What are phthalates and why should parents be concerned?  Phthalates are man-made chemicals used in PVC plastics and many products that surround our home and children. They seem to have a similar effect on humans as BPA…targeting reproduction systems as they are endocrine disrupters. But unlike BPA, this chemical is especially potent for boys as it targets their developing reproductive systems causing great harm such as genital abnormalities, birth defects, and decreased sperm count in men. Phthalates are also linked to asthma, allergies, testicular cancer, and early puberty.  As a parent, when you see the products where this chemical lurks - you’ll be concerned. 
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I received a question via ‘Ask Suzanne’ and have wondered about it myself.  The question is “Has anyone figured out a way to remove the smell of Bounce from fabric? Sometimes I buy items at a yard sale or thrift store, and the smell lingers a long time, even through washing and hanging in the sun.”

It’s scary that the scent from Bounce sheets manages to linger long after multiple washes.  I was surprised when researching my article Dryer Sheets and Fabric Softener - A Household Toxin with how many chemicals these sheets contain and how unhealthy they are for your family to inhale or wear.  It is amazing when you receive hand-me-downs if the previous owner of the clothes has used Bounce sheets - you are able to detect the smell immediately. 
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I’ve written about changes I’ve made around the house after Isabella experienced her first eczema outbreak.  Two household items that needed immediate action were my laundry detergent and dryer sheets.  These are the top recommendations when talking to a doctor about what can trigger an atopic eczema outbreak.  It was initially hard for me to part with my Bounce dryer sheets because of years enjoying that smell, but after researching just how harmful dryer sheets are, I’m happy to have eliminated them from my house.  Not only are they a skin irritant…they are actually toxic!  Parents need to think of these sheets as rubbing chemicals on their family’s clothes.  

I never stopped to think what, other than the scent from the Bounce sheets, was being left as residue on our clothes.  I shudder to think
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I found these facts regarding how long various items take to biodegrade after we’ve thrown them in the trash very interesting. Seeing that all BC residents will be receiving a cheque for $100 per family member for the Climate Action Dividend, why not use a small amount of that money to actually green your life?  Don’t forget you must register your children via this form to receive the dividend.

After reading the examples of how long items take to decompose in our landfills, why not pay that small extra amount to buy biodegradable garbage bags?  One very small step can make the huge difference of these petroleum based bags taking 20 years to break down in our landfill…and that’s if they have proper exposure to air, etc.  Or check out the time for a Styrofoam cup to decompose…100 years!  If you are a frequent coffee person that likes take-out, why not invest in a travel cup and carry it with you?  Small steps are going to help us clean up our mess. 

 (Source is the UK Department of the Environment)

• Plastic bags, 10-20 years
• Glass bottle - 1 million years
• Plastic Beverage Bottle - unknown, possibly 500+ years
• Cotton rags, 1-5 months
• Paper, 2-5 months
• Rope (natural fiber), 3-14 months
• Orange peels, 6 months
• Wool socks, 1-5 years
• Cigarette filters, 3-12 years
• Milk cartons, 5 years
• Leather shoes, 25-40 years
• Nylon fabric, 30-40 years
• Plastic 6-pack holder rings, 450 years
• Styrofoam cup, 100 years
• Banana peels, 2-10 days

A great question arrived recently via ‘Ask Suzanne’.  Here is a snippet:

“My kids love helping me clean the house, but I usually tell them that I am happy for their help but I don’t want them handling all those yucky cleaning products.  Do you know any good recipes for home made, eco and kid friendly cleaning solutions?”

I could not agree more.  I would love to hand my kids a rag when they follow me around wanting to help clean, but I don’t want them inhaling toxic products.  We all probably know the most common home made cleaning product - vinegar, but I’ve also included recipes that include baking soda, lemon juice, olive oil, and rubbing alcohol.  If anyone has other home made cleaning recipes that are favorites, please post them using the ‘comment’ feature.

I’m giddy after researching this question, because I had no idea vinegar has so many different uses.  I had no idea you can use it to kill weeds!  The front of my house is in need of a dandelion bombing, but I didn’t want to use toxic weed poison so this information is timely!  I’ll just fill up some squirt bottles with vinegar and let my boys have target practice….another eco friendly kid’s project.  Here are some other uses for vinegar:

Glass/window cleaner.  Mix 2 teaspoons white vinegar with 1 litre warm water to clean glass.  Use a soft cloth or crumbled newspaper to clean.  

Ant Repellent.  If you’re looking for an ant deterrent, white distilled vinegar is a natural product for this purpose when used to wipe counter tops, cabinets and floors.

Stainless steel appliance cleaner.  Apply vinegar to shammy or soft cloth and apply.

Fabric Softener.  Vinegar works great as a fabric softener substitute because it cuts detergent residue.  Add 1 cup of undiluted white vinegar in the rinse cycle - this is a good tip if you have a person with sensitive skin in your family.

Vinegar works as a deodorizer.  1 cup of apple vinegar set in a glass in the fridge will remove smells in 2 days.  Boil 1/4 cup white vinegar and mix with 1 cup water in the microwave and use to loosen food and it will deodorize at the same time.

White vinegar can be used to clean soap residue, bathtub film,  and toilet bowl stains.  3 cups of white distilled vinegar will deodorize your toilet if left for 1/2 hour.  Here is a recipe for toilet bowl cleaner:

Mix 1/4 cup baking soda and 1 cup vinegar.
Pour into bowl and let sit for a few minutes. Scrub.

This has nothing to do with cleaning, but I thought this was brilliant!  Apparently vinegar can fix a worn DVD that has begun to skip or suffers from freeze-frame (seriously!).  You apply vinegar to a soft cloth and wipe the DVD, ensure it’s dry, then insert into DVD player.  Good god, could it be this easy?  This one I’ll be trying tomorrow…stay tuned.

Baking soda is another commonly used home made cleaning product.  Get your child to sit on your kitchen floor, give him/her cups of vinegar and a box of baking soda.  They will believe they are mixing a ‘magic potion’ because of the fizzle/mild explosion effect.  The bigger the mess, the better, because you can clean your floors with the spills after play time is over.  Angelo washed his pennies doing little potions for over an hour last week.  It was a great way for him to pass the time and it forced mommy to wash the floors.
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