What is in your Clorox Wipes?

I have been doing Norwex parties now for about 3 months. When giving my cleaning demonstrations I often hear people say that they are addicted to cleaning with Clorox Wipes because they are so easy. You grab one, wipe everything down, and you toss it in the garbage. You feel as though you have disinfected your bathroom in just minutes. But what, besides less money in your pocket, are you actually getting with your Clorox Wipes?

According to Clorox's Material Safety Data Sheet there are several warnings that you should be aware of when using Clorox Wipes. They include wearing safety goggles and rubber gloves with use. They also recommend that you don't inhale the vapors as it may cause irritation. Just TRY to do that while cleaning a small room like a bathroom. Also, it recommends that the wipes don't come into contact with food. Although the wipes may not actually come in contact with food, the residue that they leave behind will.

Why all the precautions? Well, two of the chemicals that they use to kill all that bacteria are dimethyl benzyl ammonia chloride & dimethyl ethyl benzyl ammonia chloride, more commonly known as pesticides. If that isn't scary enough for you then consider this. There is an additional warning on Clorox's safety data sheet that states that the wipes should not come into contact with sodium hypochlorite because it can release formaldehyde gases. What is sodium hyporchlorite? It's fancy for bleach. So, yeah. If your Clorox wipes happen to come into contact with bleach (say in your bathroom) you can expose yourself and your family to formaldehyde gases which have been proven to cause cancer. 


So much for "cleaning" your surfaces. 


"But products have to be regulated to be sold in the store, right?" Sort of. Household cleaners are regulated by the Consumer Chemicals and Containers Regulations. Which means container labels are required to provide hazard symbols like "poison" and "flammable." They also have to give information about first aid treatments for those ingredients. But there's no requirement to list other chemicals that could cause long-term health effects and no warnings that say anything like "may cause respiratory problems." 

So don't be lulled into a false sense of security. Just because something is available in a store for use, doesn't mean that it is a safe product for your family. You can unknowingly be causing harm.  

My recommendation for replacing Clorox Wipes would be the Norwex Enviro Cloth. With the Enviro Cloth and water you can disinfect whatever surface you are cleaning. And you don't have to worry about what you are leaving behind. Not to mention all the money that can be saved from not purchasing a disposable cleaner. 


If you are interested in more information about reducing chemicals in your cleaning visit: www.SpeersNorwex.com.