Eco-Mamas

Chemically Scented Candles--Does your Nose Know?

EARTH TALK
From the Editors of E/The Environmental Magazine

Dear EarthTalk: I just read an article that said air fresheners contain chemicals that can cause health problems when inhaled. Are scented candles any better?

        -- Leanne Chacksfield, Cincinnati, OH

Like most air fresheners, many scented candles contain and release phthalates, potentially harmful chemicals that have been linked to the disruption of hormonal systems and other health problems in people exposed to them. Burning candles can also emit small amounts of acetaldehyde, formaldehyde and naphthalene, organic chemicals that are also potentially harmful and that can leave nasty black soot deposits on floors and other surfaces.

According to Pamela Lundquist of the nonprofit Children’s Health Environmental Coalition (CHEC), this black soot deposit “is primarily made up of elemental carbon, but may also contain phthalates and volatile organic compounds like benzene and toluene, which can cause cancer and neurological damage.”

Children can easily ingest these chemicals if their hands have been wandering and end up in their mouths. The chemicals can lodge deep in the lungs, disrupting the lower respiratory tract, exacerbating existing problems like asthma, and potentially causing other longer term breathing problems.

Water Water Everywhere?

Drought is a gradual phenomenon, one that creeps up on us slowly, tightening its economical, social and environmental grip over time.

The United Nations estimates that one third of the world's population lives in areas with water shortages, and 1.1 billion—with a "b"—people lack access to safe drinking water. In the next century, extreme drought will affect 30 percent of all human life on Earth, and moderate drought will affect half of all of us.

While more than 70 percent of the Earth's surface is covered by bodies of water, clean and potable water remains a major challenge for a large percentage of the world's population because less than one percent of the water on the planet's surface is suitable for human consumption.

Using water wisely is a matter of becoming aware of the water we use for our day-to-day activities, and making simple adjustments to our daily habits.

In the House
Fix those leaks!
Don't let the water run while brushing teeth or washing dishes.
Install low-flush toilets and low-flow faucets and shower heads.
Run your washing machine and dishwasher only when full.
Compost instead of using a garbage disposal.
Use the water from rinsing to water plants.
Wash produce in a sink full of water rather than under a running tap.

In the Yard
Use wastewater from rain barrels or other catchment systems for irrigation.
Water your lawn or garden during the coolest parts of the day.
Refrain from watering on windy days.
Use trees and shrubs for your landscape; they have deeper root systems and require less water.
Use natural, non-dyed mulch around plantings to avoid evaporation.
Minimize or eliminate fertilizing, which requires additional watering.

Green, Healthy Cleaning

I grew up associating the smell of bleach with clean. As a young adult, my weekly allowance was earned by cleaning the many bathrooms in our house. No doubt, using bleach and other chemicals to clean in enclosed spaces caused me to develop asthma.

Yet no one put two and two together.

In today's antibacterial world, many of us associate the smell of bleach or other harsh chemicals with "clean". The truth is that we've killed off many of the good bacteria in our homes, and left chemical residues all over the house for inhalation or ingestion. Remember: "clean" is merely the absence of dirt: it doesn't have a smell.

You can protect yourself, your family, and our soils and water by switching over to non-toxic cleaning products for your home and office. Brands that I like are Ecover, Mrs. Myers and Trader Joes. For Christmas this year, I got everyone on my list a non toxic cleaning products starter kit. Why? Because I love them.

Cleaning by the Numbers

17,000: the total number of petrochemicals that are available for home use, only 30% of which have been tested for exposure to human health and the environment.

63: the number of synthetic chemical products found in the average American home, translating to roughly 10 gallons of harmful chemicals.

100: the number of times higher that indoor air pollution levels can be above outdoor air pollution levels, according to US EPA estimates.

275: the number of active ingredients in antimicrobials that the EPA classifies as pesticides because they are designed to kill microbes.

5 billion: the number of pounds of chemicals that the institutional cleaning industry uses each year.

23: the average gallons in chemicals (87 liters) that a janitor uses each year, 25% of which are hazardous.

Source: Treehugger.com

Living in a Green Zone

Source: Sustainablog.org

Drawing from US Census Data and National Geographic Society’s Green Guide that collected data on thirty characteristics for American cities over 100,000 people, Popular Science create a list of America’s 50 Greenest Cities. Combining the data into four categories (electricity, transportation, green building/spaces, recycling), Popular Science determined green scores (see article for details) for the various cities and identified the cities who are at the forefront.

The top ten cities are: Portland, OR; San Francisco, CA; Boston, MA; Oakland, CA; Eugene, OR; Cambridge, MA; Berkeley, CA; Seattle, WA; Chicago, IL; Austin, TX. If you enjoy a visual, an industrious blogger from Austin TX placed all of the data on a map for easy viewing.