Household products pose health threat

Parents putting kids at risk from their own home

Cleaning your home and doing your washing using conventional household products can greatly increase your risk of cancer and a host of other serious illnesses, according to newly compiled research.

Toxic chemicals routinely used in everyday items such as laundry powder, surface sprays, dishwasher tablets and even children's nappies are a proven risk to even the healthiest people.

The research compiled by Green Face suggests more than 100 chemicals in the home are linked to cancers, allergies, birth defects, headaches, psychotic illness, skin reactions, chronic fatigue, joint pain, dizziness, loss of sleep, depression and asthma.  It also reveals women who stay at home, such as young mums, are an incredible 55% more likely to contract cancer than those who go out to work as a result.

The research further shows that the air inside a home is often between two and five times more polluted than air outside because of the cocktail of toxic vapour created by cleaning products.  In the most extreme cases a home can be 100 times more polluted.  Every room in the house is affected by the toxins in products turning our homes into mini-chemical factories. This situation is in part a result of consumers being unable to check what is in cleaning products.  Regulations on labelling mean that manufacturers do not have to be specific as they could be.

A spokesperson from natural cleaning company Seventh Generation commented: "It is important that consumers are aware of what is in the products they use in their households. Toxins in everyday cleaning products can create dangerous levels of pollution in the home - not only for yourself but also children."

For more information visit: www.greenface.co.uk