Guest Post from Eco Ellies

When you find someone that thinks like you do, you love to share their work.  I'm sharing this article and I think you'll find it very interesting! If you want to find out more about Eco Ellies, you can visit their blog at  http://blog.ecoellies.com/    This article was written by Taylor Romanowski of EcoEllies.com
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     We all use them, buy them and store them in our houses; they make our kitchen’s sparkle and bathrooms sanitary, but are household cleaning products actually safe? The answer is…negative! Countless common household cleaners are far from safe – they’re bad for our health, the air we breathe and the oceans we swim in. Our environment is hurting but we can help – ditch your usual generic brands and switch to eco-friendly, organic cleaning products. It’s better for the environment, YOUR health and your families – what more could you ask for?

     Most universal cleaning products contain harmful chemicals that have serious adverse effects on humans, our households and the environment. It’s a great possibility that chemicals associated with eye, skin or respiratory irritations are sitting in your house right as you’re reading this. Everyday, bleaches, detergents and all-purpose cleaners are poured down drains, circulated through ventilation systems and disposed of improperly. Chemicals in these cleaners have tremendous environmental consequences including air and water pollution, ozone depletion, bioaccumulation of toxic substances in plants and animals and endocrine disruption in wildlife, affecting animal’s reproductive ability.
     According to Fox News, “In 1960, the U.S. government passed the Federal Hazardous Substances Labeling Act, freeing companies from disclosing dangerous ingredients in household products unless harmful side effects appear immediately after improper use.” After more than 50 years, these products are still being produced, and for some surprising reason, most of these chemicals have not been banned from shelves even though their dangers are known.
     Chlorine bleach must be labeled “poisonous” if swallowed, but not as “deadly” when dumped down the drain. Yet, deadly is exactly what it is, and that’s not only for our friends swimming in the deep blue sea. We hope everyone already knows not to mix products containing bleach, ammonia, vinegars and other acids – mix bleach with most generic toilet-bowl cleaners and you get the result of chlorine gas. Mix it with ammonia and you’ll get chloramine gases. Both are extremely toxic choking gases made from ingredients sitting right in your house! When exposed to chemical cleaning agents, our risk of developing allergies and cancers increases while our immune system decreases. In 1989, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) “estimated that the fumes produced by common household cleaners were three times more likely to cause cancer than other air pollutants.” Yet, we still buy these products and use them in our homes daily.