You know the drill. Take a huge breath, quickly spray the toxic oven scrub and scratch away at one wall of the oven for a minute or so, run outside gasping for fresh air and return for another round.
NO, THANKS.
I believe we shouldn’t have to hold our breath while cleaning the house.
I remember the day I decided to stop buying conventional cleaning products from the supermarket.
It was a wet Thursday, my husband was working away, I had 3 kids in tow and I was nearly out of bench spray and oven cleaner… but I didn’t want a headache.
Until that moment, it had never really registered that I developed a headache every single time I walked down the cleaning aisle. I’d go into the supermarket feeling fine, grab all my groceries, duck into that aisle and then leave feeling considerably worse for wear.
I’m not sure why it hadn’t occurred to me before… but better late than never, right?
I went home without the cleaner and a determination to find out what it was about the cleaning aisle that might be causing the headaches.
After much research, I decided that any cleaning solution I went with had to be bleach free, simple, effective and safe.
CHLORINE bleach free
Recent research conducted with over 9000 European children aged between 6 and 12 found bleach to be associated with a higher chance of illness. “Passive exposure to cleaning bleach in the home may have adverse effects on school-age children’s health by increasing the risk of respiratory and other infections. The high frequency of use of disinfecting irritant cleaning products may be of public health concern, also when exposure occurs during childhood.”
simple + effective
Seriously, who wants half a dozen different cleaning bottles under the laundry sink? I wanted a solution that would clean everything (literally, everything) – mirrors, windows, benches, showers, toilets, cupboards, floors, vanity – so I’d only need the one product or a handful of simple ingredients that I could use to create my own solution. It also had to work. No point having or making something that only did half the job. It had to pack a punch.
kid + pet safe
I have 7 children and a house dog. What I chose would have to be safe for them to use but also to lick… because that’s what kids and dogs tend to do! I wanted a product or selection of ingredients that didn’t need first aid if it touched their skin. I had previously used oven cleaners that burnt holes in rubber gloves. That was no longer going to cut it. It had to be safe.