For years we have had the perception that clean and fresh means we need that ‘clean fresh smell’ or that we must have fragrance sprayed into the air for the room to be clean. Our laundry room is one room in particular where this is evident.
When you start to think about it, the chemicals we place into our washing machines and dryers end up in our clothes. Our clothes then sit on our skin for hours and hours giving our body time to absorb the chemicals. The chemicals we use eventually make their way down the drain and potentially affect our marine life and water quality.
While the list is long and extensive, it’s not uncommon to find these chemicals in our laundry room; Benzaldehyde, Artificial Fragrances (with hundreds of possible ingredients in the one smell), Diethanolamine nonlphenol ethoxylate or NPE, surfactants, paraffins, siloxanes and many many more.
It’s time for a healthy swap!
4 SIMPLE SWAPS for a more healthy laundry
Swap your Dryer for some Sunshine
There's nothing like climbing into bed with a fresh clean set of sheets. A simple healthy swap is to head out into the garden and let nature dry your clothes. The sun and a breeze not only dries your clothes, but the sun can also help to kill bacteria. And avoiding the dryer also helps to reduce those electricity bills. Frequent use of the dryer can also shrink some fabrics and diminish the fabrics lifetime, meaning you need to shop more frequently.
Swap Artificial Fragrance for Essential oils
We all know that ‘clean smell’ that comes with brand new cars, couches and washed clothes. That smell that scientists have created in a lab by combining hundreds of different chemicals together. The trick here is that our clothes (and home) are just as clean and better for our health without that ‘clean smell’. If you want to add a little fragrant flair to your next load, simply add a couple of drops of essential oil into your wash cycle. Lavender can help to promote sleep, making it a nice addition for your next sheet wash.
Swap Dryer sheets for Dryer balls
With more and more insights around the chemicals in our home, laundry sheets (and fabric softener) are frequently at the top of the most harmful chemicals list. The good news is we no longer need them now we have the power of dryer balls! Often made from wool, you simply pop them into the dryer with your clothes. They work by allowing the air to move freely through your clothing, helping to reduce drying time (hello electricity bill, I’m looking at you) and with a couple drops of essential oils you can have your clothes smelling zesty fresh without all the added nasty chemicals.
Swap Laundry Liquid for Soap Nuts
There are more chemicals on the market than ever before. But luckily for us there are also more and more natural options hitting our shelves. You may not have heard yet about soap nuts (also called soap berries). Soap nuts are these magical little fruits that are rich in the natural compound saponin. Saponin acts like soap, helps to thicken water, create bubbles and best of all, wash our clothes very effectively. When grown organically, soap nuts are free from pesticides and they can be reused and composted! They are even economical - saving your wallet and the environment at the same time.
