|
Chapter 1 Is Your House a Healthy Home? It’s
alarming but true—scientists and doctors have discovered that there is a
connection between our health and the use of common everyday household
chemicals. If yours is the typical home, you probably use dozens of cleaning
and personal care products, purchased at the local supermarket, which contain
chemical ingredients that could be harmful to your health and the health of
your family. Since
World War II, there has been a dramatic rise in the number of man-made
chemicals we use in our homes. The typical home now contains over sixty-three
hazardous products that together contain hundreds of different chemicals. At
the same time there has been an equally dramatic rise in the incidence of
certain chronic health problems. Research indicates that it is more than
coincidence that the dramatic rise in these various diseases has coincided
with the increased use of hazardous, man-made chemicals in the home. So Who Says There’s a Problem? Many
authoritative sources, ranging from the BBC to the European Parliament and
numerous Universities have expressed concerns about the link between
chemicals in the home and the increasing incidence of chronic skin
conditions, asthma and even cancer and birth defects. Here’s what some of
these sources have to say…… ‘……….substances
suspected of having links to cancer, hormone disruption, fertility problems
and environmental damage. They include chemicals found in cleaning products
and artificial musks, used in perfumed products,
which can be absorbed by the body. These "bio-accumulators" tend to
build up in fatty tissues over a period of time because they are difficult to
break down. Environmental campaigners say the long-term effects of
accumulating a cocktail of potentially hazardous substances in the body are
not known - so safer alternatives should be used instead.’ Source - BBC News ‘Information
involving 7,019 families from the Children Of The 90s project at the ‘Babies
are born with toxic chemicals already contaminating their bodies. These
unnecessary chemicals come from household products used in our everyday
lives. They don't need to be there.’ Source -
Greenpeace ‘Household
cleaners fall under the Hazardous Products Act, which dates back to the
mid-1960s. They're regulated by the Consumer Chemicals and Containers
Regulations. Labels are required to provide hazard symbols like
"poison" and "flammable." They also have to give
information about first aid treatments for those ingredients. But there's no
requirement to list other chemicals that could cause long-term health effects
— and no warnings that say anything like "may cause respiratory problems.“’ Source - health-report.co.uk ‘In the
home environment there are occasions where Individuals are exposed to harmful
concentrations of various chemicals. There are no regulations which protect
you in your home environment.’ Source - The
Environmental Law Centre ‘There is
a connection between exposure to domestic cleaning products and wheezing in
toddlers, which is an early sign of asthma, according to new research. The
study of 14,000 children up to the age of three and a half, published in the
journal Thorax found that exposure to household products such as bleach,
aerosols, carpet and window cleaners increased the risk of wheezing.’ Source - Medical News Today ‘House
Doctors uncover hidden chemicals in the home European
Government is so concerned about the health risks presented by chemicals
contained in many household cleaning products, personal care items and
consumer goods that it has introduced REACH, which stands for the
Registration, Evaluation and Authorisation of chemicals. REACH is a draft EU law that could lead to the identification and phasing
out of the most harmful chemicals. Once it becomes law it will be enforced in
all countries in the European Union. REACH is
designed to be an integrated approach to the control of the production,
import and use of chemicals in Have we always been this sick? Asthma
was once a very rare disease. Now the condition is extremely common. The
asthma rate has tripled in the Western world over the last twenty years with
over 5 million sufferers in the Chronic
skin diseases such as eczema/dermatitis and psoriasis now affect almost 1 in
5 children and adults in At the
start of the 20th century, the cancer incidence rate was about one
in fifty. Today in the The
incidence of central nervous system disorders like Alzheimer’s and Multiple
Sclerosis increases annually. Birth
defects are on the rise as well. Over 150,000 babies are born with defects each
year for reasons unknown. Another 500,000 babies are miscarried early in
pregnancy each year with an additional 24,000 miscarried late in pregnancy or
stillborn. Infertility is increasing and widespread with over 2 million
couples who want children and are unable to conceive. Attention
Deficit Disorder in adults and children is rising. In 1993, 2 million
children in the Prescriptions
of Methylphenidate - most commonly sold as Ritalin - rose to 359,100 last
year, a rise of 344,400 since 1995. Figures from the Prescriptions Pricing
Authority reveal that there has been a 180-fold increase in prescriptions
since 1991 when only 2,000 were issued in You or
someone you know has probably been touched in some way by one of these
illnesses. What could be causing these, and other health problems, to rise
and afflict so many otherwise healthy people? Although other factors are
involved, more and more scientists are linking these ailments to long-term
chemical exposure. And, for most of us, our greatest exposure to chemicals is
right in our own homes! We breathe chemical vapours from household products
in the air; we absorb chemicals into our skin while using household products
to clean our homes or make our bodies clean and smell good; and we swallow
small amounts of chemicals when we gargle, or when we eat food from dishes
that have been cleaned with chemicals and still contain a thin residue. The
home is also where over 1.5 million young children are poisoned each year,
and most of the time they are poisoned by a cleaning or personal care
product! Why I wrote this eBook I realise
that you are probably not aware of the potential health hazards present in
many household cleaners and personal care products. Unfortunately, most
people are not. It is for you that I have written this booklet. I am not a
chemist or a doctor, and I am not trying to promote myself as an expert on
household chemicals. However, I have done considerable research on this
subject because I want to provide the safest, healthiest home I possibly can
for my own wife and children. What I learned is so convincing that I feel I
must share it with you and others as best I can. In this eBook, you will find quite a bit of information on the
connection between household chemicals and your health. I have tried to
provide information from the most credible and objective sources possible.
You may find the information shocking and very disturbing, as I did. But I
want you to know that I do not mean to frighten you. I simply want you to be
informed so that you can make a simple, rational decision concerning your
health and the health of your loved ones. This eBook has a happy ending Happily,
there is a simple solution to the problem presented in this eBook. Some conscientious companies now offer household
products that are safer and more natural. Most of these people-friendly and
environmentally sensitive products work just as well or better than the major
brands to be found in your local supermarket, and in many cases, actually
cost less. So, there’s really no reason to risk your health, or the health of
your family any longer. Is your
house a healthy home? Right now, it’s probably not as healthy as it could be.
Read on to learn more. |