Cleansers and Cancer Risk???

Hi everyone!! I stopped using commercial chemical cleaners years ago. I didn't want me or my family to be breathing chemicals that weren't safe to be touched and were considered poisonous. Well, last week on the down-to-earth blog I saw a link to this article. It's an Australian article based on a US study regarding women, chemicals cleansers, and breast cancer. According to the article, "Scientists found significant links between the disease and women's use of cleaning products, air fresheners and mould removers". It seems that the more you clean with chemical cleansers the greater your risk of breast cancer. This is serious stuff! So, I wanted to share the recipes for a few cleansers that I make at home, in case you're interested in making a them yourself. Not only will you be safer, your home will still be clean, you'll save money, and you'll have the satisfaction of something made by you! (I love how the writer calls homemakers 'House Proud"!!)

A few products you'll need to make these cleansers include: liquid castile soap, baking soda, white vinegar, tea tree oil, and your choice of essential oils. Most of the recipes--and names for the recipes-- come from the book, "Clean House, Clean Planet" which I found at our library. A few friends and I got together to share ingredients the first time we made these cleansers. It was a fun day!!

Odor Absorber (we'll do this first since air freshener was one cleanser specifically mentioned in the article)
8 oz vinegar, 20-30 drops essential oil in a fine mist spray bottle (That's it!!)

Merlin's Magic (Antiseptic spray for toilet seat, cover, base of toilet, counters--wherever!)
3 tbsp castile soap, 20-30 drops tea tree oil, Fill the rest of a 16 oz. spray bottle with water. Shake

Dust to Dust (Furniture Polish)
2 tsp olive oil, 20 drops essential lemon oil, 1/4 c. white vinegar, Fill the rest of your 16 oz. spray bottle with water.

Earth Shake (Kitchen Sink Cleanser)
Fill a parmesan cheese bottle 1/2 full with baking soda, add 15-20 drops of essential oil, fill the rest of the bottle with baking soda. Screw on top and shake.

Hollywood Bowl (Toilet bowl cleaner)
1/2 c. castile soap, 2 cups baking soda, Mix with fork; dilute with 1/4 c. water and 2 tbsp vinegar; Add 1/2 tsp tea tree oil. (This is always way too thick for me and I have to add extra water.)

Earth Scrub (Tub and Tile Cleaner)
1 2/3 c. baking soda, 1/2 c. castile soap, Dilute with 1/2 c. water, add 2 tbsp vinegar; Stir, pour in 16 oz. squeeze container. (Too thick? Add more water.)

Club Cleaner (Glass cleaner)
Club soda (yes, straight club soda!!) in a spray bottle

Sleep It Off (Oven cleaner--which I think is one of the worst smelling cleaners ever!!)
3/4 c. baking soda, 1/4 c. salt, spray oven with water and dishsoap, spray again with water, add 1/4 c. water to salt/soda mixture; Smear paste on oven wall, leave overnight, remove and scrub (use steel wool if necessary)

Countertop Cleanser (if you didn't want to use your Merlin's Magic)
1 c. peroxide, 1/2 c. vinegar mixed in a spray bottle

Floor Cleaner
Vinegar in water works great. Also a dash of castile soap in water works great.

I've had great success with all these homemade products. If you're not wanting to take the time to buy the bottles and mix them all up, any amount of castile soap, vinegar, and baking soda will clean just about anything they touch!! (When I've run out of 'Hollywood Bowl' and haven't yet gotten around to making more, I just squirt some castile in the toilet and clean it with that!)
Another plus about making your own cleansers is that you'll have the base ingredients on hand to allow you to be prepared to make more in the future!

Prep On!
Gen-IL Homesteader






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