Go Green At Home & Day Care

Everyday household cleaners that can make cleaning faster and perhaps simpler, are full of chemicals. These chemicals have their costs. Many give off unhealthy fumes that can irritate the eyes, nose and lungs. Some cleaners are corrosive and can harm your skin.

Many contain ingredients that are suspected of causing cancer.Many cleaners can leave behind chemical residues. Children tend to touch everything and then put their hands in their mouths or pick up food dropped on the floor. They may be putting chemicals in their mouths along with their toys and food. Small amounts may not be immediately harmful but can accumulate to cause healthproblemsovertime.

As a parent, you are right to be concerned about the kinds of cleaning products used in your child's day care or schools. Cleaning products contribute to the contamination of indoor air, especially those containing solvents, perfumes or other irritating or harmful chemicals. Chlorine bleach can be irritating to the airways, especially to young children. Given the need to protect children in day care programs from disease, it is also important that the facility is cleaned well.

Because germ-killing products, or antimicrobials, are considered pesticides, all disinfectants sold in the United States must be registered with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. In terms of regulation, antimicrobial pesticides differ from pesticides used to kill insects and weeds: Disinfectants, for example, must be shown to be effective in killing disease-causing bacteria.

Note that there are two types of disinfectants: hospital disinfectants and general use disinfectants. In addition, sanitizers are used to reduce microbes to safe levels. However, they are not required to eliminate them.EPA registration doesn't guarantee that the product kills germs. Many EPA-registered antimicrobial products are registered because they kill algae, odor-causing bacteria, bacteria that causes spoilage or deterioration, and microbes that are infectious only to animals.

For that reason, you should read the label carefully and contact the manufacturer. The manufacturer should be able to provide you with data on the kinds of disease-killing microbes the disinfectant kills and its level of efficacy. You should be able to find a customer service number on the product label or on the company's Web site.

If you want to hear more by attending a free online workshop on how you can change to safer and more effective products in your home, contact Marilyn at bobinchek@sbcglobal.net and say you want to attend a go green workshop.

Personal Care Products

Cosmetics and personal care products have been around since civilization began, and it's doubtful that we would ever want to give up the primping and pampering of our bodies that personal care products and makeup provide. But for most of history, personal care products were made of natural ingredients. Today this is increasingly less so. The products that feel so good to our skin and look and smell so good on our faces and bodies often contain chemicals and dyes that we should be warned about.

You probably know someone who is taking a medication that is applied through the skin. This method is used for administering medicine for hormone replacement for both men and women, and also, a patch is used to treat high blood pressure. Skin patches can also be purchased over the counter to help smokers stop smoking. Although the body takes substances in through the skin in a much slower way, what you apply on your skin will eventually make its way into your body.

So why is it that most of us apply many personal products to our skin throughout the day but never consider that these products will end up in our organs and tissues throughout our bodies? They most certainly do.

Like most of us, you probably use your favorite personal products with the complete assurance that the federal government carefully tests and screens each one and would never permit products with dangerous or toxic ingredients to reach the supermarket, drug store, and department store shelves. Sadly, your confidence in government screening to protect you may be naive. The Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA) does not require premarket testing, review or approval for cosmetics. In addition, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will pursue enforcement action for problem cosmetics only after they are on the shelves.

This means that it's up to you to understand what you are purchasing and to make wise, healthy choices regarding the personal products that you and your family will use.

The cosmetic industry may not tell you that some of the ingredients used in its products are hazardous to your health. Become informed about the possibility of allergy-producing and cancer-causing substances in your personal products - your life may depend on it.

Source: What You Don't Know May Be Killing You
by Dr. Don Colbert

What Is A Toxic Substance?

A toxic substance means any chemical or mixture that may be harmful to the environment and to human health if inhaled, swallowed, or absorbed through the skin. Did you know that some toxic substances are found in nature? There are naturally occurring toxins (poisonous substances coming from living organisms) found in certain plants like poinsettias and even some wild mushrooms and berries. However, the toxic substances contained in most everyday household products are synthetic which means they are man-made. The opposite of toxic substances are called non-toxic substances. Non-toxic substances are safe to use, and do not harm humans and the environment.

Many of the products you find in your home may have toxic substances. These products include:

drain cleaners;
oven cleaners;
laundry detergents;
floor or furniture polish;
paints, and
pesticides

While these products are useful at home, some of the chemicals in these products can irritate your skin, eyes, nose and throat, or can even poison you - so be careful! Kids, you must think about the products you use at home - are they toxic? If they are, be careful when you use them. If you are unsure, please check with an adult before you use them.

Source: Environmental Protection Agency