Banned

Long ago I banned the use of harsh chemicals in our home.

It is not because I am a Hippy Californian Treehugger. It is because it has become unreasonable for me to continue to use them in our home. Why? I did some major research to present information for a high school seminar class I taught a few years ago and thought I would share it with you. Maybe you will consider joining me in banning chemicals from your home.

In 1901, the cancer was rate was 1 out of 8,000. Since the Industrial Revolution, the cancer rate today has risen to 1 in 2.

Since 1950, at least 70,000 new chemical compounds have been invented and dispersed into our environment. Only a fraction of these have been tested for human toxicity. We are, by default, conducting a massive clinical toxicology trial, and our children and their children are the experimental animals. [Source: Herbert L. Needleman, M.D., Philip J. Landrigan, M.D., Raising Children Toxic Free]

HOUSEHOLD, FAMILY, and PERSONAL CARE Products

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) studies have shown that indoor air pollutants are 3 to 70 times higher than outdoors.

As more toxic chemicals have been introduced to our everyday environment in greater amounts over the last 20 to 30 years, the level of toxins stored in adipose tissues (fat cells) of our bodies have risen. Bioaccumulation studies have shown that some toxins store in our bodies for life. Greater and greater amounts are being stored at younger ages. One study showed that in the fat of 100% of the people tested was 1,4-Dichlorobenzene, a chemical found in most household deodorizers and room fresheners. [Source: The American Cancer Society]

The United States of America Federal Code of Regulations exempts manufacturers from full labeling of products if used for personal, family or household care. [Source USA FCR: Section 1910.1200C, Title 29, Section 1500.82 2Q1A]

Of  2,983 chemicals found in personal care products:
* 884 are toxic

* 146 cause tumors
* 218 cause reproductive complications
* 778 cause acute toxicity
* 314 cause biological mutations
* 376 cause skin and eye irritations

[Source: United States House of Representatives Report, 1989]

150 chemicals found in the home have been connected to allergies, birth defects, cancer and psychological disorders. [Source: The Consumer Protection Agency) 

 Out of 2,435 pesticide poisonings in a one-year period, over 40% were due to exposure to disinfectants and similar cleaning products in the home. [Source: State of California Study]

The following products are just a few that are so toxic that they should be disposed of in a toxic waste dump:

floor care products

furniture polish

window cleaners

bug spray

nail polish remover

[Source: Water Pollution Control Federation]

Some products release contaminants into the air right away, others do so gradually over a period of time. Some stay in the air up to a year. These contaminants, found in many household and personal care products can cause dizziness, nausea, allergic reactions, eye/skin/respiratory tract irritations and some cause cancer.[American Lung Association]

Fabric Softeners- Have 9 Chemicals (neurotoxins that affect the Central Nervous System) have been linked to ADD, ALZHEIMERS, MS, PARKINSONS, SEIZURES, and SIDS.

Women who work in the home have a 68% higher death rate from cancer than women who work outside of the home (Source: 17 year EPA Study). · 

In one decade, there has been a 42% increase in asthma (29% for men, 82% for women). The higher rate for women is believed to be due to women’s longer exposure times to household chemicals. [Source: Center for Disease Control]

The Top 12 CANCER causing Household Products: The Dirty Dozen

1- Johnson & Johnson Baby Powder w/Talc
2- Crest Tartar Control Toothpaste
3- VO5 Hair Conditioner
4- Clairol Nice-n-Easy Hair Color
5- Cover Girl Make-Up
6- Ajax Cleanser
7- Lysol Disinfectant (Spray)
8- Liquid Dish Soap (The leading cause of poisonings in the home for children under the age of 6).
9- Floor Care Products
10- Furniture Polish

11- Window Cleaner
12- Nail Polish Remover  (Source: The National Cancer Prevention Coalition)

Most laundry detergent contains a form of NTA. NTA is a substance we may reasonably anticipate to be a carcinogen. [Source: The Merck Index]

Household bleaches which claim to disinfect are classified as pesticides under the Federal Hazardous Substances Act. Inadvertently mixing bleach with other cleaners that
contain ammonia produces a toxic chloramines gas. These toxic gases can cause coughing, loss of voice, a feeling of burning or suffocation, and even death.[Source: Guide to Hazardous Products Around the Home, Household Hazardous Waste Project, 1989]

Warning labels on containers refer only to toxic hazards from ingestion; however, only 10% of health problems from chemicals are caused by ingestion. 90% are caused by the inhalation of vapors and absorption of particles.

