Cleaning our homes to death.

Let me just start with this frightening statistic:

Stay at Home Mom's/Homemakers have a 54% higher chance of dying of cancer than women who work outside the home.

(Would it help if I mention we can cleanse our bodies of some of these toxins by breast feeding our babies...Though despite this, I still believe breast feeding is the best option over formula)

In the 1930’s, we started making detergent. I’m reminded of the saying “God made dirt so dirt wont hurt”. Our society is definitely obsessed with clean. We have created thousands of other cleaning and disinfecting chemicals. Disinfecting everything. There's an overuse of antibac soap of course, and then all those other chemicals. Chlorine and Ammonia were first used in WWII as a deadly poison (when combined) and now we use them everyday to clean our kitchens and bathroom. We don’t think about the residual spray that gets onto the apples sitting in the fruit bowl, or how the counters may be free of bacteria but are now covered in carcinogens. 

In the 1930’s however, we had other things on our mind. We desperately needed to kill germs to prevent the spread of disease, so for better or worse, this is where we are today. 

There are toxic chemicals in our soaps, shampoos, toothpaste, laundry detergent, deodorant, air freshener, hand lotion, and on and on it goes… 

There are toxic chemicals in our furniture and our stuffed animals, in our plywood cabinets and our vinyl flooring, that leech out into the air we breathe. 

There are toxic chemicals in our water bottles, childrens toys, Tupperware containers, plastic wrap, that leech out into our food and drink, or into the hands and mouths of our children.

Some of these chemicals cause allergic reactions. Some cause cancer. Some have been linked to ADD and asthma in children. Some interfere with neural pathways. Some interfere with reproduction. Some of these chemicals have been shown to cause infertility or low sperm count in men. Some mimic estrogen, and may be a cause of breast cancer. Some interfere with the natural sex ratio, causing populations to have very few boy children born.

Everyone’s body is different and so everyone reacts to these toxins differently. Just like some of us can eat top ramen day and night, and others (like me) get a headache from the MSG.

Its devastating to learn how toxic our daily lives have become. I came across the statistic that, when exposed to one of these toxins, within 28 seconds, trace amounts can be found in every organ in the body.  And sadder still, our precious children, our babies, that we do everything we can to protect, are being poisoned from the moment they are conceived, through our contaminated blood supply, and then more so, when they are born, swaddled in flame retardants, fed though bpa containers and sleeping in rooms sanitized with VOC’s. 

But why is it allowed? How can companies get away with it? Why didn’t we hear about this already?

These are simple questions, with complex answers. Some things can be approved, because we are only going to be exposed to a small amount of the toxic chemicals from each individual source, but there is a totally unknown compound effect when you consider all the sources that are polluting our bodies on a daily basis (and this isn’t even getting into the food we eat). And then there is the whole commercial aspect, which I don’t want to get into here.

I believe if anything is important or worth doing, it’s doing what you can to protect your children and give them the best chance in life that you can. So I am looking at my house today. I am slowly ridding our playroom of plastic toys, and switching my household cleaners for non-toxic replacements. I am going to try to be a better shopper. Our home should be a safe place. A place where we can breathe easy and feel comfort. I don’t think its possible to totally eradicate all toxic chemical exposure, but we can tackle a little at a time, and know that at least things are better than they used to be.

Green alternatives? You can clean almost anything with a combination of some of the following:

Soap, Water, Elbow grease, Lemon Juice, Vinegar, Baking Soda.

Here is a very list of just a handful of the common toxic chemicals you should watch for. I encourage you to look them up and decide for yourself what your top priorities are for detoxing your home.

Phthalates (PVC additives to make plastic flexible, Found in scents, lotions, flexible plastics)- “Phthalates are the primary plasticizer in use today because of performance, cost, durability, and overall product sustainability benefits. Primarily, phthalates are an important ingredient in flexible vinyl products, such as wiring and cabling, wall covering and flooring. They are also used in vinyl blood bags and IV tubing used to help save lives. Other phthalates are used as solvents or fixatives, for example, to make fragrances last long.”

BPA “Bisphenol A (BPA) is a chemical building block that is used primarily to make polycarbonate plastic and epoxy resins. Polycarbonate plastic is a lightweight, high-performance plastic that possesses a unique balance of toughness, optical clarity, high heat resistance, and excellent electrical resistance. Because of these attributes, polycarbonate is used in a wide variety of common products including digital media (e.g., CDs, DVDs), electrical and electronic equipment, automobiles, sports safety equipment, reusable food and drink containers, and many other products.

Formaldehyde- (furniture, carpeting, glue, stuffed animals) Leeches out for a while. Does not accumulate in the body.

 PBDEs and Bromine/BFRs- Flame retardants. Found in baby and children’s clothing, furniture etc.

Chlorine/PVC- in vinyl, leaches out the entire lifetime of product

Sodium Laureth Sulfate- in, well, pretty much everything… http://www.natural-health-information-centre.com/sodium-laureth-sulfate.html