Wax and Bubbles

Some of the cleaners you currently have in your cabinet may contain ingredients that are harmful to your health and extremely harmful to your lungs. And if you are inhaling it, more than likely your own children are. Here are some of the ingredients that are in our everyday cleaners that are toxic to our health in large amounts.

1. Ammonia: Poisonous when swallowed, causes irritation to the respiratory and breathing passages when inhaled though the mouth and nose. The most dangerous things about ammonia is, if it is mixed with bleach it causes a fatal gas, that will kill any breathing animal.

2. Butyl Cello Solve: Also goes by the name of ethylene glycol monobutyl ether. It is a synthetic solvent and is used on windows mostly. It has been shown to damage vital organs within the body such as the liver and kidneys and even has been shown to cause damage with bone marrow.

3. Chlorine Bleach: It is not only an environmental pollutant it is also a major irritant to the body, especially young children. To try a safer bleach alternative, try hydrogen peroxide based bleaching agent or even borax or oxygen bleach alternative to chlorine bleach products.

4. Fragrance: Fragrances are nice but have you ever thought of what’s actually making that fragrance smell that way. Most fragrances are made up of phthalates, chemicals that have been linked to reproductive issues and even some forms of liver cancer. Some fragrances are harmful to children suffering from asthma as well and can make their symptoms worse. If you enjoy fragrances then give essential oils a go. They are derived from plants and not made in a lab.

5. Nontoxic: This claim is meaningless when used on a product. Most color crayons and some cleaners carry this label and it mostly means that if ingested it might not make you sick. But there is no official definition or verification on this term so it means nothing to us right now. The worse part is, it is not regulated at all.

6. Sodium Hydroxide: This chemical is found mostly ion drain cleaners, and is extremely dangerous. It can cause eye, nose, throat and even skin damage such as burns if not handled with care. My thought is, if is can do that to my skin, what sort of damage is causing to my house and drains. This is not something you should even purchase or have in your home with small children or pets around. A very good drain cleaner and unclogging the drains is 1 cup of baking soda poured down your drain, followed by cup of white vinegar. Wait 5 minutes and follow with a gallon of boiling hot water. Repeat as many times as it takes.