Is your Bathroom Cleaner Causing Your Asthma? And what to do about it
Most supermarket bathroom cleaning products contain chemicals that trigger asthma.
Many common cleaning products can increase your risk of asthma, or they can cause people with asthma to have an episode.
According to a new study of professional cleaning service employees as reported by Reuters Health "Fumes from cleaning products can make existing asthma worse. Products such as bleach, glass cleaner, detergents and air fresheners exacerbated asthma-related symptoms and the people's reduced lung function lasted until the morning after exposure, in some cases getting worse with time."
Bathroom cleaners containing bleach (sodium hypochlorite), sodium hydroxide, or phosphoric acid can irritate lungs and burn eyes and skin. The corrosive ingredients in toilet bowl cleaners are severe eye, skin and respiratory irritants. Some toilet bowl cleaners contain sulfates, which can trigger asthma attacks.
Let's explore the the top 5 hidden dangers in bathroom cleaners for people with asthma. Then we'll explore what you can do to avoid these asthma triggers.
1. Bleach, Ammonia and Mould Cleaners
Found in Bathroom Cleaners and Toilet Bowl Cleaners
Ingredients with high acute toxicity include chlorine bleach and ammonia, which produce fumes that are highly irritating to lungs, throat, eyes and nose, and should not be used by people with asthma or lung problems. Serious side effects of using bleach can include respiratory problems, skin burns, damage to the nervous system, asthma flares, extreme headaches, migraines, and vomiting.
The most serious hazard of bleach to our bodies is that when mixed with ammonia, vinegar, or any other acid type cleaning material, it can cause dangerous, toxic fumes to be emitted into the air to form lung-damaging gases. Combining products that contain chlorine and ammonia produces chloramine gases, while chlorine combined with acids (commonly used in toilet bowl cleaners) forms toxic chlorine gas. These toxins can cause serious, sometimes deadly, side effects when inhaled.
2. Fragrances and Phthalates
More than 3000 chemicals are used in fragrance mixtures. Fragrances are common ingredients in bathroom cleaners. Many are irritants and can trigger allergies, migraines, and asthma symptoms.
3. Quaternary Ammonium Compounds (Quats)
Found in bathroom cleaning products Irritants and sansitizers that can induce an allergic response following contact with the skin. Quats are also known to cause occupational asthma in cleaning workers and preliminary evidence indicates they may cause adverse genetic and reproductive effects.
4. Sodium dichloroisocyanurate dihydrate
Found in toilet bowl cleaners It's corrosive and known to be a severe eye, skin and respiratory irritant. It can also form chlorine gas, which will burn the eyes, nose and mouth. Studies have found that high doses of this chemical cause kidney damage.
5. Sodium hydroxide (also known as lye and caustic soda)
Found in toilet bowl cleaners and bathroom cleaners Highly corrosive. Can burn the eyes, skin and lungs and is a respiratory irritant. Long-term exposure in the air may lead to ulceration of the nasal passages and chronic skin irritation. [3]
What can you do about it?
You still need to clean. But what can you use instead of the supermarket cleaners?
Switching to 'green' is the way to go to avoid these toxic asthma trigger cleaner chemicals. Though when looking for green cleaning alternatives, you still need to read the labels, as not all products are as 'green' as they claim to be. Unfortunately there are no labelling laws for green products, so products labeled as 'organic' or 'green friendly' may still contain harmful chemicals.
So you either need to find a product that's been given a green seal of approval by an independent body, or, make your own cleaning products.
My personal choice for cleaning is the Thieves Household Cleaner from Young Living. It contains all-natural plant-based ingredients and can be used for all bathroom cleaning purposes from sanitising bathroom surfaces to toilet bowl cleaning, removing mould and cleaning soap-scum and hard-water buildup on showers and tubs. Check out the Top 7 uses for Thieves Household Cleaner in the Bathroom here.
Thieves Cleaner has received the green seal of approval. Thieves Cleaner is compliant with Green Seal and EPA Design for Environment (DfE) standards.
If you're a DIY enthusiast and you want to make your own cleaning products, popular chemical-free recipes include ingredients like vinegar and baking soda/bicarb soda. However, with an ingredient such as vinegar, although it's acidic pH of 5 will act as a disinfectant, killing some pathogens, it won't kill all pathogens. That's where essential oils come to the forefront. Adding Thieves essential oil, a powerful sanitising blend of Young Living therapeutic grade essential oils of clove, cinnamon, lemon, rosemary and eucalyptus will increase the effectiveness of the DIY vinegar cleaner as a disinfectant.
Thieves oil is the ultimate essential oil to use in DIY cleaning products for the bathroom. Find the Top 5 uses for Thieves oil in the bathroom here.
Want to learn even more uses for Thieves Household Cleaner for uses beyond the Kitchen? See the Top 7 Uses for Thieves Cleaner in the Bathroom here. Then see more ways to use Thieves Household Cleaner here.
Looking to get your own Thieves Household Cleaner? Then we would love to help!
In Australia? Then purchase your Thieves Cleaner here and purchase Thieves oil here.
In the USA or elsewhere in the world? Then click here to view Thieves Household Cleaner and add it to your shopping cart or click here to view the Thieves oil.
*Sources:
http://allergicliving.com/2013/08/23/the-dirt-on-cleaning/1/
http://davidsuzuki.org/issues/health/science/toxics/the-dirt-on-toxic-chemicals-in-household-cleaning-products/
www.reuters.com/article/us-health-asthma-cleaning-products-idUSKBN0O71QM20150522