Nontoxic Cleaning Alternatives for Organic Living
You eat organic foods, buy organic products and avoid as many toxic substances in effort to pursue the ideal organic and nontoxic lifestyle. In pursuit of organic living, you do what you can to live a nontoxic and ecologically sound lifestyle. Yet, in all likelihood, poisons and toxic substances are still pervading your home.
A veritable arsenal of chemicals and toxic substances probably sits under your kitchen counter or in your utility closet right now defeating your goals of nontoxic, organic living. Glass cleaners, toilet scrubs, oven cleaners and other products marketed to keep your home squeaky clean are detrimental to your family’s health.
The hefty list of unpronounceable ingredients found in many conventional household cleaners are often both toxic to both humans and animals. These toxic ingredients which range from bleach and ammonia to chemically-complex detergents and fragrances are a dangerous, but common inclusion in the home.
Household cleaners and their slew of toxic chemical ingredients are a leading source of poisonings in toddlers and small children. According to the National Capital Poison Center, 92% of all poisonings occur in the home, citing the source of most poisonings as common household staples such as pharmaceuticals, cleaners and cosmetics.
Television commercials and magazine advertisements would lead you to believe that this arsenal of chemical cleaners disguised by friendly names and clever packaging is the only way to create a clean home for yourself and your family. They’d lead you to believe that, without powerful drain unclogging gels, fast-acting soap scum removers and other chemically-laden products, you are doing a disservice to your family. This may leave you wondering how it is possible to clean well while pursuing the nontoxic lifestyle.
Of course, many nontoxic-though not necessarily organic-products are available from health food stores and even supermarkets. Nontoxic products that are free of harsh chemicals, detergents and fake fragrances, can be a bit pricier but are well worth it when desiring a healthy home.
A 26-oz bottle of Windex® which contains detergents, ammonia, alcohol and chemical fragrance is priced at $2.99 in most places. Alternatively, a 22-oz bottle of Earth Friendly Window Kleener® which, though marketed as an ecologically-friendly product is non-organic, costs $3.99. The nontoxic product costs a little over $0.06 per ounce more than the chemically-based product. While this amount may seem like a nominal difference, families struggling with a desire to live a nontoxic lifestyle and a need to stick with a budget might find the difference to be taxing over time.
Some families have found success with the ability to balance both an organic lifestyle with a thin budget. Organic living and budget living are not mutually exclusive.
Creating your own nontoxic cleaning products may seem like a monumental task, but the extra effort is well worth it in your pursuit of true organic living. With children, work and other daily responsibilities, you may wonder how you could possibly fit it in. Fortunately, creating your own nontoxic cleaning products is both easy and affordable.
Common, benign kitchen ingredients can be combined to create effective, nontoxic cleaners. Organic white vinegar, liquid castile soap made from organic olive oil, natural baking soda and organic essential oils are pretty much all you need to create an assortment of nontoxic cleansers for your home that are both safe and effective. White vinegar acts as a deodorizer while essential oils contain many germ-killing powers similar to chemical disinfectants, without the harshness. And nobody can discount the positive effects of good ol’ soap and water.
An effective counter cleaner for your kitchen or bathroom can be made from a combination of organic white vinegar, distilled or filtered water and several drops of an organic essential oil such as tea tree or citrus. Baking soda, liquid castile soap and an appealing essential oil can create an effective and nontoxic scrub for your bathtub.
In creating your own natural cleansers, you eliminate the worries of conventional, chemically-based household cleaners as well as the expense of natural cleaners on the market. Ultimately, avoiding the hype of conventional, toxic cleaners in favor of using natural alternatives is safer for your family, the environment and your pursuit of organic living.
If you would like to know more about how to make your own non-toxic cleaners in an upcoming article, email us at: [email protected]. If we receive enough requests, we will make this a regular column.
