Sunday, 04 March 2012

• How to Create a Healthy Home

  

  This is a guest post from Heather Lentz!
  
  

  Your journey toward a healthy lifestyle begins in your home and in your body.

  You are focused on being healthy, but are you aware of the hidden dangers that lurk in your home?

  
  

  PROBLEM:

  Our homes are filled with products that contain fragrances including skin care products, cleaning products, perfumes, hair care products, paper products, air fresheners, candles, plastics and laundry products. When you look at the labels of these products you will only see fragrance listed as an ingredient because the actual formulas are trade secrets.

  When you think of fragrances you visualize fields of fresh flowers or a bush covered in blooms, but what you should really be picturing is oil wells and hazardous waste. That is because fragrances are created in labs from petroleum based chemicals that are used to synthetically recreate the scents that are found in nature. There can be hundreds of chemical ingredients used to create just one fragrance and ninety-five percent of those chemicals are derived from petroleum. Many of these chemicals are on the EPA's Hazardous Waste List and are the same as those found in cigarette smoke.

  Symptoms of Sensitivity to Fragrances:

  When these products are applied to or make contact with the skin, the chemicals are absorbed into our bloodstream. When these chemicals are inhaled they go directly into the bloodstream and then to our organs and brain. Because there are so many products containing fragrances the amount of people who have sensitivities to fragrances continue to rise. Children and people with illnesses are the most vulnerable. If you have a reaction to a product odds are that you are reacting to the fragrances used in it. You may experience one or many of these symptoms:

  • fatigue
  • weakness
  • hives
  • allergies
  • poor coordination
  • slurred speech
  • drowsiness
  • dermatitis
  • hay fever
  • dizziness
  • poor concentration
  • eczema
  • cough
  • chest tightness
  • headaches
  • rashes
  • swollen glands
  • muscle aches and spasms
  • heart palpitations
  • watery eyes
  • sore throat
  • nausea
  • stomach cramps
  • vomiting
  • asthma attacks
  • kidney damage
  • liver damage
  • seizures
  • loss of consciousness
  • birth defects
  • cancer

  The cosmetics industry can use almost anything as an ingredient and market products without FDA approval. Some chemicals are allowed only at certain levels, but these levels accumulate if you are using many products containing chemicals. Unscented may mean that there are fragrances used to mask the scent or the scent has been chemically removed. It does not mean that there aren't fragrances used in the the product and definitely does not mean they have less chemicals in them.

  SOLUTION:

  Clean has no smell!

  • Use products that do not contain fragrances.
  • Use products that are scented with essential oils.
  • Make-your-own cleaning products. Click here to download directions.
  • Make-your-own air fresheners. Click here for the article and directions.
  • Use fragrance-free, paraben-free, preservative-free personal care products.
  • Substitute essential oils for perfume.
  • Use reusable dryer sheets. Click here to purchase.

  How do you ensure that you're using safe products at home? Do you use FDA approved home products or makeup?

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