Due to the body's large surface area, studies show an
enormous amount can be absorbed through the skin. You don't have to work
in a factory that produces an exotic chemical. You are surrounded by them
in your everyday home environment.
Your most important chemical environment is the household environment,
first because that's the one that you spend the majority of time in, and
second because it's the one you have the most control over. Yet most people
don't give a thought to the paints, solvents, insecticides, greases, oils,
lawn mower, gas cans, heated car engine, furnace, gas dryer, gas water
heater, washing machine and other sources of toxicity lurking in their
basements and garages.
The average carpet outgases at least a dozen chemicals, all of which are
capable of creating illness. The common carpet actually emits over 200
volatile organic chemicals. Books have been written about the devastating
health effects from new carpeting. Anderson Labs demonstrated on US TV
just how toxic new carpeting can be. They placed a little patch of carpet
(that patients had been complaining of) in the bottom of a glass jar with
some mice. In the morning the mice were dead.
Construction materials like paints and wallboard, plasticizers in
wallpaper, phenols in plywood, formaldehyde in pressed wood kitchen
cabinets, bookcases and dresser drawers, and wood preservatives are just a
few of the common home construction materials, not to mention foam
formaldehyde in sofas, mattresses, and insulation or boron
insulation. Back drafts from creosote-lined chimneys and flues can trigger
symptoms.
There is not a
home, office, institution or manufacturing site where plastics do not
abound. They are used in construction materials, building products and
furnishings, plastic baby bottles, plastic baby rattles and teething toys,
plastic crib bumpers, car seats, mattresses, kitchen appliances and even
our shoes, sneakers, computer housing, car dashboards and undercoatings,
electrical wire coverings and cables, carpet backing, cosmetics, notebook
covers, clothes, dishes, tablecloths, shower curtains, toilet seats,
gadgets, games, and much more.
More inside sources of pollution include computers
with their plastic housings and plastic-coated
heated wires, formaldehyde stain-resistant
finishes and dyes - and the pesticides and fire retardants in foam, mattresses and
pillows. It's a wonder we
get any sleep with our noses nestled in those poisons.
Carbon monoxide and natural
gas from malfunctioning furnaces, and molds from humidifiers and
air-conditioners, unvented bathrooms and undiagnosed roof leaks have
slowly poisoned entire families, causing the most mysterious and diverse
symptoms. Wool blankets can emit trichloroethylene dry cleaning fluid and
moth-deterring pesticides. Air fresheners and home pest control however are
definitely avoidable toxins in your own home, thanks to the many books on
organic and alternative measures.
