpets, but also furniture, cabinets, flooring, paints, etc. I think we’d have to live in a stone house? I have a feeling it would be quite cold in the winter!
What I can do, is to switch cleaning products to a company that puts Nature first. At the very least, this will help to improve the air inside my home. Good laundry products will also help with allergies. Good natural cleaning products will also make the cleaning person happy!
I did the research and I chose a good product line.
I strongly recommend the Shaklee Corporation’s Get Clean line of products that also includes laundry.
And I can state: they work.
Take your health seriously. You are the one to decide what is healthy for your family.
https://wellness.maryjessen.com
References:
- https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/2012-126/pdfs/2012-126.pdf ↩︎
- https://www.epa.gov/greenerproducts/buying-green-consumers ↩︎
- https://blog.remoovit.com/2023/01/11/environmental-dangers-in-cleaning-products/ ↩︎
- https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/home/cleaning/a62330960/things-you-should-never-clean-with-vinegar/ ↩︎
- https://wellness.maryjessen.com/ ↩︎
Mary Jessen: Wellness Makes Cents 