Your Cleaning Products May Be Bioterrorists

That’s right! They may contain ingredients that cause health problems like breathing difficulties, renal and organ damage in adults and allergies, asthma, ADHD and learning disabilities in children. Many also have ingredients that act as hormone disrupters by mimicking estrogen in the body. That’s not a good thing because estrogen imbalances have been linked to breast cancer. Also, consider this: studies have shown that women who work inside the home have significantly higher cancer rates than those who don’t. Repeated exposure to cleaning products may be one of the contributing factors.

Killing vs Cleaning

Are you a bleach addict? Then you probably didn’t know that in order for chlorine to work, it must sit on a surface for 30 minutes. Cleaning and killing are two totally different things. Most disinfectants seem to enjoy being murderers. They boast of killing everything they come into contact with. The truth is, we have more bacteria in our bodies than cells. And that’s a good thing! They help digestion, make vitamins in our bodies, fight off various diseases and we need them to make all sorts of tasty cheeses and even beer.

The other serious reason for not wanting to kill bacteria is the growing prevalence of antibiotic-resistant strains. There are a number of theories for why this is happening, but one points to the frequent use of certain antibacterial agents. Solution: Replace your old cleaners with non-toxic alternatives. It’s easier now than ever before to find biodegradable products that get things clean and keep people healthy.

What’s the nutritional valueof plastic?

Microwaving certain types of plastic with food means you are essentially radiating a petroleum product that can leach chemicals into your food. How does that taste? It’s all about what happens when plastic, heat and food get together – sometimes they don’t stay in the right place. A little food gets bound to the plastic, or, worse still, some plastic particles could end up in your food. Some plastic additives are suspected of having estrogen-mimicking properties. So if what you actually want to serve up is man-boobs, then no problem! If not, use only microwave-safe dishes and never use plastic wrap to microwave oily foods.

A sticky situation

There’s no better feeling than effortlessly sliding a perfectly cooked pancake or omelette off a pan and onto a plate. But there’s been some question about the safety of cooking with non-stick pots and pans. A chemical used in stain-resistant and non-stick coatings (PFOA) has
been shown to cause cancer and liver damage in animal studies. DuPont, a company that makes non-stick coatings, has agreed to eliminate the use of PFOA by 2015. You should eliminate it much sooner. For baking, nothing beats silicone. For the top-of-stove creations, go back to basics with either stainless steel or cast iron.

Dishwashers and phosphates

Most people assume that if something exists in nature, it must be a good thing. Not so with phosphates. While this mineral is natural and non-toxic in its basic form, algae are addicted to them. What does this have to do with your dishwasher? Some detergents contain phosphates. They’re a cheap way to make these detergents work efficiently. That’s all fine and good until your dishwater is released into the environment. Phosphates cause algal blooms that are responsible for fish kills. Fixing this problem is easy. There are plenty of detergents made without phosphates and they proudly proclaim this on the bottle. All you have to do is read the labels when you shop.

To wash or not to wash?

Seems like a no brainer when it comes to fruits and vegetables. But sometimes it’s not an option. Like when you spy a fruit-stand with gorgeous peaches... You want one but there’s nowhere to wash it, so you hedge your bets and take a bite. Don’t! Peaches test positive for pesticides more than any other fruit or vegetable. The dirty runners-up include apples, capsicum, celery, nectarines, strawberries, cherries and pears.

Hitting the bottle

Bottled water is nasty, nasty stuff for a whole lot of reasons. It’s sometimes not as clean as tap water, it’s in plastic containers that may leach heavy metals into the water and it’s shipped all over the planet to get to us, which is environmentally unforgivable. Most people think that what’s in a bottle must be cleaner and more pure than what comes out of a tap. Tap water by law must be disinfected, filtered and tested hundreds of times a month for bacteria. None of these criteria are required of bottled water. A U.S. study has found that about 20 percent of bottled water tested contained traces of known carcinogens or neurotoxins. Breaking the habit is easy – buy a home filtration system and remember this important step: when you replace the carbon filter, don’t throw it in the bin. Those filters really do work to capture toxic metals so tossing them in the rubbish will just reintroduce those metals back into our waterways. Instead dispose of them with your household hazardous waste.

Plastic bags are forever

Companies around the world churn out over 4,000,000,000,000 plastic bags a year. And these bags last a long time. They don’t biodegrade and are a threat to our marine life. Paper bags are a little better. They’re more recyclable and are made from renewable resources but they’re still unneeded waste. The solution? Plastic bag rehab. Instead of waiting for the current levy to increase to some ridiculous amount of say HKD$10.00 per bag, why not rid yourself of plastic bags of your own free will? Get yourself a re-usable bag that works better, looks better and is better for the environment.

This article was submitted by Steven Rodis from ENJO HK. ENJO cleaning products are probably THE MOST GREEN products on the planet! For more information about Enjo products, call Steven Rodis at 2545 0389 or email info@enjohk.com. You may also check out www.enjohk.com. Please note that the Hong Kong site is currently in progress, so you may visit the Australian or UK site to learn more about these products.


