Has all this time cozying in under a blanket in the snow gotten you noticing the spiderwebs and dust bunnies in your home? If an early spring clean is on the near horizon, make sure your cleanup doesn’t leave a dirty footprint.
Germaphobia is a real thing. And while it’s smart to sanitize door knobs and handles during flu season, we may be misinformed about how little it takes to actually accomplish this. We’ve all been exposed to fear-mongering about germs that would have us heading out to the door to buy an armload of bacteria-fighting, virus-killing sprays, detergents and powders. We seem to have a new addiction to every surface being aseptically clean.
When we stop to take stock of what is actually in some cleaning products, it would appear that their manufacturers may be more concerned with their ability to clean than how they could affect consumer health.
Here’s a list of some of the worst cleaning ingredient offenders: perchloroethylene (PERC), found in fabric cleaners and used by dry cleaners, is a potential carcinogen and neurotoxin; formaldehyde, found in some cleaners, has possible ties to ALS, a neurodegenerative disease; butoxyethanol, common in multipurpose cleaners and window sprays, can cause liver and kidney damage with extended exposure; ammonia, a polish and glass cleaner, can affect sensitive lungs; sodium hydroxide, an oven and drain cleaner ingredient, can cause severe reactions when contacting the skin or inhaled, and finally, chlorine, found in all kinds of scouring powders and cleaners, is a known thyroid disruptor.
It would also seem that stronger cleaning products effectively lower overall immune systems. Exposure to certain bacteria makes us more resilient to infections, not less. Also, when strong cleaning supplies are mixed in with our septic system they kill the healthy bacteria, leading to problems that can include clogging, overflowing, leading to contaminating drinking water.
Fortunately, we can make many effective household cleaners from a simple list of ingredients found in most kitchen cupboards and bathroom cabinets. A brief search online will reveal a host of recipes for all manner of cleaners that can be made from a combination of the following: lemon juice (grease cutter, dirt remover), essential oils like lavender, lemon balm, and thieves oil (antibacterial and pleasant scents), vinegar (bacteria exterminator, grease cutter, polisher), salt (deodorizer), olive oil (cleaning cooking tools), baking soda (scourer and bubble maker), tea tree oil (bacteria exterminator), vodka (disinfectant, mould killer), and castille soap (lifting dirt, removing bacteria).
If time is short, and you are feeling desperate to purchase a cleaning product, choose one with a short list of ingredients you recognize. When you’re up for the fun of making your own earth-friendly and people-friendly cleaners, buy ingredients in bulk and store mixes in reusable containers.
And keep in mind that cleaning up our act may sometimes look like allowing a bit more bacteria in our lives, not less.
Let’s Talk Trash is qathet Regional District’s waste-reduction education program.