Government regulations require that only the most EXTREMELY toxic substances must contain a warning label. Labels that say the following should be removed from your house immediately immediately:

“Do not induce vomiting”

Corrosive - rinse from skin immediately”

“Harmful or fatal if swallowed”

“Call physician immediately”

“Warning!” (may mean that as little as 1 teaspoon of product can harm or kill an adult)

“Danger!” (means that as little as 5 drops can harm or kill an adult)

CHEMICALS, DISEASES, and CHILDREN
Today, children have chemical exposures from birth that their parents didn’t have until they were adults. Because children are exposed to toxics at an earlier age than adults, they have more time to develop environmentally triggered diseases, with long latency periods, such as cancer. [Source: Environmental Policy and Children’s Health, Future of Children, Summer/Fall 1995; 5(2): 34-52]

Developing cells in children’s bodies are more susceptible to damage than adult cells that have completed development, especially for the central nervous system. During the development of a child, from conception through adolescence, there are particular windows of vulnerability to environmental hazards. Most disturbing: until a child is approximately 13 months of age, they have virtually no ability to fight the biological and neurological effects of toxic chemicals.[Source: Herbert L. Needleman, M.D., Philip J. Landrigan, M.D., Raising Children Toxic Free]


Diseases that used to occur later in life are now appearing at younger ages. Diseases that used to be rare are more frequent. Cancer is now the #2 killer of children, second only to accidental poisonings. Since 1977 the rate of cancer among American children has been steadily rising at a rate of nearly 1% each year. [Source: National Cancer Institute]

Even small doses of neurotoxins, which would be harmless to an adult, can alter a child’s nervous system development.[Source: Environmental Health Perspectives 106 Supplement 3:787-794 (June 1998)]


Asthma was once a very rare disease. Now the condition is extremely common. The asthma rate has tripled in the last 20 years with nearly 30 million Americans currently afflicted. [Source: Consumer Federation of America, 1997]

Specifically childhood asthma has increased by more than 40% since 1980. [Source: Environmental Health Perspectives, June 1997; 105 (6)]

Asthma death in children and young people increased by a dramatic 118% between 1980 and 1993.
[Source: Environmental Health Threats to Children, Environmental Protection Agency 175-F-96-001, September 1996]

The average child visits the doctor 23 times in the 1st 4 years of life, with the most common complaint being respiratory ailment. [Source: National Center for Health Statistics, 1997]

There is an increased risk for leukemia in children where parents have used pesticides in the home or garden before the child’s birth. [Source: Journal of the National Cancer Institute]

Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) in adults and children is also rising. In 1993, 4.5 million children took the drug Ritalin so they could sit still long enough to learn. By 1998, 11.4 million children were being drugged with this powerful Class-2 narcotic. [Source: Your Children and Ritalin, The Detroit news (March 8. 1998)]

Liquid dish soap is the leading cause of poisonings in the home for children under the age of six (over 2.1 million accidental poisonings per year). Most brands of liquid dish soap contain formaldehyde and ammonia. [Source: United States House of Representatives Report, 1989]

FORMALDEHYDE
Due to the increase in toxic buildup in our bodies, including the toxic buildup of formaldehyde, dead bodies are not decomposing as fast as they used to. Bodies now start to decompose within 7 to 10 days after death. During the Vietnam War, Vietnamese bodies started to decompose within 24 to 48 hours. However, Americans didn’t start to decompose for 4 to 5 days. Twice as much formaldehyde was needed to embalm a person 20 years ago compared to today.

Formaldehyde is a highly toxic substance. It is a highly suspected cancer-causing agent. It damages the neurological connectors in the body. It is an irritant to the eyes, nose, throat and lungs and may cause:

* skin reactions
* ear infections
* headaches
* depression
* asthma
* joint pain
* dizziness
* mental confusion
* nausea
* disorientation
* phlebitis
* fatigue
* vomiting
* sleep disturbances
* laryngitis

One in five people are sensitive to formaldehyde. Formaldehyde is commonly found in:
* drugs
* mouthwash

* hairspray
* cosmetics
* cleaning products
* perfumes
* waxes
* hair setting lotions
* shampoo
* air fresheners
* fungicides
* fingernail polish
* floor polishes
* dry cleaning solvents
* toothpaste
* laundry spray starch
* antiperspirants
…just to name a few

DO YOU STILL WANT TO USE PRODUCTS IN YOUR HOME THAT CONTAIN FORMALDEHYDE?

Formaldehyde has more than one name. How many of these names would you have recognized as formaldehyde?

Formalin
Methanal
Methyl Aldehyde
Methylene Oxide
Oxymethylene
Bfv*
Fannoform*
Formol*
Fyde*
Karsan*
Methaldehyde
Formalith*
Methylene Glycol
Ivalon*
Oxomethane
Formalin 40
Formalin
Formic Aldehyde
Hoch
Paraform
Lysoform*
Morbocid
Trioxane
Polyoxmethylene

* denotes trade name

Food for Thought: Why on earth do people still continue to purchase and use these products in their homes around their family, children and pets when there are natural alternatives available for ALL these toxic products?

Each and every one of us has a choice! We can continue to poison our homes and family on a daily basis, or we can take the stance and fight back, the natural way!

What Can You Do Know? 

-Check Labels (even on 'enviromentally friendly' products) 

-Buy greener products when you can, or if you are really commited make your own cleaning products! I have compiled a bunch of great recipes that I have used and will vouch for their effectiveness. I will post them soon!