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Your Cleaning Products May Be Bioterrorists By: Steven Rodis That’s right! They may contain ingredients that cause health problems like breathing difficulties, renal and organ damage in adults and allergies, asthma, ADHD and learning disabilities in children. Many also have ingredients that act as hormone disrupters by mimicking estrogen in the body. That’s not a good thing because estrogen imbalances have been linked to breast cancer. Also, consider this: studies have shown that women who work inside the home have significantly higher cancer rates than those who don’t. Repeated exposure to cleaning products may be one of the contributing factors. Killing vs Cleaning Are you a bleach addict? Then you probably didn’t know that in order for chlorine to work, it must sit on a surface for 30 minutes. Cleaning and killing are two totally different things. Most disinfectants seem to enjoy being murderers. They boast of killing everything they come into contact with. The truth is, we have more bacteria in our bodies than cells. And that’s a good thing! They help digestion, make vitamins in our bodies, fight off various diseases and we need them to make all sorts of tasty cheeses and even beer. The other serious reason for not wanting to kill bacteria is the growing prevalence of antibiotic-resistant strains. There are a number of theories for why this is happening, but one points to the frequent use of certain antibacterial agents. Solution: Replace your old cleaners with non-toxic alternatives. It’s easier now than ever before to find biodegradable products that get things clean and keep people healthy. What’s the nutritional valueof plastic? Microwaving certain types of plastic with food means you are essentially radiating a petroleum product that can leach chemicals into your food. How does that taste? It’s all about what happens when plastic, heat and food get together – sometimes they don’t stay in the right place. A little food gets bound to the plastic, or, worse still, some plastic particles could end up in your food. Some plastic additives are suspected of having estrogen-mimicking properties. So if what you actually want to serve up is man-boobs, then no problem! If not, use only microwave-safe dishes and never use plastic wrap to microwave oily foods. A sticky situation There’s no better feeling than effortlessly sliding a perfectly cooked pancake or omelette off a pan and onto a plate. But there’s been some question about the safety of cooking with non-stick pots and pans. A chemical used in stain-resistant and non-stick coatings (PFOA) has been shown to cause cancer and liver damage in animal studies. DuPont, a company that makes non-stick coatings, has agreed to eliminate the use of PFOA by 2015. You should eliminate it much sooner. For baking, nothing beats silicone. For the top-of-stove creations, go back to basics with either stainless steel or cast iron. Dishwashers and phosphates Most people assume that if something exists in nature, it must be a good thing. Not so with phosphates. While this mineral is natural and non-toxic in its basic form, algae are addicted to them. What does this have to do with your dishwasher? Some detergents contain phosphates. They’re a cheap way to make these detergents work efficiently. That’s all fine and good until your dishwater is released into the environment. Phosphates cause algal blooms that are responsible for fish kills. Fixing this problem is easy. There are plenty of detergents made without phosphates and they proudly proclaim this on the bottle. All you have to do is read the labels when you shop. To wash or not to wash? Seems like a no brainer when it comes to fruits and vegetables. But sometimes it’s not an option. Like when you spy a fruit-stand with gorgeous peaches... You want one but there’s nowhere to wash it, so you hedge your bets and take a bite. Don’t! Peaches test positive for pesticides more than any other fruit or vegetable. The dirty runners-up include apples, capsicum, celery, nectarines, strawberries, cherries and pears. Hitting the bottle Bottled water is nasty, nasty stuff for a whole lot of reasons. It’s sometimes not as clean as tap water, it’s in plastic containers that may leach heavy metals into the water and it’s shipped all over the planet to get to us, which is environmentally unforgivable. Most people think that what’s in a bottle must be cleaner and more pure than what comes out of a tap. Tap water by law must be disinfected, filtered and tested hundreds of times a month for bacteria. None of these criteria are required of bottled water. A U.S. study has found that about 20 percent of bottled water tested contained traces of known carcinogens or neurotoxins. Breaking the habit is easy – buy a home filtration system and remember this important step: when you replace the carbon filter, don’t throw it in the bin. Those filters really do work to capture toxic metals so tossing them in the rubbish will just reintroduce those metals back into our waterways. Instead dispose of them with your household hazardous waste. Plastic bags are forever Companies around the world churn out over 4,000,000,000,000 plastic bags a year. And these bags last a long time. They don’t biodegrade and are a threat to our marine life. Paper bags are a little better. They’re more recyclable and are made from renewable resources but they’re still unneeded waste. The solution? Plastic bag rehab. Instead of waiting for the current levy to increase to some ridiculous amount of say HKD$10.00 per bag, why not rid yourself of plastic bags of your own free will? Get yourself a re-usable bag that works better, looks better and is better for the environment. This article was submitted by Steven Rodis from ENJO HK. ENJO cleaning products are probably THE MOST GREEN products on the planet! For more information about Enjo products, call Steven Rodis at 2545 0389 or email info@enjohk.com. You may also check out www.enjohk.com. Please note that the Hong Kong site is currently in progress, so you may visit the Australian or UK site to learn more about these products.