A few years ago, my sister asked me to try household cleaners that were minus the ammonia, bleach and other chemical ingredients, including fragrances typically found in laundry detergent. I was happy to try them for her, but figured I’d do it and then return to my old stuff when it was all used up. My philosophy was to use what my mother used, and it worked fine for me.

After a couple weeks, I noticed my husband wasn’t coughing when he got ready for work in the mornings. When I mentioned it to him, he told me to look at my nose, which for the first time in a long time wasn’t red. I was still sneezing, but just once in a while. We had suffered with year-round allergy symptoms for so long, it was simply normal in our house to hear sneezing and coughing! We constantly ran to the drugstore for all this and headaches, too. Guess who did the drugstore runs, my husband wants you to know!

When I thought about it, I realized the only thing different about us was the change in our household cleaning and laundry products. As the weeks went along, my headaches came less frequently, which was a huge relief to this migraine sufferer of many years.

Since that moment, I’ve put more time and effort into looking at what we bring into our home. I found out that an EPA study determined the air inside our homes is 3-70 times more polluted than the air outside and 3 times more likely to cause cancer. I work at home, so this was a frightening statistic for me.

I like to think that today I am an “informed consumer”. Take the Healthy Home Tour by clicking on the link here or at the top of the page to view what is happening in your own home.

Look around my website for healthy ideas and products like the BackRelax footrest to bring into your life. I’m always trying to find great tips on living well and being environmentally responsible. Check out Think and Live Green for some great ideas!

I want to hear what you’re doing. Together we can make our planet a better place for our families!

Send an e-mail to gigi@myhealthsmart.net with your ideas, and let’s share tips for making our lives easier and better!

Gigi