It's not as clean as you thought...
There is a lot to be said for a clean house. Who could possibly say that they would prefer more bugs and germs in their personal space? By cleaning - and, for some of us, over-cleaning - we are creating toxins that we breathe in every day, creating our own personal bubble of chemical warfare that poisons our bodies.
Recently I was talking with a friend about her chemical sensitivities and how hard it is for her to get chemicals out of her home. She told me about the issues with bleach, ammonia, and formaldehyde, and I began to look into these things. I went to the website of the EPA (epa.gov) and did a search of formaldehyde... and I was appalled. On the government website it says that formaldehyde is a known carcinogen. The very next sentence said that it can also be found in most home products. Upon further searching I found the many names it can be found under. I was shocked, so I decided to see what my options were, and that brought me to holistic cleaning.
The combinations of cleaners used in our daily cleaning are creating chemical bombs right inside our homes. In World War II, the combination of bleach and ammonia was used against our enemies and yet we use Windex and Clorox in our kitchens all the time. What I found in my research is that the chemicals actually stay in the air we breathe for 24-72 hours. Imagine that. By ridding your home of unseen germs (by cleaning), you are creating unseen toxic chemical reactions in your home's air.
But never fear: There are Holistic alternatives. And going green doesn't always have to cost you green... know what I mean?
Try using nature's cleaners. Here are two healthy non-toxic alternatives for your everyday cleaning products.
Floor and surface cleaners - Boiling water, thinly sliced lemons, and a spoon full of honey. Mop and wipe it down while the water is as hot as you can stand it. (There are heat-resistant rubber gloves to protect your hand at your local store.) Let it sit for about two minutes and then rinse with clean cold water.
Wood surfaces - Use the two sides of the lemon. Cut the lemon in half, using the inside of the lemon as the cleaning agent, rub it on the surface and wipe off with a clean white cloth (even clean isn't as clean as you thought), and rinse with cold clean water to get the sticky off. Then using the rind side of the lemon, rub your surface for a nice clean polish. Wipe off any excess with a clean white cloth and you're done.
These processes used over time will remove the chemical build up that your over-the-counter, easy-to-use products have placed on your floors, surfaces, and furniture.
It is important for me to mention that you will need a clean mop head, clean white towels (not bleached, just cleaned) when switching to a healthier cleaning product. You can see the evidence yourself on your cleaning tools.
Good luck and happy breathing.
PS: Honey is nature's antiseptic. Next time you are tempted to pull out that tube of Neosporin, try instead dabbing on a little raw honey. It will kill the germs and help you heal naturally.
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