When it comes to household cleaners do you have any idea what you’re actually cleaning with? Do you love the smell of the clean, fresh house after cleaning the kitchen or dusting the furniture? Have you ever wondered what’s in those household cleaners that cleans so well and produces the aroma? You might be taken back and actually alarmed if you realize what could be entering not only your body, but your families as well.
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Because federal laws are so lax there is way too many chemicals ending up in our homes through the use of household cleaners. And with these chemicals comes an array of diseases. It really makes one wonder why so many people today have cancer or immune deficiencies.
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Here’s some crazy facts that could be a result of all the toxic chemicals are bodies are exposed to.
- Leukemia, brain cancer and other childhood cancers have increased by more than 20% since 1975.
- The risk of a woman getting breast cancer is now one in eight.
- Learning and developmental disabilities like autism and ADD/ADHD now affect one in six children.
- Autism has increased nearly 300% nationally between 1997 – 2008.
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The list just continues and is truly frightening.
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Being a new mother of two beautiful children, I surely don’t want to expose them to nasty chemicals. I want to give them the best opportunity to avoid diseases so I did some research on household cleaning items and I could not believe what I found.
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One of the first chemicals I found in many household cleaners was Formaldehyde. You might be familiar with the word as an embalming fluid used in mortuaries.
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Formaldehyde is a volatile organic compound, that’s colorless, flammable, extremely noxious and toxic. 46 million tons of the synthetic version is globally produced annually. It is used to make many types of plastics, pesticides and industrial disinfectants, to make resins and adhesives in carpet and plywood, even used as a preservative in some foods and then of course in house hold cleaners.
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There’s many possible side effects of Formaldehyde exposure, the worst being cancer. It is a known human carcinogen in the Thirteenth Report on Carcinogens published by the National Toxicology Program because it causes cancer of the throat, nose and blood.
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Other dangerous chemicals are dyes. Dyes are basically fake colors. Think about how many household cleaners have color to them. Ever wonder how they got that way?
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Dyes are made by burning tar, which creates a wide spectrum of colors depending on the temperature and duration of heat. The scary part is that petroleum by-products are used to create the base of these dyes. Why? Because it’s cheaper than natural dyes.
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Watch for labels on household cleaners with any of the following and stay away from them.
Formaldehyde
Quaternium-15
Dimethyle-dimethyl (DMDM)
Hydantoin
Imidazolidinyl urea
Diazolidinyl urea
Sodium hydroxymethylglycinate
2-bromo-2nitropropane-1
3-diol (bromopol)
Red 40
Yellow 5
Yellow 6
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Who would have thought keeping our homes clean could keep our bodies so dirty! Do you and your family a favor and take notice of what you’re cleaning with. Even if organic products cost a little more, I’m sure it’s much cheaper than the doctor’s bill as a result of harmful toxins!
There’s one company I personally use for my household cleaning needs. They’re called The Honest Company. You can check out their products here.
Don’t waste your money at a pricey, celebrity website when you can buy vinegar and baking soda for pennies a use…
A little hydrogen peroxide and rubbing alcohol are ha day too.
That’s it!