It often feels like hazardous chemicals are there wherever you turn, especially in your home. From household cleaners to beauty products, it can feel like there’s no escaping them. If you’re wanting to make the change to reduce the number of chemicals your household uses, there are things you can do to help. It’s all about being mindful and finding a suitable substitute.
Bamboo Paper Products
Believe it or not, your toilet paper and paper towels most likely contain thousands of chemicals that are bad for you. It’s easy to want the paper products that feel the softest against your skin and are the trusted brands you grew up using. When you look at the chemicals that make up those paper products, you’ll see why they may not be the safest option to use.
One of the biggest red flags of traditional toilet paper is that it’s processed with chlorine, which is what makes it white. Other chemicals found in traditional toilet paper include formaldehyde and BPA. The good news is that there are safer alternatives, such as bamboo toilet paper and paper towels. These paper products are strong, soft, they’re eco-friendly, and they’re known to break down easier so they’re better for your pipes.
Use Non-Toxic Cleaning Products
A lot of the cleaning products individuals buy for their homes are full of terrible chemicals. Just a few you may be likely to see on the back of your standard household cleaner include formaldehyde, chlorine, ammonia, and sodium hydroxide. Not only can these be harmful if ingested, but they can harm your skin, sensory organs, and internal organs. Harsh chemicals can be worse for children to be around as well, which is another good reason to switch.
When shopping for safer cleaners to use around your home, take time to read the labels and check the ingredients. It’s a bonus when you can find an eco-friendly cleaner in a container made from recycled plastic.
Switch to Eco-Friendly Health and Beauty Items
If you’re not already using eco-friendly health and beauty items, you’ll find that even those may contain possibly harmful chemicals as well. Those may include parabens, carcinogens, formaldehyde, BHA, BHT, and coal tar.
Natural eco-friendly health and beauty products can be found in most stores and contain many benefits. Some of the benefits include:
- Healthier for your skin
- Good for the environment
- Allergy-free
- More effective and affordable
- Biodegradable packaging
- No exposure to dangerous chemicals
When shopping for chemical-free beauty products, try looking for ones that are natural or organic because these are usually composed of 95-percent or more organic ingredients.
DIY When Possible
If you want to reduce the chemicals in your home, consider making the products that you use around the house. You can get creative and make just about anything. When it comes to creating your very own cleaners, you might already have ingredients on hand that would work.
Simple recipes include mixing baking soda, warm water, dishwashing liquid, and white distilled vinegar. A versatile cleaner that you can use on almost anything is simply a mixture of vinegar, water, and essential oils for fragrances. Vinegar mixed with hot water with essential oils added also serves as a good glass cleaner. If you want to see your hardwood floors shine, mix one cup of water, one cup of vinegar, and one tablespoon of olive oil.
There’s a lot you can do on your end to eliminate the hazardous waste in your home as well as help the environment become a safer and cleaner place to live. Little changes you make here and there can end up making a huge impact on your household.