by
Joseph Mercola

Recently
by Joseph Mercola: Germier
Than Toilet Seats, But You Touch Them Every Day

Jeanne McLaughlin
is a building biologist certified by the International Institute
for Bau-Biologie Ecology (IBE). For more details on this exciting
and growing movement, see How
Bau-Biologie Can Keep You and Your Home Healthy.

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DR. MERCOLA‘S
COMMENT:

I decided to
reverse the order here for a very important reason, in that I am
announcing a new column on this site, which will be directed toward
educating you about the dangers of the building that you live in,
and what you can do to correct it.

Many of you
may know that I started my medical practice just outside of Chicago
in 1985. After 23 years in the same location, we will be moving
to a new, state of the art office building.

Since environmental
health is a concern of mine, the building will not only be LEED-certified
but it will likely have platinum certification, which is rarely
awarded. We will even have an official plaque from the government
in our office acknowledging this achievement.

In the process
of seeking to create the healthiest office possible, my consultations
led me to seriously consider Bau Biology (German for “Building
Biology”) as a tool to improve the health of the environment.
While LEED is great, it tends to focus on the environment. Whereas
Bau Biology, like its name suggests, focuses more on human health.

Germans are
famous for their precision and attention to detail and they did
not fail us here. They have developed an incredible accumulation
of knowledge that I can assure you, only a VERY small fraction of
those in the building industry are even remotely aware of. There
is a group in North America who has translated and expanded the
German research to implement these techniques in other countries.
The Institute for Bau-Biologie Ecology (IBE) is dedicated
to educating folks on how to create healthy indoor environments.

This includes
the LEED community. Fortunately, my involvement will likely catalyze
a communication between these two important bodies so we can take
building health in the United States to the next level. After all,
if you spend so much of your time indoors, how can you possibly
be healthy if you are living in a toxic environment?

I hope to have
at least one article a week devoted to this CRUCIAL health topic,
because if you donÂ’t understand these principles, you could
be living in a time bomb.

Cleaning
Your Home Naturally

The cleaner
your home is, the unhealthier it may be, because of toxic cleaning
products made from petroleum-based chemicals.

Many of these
commercial cleaning products contain dangerous chemicals that are
not listed on the label. A manufacturer can omit any ingredient
that is considered a secret formula from its label, and many of
these secret ingredients are toxic and carcinogenic.

Beware that
many cleaning products are now saying they are “Green”
or “Eco Friendly,” and are now on the Green bandwagon.
This is called Green Wash, but make sure you read labels and research
all product claims.

You can reduce
your chemical exposure by eliminating chemicals in your home, and
using only natural cleaning products that are plant based. There
are many safe cleaning products like Ecover, Mrs. Meyers, Seventh
Generation, Sun Earth, and Orange Plus. Even though they are
more expensive, they are more concentrated, and worth it because
they are safe.

Another alternative
is to make your own natural cleaning products. Using homemade natural
cleaning products makes “cents,” because it is cheaper,
healthier and non-toxic, and it is fun.

To clean with
natural products all you need is:

• Baking
  soda
• Vinegar
• Borax
• Hydrogen
  peroxide
• Liquid castile
  soap
• Organic
  essential oils (optional)
• Mixing bowls
• Spray bottles
• Micro fiber
  cloths
• Vodka (optional)

Baking Soda
is great to scrub your bath and kitchen. Put it in a glass grated
cheese container with a stainless steel top that has holes in it,
and just sprinkle the baking soda on the surfaces and scrub. You
may add a few drops of your favorite essential oil to this. Lavender
and tea tree oil have anti-bacterial qualities.

Baking soda
mixed with apple cider vinegar is a bubbly combination that has
many uses. As a drain cleaner, sprinkle baking soda down the drain
then add apple cider vinegar and let it bubble for 15 minutes, then
rinse with hot water. This is a safer alternative to dangerous drain
cleaners. Baking soda and apple cider make a wonderful spa-like
bath for soaking away aches and pains and detoxing. It also cleans
the tub and the drain.

Baking soda
can also be used as a fabric softener in your laundry.

To polish silver,
instead of using toxic silver polish, fill your kitchen sink with
hot water, add a sheet of aluminum foil and baking soda, and let
the silver pieces soak until clean. It is an easy and fun way to
clean silver.

Vinegar can
clean almost anything in your house; you can add liquid castile
soap, essential oil (optional), and filtered water, then clean floors,
windows, bath, kitchen, etc. Vinegar can also be used as a fabric
softener. Never use dryer sheets – they are toxic too. In the
laundry, use vinegar in the wash cycle to prevent fabrics from fading.

Commercial
window cleaners contain butyl cellosolve – a toxic ingredient
that is not listed on the labels, so vinegar and water is much safer.
Use a micro fabric cloth, not newspaper, which contains toxic dyes.

Borax is a
good laundry booster and cleaner (it can even remove mold) –
and is safe and non-toxic.

Hydrogen peroxide
is a disinfectant, and is safer to use than chlorine bleach for
disinfecting and whitening. Lemon juice is also a natural whitener.

Liquid Castile
Soaps can be found in health food stores and are safer than commercial
liquid cleaning products.

Organic essential
oils may be used in homemade cleaning products depending on your
personal preference and tolerance to these scents. Never use synthetic
fragrances or air cleaners.

Commercial
fabric refreshers also contain dangerous chemicals, therefore, use
vodka in a spray bottle to freshen up chairs and upholstery. The
vodka is cheaper, non-toxic and the alcohol evaporates, and is not
harmful. The alcohol in hand sanitizers is harmful, however, and
should not be used on children since the alcohol absorbs into your
body via your skin. Therefore, use only hand sanitizers that are
plant based from the health food store, or just good old soap and
water.

Making your
own natural cleaning products is rewarding and fun, and you can
use the natural scents that you prefer while ensuring that your
home is safe from dangerous chemicals that are harmful to your,
and your familyÂ’s, health.

May
31, 2012

Copyright ©
2012 Dr. Joseph Mercola

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