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Last week I covered the top ingredients of concern in our food. On my journey, the next area I examined after food, was the products I was using in my home.
I started looking at what I was using on my laundry, to clean my home, and what was in my cupboards.
Again, I would recommend to start with what you use the most. I know I say this a lot, but this doesn’t happen over night. Every small step makes a difference.
I started by swapping out my all-purpose cleaner, then my laundry detergent. As I would run out of dish soap or stain spray I would replace them with non-toxic alternatives.
This week I’m going to share the top ingredients to look out for in our laundry rooms, cleaning cabinets and cupboards.
Stay tuned for an upcoming post on healthier swaps.
Let’s talk about some of the top ingredients of concern in our laundry rooms:
Fragrances
These are complex chemical mixtures that manufacturers are not required to disclose. They are considered to be trade secrets. Let’s call them dirty little secrets. This can include chemicals that are allergens, hormone disruptors or linked to cancer and more.
What to look for: fragrance, parfum
Bleach
Here are the health effects that the EPA lists of bleach:
• Mixing with ammonia, ammonium quaternary compounds and other acidic products can create poisonous gas.
• Corrosive to eyes and skin, and a respiratory irritant.
• Suspected cardiovascular, gastrointestinal or liver, kidney, central nervous system, respiratory, and skin or sense organ toxicant.
What to look for: Sodium hypochlorite
1,4-dioxane
This is not an ingredient but a by-product formed when common ingredients are mixed together. This is listed on California’s Proposition 65 list as known or suspected to cause cancer or birth defects.
What to look for: 1,4-dioxane will not be listed on the label but these are some common chemicals that can form it. Sodium laureth sulfate, PEG compounds, chemicals that include the clauses xynol, ceteareth and oleth.
Sodium Lauryl/Laureth Sulfate
These are surfactants and inexpensive and effective foaming agents. They are a known skin or eye irritant, linked to organ system toxicity, developmental/reproductive toxicity, neurotoxicity, possible mutations and cancer. See above for their relation to 1,4-dioxane.
What to look for: SLS, SLES, Sodium dodecyl sulfate, Sulfuric acid, monododecyl ester, sodium salt, Sodium salt sulfuric acid, Monododecyl ester sodium salt sulfuric acid, A13-00356, Akyposal SDS, Aquarex ME, Aquarex methyl
Dryer Sheets and Fabric Softeners
Dryer sheets and fabric softeners coat our clothes with a tiny layer of chemicals. That’s what makes them feel softer. These chemicals often include the mystery “fragrance” that again is a mixture of chemicals that are not required to be disclosed or tested. Just avoid them.
Let’s talk about some of the top ingredients of concern in our cleaning cabinets:
Sodium Lauryl/Laureth Sulfate
These are surfactants and inexpensive and effective foaming agents. They are a known skin or eye irritant, linked to organ system toxicity, developmental/reproductive toxicity, neurotoxicity, possible mutations and cancer. They are also form 1,4-dioxane which is a carcinogenic byproduct.
What to look for: SLS, SLES, Sodium dodecyl sulfate, Sulfuric acid, monododecyl ester, sodium salt, Sodium salt sulfuric acid, Monododecyl ester sodium salt sulfuric acid, A13-00356, Akyposal SDS, Aquarex ME, Aquarex methyl
Triclosan
This is an aggressive antibacterial agent. The European Union and other countries ban this ingredient. It is a hormone disruptor and could be causing bacteria to become resistant to antibiotics.
What to look for: Triclosan
QUAT’s
These are another type of antimicrobial agent. These are allergenic, can induce asthma, may cause adverse genetic and reproductive effects. May also be contributing to antibiotic resistant bacteria.
What to look for: alkyl dimethyl benzyl ammonium chloride (ADBAC), benzalkonium chloride, and didecyl dimethyl benzyl ammonium chloride.
Parabens
These are preservatives used to prevent the growth of microbes so that our products will last longer. They mimic estrogen and can act as potential hormone system disruptors. They have also been linked to cancer, developmental and reproductive toxicity.
What to look for: Ethylparaben, butylparaben, methylparaben, propylparaben, isobutylparaben, isopropylparaben, other ingredients ending in –paraben
Fragrances
These are complex chemical mixtures that manufacturers are not required to disclose. They are considered to be trade secrets. Let’s call them dirty little secrets. This can include chemicals that are allergens, hormone disruptors or linked to cancer and more.
What to look for: fragrance, parfum
Bleach
Here are the health effects that the EPA lists of bleach:
• Mixing with ammonia, ammonium quaternary compounds and other acidic products can create poisonous gas.
• Corrosive to eyes and skin, and a respiratory irritant.
• Suspected cardiovascular, gastrointestinal or liver, kidney, central nervous system, respiratory, and skin or sense organ toxicant.
What to look for: Sodium hypochlorite
Phthalates
A group of chemicals used to soften and increase the flexibility of plastics and PVC. In personal care products they are used to improve texture, increase spreadability, and enhance absorption. These chemicals are known for their “gender bending” effects on humans and animals. They have been linked to changes in genital formation, decreased birth rate of boys, early puberty, DNA damage to sperm, and decreased sperm counts, and the list goes on.
What to look for: fragrance
Products to avoid altogether-
Air fresheners, drain cleaners
Let’s talk about some of the top ingredients of concern in our cupboards:
Dishes- the melamine ones- Melamine is a molecule made up of carbon, hydrogen and nitrogen. To make dinnerware, formaldehyde is added and it is heated up. When you heat these plates in the microwave or use them with acidic foods they can leach melamine.
Non-stick cookware- These pans can leach chemicals into food when heated. The coatings on non-stick pans is polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE). This has been found to be carcinogenic, and hormone disrupting.
Plastic food storage, water bottles and cutting boards- Components of plastic, BPA and DHEP, can leach and have been linked to prostate and breast cancer, reproductive failure, obesity, heart disease, diabetes and behavioral problems.
Now that we know what to avoid, what’s next? Look for an upcoming post on healthier swaps.
If you want all of the information now in one convenient place, check out my course:
6 Easy Weeks to Clean Living
With love + gratitude,
Red
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