Are Your Cleaning Products Affecting Your Mood?

You're not going to see the same old info about cleaning products in this blog. 

There's already a lot written on the health impacts of household chemicals, cancer, asthma, and more. But how do they relate to our moods and mental health?

In this blog, you'll find"

• Household chemical use and some concerns with mood and mental health
• Some challenges in looking at household chemicals
• Already using "green"? You may be "green washed"! It's worth a deeper look.

Household chemicals and mood

A single blog can not embrace all the ways chemicals may or may not affect body and brain health. That's why taking a look at what's under my client's kitchen sink is part of my consultation process. (Click here to learn about consultations). Today, I'll consider three categories of household products that related to mood and mental health. 

Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC’s).  If the product smells, it has VOC’s, meaning it releases smelly molecules into the air that we can breath in. Examples of VOC containing products are air fresheners, dryer sheets, laundry products, scented candles, "fresh lemon scent", bleach, ammonia, vinegar, etc. Not all are harmful obviously but some are a big problem.

Researchers found air fresheners were associated with postpartum depression and the infants suffered significantly more diarrhea and earaches. If sprays were used, the babies vomited more often. HOW AWFUL!  I won't even get started on dryer sheets but to say, except for a very few brands, get them OUT of your house! 

Another VOC, bleach, is a chemical that I would not open anywhere near a child with ADD/ADHD or skin issues.

Flame retardants used in foam furniture, foamy baby and pet toys, baby clothes, electronics, TV’s, and more, were linked by scientists to anxiety and antisocial behavior in animals. That research is fairly new (2019) and human studies are rare. We do know human skin cells accumulate and breakdown these chemicals and can theorize more anxiety and antisocial behavior may occur in humans too.

Chemicals with lots of carbons and fluorine:– PFAS, PFOS, PFHxS, PFNA, PTFE, PFTO, PFBS. These chemicals are everywhere and have been readily found in humans. Yes, you too. The chemicals are used to resist greasy absorption in microwave popcorn bags, food wrappers, stain resistant coatings on furniture and carpeting, cleaning products, cosmetics and skin care, paints varnishes, and more. Prenatal exposure to these chemicals have been linked to hyperactivity and focus and obesity. 

What to do? 

Take a look under your kitchen sink and start reading labels! 

• If any ingredients start with polyfluro (or PF..) – STOP! This site has a list of polyfluoro compounds.
• Use fragrance free products.
• Rid the house of most air commerical fresheners, candles, and dryer sheets.
• Eat less processed food so you are exposed to less food packaging.
• Let professionals handle pesticides, fungicides, and herbicides. Look for pest control operators who are using the most non-toxic pest control.

What about switching to "green" cleaners?
The label on your household products may say or look “green.” Are they truly better for you and for the environment? A deeper look entails these questions:

• How can you tell? I'll explain the four standards I use in just a bit.
• Why do many brands price their products high and embrace an elitist tilt?
• Why do green brands ship water all over the country and waste all those plastic bottles just to make us re-purchase them often? 
• Why do brands offer so many products? Do we really need a special cleaning for every task?

Here is what I found - my favorite green cleaners. 

I started using Get Clean when my baby started crawling on the floor. I knew she would be exposed cleaning product residues and had to do something! I love that these cleaners fit my four true green qualifications, meaning they are  non-toxic AND biodegradable AND multi-tasking, AND safely concentrated. They are also made Shaklee, totally carbon neutral since Y2K.

I hit all the questions above in one swoop - most of my cleaning is done with one product, Basic H2. I add the water at my own sink for three different dilutions. I have reused the same three spray bottles for years and I save a boat load of money. Paying 30 cents a gallon for countertop cleaner vs. $4 a 32 oz bottle for the fancy green brands is a game-changer! And the Fresh Laundry? It says 32 loads, but I get more like 45 and don't need an extra rinse.

I hope you'll enjoy saving that much too!

Thanks for reading!