by Bridget Webber

Created on: May 11, 2007   Last Updated: March 19, 2011

You may think environmental pollution is something that only happens outside of your home, if so, think again! Scientists now believe that air inside of inhabited buildings, including our homes, may be even more polluted than the air outside.

One of the main causes of this pollution can be attributed to every day cleaning products. There are so many adverts on the television giving us the impression that by cleaning our houses thoroughly using their products we are protecting our families from harmful bacteria. We may be doing that, but at the same time we are most likely exposing them to toxic chemicals.

The chemicals themselves often become even more toxic when mixed. The product makers may have followed safety guidelines for their products when used separately from others, but when you mix the products a harmful concoction can be released. This can be in the form of toxins which we breath in, or toxins which enter through our skin.

When we use such products we are unlikely to literally mix them together. We may however, use a floor cleaner, and while this is still drying, use some furniture polish or washing up liquid. We may spray a room fragrance into the air, then use another product which mixes with what has already been released into the environment. The result is toxicity.

Certain chemicals are carcinogens (cancer causing substances). Others can disrupt our hormones, central nervous system, or brain function.

Symptoms of having been affected by chemical toxicity can be as wide ranging as headaches, depression, skin disorders and asthma, to cancer.

A Canadian study published in the 'Journal of the American Medical Association' states that organic solvents used in a variety of cleaning and other jobs greatly increased the risk of miscarriages, premature births and damaged babies.

Likewise jobs in-which men are exposed to certain chemicals can affect their fertility, and may be responsible for a low sperm count.

The truth is that we don't really need half of the cleaning products that we are persuaded to use and we can substitute a lot of the ones that we do need with natural products that are less costly to the environment and our pockets.

We owe it to ourselves and our families not to be taken in by glossy commercials made by suppliers of chemical laden products. Their main aim is to make money. They haven't got our health in mind, or our general welfare.

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