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Sources:
Non-toxic cleaning products
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Household cleaners create toxic waste in their manufacture and use, which gets disposed
of in the environment in the form of air and water pollution and solid
toxic waste. Not only does this pollution come back to haunt our own
health, but it also harms every living thing on earth.
As one example, the California
Department of Fish and Game tested the toxicity of common chemicals which
they found in their waterways. The most toxic substances to aquatic
organisms present in the water were household bleach, all-purpose cleaner,
laundry detergent, and dish detergent. What's toxic to insects and
animals can't be good for humans, either.
Because we rarely hear of people dropping over within minutes of touching
chemicals, we overlook the cumulative effect of repeated exposure.
How many people do you know who have had cancer or disorders stemming from
organ failure? Life is more fragile than we realize -- until we lose
someone near and dear. Does someone close to us have to die before
we recognize our own mortality?
Rid your home of toxic chemicals. They harm adults as well as
children. There's more to the danger than ingesting poisons: your skin
absorbs them, and your lungs inhale the fumes. Your liver and fat
cells store them.
Check the labels on all common household cleansers, cosmetics, and personal care products,
as well as products you are exposed to in the work place. Do they
have
WARNING,
CAUTION,
or DANGER
written on them?
Do they say KEEP
OUT OF THE REACH OF CHILDREN? For example, have you checked your toothpaste label lately? Are you
certain your small child or grandchild isn't swallowing some of it every
time you help him brush his teeth? What will be the long term effect
on his nervous system and organ development, not to mention his brain
cells?
We tend to become blasé about products we keep around us every day.
They look so familiar on the grocery store shelves that we forget to think
of them as poisons. Once your toddler gets into them, however, you
suddenly realize the risks you're taking. To think that only
children are at risk is to underestimate the effect on humans of any age,
not to mention pets, livestock, and wildlife trying to survive in an
increasingly polluted environment.
Read our statistics page to see how many casualties there are every year as a
result of handling toxic products. Check out what the warning labels
mean in regards to the levels
of toxicity in a product. Glance over our list of toxic
household products and see how many you have been harboring in your
home.
Research ways to replace those deadly chemicals with non-toxic
products, with environmentally safe soap and other cleaners. They exist, and you may be surprised to find that they
do a better job of cleaning than the poisonous ones. Help keep our
environment safe for future generations. The health of your children and
grandchildren are at stake.
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"The
natural environment makes it possible for us to live on this earth. From
it we draw everything that sustains our lives. Without it, we cannot
survive." Debra Lynn Dadd, author,
consumer advocate, and sufferer of household toxins
Here's a true story to show how dangerous
common household cleaners can be.
A Basset Hound suffered a severe reaction to
liquid Tide detergent. Somehow, the dog
gnawed the lid off the container and spilled the contents into her cage.
The veterinarian, who wasn't sure whether it was a chemical burn or a skin
reaction, treated the dog, including connecting her to an IV. The
dog didn't eat for two days.
The owner of the dog reported that the only
warning on the label of the detergent was to keep out of reach of children
and to flush with water if it gets in your eyes. She said she
didn't think laundry detergent was that harmful. She had always thought of
it as soap, but now she knows it's not like soap.
[A news story aired by KATU TV in Gresham,
Oregon in May 2003.]
Buy
Non-Toxic Cleaners!
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