22 Feb 2008 05:55:48 | Chris Western
Maybe you live in a nice house smelling of alpine meadows with a
sparkling bathroom, lovely clean and polished surfaces.
What if someone were to come into your lovely shining home and
mix up a cocktail of unknown chemicals for you and your family
to distribute around the house. Would you allow it? Of course
not. You wouldn’t want potentially poisonous chemicals around
your house to pose a risk of contamination to the air you breath
or to what your family eat & drink.
Disturbingly however, they may already be there.
Brought into your home as unseen and unlabelled additives in
many of the cleaning products that are commonly available to
keep your house sparkling clean.
You may think that the ingredients in household products are
safe having been tested by the authorities and cleared for use
because they are known to pose no threat. Sadly, nothing could
be further from the truth.
In reality many hazardous chemicals are added to consumer goods.
Some of these are known to be hazardous, but current legislation
allows for their continued use. This is because the regulations
work on ‘safe limits’ of exposure for individual products. The
weaknesses of this approach are that they do not add up
accumulated doses from multiple sources of exposure, and neither
do they take into account the effect on children and unborn
infants, the dosages allowed being based on adult tolerance
levels.
A study by the European Environment Agency carried out in 1998
noted that ”widespread exposures to low levels of chemicals may
be causing harm, possibly irreversibly, particularly to
sensitive groups such as children and pregnant women…”
Consider some of these common types of household cleaning
product and what threat they may carry.
Air Fresheners
Many of these products contain formaldehyde and phenol. The
former is a known carcinogen and the later can cause skin
irritation.
Antibacterial Cleaners
May contain triclosan, which has been connected to liver damage
and is readily absorbed through the skin
Carpet and upholstery shampoo
Many contain perchlorethane, which is a carcinogen which damages
the liver, kidneys and central nervous system. Ammonium
hydroxide may also be present which is a corrosive compound,
extremely irritating to the eyes, skin and respiratory system.
Dishwasher detergents
Studies have shown these to be the foremost cause of home
poisoning incidents. Most products contain the dry form of
chlorine. Scientists and engineers do not handle chlorine
without protective clothing. It is extremely dangerous and can
very easily be lethal. Indeed, it was the first agent to be used
in World War One as a chemical warfare agent.
Dishwashing liquids are labelled ‘harmful if swallowed’ yet it
is used to wash your dishes. Can we be certain that no residues
are left on your crockery to be picked up by your food?
Furniture polish
Commonly contain nitrobenzene, which is highly toxic and easily
absorbed through the skin. Petroleum distillates may also be
present, which are highly flammable and have been linked to skin
& lung cancer.
Laundry products.
These present a veritable cocktail of chemicals, including
ammonia, phosphourous, naphthalene & phenol along with numerous
others. They can all cause irritation to the skin, allergies and
sinus problems. Any residue left in your clothes can be absorbed
into your body through the skin.
Oven cleaner
These are the most powerful toxic products that you can
introduce into your home. They contain ammonia and other
chemicals which can irritate the skin, and produce fumes which
can attack the respiratory system. Any residue left in your oven
may be intensified when you next use it.
Toilet cleaner
These usually contain hydrochloric acid which is highly
corrosive, the eyes and skin being particularly vulnerable to
attack, and known to be harmful to the liver and kidneys. If
mixed with other chemical products, chlorine can be produced
which can be fatal in high concentrations.
The above is a brief overview of the possible risks, and it must
be stressed that the effects noted for the individual chemicals
are for high levels of exposure. However, the point being made
by many agencies such as Greenpeace is that the level of
exposure in the home is unknown and unmonitored.
What can you do as a householder to minimise the risk to
yourself and your family? Well, if you are able, you may want to
try talking to your grandmother, as past generations have had to
undertake most modern cleaning tasks without the intervention of
the chemical industry. For instance, she may have used common
salt and baking soda to clean the oven and not risk poisoning
anyone.
The easiest way to avoid the risk is to avoid the products.
Governments are not going to outlaw the chemicals, and the
manufacturers are not going to replace them unless they are
forced to do so, either by regulation or by consumer pressure.
There are a growing number of manufacturers who are producing
safe products based on natural ingredients that do not present
the same threats as the more established and heavily promoted
products.
