Healthy and Green Living » Non-Toxic Cleaning

10 Tips for Energy Efficient Baking

Megan, selected from Planet Green — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 15:03:17 +0000

I don’t use my oven an awful lot, and in fact I don’t even have one at my cottage. But there is something about the holidays that demands homemade baked goods. Before you start making all those wonderful Christmas cookies and mince pies, give some thought to how to use your oven in a more [...]

Natural Home Cleaning Tips (with video)

Ronnie Citron-Fink — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 15:07:08 +0000

Is it crowded under your sink with bottles of cleaning products? Healthy cleaning at home starts with some basic ingredients that keep toxins at bay, the EcoNest sparkling and your pocketbook happy. Below are great tips for creating pure and natural cleaning products for your home. These tips and recipes were found on Eco [...]

Clearing Clogged Drains

Annie B. Bond — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 00:32:48 +0000

My upstairs bathroom sink drain always needs attention: I think toothpaste is the culprit, but whatever, it always needs help.

You don�t need powerful industrial chemicals as the household cleaning industry would have you believe! Find out the surprisingly easy and non-toxic way I keep that drain open.

It’s in the Thanksgiving Day Details

Terri Hall-Jackson — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 19:05:40 +0000

I’ve heard that both God and the Devil are in the details, since it’s in the details that we experience nuances that transform ordinary experiences into special ones or not-so-great ones. As we prepare for Thanksgiving, the food is usually the star of the show, and we give it’s prep ample attention. But directing a [...]

Cancer-Proof Your House

Mel, selected from Caring.com — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:01:25 +0000

Melanie Haiken, Caring.com It’s scary to think about cancer, but even scarier to think that we might unknowingly be doing things that put our families at risk. I’ll never forget the day I was cleaning my mom’s bathroom, and her caregiver arrived. She smelled the bleach spray I was using all the way from the front door [...]

Environmental Poisoning: Is Your Home Hurting You?

Mel, selected from Natural Solutions magazine — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 00:01:16 +0000

By Sally Lehrman, Natural Solutions It’s not easy to know if your home sweet home could be making you sick, because symptoms of environmental illness (a long list that can include irritation of the eyes, throat, skin, and nasal passages, as well as headaches and fatigue) can have many causes. But your house may indeed be [...]

Pesticides Linked to Parkinson’s Disease

Melissa Breyer — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 18:10:24 +0000

Watching a loved one endure the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease is not an easy matter–it’s been heartbreaking for me, at least. But perhaps even more frustrating are the findings of a new study linking pesticides with the disease. According to a study published in the September issue of the Archives of Neurology, people whose jobs [...]

Is Your Pet a Toxic Dumping Ground?

Mel, selected from Natural Solutions magazine — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 22:00:29 +0000

You work hard to reduce your family’s exposure to household toxins, but your pets may face a greater risk than you, says Olga Naidenko, PhD, senior scientist at the Environmental Working Group, “Where do our pets spend their time? They sleep on the couch, roll around on the carpet, and get dust carrying toxic chemicals [...]

20 Great Uses for Tea Tree Oil

Robyn, selected from Planet Green — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 00:02:40 +0000

In 2006, the world consumed more than 3.5 billion gallons of oil per day. A lot of that oil has caused environmental damage and conflicts between nations. But there is one type of oil that’s green, sustainable, healthy, and–as far as I know–has never been the rationale behind a major military intervention: tea tree oil. Tea [...]

How to Remove Stains and Pet Odors from Rugs

Annie B. Bond — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 22:01:54 +0000

Soon we will be closing our homes up for the cooler weather, leaving us face-to-face with rugs and carpets that look and smell less than fresh: a wine spill here, a pet accident there--and you can end up with a real mess underfoot. But commercial carpet cleaners and fresheners can contain synthetic ingredients that can harm you and your pets.