Household items are important to us because they help us get various household chores done with ease. While there are various benefits that household items offer us, there are some household items that are bad for the environment and you. The harmful household items greatly put your health at risk. In this article, we take a look at the 5 household items that are bad for the environment and you below:
1. Anti-Bacterial Hand Soap
It is advisable to regularly wash your hand with soap and water in order to prevent the spread of germs. So, for many people out there, it makes sense to them that washing their hands with antibacterial-germ-killing soaps is even a good idea. Now it turns out that antibacterial soaps are fake and potentially dangerous to both your health and that of the environment. Here are the reasons why most anti-bacterial hand wash soaps are dangerous:
Anti-bacterial soap creates anti-biotic resistant bacteria
You have certainly heard about how the misuse of antibiotics causes antibiotic-resistant drugs. This is the same case with antibacterial products including those supposed anti-bacterial soaps. Most anti-bacterial hand wash soaps usually contain an ingredient known as triclosan. Now, when bacteria are exposed to this ingredient, they are likely to undergo genetic mutations. Unfortunately, as these bacteria undergo a mutation, they do not only become resistant to triclosan but they will also be highly resistant to antibiotics.
Anti-bacterial soaps may also disrupt hormones
In a certain research that was conducted on rats, it was established that triclosan altered hormone in rats thus causing an estrogenic effect. According the American Food and Drug Administration, animal studies may not be indicative of what may happen to humans but they go a step further to advice consumers who are concerned to instead use regular soap.
The risks related with the ingredient triclosan are many! It is now turning out that triclosan hinders human muscle contractions at the cellular level.
Antibacterial soap is bad for environment
Unfortunately, when you rinse your hands using an anti-bacterial soap in the sink, it won’t disappear on the drain just like that, it gets into the environment. This may cause a number of disastrous effects. A report by the Eco Watch said that chemicals found in antibacterial soaps are usually not completely removed by the wastewater treatment facilities. This is something that leads them to be deposited directly on land which then contaminate surface water.
Another concern with antibacterial soaps is that the ingredients tricloan and triclocarban can easily degrade into carcinogens. Yet interestingly, antibacterial soap usually doesn’t do any better jobs than regular soaps.
2. Chemical Drainage Cleaners
The most toxic chemicals are found in drainage cleaners making these cleaners dangerous for you and the environment. Drainage cleaners contain hydrochloric acid as well as other toxic chemicals that have caustic bases. These are highly dangerous chemicals that when inhaled usually cause serious health effects to people. Chemical drainage cleaners can also cause serious environmental problems. Once they are released onto the drainage system, drainage cleaning facilities don’t actually remove the toxic chemicals from them.
There are better eco-friendly ways to deal with your drainage problem; one simple solution is to prevent your drainage from clogging by installing a SinkShroom Hair Catcher. This eco-friendly product will prevent your drain from clogging thus removing the need to use harmful chemical drainage cleaners.
3. Batteries
Batteries form an essential part of our lives. They power various household items for laptops, cellphones, remote controls, watches, and anything else that uses a battery. There are various types of batteries that are usually manufactured using different kinds of materials. Now, batteries are another harmful household items that are bad for you and the environment because of the chemical that are used in their manufacture.
Batteries typically contain one or more of these metals:
- Cadmium
- Lead
- Manganese
- Zinc
- Nickel
- Silver
- Mercury
- Lithium
- Acids
These substances pose a number of health risks to you should your skin get in contact with them.
Batteries cause Air pollution
Batteries that are disposed in landfills are known to undergo a photochemical reaction when they decompose releasing greenhouse gases into the environment. The greenhouse effect usually results in global warming or climate change.
Batteries cause Water Pollution
The harmful chemicals found in batteries can easily seep into local water supply that is used by people. There are many ways batteries can get into local water supply and one surprisingly common way at home is through the drains. To prevent this from happening, it is wise to install a quality drain strainer such as TubShroom Drain Strainer which will stop any harmful objects to go down your home drains.
4. Non-Stick Pots and Pans
Non-stick pots and pans have been found to be unhealthy to people and the environment also. When they are exposed to high temperatures, their coatings may start to breakdown and thus start emitting highly dangerous fumes. Such harmful fumes greatly put the health of your family at risk and therefore you need to avoid using them if you already have them in your kitchen.
When these utensils are used on a daily basis, they are susceptible to scratch and breakdown at some point in time. This helps to increase the risk of releasing poison into your home. The fumes emitted when non-stick pots or pans produce can cause cancer in people who are exposed to them.
5. Facial Cleaners with Microbeads
Facial Cleaners that has microbeads are really harmful to the environment. Microbeads are those tiny bits of plastics about 1 millimeter or even smaller in overall size. They are most commonly used in facial cleaners due to their abrasive nature that help to effectively clean the face leaving the skin soft and clear.
Of course microbeads are not only found in facial cleaners, they are also found in other household products such as toothpaste, moisturizers, lotions, sunscreens, deodorants as well as makeup and personal care products.
Unfortunately, the qualities that make microbeads effective are the same one that makes them hazardous to both you and the environment. In fact using microbeads is almost just like grinding plastic into smaller pieces then dumping them into the oceans. Once microbeads get into oceans or other water sources, they don’t dissolve or degrade. This is something that puts the life of animals that dwell in oceans, lakes, and rivers at great risk. The microbeads that end up in water bodies inhabited by fish can easily be eaten by fish. Unfortunately, when such fish is caught for food they end up on your plate as food!
Think when buying harmful household items
In conclusion, these products appear to be useful for your home and lifestyle. However, these same household products are causing more harm to you and our environment. So the next time you plan on getting these harmful household items, keep in mind its harmfulness and ask yourself – Is it worth it?
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