To clean or not to clean?

 

“Our house is clean enough to be healthy, and dirty enough to be happy.”  ~Author Unknown

Clean!  Definitely we need to clean to keep our homes safe and healthy (and mine is dirty enough to be happy!)  I think we all agree that breathing in, consuming, or absorbing toxins is not a healthy choice.  Sometimes we just don’t have an option.  When it comes to cleaners, so many are made with toxic (harmful or deadly, by definition) ingredients.  What can we do?  First we need to realize why we choose the products we do.  A few of the reasons are:

• Convenience
• Lack of awareness of toxins and/or their possible effects
• Lack of (perceived) cleaning options

I was going to quote from an article titled “How Toxic are your Household Cleaning Supplies?” but realized I don’t have room here to share all I wanted to.  Please see the link for the myriad of health issues related to ingredients in many commercial cleaners.

While reading an article about cleaning products, I was reminded of a few things:  Labels do not tell us all we need to know, antibacterial cleaners can do more harm than good (by killing the bacteria we *need* to be healthy, and by breeding resistant microbes which is very dangerous), and that many products are unsafe.  I realized that I still use some hazardous cleaning products.  Why?  Partly for the above mentioned reasons, and because at one point I made what I thought were good choices when shopping and then conveniently forgot about it.  Products do change over time.  I have used Simple Green for as long as I can remember.  It appears now to be ‘safe’, but it appears that it was not for a while.  

Is it easier (and more cost-effective) to make our own cleaners?  A quick internet search results in an almost endless list of how tos.  I found Eartheasy to be quite comprehensive.  If you are looking to make the switch to homemade cleaning solutions, that is a good place to start.  There are also healthier options on store shelves.  See “Awareness” below.  

In order to eliminate some of the toxins we inhale or absorb, we must address these three reasons:

• Convenience:  Look over some of the suggestions in the Eartheasy article.  Do I have any of those products in my home (or can I easily pick them up)?  I want to start easy.  For instance, I can easily clean my chopping block (cutting board) by rubbing with a slice of lemon to disinfect the surface, and for tougher stains squeeze the juice and let it sit on the spot 10 minutes before wiping. 
• Awareness:  The Environmental Working Group (EWG) is a great resource for protecting health, human and environmental.  An article from 2012 cites many products that may be dangerous.  I strongly recommend perusing their site – it is a wealth of information.  
• Options:  The options are almost endless.  Once you determine what is important to you and do a little bit of legwork (the links here are a good starting point), you can determine if you want to make your own or purchase healthier options.  (EWG’s Consumer Guides is a great place to start looking at our options.)

We are responsible for our own health (and that of our families.)  As always, moderation is important.  We cannot escape toxins.  We can only do our best to become aware and make small changes that add.  I try to keep things simple.  I don’t like to vacuum, so we have almost exclusively hardwood floors and don’t wear our shoes in the house, for example.  The less I have to clean, the better!

Please comment if there are any areas you would like me to cover in more depth.  This is a huge subject matter!