What is in Your… Cleaning Products?
By: Hillary Straus, LMHC
Cleaning can be harmful to your health! What!?! Don’t let your teenagers read this article, or they may have a perfect excuse for never cleaning their room again. Fortunately, the cleaning part isn’t harmful, but the products and chemicals that are most widely used in the process are the culprits of the findings in a new study that found that inhaling sprays and other chemical cleaners at home or work may be as damaging to the lungs as a 20-year, pack a day smoking habit.
For many years I associated the smell of “clean” when walking into my house as a signal that everything was truly sanitized and germ free. I used to love that smell, I say “used to” because now these smells from synthetic fragrances, bleach and ammonia, triggers the knowing that there is something toxic that is being emitted and is harmful to me and my families health. I associate that smell as a way to know that there are dangerous chemicals in the air. This means that, if you can smell a scent or fragrance, then you are breathing in micro-particles of chemicals. These micro-particles are very real even if they are undetectable to the human eye and the body does not know how to eliminate them from the body. Man-made chemicals are especially troublesome because they are unrecognizable. Products that even though are found in nature, like ammonia, are very damaging to the lungs and other organs. Natural doesn’t always mean healthy (arsenic is all natural, but I don’t really want to be handling that anytime soon).
A few months ago, in the article about synthetic fragrances, I talked about how these chemicals cause a host of symptoms from bronchial inflammation to immune disorders and allergic reactions. Cleaning products are similar and often worse; think of the warning labels about their toxicity. Take these seriously. If they are that dangerous to be ingested, then breathing or having them touch your skin will also cause harmful effects. Remember our skin is the biggest organ and it is always absorbing and filtering the substances around us.
We have been trained to believe that only harsh products will get our homes clean. It is curious to wonder how this belief got started? Considering the entire aisles in stores dedicated to cleaners and fresheners to showcase each separate product that is a “necessity” to clean the counter, then another to clean the floor, yet another to clean the bathroom, then there is an all purpose cleaner, and the list goes on and on. Additionally, we wrap ourselves in more chemicals from the synthetic fabric softeners and detergents on our clothing. Most households have over 20 different products that are pure toxic chemicals. When they are used in the home we are exposed to theses at high amounts during use and then smaller amounts ongoing as we encounter the different areas through skin and lung absorption.
In this new study the findings were clear that for anyone that cleans (either in the home or in a work environment, there was not much of a difference between home and industrial exposure) once a week or more and exposed to cleaning agents the impact on the function of the lungs and airways were equivalent to smoking a pack a day for 20 years. It didn’t matter if the cleaning agents were sprays or powders to create these negative side effects.
Alternatives
Luckily, there are many ways to reduce these chemicals in your home with an array of more natural products available commercially. As well as companies like www.ILoveTangie.com, they offer completely natural and eco-friendly cleaning products that we carry right here in the lobby of the Maitland Wellness Center. If you are especially adventurous, it is easy to make your own products as well! A few tips to remember is that the less ingredients that better and use more all purpose type low toxin cleaners, as well, which work for multiple surfaces and areas. This not only saves your wallet, but also reduces waste and plastic containers from multiple types of cleaners. Happy Cleaning!
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