Home Cleaning Tips You Can't Afford To Miss

If your child has asthma like mine does, these home cleaning tips are important to learn about. You probably already worry about the pollutants in the air that could trigger an asthma attack...

...but there is more than pollen that could cause the wheezing to start.

Common household cleaners can irritate the lungs and cause respiratory distress. Marketed to be used safely and freely in the home, many contain known carcinogens (cancer-causing agents) and other toxins that can trigger asthma symptoms in some people.

Worse, they can also cause long-term damage to the body. These are the home cleaning tips you don't hear about from advertisers.

As consumers, we're on our own. The old belief that if-it's-not-safe-they-wouldn't-be-allowed-to-sell-it just isn't true.

So the home cleaning tips provided here are to help you make informed decisions.

Here's what the EPA says about toilet bowl cleaners on its 'Kids Home Tour' website.

"The pesticide chemicals usually found in toilet cleaners are sodium hypochlorite or bleach...Toilet bowl cleaners also have other chemicals in them too, like hydrochloric acid. Never mix a toilet bowl cleaner with any other household or cleaning products. Doing so can result in poisonous gasses being released and cause very serious breathing problems. Always be sure when cleaning your bathrooms that the room has plenty of ventilation. Leave the door open and use the exhaust fan, if you have one. Most disinfectant cleaners are very irritating to your eyes and skin and will burn your throat. It's a good idea to wear latex dishwashing gloves to help protect your skin from splashes when using toilet cleaners. If you splash some on your skin wash it off immediately. Because toilet cleaners can be harmful, your exposure to them is important to know."

The question is, why bring these kinds of products into the home in the first place? Consumers often have very little knowledge about how dangerous household cleaners really are.

We want to believe the bright advertisements full of healthy babies and pets, shown in incredibly clean homes. But as a mom, I owe it to my kids to learn more than what is shown in a 30 second commercial.

Remember the toilet cleaners mentioned on the EPA website? They contain hydrochloric acid. You know, the stuff your chemistry teacher used to make you wear gloves and goggles before handling?

Many of us would never let our children near a bottle of hydrochloric acid, but we think nothing of giving them the same chemical to clean our toilets and bathrooms. How much of it are they breathing in and what is the effect on their bodies?

Here are some home cleaning tips to help you keep your home safe:

Educate yourself about the chemicals and home care products you allow in your home. You can find out more about specific products here.
Streamline the home cleaners you use regularly. The fewer chemicals available, the less there is to be concerned about.
Read labels. Keep in mind that, due to 'trade secrets', manufacturers are not required to reveal all the chemicals contained in their products on the label.
Check the Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) for all products you use regularly.
Check with the Poison Control Center for hazardous items.
Contact your waste removal provider to learn how hazardous waste (most chemical cleaners fall into this category) should be disposed of.
Choose all-natural or 'green' cleaning products.
Look for non toxic cleaners with a money-back guarantee. That way, you can have confidence that they will work well.

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