Household and Personal Products – Hereby Warned!

There was a study titled Endocrine Disruptors and Asthma-Associated Chemicals in Consumer Products recently published by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences that quantified chemicals in cosmetics; personal care items; and cleaning products.  The study analyzed chemical classes and the uses of these chemicals in products including preservatives, anti-microbial agents, additives, solvents, enhancers and fragrance.  Of course, industry groups took issue with conclusions of the study, citing concerns that the public would be alarmed unnecessarily by the presence of these chemicals.  Although studies have not absolutely linked these chemicals directly to ill health effects, there is reason for a certain amount of fear.

Many homes have dangerous cleaning products, polishes and outdoor products stored within the home.  Most people take care with the products that are labeled toxic, but many products contain damaging chemicals that are not included on labels and thus are dismissed as safe.  We just love sweet flowery scents and pretty colors.  We use personal care and cleaning products on a daily basis without considering the cumulative effects of chemical build-up in our dishes, clothes and bodies.  We are what we eat, touch, and inhale.  Everything that enters our bodies has an effect; beneficial or adverse.  Therefore, we need to be more careful about the products around us.

The risks of adverse effects from exposure is hard to guess because products contain many ingredients that are known and unknown and the variety of combinations is difficult to assess.  Household products can impact the immune systems of children and the elderly.  The products can cause behavioral and developmental problems as well as exacerbate health conditions associated with illness such as asthma, allergies and cancers.  When we dispose of leftover products by pouring down the drain; dumping in the street sewers; or putting out with trash, we pollute our environment and affect not only humans, but the ecosystems of plants and wildlife.

Every year, a range of products are found to be so dangerous that they are taken off the market.  Regulatory agencies carefully study products prior to making a decision and the entire time products undergo such study, consumers use the hazardous products without full understanding of the potential dangers.  We willingly consume unsafe manufactured items because of the influence that industry and the media have on our society.  We must stop.

Precaution can be taken during use of certain products, including implementation of safety equipment and proper ventilation.  However, for the majority of residential use products, there are safer alternatives that are less expensive and more environmentally friendly.  Black Organic strongly recommends you use them.

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Pollution Diet

The Environmental Protection Agency pollution diet calls for a reduction in nitrogen, phosphorus and sediment runoff by 2025 in Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, New York and the District of Columbia; areas whose waterways drain to the Chesapeake Bay, a national treasure and America’s largest estuary.  The Bay is a victim of our human habits.  We develop the land; dump chemicals into the air and water; and over harvest wildlife.  We can be narrowed down to the moneyed interests in the building, chemical, pharmaceutical and food industries.  But, we the people are casualties as well.  We the people support those industries and we suffer the consequences in our wallets and health.  We live and work in those buildings; we purchase cleaning supplies and medicines; and we eat food produced on large factory farms.

We need to go on a pollution diet. We need to reduce our desires for big homes and big cars; wishes for floors clean enough to eat off; craving for drugs to alleviate the slightest of discomfort; and want for platefuls of inexpensive food. If we do so in huge numbers, the market will notice and adjust.  If we push our legislators, the adjustment may happen sooner.

Start your own pollution diet and spread the news.  Ask how you contribute to the disaster that is our environment.  Ask if you can live without certain cleaning supplies and medicines. Answer with your habits and how you can regulate yourself and reduce your contribution to pollution.   How about trying a nap or glass of water instead of taking a headache drug?  What about vinegar to wash windows instead of commercial window cleaner?  Why not buy organic vegetables instead of vegetables from the food industry giants?  There are so many things you can do to reduce your footprint on the world. In doing so, you may improve your health; lose weight; and beautify your surroundings. You are the consumer and you have a choice whether or not to pollute your body and your environment.  Here are a few diets to consider:

House Diet

No lawn fertilizer

Smaller grass-only lawns (plant shrubs and trees)

No watering grass

Home Diet

Homemade or natural cleaning supplies

Cold water for laundry

Donate unwanted goods instead of trash

Recycle

Reduce use of electricity, gas, oil

Body Diet

Avoid or minimize use of medicine (unless severe medical condition)

Avoid enhancement or boutique drugs, chemicals, hormones, cosmetics

Go natural hair

Intake less food and exercise more

Drink more water

Eat organic as much as feasible and buy from local sources

Avoid processed foods

Eat chemical and hormone free meat

I’m on a diet and I’m looking forward to losing the weight of clutter and chubbiness from my life.  Tell me what diet works for you.