Is your home clean or a chemical plant? Ten common chemicals to avoid
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Those bright, cheerful bottles of cleaners promising to strip our homes of evil dirt and bacteria and make them sparkle are not so innocent. Did you know that the government protects cleaner manufacturers from needing to reveal their ‘proprietary’ ingredients? Here’s a rundown on ten chemicals found in most cleaning and scented products at your grocery store:
Ammonia
Cuts through grease but can also cut your breath: it’s known to cause asthma. Use vinegar instead.
Chlorine
Common and effective disinfectant but irritates the lungs and skin. It’s a killer if ingested. Use borax, lemon juice, vinegar, hydrogen peroxide, tea tree or eucalyptus oil instead.
What about pools? Chlorine byproducts found in swimming pools are linked to higher incidences of asthma, lung damage, stillbirths, miscarriages and bladder cancer - alternatives include ozone and ultraviolet treatments.
Glycol ethers
These dissolve soil - remove stains, but also cause nerve damage when absorbed by the skin, irritate your eyes, nose , throat and lungs, as well as lowering fertility. Try old fashioned water or eucalyptus oil instead.
Monoethanolamine
This is a chemical agent that helps cut through grime but also causes asthma and respiratory ailments. Look for plant-based agents made from coconut, corn or soy.
Perchlorethylene
Used in carpet cleaners and drycleaners to overpower stains, but is a carcinogen that causes liver, kidney and nervous system damage. Alternatives include liquid CO2 and a silicone-based solvent by a company called Green Earth.
Phenol
Used in air fresheners, which coat your nasal passages with an oil film, or by releasing a nerve deadening agent to “freshen up the air.” Phenol touching your skin can cause it swelling, burning and hives plus cold sweats, convulsions, circulatory damage, coma and even death. Make your own air freshener with lemons cut up and covered with cold water or fresh mint sprigs in cold water. And with the way mint grows, you’ll have plenty to go around.
Phthalates
Commonly used in plastics to increase flexibility, but also in nail polish and synthetic fragrances. You’ll find them in iPods and iPhones, computers and shower curtains. They disrupt hormones linked to causing obesity. Use essential oils, baking soda or borax instead.
Sodium Hydroxide (Lye)
Oven cleaners use this to cut through that tough baked-on food that resists a hammer and chisel. It works because it’s a caustic, strong irritant, causing burns to both skin and eyes. Inhibits reflexes, will cause severe tissue damage if swallowed. Magnesium Hydroxide is a safe alternative or elbow grease, saving you a trip to the gym.
Sodium Tripolyphosphate
Used in laundry detergentsIrritates skin and mucous membranes, causes vomiting. Easily absorbed through the skin from clothes. Look for natural laundry detergents and for really tough stains, try Fels Naptha soap - it’s been around for over 100 years and it works!
Triclosan
This is a disinfectant used in antibacterial cleaners promoted constantly for ridding your home and children of nasty germs. What they don’t say is how it remains on cleaned surfaces helping stronger, resistant bacteria to grow. It’s also been found in soil used to grow food. Use hydrogen peroxide, vinegar or that old standby: hot soapy water. Also keep in mind that a little bacteria in your life goes a long way to building a healthy immune system.
We’ve listed only ten here, but there are certainly many more chemicals in products most of us use everyday. The key is to look at the products we buy and find the most basic natural alternatives. And while you’re making your home a greener place, join the Million Faces project to fight global warming by protecting the rainforests!
April 28, 2008 No Comments
How many earths are we using now?
1.3. That’s right - we’re using nearly a third more of earth’s resources than it can replace. It’s like using your credit card every month to support your lifestyle. We all know that it’s not sustainable for long. Eventually you’ll have a big bill to repay - and one that may take a really long time to pay off. That’s what is happening with our little earth. Until now, the earth’s resources have been plentiful enough to support us, but now we’re liquidating them at an increasing rate.
By 2050, the world’s population is estimated to surpass 9 billion, increasing demand for these resources. If we continue living as we are - and do not find new ways to meet our lifestyle demands we’ll need two Earth’s to support us. Sir Nicholas Stern of the well-known Stern Report, states that we have 10 years to fix the problem before irreversible change hits us at home.
So what are the biggest resource hogs and what’s being done now?
The top three are housing, transportation and food, which use 72% of the world’s materials, produce 65% of total carbon dioxide and make up 63% of the global ecological footprint. Our impact on the planet has more than tripled since 1961. Changing this will require big changes in how we think and act in our homes, lives and in business.
This is tough stuff - and can be a bit scary, but The World Wildlife Federation has developed a framework to help. It’s called One Planet Business® and is a guide for making big changes in how businesses think and operate. The goal is to not live on credit - we’ve got to find ways to live within our means. We in the US produce most of the pollution, but China is catching up - and will surpass us 2010. In fact, right now, 50% of China’s rivers are so polluted that they’re unusable for any purpose.
One Planet Living - WWF
The WWF has produced a report for us on living within our means. It’s One Planet Living. Check out the full report here. In the meantime, here’s their take on what you can do now:
At Home
- Turn lights and appliances off when not in use
- Install cavity wall and loft insulation
- Fit energy efficient lights and appliances
- Switch to a green tariff
- Insulate the hot water tank and lag hot water pipes
- Turn down the thermostat by 1 degree
- Draughtproof your home and draw the curtains at night
- Fit a water meter and a flush saver in your cistern
- Don’t water the lawn and use rainwater to water plants
- Leave a wild area in your garden
- Buy food that is in season
- Cut down on meat and dairy produce
- Waste less food
- Compost organic waste
- Buy fairly traded goods
- Buy local food
- Try growing your own fruit and veg
- Avoid heavily processed products
- Drink tapwater, not bottled water
- Buy MSC certified sustainable fish and fish products
- Reduce car use, especially for short journeys (less than 2 miles)
- Walk and cycle more
- Avoid unnecessary travel
- Use public transport instead of the car
- Car share if driving is unavoidable
- Buy the smallest car that fits your needs
- Switch off your engine whilst stationary
- Take holidays closer to home
- Fly less, avoiding short haul flights (less than 500km) wherever possible
- Offset your flight emissions if air travel is unavoidable
- Avoid over-packaged goods
- Use local shops
- Run the washing machine at 30 degrees where possible
- Use kerbside recycling schemes and recycling centres
- Run the fridge at between 3-5 degrees
- Don’t buy patio heaters, peat compost or pesticides for your garden
- Donate unwanted goods and buy recycled and second hand products
- Reuse envelopes and jiffy bags
- Use rechargeable batteries rather than disposable ones
- Boycott unethical products
Food
Travel
And a few other things…
Also join Thinkfrog’s Million Faces Project to preserve rainforests - our most important tool for absorbing all the carbon we produce. It’s just $10 plus your favorite self portrait! The problem is real. It’s now. And we can do something about it and perhaps have a little fun in the process - this will be one of the largest photo albums in the country.
April 5, 2008 No Comments
