Reducing Household Chemicals

shellac835 · June 2017

I've always thought it would be good to reduce the number of chemicals in my house, and I'm using pregnancy to try and actually do that. So far I've just traded out my bath products for products without parabens, sulfates, etc, and I plan to look at cleaning products next. Is anyone else doing stuff like this, and if so, how are you going about it? Any tips on other things to focus on, or products you recommend? Or homemade cleaning product recipes? I'm also trying to occasionally buy more organic produce when it's on sale, but it's hard with the increased cost. Anyone have any tips or experience with all of this?

splsmama2016 · June 2017

From my OB: your face wash, shampoo and conditioners, body wash etc are not on your skin long enough to cause damage. Unless you ingest these items, or they react with your hormones to cause major breakouts/flare ups, there is really no need to change these items.

As as far as household cleaning items, we try to use things without bleach (skin irritant and we've already destroyed numerous clothing articles and towels.)

ngarciabyu · June 2017

Yes I'm trying to do the same thing. I downloaded the "Think Dirty" app on my phone and it allows you to scan your cleaning and toiletry products (baby's too!), and it rates it 0-10 as to how harmful the products are in it. It also tells which chemicals are harmful and why. I am still looking into alternative products but I want to slowly start eliminating and replacing most products in my home. I have been using good ol vinegar for floor and to clean out the dishwasher and the wash machine, but I don't have any tried and true recipes for more hard core cleaning (detergents or bathroom cleaners etc). So far the honest company products seems to be good, and most of the seventh generation cleaning products as well.

anewadventure · June 2017

i recommend white vinegar (in various solutions) for much of your general household cleaning. i haven't found a replacement for bleach when i am tackling shower mold because nothing else quite works.

i personally do not recommend making your own laundry detergent. most "natural" recipes end up building up on clothes and it doesn't end well.

for a random product reference, i really like EO "Everyone" lotions. They are definitely thinner / less "moisturizing" but i love the combination of better ingredients and PRICE POINT.

i also really like dr. bronner's castile soap, which has replaced body wash in our shower. they also have a product called "sal suds" that people like to clean with.

shellac835 · June 2017

@ngarciabyu Thanks for the app recommendation, I hadn't heard of that! I'm going to download it and try it out.

@anewadventure I just bought Dr. Bonner's for the shower this weekend and love it so far, but haven't heard of sal suds. I'll check it out! I've heard vinegar is best for cleaning but I really hate the smell so was trying to find something else, but that may really be the best option. I've heard that some combination of vinegar and baking soda can work on shower mold but haven't tried it.

torresfamily5 · June 2017

@shellac835 I've soaked citrus peels in vinegsr for a few weeks before putting in a spray bottle, which helps offset the vinegar scent and also adds some natural oils to the cleaning mix

blueskies17 · June 2017

I cut out parabens and phthalates and started using more natural products while TTC. I use virgin coconut oil as lotion, almond oil to tame hair frizz, Jane Iredale cosmetics (just tinted moisturizer on most days), and Mrs. Meyers cleaning products. I'd eventually like to go even further and make some of my own products at home... wellnessmama.com has a lot of great natural DIY recipes!

edited to add: the environmental working group publishes a list of the top 12 non-organic fruits/veggies with the highest pesticide residue. To save money, you can focus on buying organic for the "dirty dozen" and buy non-organic for everything else. https://www.ewg.org/foodnews/mobile/

Amber_Waves · June 2017

We do almost all of our household cleaning with vinegar and/or baking soda! We also use cloth rags for almost all wiping-up (paper towels for the grossest jobs) & pretty much the only time we use bleach is a once-monthly wash of those rags & a once-monthy wash of the toilets (we clean the toilets more often than that, we just use vinegar and the brush on the other occasions.)

We're out in the country, so our drinking water is drawn from a well in the front yard; everything we put down the drain ends up in a septic field in the backyard. The bacteria in that septic field are necessary to break down waste, so we are careful to avoid killing them with bleaches or harsh soaps. We also avoid funky stuff in our gardens and lawn, since it will end up in either our chickens' eggs or drinking water. In the garden, avoiding chemicals just means more labor...pull the weeds instead of spraying them, and using ground cloth and mulch to prevent unwanted new weeds from sprouting.

cait5413 · June 2017

I don't go crazy with this, but I have been really happy with the performance of Method (esp. the kitchen spray and shower spray), Mrs. Meyers (dish soap, hand soap, toilet bowl cleaner), and some Seventh Generation products (nice baby wipes, though I don't buy them that often b/c they are expensive, and coconut oil baby lotions). I look for new products on Grove Collaborative: https://www.grove.co/referrer/533574/ I think that link will give you a $10 credit. In addition to the cleaning stuff, their bubble up dish brush is great (use less soap) and they sell ecloths, which are microfiber, so they are antibacterial without any additional chemical products. As the ladies have said, vinegar can get you a long way, but I don't always have the energy to mix my own stuff (or have everything smell like vinegar). The mention above about organic stuff is also good--if you are going to peel it, generally you can have less concern about whether it is organic or not. I buy DD organic fruit when it is on sale, but she gets some regular stuff too.

kaylawing · June 2017

In the last couple months I started trying to go with less chemicals/more natural products. Some products I've really liked:
-sal suds: use it for almost all cleaning. I dillute it in a spray bottle for all purpose cleaner or put a few drops in the mop bucket. It's also great for spot treating stains in our laundry.
-EO hand soaps. They smell great, have great ingredients, and the price is reasonable.
-Essential oils are great for adding to vinegar to help with the smell.
-Babo diaper cream
-most Acure products. I've liked the shampoo, body wash, and lotions.

splsmama2016 · June 2017

Adding to EO's: they just released a new line of make up and skin care at convention. I'm more interested in their line of baby products, Seedlings.

atack · June 2017

Have you used Norwex cloths? I just got some from a FB party and am in love. Water and the cloth. My house is clean and chemical free! I'm hosting a party and can share the link if you're interested. They are amazing!

Amber_Waves · June 2017

@atack I'd love a link. Thanks!

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