The flowers are blooming. The birds are singing. Spring cleaning is upon us! In my last post, I listed some of the most common toxic cleaners that most people use in their homes. While many people use rubber gloves to protect their hands from exposure to these chemicals, gloves aren’t enough to keep you and your loved ones safe.
If you’re not using gloves, your skin will come into direct contact with the cleaners. The chemicals will be directly absorbed through your skin into your bloodstream.
Even if you wear gloves when cleaning, you still will inhale the vapors of those chemicals. Just as the fragrances linger, so do the other toxic ingredients. The vapors that are inhaled into your lungs will also go directly into your bloodstream. They can actually be more toxic if they are absorbed or inhaled than if you were to ingest them.
Generally it takes about 26 seconds from the time you are exposed to a cleaning chemical for traces of it to appear in every cell of your body. Indoor air quality becomes toxic when using typical household cleaning chemicals.
It is important to be aware that most commercial cleaning products have a high level of toxicity. Wearing gloves may protect you from some of the toxic effects of skin absorption, but they will not protect you from the chemical vapors. A dust mask will not protect you and can potential increase your exposure. Even if you wore a hazmat suit for cleaning, there is a long residual affect where your air quality is toxic after cleaning.
The best thing you can do to protect yourself is to make your own cleaning products that are safe, simple to make, and inexpensive. I will talk more about making your own cleaning products with supplies you may already have in your kitchen in an upcoming post.
If you, a family member, or pet are experiencing symptoms that you suspect might be related to a toxic exposure, consider Sensitivity Screening.
