To Fabuloso or Not to Fabuloso ... Should You Switch to Natural Cleaning Products?

By: Danie

To say the least this has been a manic Monday! You know how it is, you were in denial about Sunday being the prelude to Monday and then you wake up at 7am... you can't find anything to wear, your hair is a mess and where heck is your purse?!? Welllst obviously, I'm not the only one but I just wanted to vent a little :)

On to more interesting things like cleaning supplies!

Since my son was born living a healthy lifestyle and setting a good example has been in the forefront of my mind. My mindset was just geared at eating healthy and working out, I didn't think about the cleaning supplies under my sink and exposing my family to potentially harmful chemicals and now that my son is moving about and able to get into things it is really a concern for me.

I love fabuloso, the smell is amazing and I use it to clean everything. I decided to look up what was in my favorite cleaning supply and Glycol Ethers {if you click the link, it will take you the the material safety data sheet} seemed to pop up often. This lead me to the EPA's website to get the low down and basically it says

• short term exposure to high levels of glycol ethers results in narcosis, pulmonary edema and severe liver and kidney damage
• long term exposure may result in neurological and blood effects including fatigue, nausea, tremor and anemia.

They didn't have any information on the effect on human's reproductive, developmental or carcinogenic effects but in animal studies there are reproductive and developmental effects. The more I looked into it the sicker I got.... This product is something that I use on my floor where my baby crawls, occasionally on my counter tops and stove. It is a really scary thing when you think of all the health issues that we don't have medical answers for {Autism pops into my mind right about now}. I apologize if I just opened a rabbit hole for everyone! It's one of those things that most of us are aware of but we don't know the details, here is a little article that I found that might expand a little for some of you.

All Natural Options

Well you can do what I did, purchase the largest bottle of white vinegar, peroxide and baking soda and head to the dollar store and buy a bunch of spray bottles. Vinegar is now our go to for cleaning counter tops, it smells strong at first but it goes away very quickly. If you prefer ready made cleaning supplies check out these all natural solutions!

• Earth Friendly Plus
• Mrs Meyer's Clean Day
• Seventh Generation
• Eco Store

{Also try going to your local Whole Foods, Sprouts or any natural food store- they will have a ton of options}

I'll be honest it is going to take a lot for me to stop using bleach occasionally, I'll just not be using it as often and my cleaning supplies are not staying under the kitchen sink any more. The transition can be difficult especially when you are using the stuff your mother used! Knowing about the potential effects of the things we use on a daily basis is half the battle in being able to protect ourselves, spouses, kids and animals.