We have some great recipes to share to create your own non-toxic cleaners. Why? The average home contains between three and twenty-five gallons of toxic materials.

That’s right – and most of these are found in household cleaners, air fresheners, and personal care products such as soaps and lotions, sunscreens, and even kitty litter! A study released earlier this year from Silent Spring Institute in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives found chemicals in 200 common household products that were linked to asthma and hormone disruption, among other issues. So how do we know if those chemicals are in our homes?

One major problem is that many chemicals are not listed on labels of the products that were manufactured by both conventional and “alternative” brands. According to a story in US News & World Report, the study, which tested for 66 chemicals, found 55 of them in 87% of products tested.

So what can you do? Educating yourself on the options is the first step. If you choose to make your own non-toxic cleaners, check out these recipes from

If you want to find out what the claims on your labels really mean, check out Consumer Report’s Greener Choices If you are still not sure if a product in your closet is non-toxic, you may want to err on the side of caution and replace it with something you know is safe.