c. it's easy
cleaning green
Contrary to Kermit’s grievance that it’s not easy being green,
the path becomes easier to travel if you refuse to play leap
frog with the notion that only store bought cleaners can make
our homes sanitary. At the same time, give yourself permission
to experience freedom from the fear of germs.
Although it doesn’t seem evident in advertising, it’s a
scientific fact that we must encounter a reasonable number of
benign bacterial organisms over the course of a lifetime,
otherwise our immune systems would fail to protect us from the
big stuff. Cleaning counters and floors with formaldehyde,
chloroform and other hazardous waste materials is overkill, and
germs aren’t the only living things affected.
The good news is that nature provides alternatives to these
chemicals that effectively get the job done without persisting
in the environment or (literally) knocking you out.
d. herbal housekeeping
Most of us are familiar with the virtues of baking soda,
vinegar, salt and lemon juice. These pantry staples have endured
as tried-and-true safe cleaners for one simple reason – they
work. Salt and baking soda are abrasive materials that move
grime, while the acidity of vinegar and lemon juice dissolve
fats and proteins (grease).
Plants have a lot to contribute to the party. They offer
saponins and other compounds that are sustainable, readily
biodegradable alternatives to non-renewable petroleum-based
surfactants that won’t harm fish or wildlife. As an added bonus,
botanicals won’t remain on clothing like optical brighteners do
or hang around to outgas VOCs from the carpet or kitchen
counters. Worried about germs? Fear not. Most botanical
essential oils possess antimicrobial, antibacterial, antiviral
or antifungal properties — in some cases all of these
properties.