5 Painless Ways To Detox Your Home
I've met my share of chemical zealots—people who shudder at the sight of disposable plastic and haven't scrubbed their countertops with anything but vinegar in decades. (Check out all the different uses for vinegar.) You might even think I'd be one of them: As an environmental reporter, I frequently read studies linking chemicals in our homes with frightening health issues. Yet the impact of that on my behavior has been, for the most part, minor.
Why is that? I want what we all want: products that work and don't harm human or environmental health. To keep myself sane and my checkbook balanced, I take the precautions that are easiest, cheapest, and likely to have the biggest positive impact. I'll buy cleaning products labeled nontoxic when they cost about the same as or less than conventional. I'll do most of what's suggested in this plan, which is based on the latest findings. But when, say, the mold in my bathroom gets the better of me, as it did recently, I get out the big guns. The caustic paste I used didn't irritate my skin or nose, and if the diluted product harmed fish at the discharge pipe, I am indeed sorry.
Soon, shopping for household products could be a lot less confusing. Congress is currently considering the Cleaning Product Right to Know Act of 2014, which would require manufacturers to list all the ingredients their goods contain, and the Safe Chemicals Act of 2013, which would mean the chemical industry must disclose more health and safety data and prove that all chemicals in household cleaners, furniture, and children's toys are safe.
Until such laws are enacted, it's up to us as individuals to do the best we can. But when that black mold starts to regrow, you can be sure I'll go for the once-and-done solution. And then I'll open the bathroom window, turn on a fan, and get out of there as quickly as I can.
