Why Natural Kitchen Cleaners Are Better for Your Sexual Health

Natural alternatives to chemical household cleaners are rising in popularity and for good reason. Natural kitchen cleaners help support a healthy environment, are often free of dyes and synthetic fragrances, are often less harsh than their chemical counterparts and, believe it or not, are better for your sex life.

All natural cleaners for your kitchen and the rest of your home are products you can purchase or make yourself. Both are recommended as effective by toxicology experts. Homemade natural cleaners are surprisingly easy to make and can save you a lot of money.

How chemical cleaning products can hurt your sex life

There are a few ways chemicals used in cleaners can impact your sex life. First of all there is some evidence that endocrine disrupting chemicals (like some of those found in common chemical cleaners) may disrupt men’s hormone balance, thereby impacting sex drive.

Another study performed in 2014 by Dr. Emily Barrett demonstrated that phthalates in common household items including cleaning products may be at the root of low sex drive in many women.

And in more bad news for men, it appears that some chemical compounds and solvents may also cause erectile dysfunction.

In addition, there is evidence that the chemicals found in common household cleaners and personal care products can negatively impact fertility.

According to a study published in Reproductive Toxicology, ingredients common in many household cleaners negatively impacted fertility in both male and female mice. The study did not examine the impact on humans. But this study, combined with previous evidence, raises an red flag on the impact of common cleaning chemicals when it comes to human fertility.

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How to recognize “good” cleaning products

Unfortunately, not all cleaners marketed as natural are created equally. Cleaning products are not required to list all of their ingredients. This means it is possible that a product could advertise as “natural” and “safe” and still have a potentially endocrine-blocking ingredient since these terms are not regulated.

But if you don’t know by checking the ingredients, how can you feel assured that what you’re purchasing is a “safe” natural kitchen cleaner?

There are a few ways to check if you’re getting what you hoped from an all-natural cleaning product:

• You can look for the EPA’s certification, the (DfE) label.
• You can also see if it denotes that the product is low VOC or no VOC, (low in or free of volatile organic compounds).
• Another good strategy is to look for kitchen cleaners that list ingredients and that they are things you can pronounce.
• And, if you’re also looking to support companies doing good work and working toward a healthy environment, you can also look for notations that the natural home cleaner is fair trade or biodegradable.

Some of the best natural kitchen cleaners

These are all tried and true products that we have used in our test kitchen and I use in my home. They are not the only good natural cleaners but they are all natural cleaning products that I can highly recommend.

Babyganics all-purpose surface wipes work extremely well for anyone who needs to wipe up a mess in a hurry. It is also safe for wiping down high chairs and eating surfaces.

Use Bon Ami powder cleanser for a non toxic oven cleaner. It can also clean grime from most surfaces. (It even gently cleans stainless steel.) And it is the best natural oven cleaner we’ve found on the market. It is also great for cleaning the kitchen sink and bathroom surfaces.

For cleaning counters, we just love Seventh Generation natural all-purpose cleaner. It’s sold almost everywhere, is not too expensive and does the job of a general cleaner and degreaser. (You can even use it as a tile floor cleaner however we don’t recommend it for hardwoods.)

For a natural dishwasher cleaner, we like Ecover citrus dishwasher tablets. They do a good job of scrubbing away stains in automatic dishwashers without ingredients that harm the planet.

And to clean those kitchen towels, we love Biokleen natural laundry detergent liquid. Their bac-out stain remover is also an amazing all-natural cleaning solution. (And it’s safe for most carpets and upholstery.)

Homemade natural cleaners

Another option for keeping harsh chemicals out of your kitchen is to make natural homemade cleaners.

Common kitchen products including baking soda, white vinegar and fresh lemon juice work extremely well to clean and disinfect. (If you didn’t know that white vinegar is a natural disinfectant, we bet you’re about to get excited about the possibilities of using this dressing base to clean all your high-touch surfaces.)

To make a natural all purpose cleaner, the basic recipe is to just put equal parts white vinegar and water in a spray bottle. If you enjoy fragrance in your cleaner, you can add a few drops of lemon essential oil or your favorite citrus oil to the bottle, then shake well before using. (Some experts also recommend adding a few drops of tea tree oil.)

But before you go crazy cleaning your kitchen with vinegar, you need to consider your surfaces. Surfaces such as marble and granite require more gentle natural cleaning agents. One of the best natural cleaners for granite is a combination of rubbing alcohol with a few drops of dish soap in a spray bottle of water.

You can remove stains, such as spilled turmeric powder, from most counter surfaces by gently scrubbing a paste made from baking soda and water on the surface until the stain lifts.

Keep in mind that if you add essential oils, such as citrus oil to your DIY natural cleaner to give it a fresh scent, you’ll need to shake up the bottle of your homemade kitchen cleaner before each use as the oil will tend to separate from the cleaner.

RELATED: Why you should use castor oil for all-natural skin care

Kitchen photo by Good Soul Shop