In an effort to reduce the toxic chemicals in my cleaning routines, I knew I needed a safer alternative to traditional cleaning products. However, my homemade ones weren’t cutting it.
Kids Actively Engaged at Home
One way that parents can support children’s development is to be sure that they are actively engaged at home. Children love to be busy, and useful. They delight in seeing that there is a place for them in the hum of doing, making and fixing that surrounds them. Honor your children’s efforts with real tools for their work. My kids love to be involved in the cooking and preparing of their meals and now WANT to be involved with the cleanup of the meal. However, using cleaning products full of toxic chemicals could not allow me to involve them in the way they wanted. Making the switch to a toxic free cleaning product has allowed me to involve my kids more in these cleaning routines and they find it so fun. A wonderful counterbalance to “entertaining” children is to involve them in a task, in the “work” of family life. Home is the environment a child will know best, and they need to affect their environment through their own efforts. Children need experience, not entertainment, in play. The more kids can do, see, feel, and experience for themselves in play, the more connected they will feel to the world. As small beings they can feel like inferior, passive observers of all that happens around them. A sense of industry — of busy-ness and purpose — counteracts feelings of overwhelm. Want more, I love the book Simplicity Parenting: Using the Extraordinary Power of Less to Raise Calmer, Happier, and More Secure Kids by Kim John Payne, M.ED
Traditional Cleaning Products
After learning that a recent study found the cumulative effect of cleaning products to be as damaging as smoking twenty cigarettes a day, I needed to change something, especially given I have 3 little ones frequently rolling, crawling and playing on the floor and eating food off all surfaces. So when Melissa from Force of Nature reached out to me about their toxic free cleaning product, I knew this was the best way to start.
The harmful effects of traditional cleaning products cannot be understated. Such products typically contain chemical compounds that have been linked to health risks including cancer, human reproductive and developmental toxicity, endocrine disruption, birth defects, and respiratory problems. While many household cleaners are great for disinfecting and keep our counters clean, more often than not they’re poisonous if ingested and are harmful if inhaled or touched. Considering how often clean-up time happens throughout the day with three small children, I made the decision to switch to a toxic free alternative. However, not all toxic-free cleaners are made equal. I wanted something with no toxins but actually still worked and still leave me that ‘fresh clean’ smell.
Force of Nature – What is it?
Force of Nature was created so that families don’t have to trade off powerful cleaning with safe ingredients. It’s a small countertop appliance that transforms salt, water and vinegar into a non-toxic cleaner that is effective as bleach. It does this by utilizing the science of electrolyzed water. By using electricity to change the chemical structure of the salt, water and vinegar, it creates a new toxic-free substance that is safe to use on nearly any surface you can imagine.
My Review
I’ve been using Force of Nature for about a month now, and wow – I’m obsessed. Seriously, it’s one of my most used items in the house now. The handy spray bottle makes it easy to take from room to room. Force of Nature doesn’t have any added fragrances and has a really light but still “clean” smell. My house stills gets that ‘I’m clean’ smell without the chemical stench. Bonus, Force of Nature stops odors as well as Febreze!
When I learned that Force of Nature was a multi-tasking powerhouse, I figured I could get some good uses out of it. But after just a few uses, I was blown away by just how versatile it is. Here are a just a few of the ways I’ve used it:
- Kitchen counters
- Inside refrigerator
- Floors – For spills/messy eating.
- Doorknobs
- Dinner table
- Windows – And it creates that shine like Windex
- Hands – Yes, hands! Force of Nature is so nontoxic it is perfectly safe to spray on hands.
- Toys
- Outdoor fitness/play equipment – It’s made disinfecting all the mats and fitness equipment in our backyard so much easier, and helps prevent it from getting smelly after a sweaty workout.
- Tooth brushes – I was so amazed by this! Just a quick spray on our toothbrushes (and a quick shake for any residue)! Seriously, my youngest has an obsession with tooth brushes and puts everyone’s in his mouth so knowing I could safely clean them without constantly replacing to spare sick gums has been amazing.
- Lunch boxes
- Makeup brushes – I was never sure which way was best to clean these, and since Force of Nature is safe on skin I spray them regularly. Almost too easy!
And so much more!! I am very impressed with the versatility of this product and I honestly recommend it for anyone looking to making cleaning safer, easier, and toxic free. It’s made my life easier in so many more ways than one. But most importantly, I know that I am keeping my family and I safe from the harsh risks of toxic chemicals, all the while keeping everything sparkling clean.
If you’re interested in trying it for yourself, use this link for a discount on their starter kit + FREE shipping!
Melanie Darnell, thanks so much for the post.Really thank you! Great.
Thank you for the wonderful feedback! I’m glad you enjoyed the post!