The Veriuni Store offers a full range of such products. Please
feel free to visit and browse:-
Maybe you live in a nice house smelling of alpine meadows with a
sparkling bathroom, lovely clean and polished surfaces.
What if someone were to come into your lovely shining home and
mix up a cocktail of unknown chemicals for you and your family
to distribute around the house. Would you allow it? Of course
not. You wouldn’t want potentially poisonous chemicals around
your house to pose a risk of contamination to the air you breath
or to what your family eat & drink.
Disturbingly however, they may already be there.
You may think that the ingredients in household products are
safe having been tested by the authorities and cleared for use
because they are known to pose no threat. Sadly, nothing could
be further from the truth.
In reality many hazardous chemicals are added to consumer goods.
Some of these are known to be hazardous, but current legislation
allows for their continued use. This is because the regulations
work on ‘safe limits’ of exposure for individual products. The
weaknesses of this approach are that they do not add up
accumulated doses from multiple sources of exposure, and neither
do they take into account the effect on children and unborn
infants, the dosages allowed being based on adult tolerance
levels.
Consider some of these common types of household cleaning
product and what threat they may carry.
Air Fresheners
Many of these products contain formaldehyde and phenol. The
former is a known carcinogen and the later can cause skin
irritation.
Antibacterial Cleaners
May contain triclosan, which has been connected to liver damage
and is readily absorbed through the skin
Carpet and upholstery shampoo
Many contain perchlorethane, which is a carcinogen which damages
the liver, kidneys and central nervous system. Ammonium
hydroxide may also be present which is a corrosive compound,
extremely irritating to the eyes, skin and respiratory system.
Dishwasher detergents
Studies have shown these to be the foremost cause of home
poisoning incidents. Most products contain the dry form of
chlorine. Scientists and engineers do not handle chlorine
without protective clothing. It is extremely dangerous and can
very easily be lethal. Indeed, it was the first agent to be used
in World War One as a chemical warfare agent.
Dishwashing liquids are labelled ‘harmful if swallowed’ yet it
is used to wash your dishes. Can we be certain that no residues
are left on your crockery to be picked up by your food?
Furniture polish
Commonly contain nitrobenzene, which is highly toxic and easily
absorbed through the skin. Petroleum distillates may also be
present, which are highly flammable and have been linked to skin
& lung cancer.
Laundry products.
These present a veritable cocktail of chemicals, including
ammonia, phosphourous, naphthalene & phenol along with numerous
others. They can all cause irritation to the skin, allergies and
sinus problems. Any residue left in your clothes can be absorbed
into your body through the skin.
Oven cleaner
These are the most powerful toxic products that you can
introduce into your home. They contain ammonia and other
chemicals which can irritate the skin, and produce fumes which
can attack the respiratory system. Any residue left in your oven
may be intensified when you next use it.
Toilet cleaner
These usually contain hydrochloric acid which is highly
corrosive, the eyes and skin being particularly vulnerable to
attack, and known to be harmful to the liver and kidneys. If
mixed with other chemical products, chlorine can be produced
which can be fatal in high concentrations.
The above is a brief overview of the possible risks, and it must
be stressed that the effects noted for the individual chemicals
are for high levels of exposure. However, the point being made
by many agencies such as Greenpeace is that the level of
exposure in the home is unknown and unmonitored.
What can you do as a householder to minimise the risk to
yourself and your family?
The easiest way to avoid the risk is to avoid the products.
Governments are not going to outlaw the chemicals, and the
manufacturers are not going to replace them unless they are
forced to do so, either by regulation or by consumer pressure.
There are a growing number of manufacturers who are producing
safe products based on natural ingredients that do not present
the same threats as the more established and heavily promoted
products.
The Veriuni Store offers a full range of such products. Please
feel free to visit and browse:-
https://www.moreinfo247.com/8786479/Department.vstore?id=32
Weigh up the risks and benefits to your home and its occupants
and make your decision.
For general advice on this and other responsible consumer
matters, visit greenconsumerguide.com.
Other information on this and other consumer related ecological
matters can be found at :-
http://www.greenpeace.ca/e/resource/green/index.php
About Author :
Chris Western is an affiliate of SFI, one of the largest & most
successful schemes on the internet.
