CoolMom and Bridge Park Independent Retirement Living hosted the Green Clean Demo on January 6 to demonstrate ways that moms and dads can create cleaning supplies in their homes while saving money and the planet. The American Lung Association and Perfect Touch Cleaning and PCC supported the event with supplies, information and tips on creating healthy and safe home environments, while cleaning your home and for less money.
After the lecture part of the program, participants made their own home cleaners, recipes here.
Why does CoolMom care about home cleaning?
There are four main ways in which green cleaning can help affect climate change, which are:
Reducing packaging
Reducing waste in the landfill and reducing recycling emissions
Reducing carbon emissions during product development, packaging and distribution
Reducing consumption
By buying in bulk, like large containers of vinegar, which is used in most green cleaning products, it reduces and/or elimates the need for smaller and one time use products that tend to be more expensive, create more waste, and use up more resources to produce. Buying in bulk saves money and time.
Take it from Michelle.
Michelle Gaither, CoolMom and toxic guru explained some of the ins and outs of cleaning products and how to become informed of their contents. Michelle gave a plethora of information, here are highlights and a link to her full lecture:
Never mix off the shelf cleaning products
Keep the "...out of reach of children" products out of reach
Manufacturers are required to put a "signal word" on their products, such as warning/caution/danger or poison label, these are based on a dosage consumed by a 180 lb man (not a small child)
Reduce the number of artificially scented products used
Think of ways to minimize cleaners, such as putting a drain strainer in the shower for catching hair, having children wear their clothes more than once, soaking a crusty pot, reducing the amount of clothes that require dry cleaning
Reduce the need for anti-bacterial hand cleaners, research shows they promote resistant bacteria and only use when absolutely necessary
Become informed, read labels and don't use products with a signal word stronger than "Caution". Research the chemicals listed on product labels through the Household Products Database www.householdproducts.nlm.nih.gov
Why does the American Lung Association care about home cleaning?
Most cleaners contain artificial scents that can cause health problems and especially can affect those people with asthma or compromised respiratory systems. These artificial scents or fragrances are usually made up of various synthetic chemicals that can create an allergic reaction and may in some cases bring on an asthma attack. Some common chemicals found in fragrances are acetone, ethanol, camphor, benzyl alcohol, ethyl acetate, benxyldehyde, limonene and linalool. These chemicals and many others found in scents are irritants to eyes, skin, and the respiratory tract. For more information on these and other chemicals, check out: http://hazard.com/msds/
Tips on how decrease toxins in the home:
There are several things to keep in mind to maintain good air quality and to eliminate toxins in the home. These are recommendations from the American Lung Association (ALA):
Open several windows two times a day to promote new air flow through the home (if you live near a highway or an industrial site, this is not recommended)
Remove shoes before entering the house, this will cut down on dirt and toxins
Eliminate the use of scented candles and ALA recommends using only naturally derived candles, such as beeswax
Create cleaning supplies that clean without harsh chemicals
