I Pledge to not use Pledge.

This week we were asked to name and access chemicals found in common personal and household care products (ie. soaps, shampoos, window cleaner, bathroom cleaner). Chemicals can be found in the products themselves or from the containers they come in.

Off of the top of my head I think of Ammonia. Ammonia is found in things like All-purpose cleaners, Antibacterial cleaners and soaps, Window and glass cleaners, and furniture polish. So what is it? Google tells me that its A colorless gas, a combination of nitrogen and hydrogen, NH_{3. What are the effects of Ammonia?} Exposure to high concentrations of ammonia in air causes immediate burning of the nose, throat and respiratory tract. This can cause bronchiolar and alveolar edema, and airway destruction resulting in respiratory distress or failure. Inhalation of lower concentrations can cause coughing, and nose and throat irritation. Ammonia's odor provides adequate early warning of its presence, but ammonia also causes olfactory fatigue or adaptation, reducing awareness of one's prolonged exposure at low concentrations. Exposure to low concentrations of ammonia in air or solution may produce rapid skin or eye irritation. Higher concentrations of ammonia may cause severe injury and burns. Contact with concentrated ammonia solutions such as industrial cleaners may cause corrosive injury including skin burns, permanent eye damage or blindness. The full extent of eye injury may not be apparent for up to a week after the exposure. Contact with liquefied ammonia can also cause frostbite injury. Swallowing ammonia solution results in corrosive damage to the mouth, throat and stomach.

Another common chemical? VOCs. VOCs are Volatile Organic Compounds that are emitted as gases from certain solids or liquids, and range from things like Formaldehyde, methylene chloride, and Benzene. Exposure to VOCs include things such as eye, nose, and throat irritation; headaches, loss of coordination, nausea; damage to liver, kidney, and central nervous system. Some can cause cancer in animals; some are suspected or known to cause cancer in humans. Key signs or symptoms associated with exposure to VOCs include conjunctival irritation, nose and throat discomfort, headache, allergic skin reaction, nausea, fatigue, and dizziness. Sounds scary right? Espically since VOCs can be found in things like air fresheners, chlorine bleach, detergent, dry cleaning chemicals, and furniture polish. 

Next we were asked to choose a product from our home that contains one of the listed ingredients. I've been hearing a lot about formaldehyde in shampoo, so I decided to research the can of Pledge that I so often use to polish my furniture. 

If you read the above sections talking about chemicals, you already know what I found out. Pledge is a big no-no, containing ammonia and VOCs. Ingredients include things like  Butane, Propane, Isobutane, Silicones. Do you really want to clean with gases? I don't. The thing I found most interesting is on the can of Pledge, it lists a few ingredients then says "Other Ingredients = 99.9750%" So when purchasing the product I as a consumer am not entitled to a complete list of ingredients? Turns out thats not required by law. It actually took a lot of digging on my part to find a complete list of ingredients. So is there any alternative to getting my furniture shiny and fresh? Pinterest actually had a ton of suggestions (If you don't know what Pinterest is... you're living under a rock, right?) like using one part lemon juice to three parts olive oil, because lemon naturally cuts through grease, and olive oil will condition and shine your wood furniture. I also found a list of "Green" furniture polishes (pictures below) at www.diylife.com 

The green alternatives are more expensive, but not overpriced. I actually think this is because Pledge is such a common product, it seems to always be on sale at Target. But making your own solution with lemon juice and olive oil is so much cheaper, since I always have those ingredients at home!