 'How can we allow these to enter our household?' Dr. Gideon Koren |
When Shawn Ellis tests the air in parts of a house where cleaners are stored, he is measuring volatile organic compounds (VOCs). His meter won't tell you how strong or harmful the chemical particles might be. It will provide clues as to how many particles there are. "You can always smell those cleaners even though they're all tightly sealed."
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Everywhere the cleaning products are kept, the readings jump. The average home normally reads about 50 parts per billion.
We asked Ellis to test three products that are often advertised on television: Pledge, Clorox Wipes and Lysol Disinfecting Spray. Pledge registered 273 ppb. Anything over 500 could be a problem for people with sensitivities.
The Clorox Wipes came in at more than 1,000 ppb. The Lysol Disinfecting Spray was much higher — around 1,200 parts per million, or 1,000 times higher than the Clorox.
We live in an increasingly chemical society: experts don't know how dangerous these chemicals might be, but they are starting to worry. Young children especially vulnerable Ads suggest you can spray this every day, where kids are playing. Salares says that's something parents should think about. "Do they want to spray the air people are breathing? Or that kids with toys or surfaces that children are touching, do they want them sprayed?"
These are If you can't pronounce it, should you use it? "If you find that it has ingredients, which is a chemical you can't even pronounce, you don't know what it is, you don't know how it can affect you. I think it's about time you think, should I be using this?" Salares said. Full read here
