A Clean Kitchen

Organic? Check.  Safe clean skincare?  Check.  Safe clean makeup?  Check.  Safe clean kitchen?  Of course, it’s clean.  But is it considered safe?

The heart of our homes is the kitchen.  Warmth, love, conversations and good food.  Celebrations, an after-school snack, a midnight raid of the fridge – yes, this one room is the heartbeat of our families.  When it comes to defining a safe clean kitchen, we do should look deeper than the organic produce and grass-fed beef.  Our health and well-being are being affected by more than the non-organic and non-grass fed.  They are being accosted, unbeknownst to us, by chemicals and ingredients that could be causing endocrine disruptions, cancer and skin irritations to name a few.

 Does the dish soap contain questionable ingredients?  Did Madge steer us wrong all those years ago about getting soft, clean hands while we wash our dishes?  What about the dishwasher?  Are pods better than liquid?  What about water spots?  Do I rinse before putting dishes into the dishwasher?  Or that oven?  That lurking brown-black box that gets used, but rarely cleaned, because honestly, it’s a chore that is messy, disgusting and very time-consuming?

What is a woman to do?  How can we transition the products we use in our kitchens to safer options?  First, we can recognize less-safe options that are routinely used in products we normally purchase.  Every week we buy dish soap, detergents, cleansers, lotions and more to have on hand in the kitchen.  Secondly, on our weekly shopping trip, we can intentionally buy the safer option which is generally placed next to the one considered harmful, making it a pretty simple swap.

One easy swap is dish soap.  This highly consumable product can be hiding some questionable ingredients.  Things like fragrance, sodium laurel sulfate, triclosan, PPG, formaldehyde and more.  Fragrance is a compilation of ingredients and it has been said that there could be 3000+ chemicals, including hormone disruptors and allergens, to make one scent.  Fragrance formulas are protected under federal law’s classification of trade secrets and can therefore be kept secret. Many of them raise concerns for our health as well as those of our waterbodies and animals.

Sodium laurel sulfate (SLS) is used in cleaning products as well as beauty products.  It is known as a surfactant, which means it lowers the surface tension between ingredients.  Hence, it’s used as a cleansing and foaming agent.  “SLS and SLES (sodium laureth sulfate) are surfactants that can cause skin irritation or trigger allergies.  SLES is often contaminated with 1,4-dioxane, a byproduct of a petrochemical process called ethoxylation, which is used to process other chemicals in order to make them less harsh” (BeautyCounter, The Never List).

Triclosan is “an antibacterial and antifungal agent present in some consumer products, including toothpaste, soaps, detergents, toys and surgical cleaning treatments.  It is similar in its uses and mechanism to triclocarban” (Wikipedia).  Triclosan is used to reduce or prevent bacterial contamination.  This ingredient sounds like we need it in our products.  But do we?  Is it considered safe and nontoxic?  Is it harmful to our health?  With so many uses, are we being inundated with triclosan on a daily basis which can be detrimental to our health? In an article written by Pritish K. Tosh and published by Mayo Clinic, “in 2017 the Food and Drug Administration declared that triclosan is not generally recognized as safe and effective for antiseptic products intended for use in health care settings.  In 2016, the FDA also banned over-the-counter consumer antiseptic wash products containing triclosan from being marketed to consumers.  These products include liquid, foam and gel hand soaps, bar soaps, and body washes.  The basis of the ban was that manufacturers haven’t proved that triclosan is safe for daily use over a long period of time.” (Should I Avoid Products That Contain Triclosan? mayoclinic.org)

Research has shown that triclosan alters hormones in animals, may aid to the development of antibiotic-resistant germs and it might be harmful to our immune systems.  It has not been proven to be essential as an antibacterial ingredient in products – especially since simple soap and water is effective.  With the recent rise in hand sanitizer use, should we be concerned with triclosan in our sanitizer products too?  The short answer is yes.  On April 11, 2019, the FDA banned 28 ingredients that were commonly found in hand sanitizers, and triclosan is one of them.  Hand sanitizers are regulated by the FDA and should therefore have a drug facts label on the product which should include active and inactive ingredients.  Check your products even in the kitchen, to protect you and your loved ones from this banned ingredient.

Dishwasher detergent has as its main ingredient, phosphate.  “Phosphates are used in dishwasher detergent to help loosen food particles and the calcium that binds them together.  They also control water hardness and rinse away water soils in your dishwasher to counteract dish staining” (What Are Phosphates in Detergents? cascadeclean.com).  God designed our bodies to include phosphate and they need it to maintain healthy bones, teeth, heart function and healthy blood and muscles.  It is phosphate additives that we need to be wary of and watch out for.  Phosphate additives are found in our foods, detergents, water treatment and kaolin (a type of clay) production.  In food it makes them taste creamier, maintain juiciness, prevent beverages from separating, boost nutrients such as calcium, and extend shelf life.  

Natural phosphates occur in many places and our bodies absorb between 40-60% of it.  With synthetic or phosphate additives, our bodies absorb roughly 90%.  “Consuming too many phosphates is not good for blood flow or heart health and it can be hazardous for people with chronic kidney disease” (Joseph Rauch, Public Goods, August 5, 2019).

As we can see, not only are phosphates in our detergents they are in our foods.  It is the over-abundance of it that is cause for concern.  Choosing products that do not add phosphates is better for our health and for a cleaner kitchen. 

Many other potentially harmful ingredients can be in products used for cleaning our ovens, stoves and other appliances in our kitchen.  A great resource to use when checking your next purchase for a cleaner swap is Environmental Working Group (EWG).  This third-party group rates products and their ingredients for contaminates, toxins, and other potentially harmful ingredients.  It’s helpful to download the app so while you are at the market you can scan a product and then make a choice. 

Having the heart of our homes safe and clean is worthwhile.  The people that put their feet under our tables are loved ones, friends, special people.  We can cook outstanding meals, make memories and use products that promote health not undermine it.  When we shop, we can look for products or foods that do not have potentially harmful ingredients.  Sound daunting?  Simply start by switching one thing at a time.  Before you know it, your kitchen will be sparkling clean.