Think Before You Paint (Paint Green, Breathe Clean)
By: Andrew Cunningham

Don’t you just love that strong, overwhelming smell of a newly painted room? I like when it’s really strong to the point that my lungs have that lovely burning sensation (let’s me know I’m still alive) and the best part is the lightheadedness that follows. You get the buzz of drinking without paying those upscale prices at these HK bars!

Well, these are just some of the symptoms our bodies use to tell us something is very wrong here. Have you ever heard the term: “He must have eaten paint chips as a child?”

The problem with paints…

Think about the escalating numbers of children suffering from allergies and Asthma when there is no history of such in the family. Chemicals that are absorbed into our bodies could very well be to blame for many of these problems. Paints for your home are made with a variety of chemicals in them, including some toxic ones such as solvents, benzene, and other volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that can cause numerous problems with our bodies, especially the respiratory system. The VOC’s from paint are emitted after the application and some may continue for many years, causing conditions such as asthma, headaches, nausea, eye irritation and allergies.

How to know which ones are toxic…

Be aware of dangerous ingredients. Here are just a few trade names for formaldehyde: Formalin, Formol, dimethyloldimethylhydantoin, Methanol, Methyl aldehyde, and Methylene oxide. Read paint ingredients carefully. Non-toxic interior paints contain natural, non-hazardous products like plant dyes, essential oils, milk protein, clay and resin. Understand the difference between NO or low-VOC paint, and non-toxic, natural paint. Most paint companies designate certain products as low VOC or low odor, which should not be confused with a non-toxic designation. Although low VOC paints have almost no odor and are much safer than conventional interior paints, they still contain harmful chemicals and can irritate the eyes, throat, lungs and skin.

Here’s a useful tip to remember when picking paints:

• Zero VOC paints often contain VOCs. According to EPA regulations, a paint with less than 5 grams of VOC per liter qualifies as a zero VOC product.

Natural Paint…
Truly natural paint is another alternative that can be found around Hong Kong. This means that there are absolutely no harmful chemicals in it at all. The raw materials and the totality of the ingredients should be no danger to the health of man, animals and plants for a paint to qualify as ‘natural paint.’ The ingredients of such a paint are safe, non-toxic and natural, raw materials which are 100% biodegradable. Another thing that’s cool about natural paint is that there is NO SMELL. You can put it right up to your nose and not smell a thing! You can be holding your baby in one hand and painting with the other and there would be nothing negative to come from this. Don’t try doing this with the normal paints!

Uses for Natural Paint:
Well, it’s great for the obvious uses, like when you’re redecorating the home or a room in the home or office. You use it for painting the walls, doors, furniture, etc. Also, since more people now are having furniture custom made, they can give this paint to their designer or builder for using when finishing the piece. Think about all that furniture made in China and painted there too. I doubt you and your family’s health is on their minds when picking the paint to be used on something that you will be sitting on/near or sleeping in!

What about the pricing?
Natural paint is going to cost you more than regular paint, but the difference in cost is really minimal. Natural paint with ‘0’ VOC for walls and ceilings can be around $0.3-$0.4 per square foot more and this is comparing against conventional low-VOC paint. Think about it this way: Is that small percentage of savings worth risking yourself or a family member to come down with Asthma or another respiratory disease for life?

I got a boatload of information including the information I used when writing this article from Semannia Luk, the director for Natural Living. They distribute natural paint as well as many other natural and healthy products for your home at their stores in Hong Kong. Check out their website: www.naturalliving.hk.