And Cleaning Products - Autism - Health-Air-Touch
SF Chronicle
Chemicals in household cleaners may pollute indoor air
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/07/19/HOGMVK05LQ1.DTL
According to the Environmental Protection Agency, the air we breathe inside our homes could be as much as five times as polluted as the air outside.
One major reason: Common cleaning products contain chemicals that can be more dangerous than the germs themselves. Every time our children roll around on the carpet or our pets lick crumbs off the floor, they are being exposed to chemicals.
Many of us, in our zeal to make our homes a safe haven, take clean to an extreme. Each year, according to the Montana Department of Environmental Quality, the average American uses approximately 25 gallons of toxic and hazardous chemical products at home, much of which is eventually washed down the sink, flushed down the toilet or placed in a garbage can, potentially affecting the health of the people, plants, animals, land and water in and around our neighborhoods. The department contends that of the roughly 17,000 chemicals found in common household products, only 3 in 10 have been tested for their effects on human health.
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission is the agency responsible for the safety of consumers using thousands of products -- from toys and cribs to power tools and household chemicals. The commission does not require manufacturers to test household cleaning products before they appear on store shelves, so much of the information consumers have about a product comes from its label. Labels are required to provide hazard symbols, such as "poison" and "flammable," and must give information about first aid treatments for those ingredients.
But according to the Children's Health Environmental Coalition, a national nonprofit that educates the public on environmental toxins that affect children's health, labels often omit inactive or inert ingredients that can make up as much as 90 percent of a product's volume. These include solvents, dispersal agents, dyes and fragrances, some of which can pollute the air and water. Other ingredients can be suspected carcinogens or worsen long-term health problems such as allergies and asthma.
Diethyl phthalate, commonly found in commercial cleaning products, is a known endocrine-disrupting chemical (which can interfere with normal growth and development).
Toluene, a chemical found in some stain removers, has been classified by the EPA as a carcinogen -- and studies have linked it to neurological problems and birth defects.
Another thing to watch out for are aerosol sprays that contain flammable and nerve-damaging ingredients such as
hexane and xylene. Also, aerosol sprays produce mist particles that can contain a high proportion of organic solvents, according to the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority. It warns that these solvents can be inhaled into the lungs and enter the bloodstream.
Most conventional dish and laundry detergents are made from petroleum, a nonrenewable synthetic resource, so look for naturally derived or plant-based formulas that are biodegradable and contain no
phosphates. Fabric dryer sheets and potpourri that list "fragrance" on the label mean that synthetic (i.e.,
petroleum-based) chemicals were used, and they should be avoided.
YOU SHOULD USE THE FOLLOWING INSTEAD:
White vinegar, borax, salt, herbs, olive oil, cornstarch and lemon juice have been used as cleansers for decades and have proved to be effective and safer for humans, pets and the environment.
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And to have children breathing and touching and wear clothes with these other chemical as well makes for POTENT FORUMALA for BRAIN RETARDATION and HEALTH PROBLEMS such as ALLERGIES...
Be Warned!,
TheCigMan
