Thailand Detox

How Many Harmful Chemicals are in Your Home?

There are dangerous chemicals everywhere these days. Some companies have been in trouble for polluting our waters with harmful chemicals. Farmers are realizing how harmful the chemicals they use on their crops can really be. Landfills have become hazardous waste zones because of the amount of dangerous chemicals dumped in them each year. Your home is another place where there are probably quite a few harmful chemicals.

You should keep products with harmful chemicals locked up and away from small children in your home at all times. Even if you and your family do not ingest these dangerous chemicals, you can still have health problems from exposure. Just being around some of the harmful chemicals in your home can be bad for you. Repeated exposure to these chemicals in cleaners and other products in your home is very likely to cause health problems for you and your family.

The following are some harmful chemicals commonly found in your home:

• Acetone - Acetone is in many types of nail polish remover. If you inhale products with acetone, you can develop lung, throat and nose problems, as well as headaches and a increased heart rate. Serious health problems like going into a coma or damage to the liver, nerves or kidneys can also occur.
• Alkylphenol Ethoxylates (APEs) - This is a chemical that is commonly used in cleaning products for the home. It is thought that this chemical affects the endocrine system because it acts like a hormone. Exposure can lead to reproductive problems, immune system problems, ADHD and cancer.
• Benzene - This chemical is in everything from hygiene products to pesticides. If inhaled, it can cause headaches, increased heart rate, shaking, loss of consciousness and possibly be fatal. There may be an increased risk of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma with exposure to benzene.
• BHA and BHT - These chemicals may be in the cans of food you have in your kitchen cabinets. They are also in some hygiene products. While they are thought to to be to dangerous for human use in some countries, they are allowed to be used in manufacture in the United States.
• Formaldehyde - You will probably see formaldehyde as an ingredient in some of your cleaners, bath products, hygiene products and nail polish and remover despite it being a known carcinogen and neurotoxin. Exposure can result in mucus membrane issues, spasms, edema and other health issues.
• Hydroquinone -This chemical is in products used to color hair and lighten skin. This is a dangerous chemical that affects skin structure and increases skin cancer risks.
• Phthlates - This chemical can be a variety of products including plastics, perfumes, and lotions. Exposure could result in thyroid problems, hormonal issues, kidney damage, birth defects and reproductive system issues.
• Tolulene - This chemical is in many home cleaning products and in nail care products. It can damage the lungs if inhaled and is linked to liver and kidney problems, increased cancer risks, hallucinations and bone marrow problems.

This is just a sampling of the many harmful chemicals that you might have in your home right now. You can’t completely get away from all harmful chemicals in today’s society but you can try to buy products for your home that are as healthy and chemical free as possible. All you have to do is look at the ingredients on the cleaners and other household items you buy regularly.

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Your Health and Hazardous Waste

You probably don’t give hazardous waste a second thought most days but chances are you encounter it in some form almost daily. You probably encounter some sort of cleaning products daily in your home or at work and these can contain dangerous chemicals. The electronics we use every day are full of mercury and lead. The fuel you put in your car is full of hazardous chemicals. When these products are thrown out, they become part of the hazardous waste problem.

Hazardous waste has four main characteristics:

1. It is corrosive. That means it is capable of destroying some other materials. For example, very acidic or alkaline liquids can burn through metals and your skin and the vapors can damage your mucus membranes.
2. It is ignitable. That means it catches fire easily, which makes for a dangerous situation. This often goes along with being an irritant. Some examples are varnish and gasoline.
3. It is reactive. That means it has the potential to react dangerously with other chemicals. The reaction could be an explosion or dangerous fume production. Bleach and ammonia are two reactive products.
4. It is toxic. This means it is poisonous. If you breathe, inhale, drink or even touch these chemicals, you can be severely injured. An example of a toxic material is a pesticide.

The characteristics of hazardous waste and their health issues refer to the effects that happen right away with exposure. Other kinds of exposure occur when hazardous waste is filtrated into our water or into the earth. This can affect the food supply, which is very dangerous. If people are exposed to even tiny amounts of these chemicals in this way over many years, there can cause serious health issues.

Lead paint was a common form of hazardous waste that used to be in many homes. The paint would chip and children would ingest the paint chips. If this happened on a long term basis, the children often suffered physical and mental problems as a result. Lead poisoning is linked to ADHD, kidney problems, reproduction issues, neurological problems and hearing issues.

There are other forms of hazardous waste that are just as dangerous to our health. One example you have probably heard of is asbestos, which is linked to cancer. Other forms of hazardous waste cause a variety of health problems including liver problems and can affect the immune system. There are close to 100,000 chemicals that we know of that are used frequently all over the world so it is nearly impossible to avoid exposure.

Hazardous waste can be very damaging to the environment and to the health of people exposed to it. Proper disposal of hazardous waste is very important to lower these risks. We as a world need to try to produce less hazardous waste and properly dispose of the waste that is created so health problems do not result from exposure.

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