{Contributed Post} The Scary Truth About The Products You Buy Every Day

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Becoming the ultimate housewife means running the ultimate home. A home that’s clean, tidy, safe, hygienic and orderly for sure. But at the same time nobody wants to come home from a hard day at work or school to a home that feels cold and sterile like a laboratory. There’s a fine balance to be found between keeping the home immaculate and adding those little touches that makes it a home. Yet, while you like to think that you’ve mastered this fine balance, you’re very aware that you can’t do it alone. Like most of us you realize that you’re reliant on a whole range of products that need to be kept in stock regularly to make your home as perfectly pristine as it is.

Image by Pixabay

But what if I told you that many of the products upon which you’ve come to rely aren’t quite as helpful and harmless as they appear? What if I told you that every time you purchase them you run the risk of harming yourself, your family and your pets and are also contributing to huge environmental damage? What if I also told you that you could still have the perfect home you strive to achieve without these products, just by making a few smarter and more well informed decisions as a consumer and making a few slight alterations to your lifestyle choices. Sound good? Great! Read on...

The convenience trap

The trouble is that we’ve been raised with so much convenience that we’ve come to expect it as our God given right. Think of it! It wasn’t long ago that our ancestors would have been astonished that we had running hot water and light on demand. Now, we expect not only these necessities but the luxury of high speed internet wherever we go. If we get a tune stuck in our head we expect to be able to listen to it in seconds or watch any movie or TV show we want in an instant. We’ve been conditioned to have what we want when we want it without needing to consider the ethical cost of what we have when we get it. But everything from the fuel you put in your car to the milk you pour into your morning coffee has an ethical price tag. Here are a few scary truths about the products upon which we rely and some suggestions for more ethically equitable alternatives...

The candles you light

Nothing sets the mood better than candles. They can be dressed up or down to suit any occasion. They can be relaxing and calming, romantic or sensual, welcoming and inviting. They can add a soft glow to a room or perfume it with a range of subtle aromas. Yet, while candles may look beautiful they can be surprisingly harmful to you and your family.

Most candles contain paraffin wax which, when burned, emits carcinogenic toxins like benzine and toluene into the home. These compounds are also found in diesel fumes making your romantic scented candles akin to having a truck exhaust pointing into your home through your window. Moreover, scented candles tend to have heavy metal compounds like lead which carry their own health risks. Opt for natural candles made with beeswax or soy or better yet, make your own!

The cleaning products you use

What home could stay clean and fresh without a plethora of reliable cleaning products under the sink? But not only can these cleaning products be extremely harmful to any children or pets who get their hands / paws on them, once used they can introduce harmful volatile compounds into the environment when flushed down your drains or toilets. Chemicals like nitrogen, sulfates and ammonia are commonly found in cleaning products and they are not removed by wastewater filtration systems. When introduced into the environment they can wreak havoc with local marine plant and animal life while the non-recyclable plastics which these products are inevitably packaged with don’t do the environment any favors either.

Fortunately, your home can be sparkling clean without flushing out huge volumes of harmful chemicals out with your waste water. There are a range of cleaning products out there that use natural, biodegradable ingredients and yet get the job done just as well. Just get a load of this laundry detergent from Better Life. It’s completely free of phosphates, bleaches and sodium, yet will get your clothes looking and smelling divine.

Of course if you’re feeling industrious you could always make your own cleaning products. There’s pretty much nothing you can’t do with a little white vinegar, bicarbonate of soda and lemon juice… Oh, and some essential oils to leave a gorgeous scent after you’re done!

Image by Public Domain Pictures

The food on your plate

We’ve talked about convenience, but when we allow our diets to become reliant on too many pre-packaged, processed convenience foods, we endanger our family’s health. Processed meats, in particular like ham, salami, pepperoni and pastrami have been classified by the World Health Organization as type 1 carcinogens (the same category as cigarettes).

Moreover, a refrigerator full of meat and dairy could well contribute to some huge issues in terms of not only animal rights but global sustainability. Beef, in particularly, requires enormous land, feed, water and other resources to rear, and animal agriculture contributes more to global pollution than the entire transportation industry. Ensure that your refrigerator is filled primarily with fresh (preferably organic) veggies and milk and you’ll not only keep your family healthy, you’ll ensure that your home takes a giant leap forward for sustainability.

The milk in your cereal

We as a society are extremely reliant on cow’s milk yet we rarely stop to consider the scary truth behind the white stuff. Think about it! Cow’s milk is intended to feed baby calves. Not only does that mean that cows are artificially inseminated before having their calves taken away from them at birth (an extremely traumatic experience for mother and baby) it means that a natural compound designed to sustain a tiny cow is hardly suited to sustain human life. For the sake of the planet and your family’s well being it behoves you to at least consider the amount of dairy you consume.

You can still have a beautiful, tidy and well stocked home without relying on products whose cheerful packaging hides scary truths!

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