Hello, I was wondering if anyone has had any success with a more natural cleaning product that is not loaded with toxins for our home. Also for bathing our children and ourselves, I was wondering if there are more natural products out there. I keep reading about all the toxins that are in our cleaning products and laundry detergents and soaps, would like to start making a change and to create a safer environment for my family. Thank you!
Yes, I have been using a product called Method for a year now and absolutely LOVE IT!! You can get it at Target and is completely all natural and safe and you have a huge variety to choose from. Also for yourself, go to a health food store like good earth, they have great products for bathing and washing... good luck
Look into melaluca (sp?) products. They are all natural and have everything from toothpaste, to laundry detergent, to make-up.
Sorry for the late response. I just wanted to reiterate how wonderful the folks at Whole Foods and Vitamin Cottage are. I am always suspect of self-represented natural product lines because in my mind it removes my ability to get unbiased opinions and comparison to other products... of course their reps are going to say its the best...
Go where you have many lines to look at and ask questions --the folks at natural food stores love to share what they know and they don't work on commission. For our family, I like Burt's Bees for bath and body, also like Nature's Gate shampoo for me, Jason makes good deoderant, soap and shampoos, too. For home, I like the idea of vinegar and water, but I still use Seventh Generation cleaning products because they are natural AND smell good.
Good for you on making the changes!
I have been switching things slowly for us. I just go to Whole Foods and ask someone for help. They're very knowledgeable there and love to teach you about what they like and why. I'm not completely sold on Burt's Bees stuff other than the orange face wash, but they have lots of other options there. There are other things that I like. As far as cleaning goes, I haven't tried the laundry stuff yet, but have been very pleased with everything else. GL! Have fun shopping!
I love Melaluca products. I wouldn't recommend their laundry detergent, but I love their cleaners, I actually just get the multipurpose cleaner an use it everywhere. I've never tried their bathing products but I do love their lotion. I have very dry skin and have tried so many expensive lotions, and theirs by far is the best. Their products are expensive if you are not a part of their company and I am not a fan of MLM's, but I've found good prices on ebay.
Also, my mom made me some soap, I was very hesitant to try it because of my dry skin, but I did and I love it. She actually bought the soap base and then added oils and oatmeal, it is very easy to make and not so expensive. I bought a few bricks of it to make myself but didn't didn't get around to making it before I needed it so I just cut a bar off and used it. Although I really like the oatmeal one my mom made, this still worked really well. I got mine through my mom at a local store where she lives but their are a lot of online stores that sell this kind of stuff.
Good luck!
This has been very important to me as my family seems to be a bit chemically sensitive and we have allergies. I used to get a headache each time I put my dishes in the dishwasher or walked down the aisle at the grocery store where the cleaners, laundry detergent, etc. live! About 5 years ago, I too switched to Melaleuca to convert harmful chemical cleaners to quality, tested, effective natural cleaners. They also have beauty products, hair and teeth products, nutritionals, etc. It's been a big help to my family and we can shop at our own quality store. The products are concentrated and economical. One product for instance takes permanent ink out and removes nail polish, but is harmless on your skin! It also repels lice and has been used by a daycare provider I know. She was the only one to escape the epidemic.
If you're interested, go to this website:
http://www.melaleuca.com
You're welcome to contact me with questions at ____@____.com. I'm happy to share.
A second source I use for natural cleaning products is Veriuni. These are also very effective, though I would rank Mela first. While completely natural, they are also very effective and in fact, are used by the national park service.
http://www.tripleclicks.com/results.php?dept=13
With all the other chemicals we are exposed to each day, that is one thing I have control over in my home!
Cleaning is easy to tackle...move to vinegar and baking soda. A baking soda paste works just like Ajax and actually works better on a lot of things (soap scum in the bathroom, grease scum in the kitchen). I have a spray bottle that's 1/2 vinegar, 1/2 water and use it anywhere you'd use 409/Windex/etc. Use them together for toilets and to clean carpet spots. Best part is - there's no reason even small children can't help w/the chores now!
Laundry - I've been scared to try the "naturals" because I had such a horrid experience w/dishwasher soap just not working well. and if a stain doesn't come out of the clothes....well, they're toast unlike your dishes that can just be scrubbed. I do use scent free and dye free. No softener, just do a double rinse instead. For towels and sheets, put vinegar where you'd put softener. You can use vinegar on most clothes too, but I can never keep straight which fabrics you can't so I just don't use it on the clothes. Also, ditch the dryer sheets. If you pull clothes out slightly damp or just finished and hang dry the synethetics (like fleece), there won't be any static anyway. Use a clothesline in the summer - I do pop everything in the dryer for like 5 minutes w/a wet rag to soften them up and remove wrinkles after I pull them off the line.
I've moved to Burt's Bees for me and have been happy. My hubby hates it though and is still using conventional. My son uses California Baby. My daughter experiments w/various shampoos from Sunflower/Vitamin Cottage. For body soap, we make our own - the stuff they sell at Hobby Lobby is pure glyercin and then you can add "chemicals" (which can be essential oils and other natural items) as you want for color and scent. its a fun rainy day project.
Just make the transition a little at a time, as you use up the products you already have and it will be painless!
