When I first started seeing a Naturopath, (so many years ago that I cannot remember,) I suddenly became aware of how much toxicity my body is exposed to on any given day.
I became determined to find a way to reduce my exposure to toxicity, and I’m of the mindset, what’s good for the human, is good for the dogs. So I started working on ways to reduce toxins in their lives as well.
If life were ideal, and I was rich beyond imagination, I’d live in a green house, with bamboo floors, and green mattresses. Nothing would be toxic whatsoever. But despite me giving the state my hard earned money every week for that dang-blasted lottery, that dream continues to elude me.
Photo courtesy of Wikimedia via Creative Commons
This means I have to carefully weigh areas in my life where I can have the most impact for my dollar.
Luckily for me, having a Labrador that puts her mouth on EVERYTHING helped me make a relatively inexpensive change. It happened one day during meal time. I’d fed the dogs and as is the usual course of events, as soon as Delilah inhaled the last bite in her bowl, she rushed to Sampson’s, licked it clean and then licked the outside of the bowl.
Bang! It was like I was hit with a ton of bricks!
The dish soap! How many times did I make a healthy dinner and then serve it on plates washed with chemicals? And lick the bowl myself?
I went immediately to Dr. Google, I found a really lovely website, (too bad I didn’t book mark it,) that recommended ECOS.
I started using it right away.
I’ll be perfectly honest here. (Did you expect less?) The suds don’t last as long as traditional dish soaps, and I seem to use a lot more of it, although that totes could be me. The other thing is, it’s more expensive than say a bottle of Dawn or Palmolive.
Still, in the scope of things, it’s a small increase in my food budget that gives me what I feel is a good return for the money. It also benefits both me and the dogs.
If you want to check the safety of any of your household products, a good place to start is the Environmental Working Group. They list each chemical in the products, and then “grade” the product for safety, breaking down each ingredient with a letter grade of A through F, including areas where the chemicals are sketchy and also where the concerns lie. For example, ECOS has “some” concern for both Asthma/Respiratory as well as Skin Allergies and Irritation, but “low” concern for Developmental & Reproductive Toxicity, Cancer and the Environment.
The overall ‘grade’ for ECOS is “A” as opposed to Palmolive which was graded an”F”.
Because I’m cheap I don’t like to spend a ton of money on cleaners, and I have a Labrador that likes to lick cabinets, I also use my dish detergent for cleaning counters, cabinets, floors and woodwork as well.
Worried about the toxins in your dish detergent? These are the top eight ones you should avoid:
- Phosphates
- Triclosan
- SLS (Sodium Lauryl Sulfate)/SLES (Sodium Laureth sulfate)
- Fragrance (you want to find a detergent that gets its scent from essential oils)
- DEA (Diethanolamine), MEA (Monoethanolamine), TEA (Triethanolamine)
- Chlorine
- Formaldehyde
- Ammonia
For me, I try and do the Google and research the products before purchasing. Just because something tells me it’s “Natural” does not mean it’s not toxic. The key is to know what to avoid and do your research.
Do you have any tips for eliminating/limiting toxins in your home/life?
This is the third installment in a series about reducing toxins in your and your dog’s lives.
If you’ve missed the previous installments, or are just tuning in, installment one can be found HERE, and installment two can be found HERE.
I use plain, white, distilled vinegar to clean the floors, bathroom, kitchen appliances, etc. It’s a great – and cheap – disinfectant too. And even though its odor is strong at first, it does dissipate, so you can also use it as an air freshener.
I also use white vinegar for a lot of cleaning, and even for all the feeders and waterers for our farm birds! Since we eat their eggs, it’s important to us to keep toxins out of them too. 🙂
We use a more natural laundry detergent and also cleaner for counters, etc. We recycle a lot and try to use environmentally friendly products, but it just isn’t a priority of mom’s to reduce toxins. One can only do so much, but it is great if you can do it and it is something you enjoy figuring out. Mom says we are much healthier than she is when it comes to what we get to eat and drink.
I use a lot of products from Seventh Generation, including their dish soap. Thanks for sharing that website, it looks like there’s a lot of good information there. I was surprised that my dish soap got a “C” rating! I may have to look for yours. 🙂
One other thing I did a while ago is to make sure that we never use plastic bowls for the pets either. We use mostly ceramic, and some stainless steel. I’m trying to get away from plastic storage containers too, but that’s an expensive endeavor too, since I have a lot of them! I think some of them are at least BPA free though.
I currently have 7th Generation at my sink, and you can bet that it won’t be there again! LOL
The EWG site is great for any type of product that has chemicals. I used it a lot in my old job.
Good point regarding the ceramic/stainless steel. The dogs eat and drink from stainless steel bowls. While I haven’t gotten away from plastic containers (you ARE right, they ARE expensive to replace) I will not add hot food to plastic bowls (letting them cool down before transferring) and I absolutely will NOT re-heat food in the microwave in plastic containers. There’s a lot we have to watch for in today’s world.
Does letting the dogs do a pre-wash before loading the dishwasher where the hot water does the cleaning count for anything?
Of course it does! Pre-washing is IMPORTANT. 🙂
That whole “better living through chemistry” moniker can scare the be-Jesus out of you when you actually see what’s in the pudding. Gah! Thanks for reminding me and for sharing a brand that you can feel good about using around a fur-kid who taste-tests the world.
I love that, “taste-tests the world.’
We use that 7th Generation stuff too and our bowl are made in the USA and don’t have any bad stuff in them. Great post!
Great post! Like others have noted, I use vinegar for cleaning and am careful about all products I bring into my home. Years ago when Spanky was diagnosed with mouth cancer my vet at that time warned me about plastic. Just don’t use it for any of us anymore.
It’s incredible how many toxins enter our bodies every day, from what’s released into the air we breathe, to our cleansers, to everything we touch. I met the folks from ECOS at the last BlogPaws conference and was very impressed by them. Thanks for sharing!
Love & Biscuits,
Dogs Luv Us and We Luv Them
This is interesting. I never considered the chemicals left on our bowls and plates after being hand-washed or in the dishwasher. I assumed the cleaners didn’t leave residue though that doesn’t entirely make sense either. I’m really far behind in considering what’s toxic in our house – to the humans or kitties.
Ever heard of CBD oil for pets? It can help calm and relax your furry loved ones who suffer from stress, pain and/or behavioral issues. Here’s an article from the High Times if you’re interested: https://hightimes.com/sponsored/cbd-oil-for-dogs-the-ultimate-guide/
I like this blog and the content you shared with us as well. Keep it up, God bless you. animal lovers
Off Course, cleaning is not cheap, but the unclean environment is also not saving your money. If you live uncleanly, after some time you can fall into a serious disease.
Nice to meet you! Great post! We changed to stainless steel dog bowls a number of years back, and have finally gotten rid of all of the plastic containers for storage (except for camping, where it’s too easy to break them). We started out by buying bowls at discount stores like TJMaxx, Homegoods, etc. and a whole bunch of canning jars. Eventually added glass storage containers. Canning jars are so inexpensive for storage!