Thank you for committing to this 30 Day Christian Green Living Challenge with us! Each day as we step through our journey, I’ll share the challenge for the day then, depending on your green goals, I will share resources where you can learn more, dig deeper into the topic, or challenge yourself even more. We will do the challenge once *live* together, but you can participate anytime by joining in on the comments below and by using the hashtag #ChristianGreenLiving. So, when you’re ready, let’s Go Christian Green!
We all want clean, fresh smelling, beautiful homes and TV & advertising tells us that we need a closet full of cleaning products in order to do it right. But, do you know that most of these cleaners contain chemicals we probably don’t want in our homes, much less on and in our bodies?
In fact, most everyday household cleaners you find on shelf contain toxic chemicals. According to EWG.org, household cleaners can cause or irritate asthma, contain cancer-causing and reproductive developmental toxins (including breast cancer), and can cause chemical burns to our skin. You can read their whole article on the dangers of household cleaners HERE.
And the problem goes beyond just our own personal risk and becomes a worldwide problem…
The problem goes beyond just us and our household use of cleaners. As households everywhere continue to use a multitude of dangerous products every day, toxins are washed down our drains, pollute the water system and create a much larger problem than just what happens in our homes. They become an environmental danger to people, animals and entire eco-systems at large.
The good news is most of those dangerous cleaners are completely unnecessary for a clean, sparkling home. In fact, you can clean your whole house with only 5 natural, toxin-free products: 1) multipurpose spray, 2) castile soap, 3) baking soda, 4) hydrogen peroxide and 5) white vinegar. (See my article, “How to Green Clean Your Whole House with only 5 Natural Products” to learn how.)
Today’s Day 16 Challenge:
How green is your cleaning routine? How many products do you use on a regular basis? Have you read your product labels? Does the product tell you what is in the product or just expect you to trust that it’s safe? Does it have a “danger” warning on the label?
Pray
Today let’s pray for those people and creatures around the world who are directly affected by toxin-polluted water and environments. May God help us to do our part in small change and when possible, help affect policy to change the large.
Act
Challenge your cleaning routine. Take the time to read the label on every one of your cleaning products before you use it again. If a product doesn’t tell you whats in it and/or has a caution or danger warning on the label, find out why and assess the risk before using it. Try cleaning for one week with only the 5 natural products I’ve listed above.
FYI about making the switch to natural cleaning: Depending on the risk and proper disposal of your current products, don’t just throw them out. Find out how to dispose of them safely or if they don’t pose a great immediate risk, use them until they are gone then replace them with natural products instead.
Share
Don’t forget to share — Comment below and/or use the hashtag #ChristianGreenLiving to share your best green cleaning tips or your challenges with making the switch to natural products.
Learn More~
Green Cleaning Guide E-book — by Darlene Goes Green
My free green cleaning e-book gives you the details helps you learn how to best use the 5 natural cleaning products to clean your whole house.- Understanding Pope Francis’s Encyclical on the Environment: The Issue of Water —by Darlene Goes Green
Learn more about what Pope Francis and our faith has to say about water pollution. - Cleaning Supplies and Your Health — from EWG.org
Learn more about the health dangers hiding in everyday, common household cleaners. - 3 Ingredient DIY Laundry Detergent — from This Little Blog of Mind
Like to DIY, here’s a great post with a recipe for laundry detergent that might be worth trying!
Click here to go to Day 17
Ready to pin! Thanks for sharing!
Leave a Reply