Here are ten non-toxic cleaning methods I use in my home:

#1. Distilled White Vinegar
Distilled white vinegar is one of my go-to cleaning solutions for a number of reasons. It’s inexpensive, it’s effective, and it’s safe to use around my kids and pets. White vinegar can be used to clean countertops, floors, toilets, showers, and more. Simply mix one part vinegar with one part water in a spray bottle and you’re good to go!

#2. Baking Soda
Baking soda is another versatile and cost-effective cleaning solution. Like vinegar, baking soda can be used on a variety of surfaces throughout your home. It’s great for removing stains, absorbing odors, and cleaning carpets and upholstery. For best results, mix baking soda with vinegar or lemon juice before using.

#3. Lemon Juice or Lemon Essential Oil
Lemon juice is a natural disinfectant that’s great for cutting through grease and grime. I like to use lemon juice on my kitchen counters and stovetop. To make a lemon juice cleaning solution, simply mix one part lemon juice with one part water in a spray bottle. You can also add a teaspoon of lemon juice to your dishwashing detergent for an extra boost of cleanliness.

#4. Hydrogen Peroxide
When my kids were young they got some sort of parasite from a public swimming pool. When I called the health department they told me to clean our bathroom and kitchen with hydrogen peroxide because the parasite they had thrived in bleach… hello, there is chlorine in the pool! Gross! At that time I wasn’t concerned about toxins yet but I stopped using bleach after that. Who knew?!

Hydrogen peroxide is a powerful disinfectant that can be used on hard surfaces like countertops and doorknobs and in the bathroom on most surfaces. It’s also great for spot-cleaning carpets and upholstery. Be sure to dilute hydrogen peroxide with water before using it as a cleaner so that it doesn’t damage surfaces or fabrics.

#5 Thieves Household Cleaner
This professionally formulated essential oil cleaner is inspired by the Legend of the Four Thieves and it works like amazingly well! Thieves Household Cleaner can be used on virtually any surface in your homefrom countertops and floors to toilets and showersand it leaves behind a pleasant spicey smell. Best of all, it contains no harsh chemicals or toxins so it’s safe for use around kids and pets. Simply mix one part cleaner with thirty parts water in a spray bottle for an all-natural cleaning solution that really works! Often times I add 5-10 drops of lemon essential oil to Thieves Household Cleaner for an added boost.

#6 Thieves Kitchen and Bath Scrub
Thieves Kitchen and Bath Scrub is the perfect naturally derived cleaner: tough on messes and safe for your family! You get the power of a surface scrub without all of the harmful chemical smells and residue in conventional options. Thieves Kitchen and Bath Scrub gains its tough scrubbing power from nepheline syenite, a naturally occurring mineral from Canada; baking soda that gently absorbs odors; sodium percarbonate that releases oxygen when combined with water, providing a powerful boost of cleaning power against tough stains; and Young Living’s signature Thieves blend.

#7 Thieves Laundry Soap
Thieves Laundry Soap is one of my laundry room must-haves. Safe, effective, eco-friendly, and economical cleaning with the power of plants? Sign me up!

The Thieves Laundry Soap from Young Living gently and naturally washes your clothes, cleaning them without leaving behind any harsh chemicals or residues. Fabrics come out of the washer clean and with a pleasant citrus aroma, thanks to a 100 percent pure blend of Thieves, Jade Lemon, and Bergamot essential oils! Designed to be powerful and efficient, this concentrated 32-ounce bottle of Thieves Laundry Soap can clean up to 64 loads of clothing.

Need a boost to your laundry? I LOVE to add All-Natural Washing Soda to my laundry – it whitens the whites and helps keep my clothes looking, feeling, and smelling fresh.

Speaking of laundry – please, for the love of all things, ditch the dryer sheets. Those are filled with toxic chemicals that leave a toxin-filled film on your clothing so you walk around smelling it – and so do your children. I use wool dryer balls in my dryer and keep the heat setting to low – high heat is what causes static.

#8 Cream of Tartar
This one might sound strange, but trust meit works! Cream of tartar is excellent at removing rust from surfaces like faucets or tile grout. Just make a paste with cream of tartar and water and apply it to the affected area; let it sit for about 15 minutes before scrubbing with a sponge or brush.

#9 Thieves Dish Soap
With naturally derived, grease-cutting ingredients and the fresh, citrus scent of Jade Lemon and Bergamot essential oils plus the signature Thieves essential oil blend, Thieves Dish Soap is the perfect addition to your clean lifestyle. Free of the typical sulfates, dyes, and synthetics found in many dish soaps, Thieves Dish Soap’s plant-based formula leaves no harsh chemical residues. The gentle but powerful formula prevents over-drying of skin and will leave your dishes sparkling clean.

#10 Vodka
Vodka can actually be used as a disinfectant! Just add 1 part vodka to 3 parts water in a spray bottle, and you’ve got an effective all-purpose cleaner that’ll kill 99. 9 % of bacteria. Not bad for something that was originally intended to be consumed!

BONUS: Pine water
Cut some pieces off of a pine tree (or your Christmas tree!) and put the pieces in a large jar. Fill the jar with white vinegar. Allow the pine to sit in the vinegar for 2-3 weeks. Pour the liquid into a spray bottle and discard the pine. Use this spray for cleaning and disinfecting bathroom and kitchen surfaces!

It’s no secret that many companies use greenwashing to trick consumers into thinking their products are safe and environmentally friendly. We’ve all seen labels that claim a product is “natural” or “free of harmful chemicals.” But what does that really mean? In reality, those products often contain harmful ingredients. What to watch for? SLS (sodium lauryl sulfate), triclosan, phthalates, fragrance, and colors. Sometimes they’ll even say “natural fragrance” but no one is monitoring that so always use caution. Many fragrances actually contain banned ingredients that can be harmful to your health. And when a product claims to be unscented, that just means it contains a masking fragrance…yep, “unscented” is a scent. Now that we know how to spot greenwashing, we can make better choices for our health and the environment. Next time you’re at the store, take a closer look at the labels and make sure you’re really getting what you’re paying for.

Cleaning our home is a necessity. From dirty dishes to laundry, mopping the floors, and cleaning bathrooms, we have countless areas of the home that require cleaning. We want to make sure that what we’re using we can trust won’t harm our health. However, many store-bought cleaning products are full of toxins that can cause a range of health problems, from allergies and headaches to hormone imbalances and even cancer. And, to make matters worse, many of these products are greenwashed. So how can you find safe, trustworthy cleaning products? Look for products that are natural, come from a trusted source, and be sure whatever you use is fragrance-free.

Cleaning doesn’t have to be toxicin fact, there are plenty of ways to clean your home using items that you probably already have on hand! The next time you reach for the bleach or hash cleaning product that will leave your lungs gasping for clean air, try one of these 10 non-toxic methods instead. Your wallet, your health, (and the planet) will thank you!

Want to give Thieves a try? Shop today from my Green Home Necessities wishlist from Young Living.

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