Why You Should Use Natural Cleaning Products

By Nick Vassilev

updated: 11/06/2024


A row of small glass containers of various essential oils

Nowadays, everyone is suffering from allergies. I know at least ten people off the top of my head whose kids have asthma. Did you ever ask yourself why? Why do so many people suffer allergies, medical conditions, and various illnesses? Could it stem from the house cleaning products and the chemicals we use inside and outside our home?

How healthy is your home? It may appear pristine, but the truth is, those conventional cleaning products could be silently harming you and your family, potentially more than you realise.

The problem is that everyone is always on the run in today’s world. You are either working, running to school events, running to after-school activities, chauffeuring the kids to wherever, or tending to daily responsibilities. All these responsibilities fill up your daily schedules. With all this happening in your busy schedule, who has time to research how hazardous each cleaning product might be? Who has time to examine each chemical in every product and its long-term effects on people and animals? How many people have the time to seriously consider what cleaning products are safest to use in the home? Who has the time to research this topic come on now?

But if you want to protect the ones you love, then the health of your home is crucially important; this is why you need to know what products you are using to clean them. Even though you are busy, make time; your family’s health comes first. Nothing matters more than a healthy home with happy people living in that home. This is why I have created a quick list of the three reasons you should clean your home with natural cleaning products.

A close-up shot of sliced oranges

Nine Reasons To Use Natural Cleaning Materials

They Work

1. People have used baking soda, salt, vinegar, soap, and alcohol to clean, sterilise, and freshen their homes for centuries. Now, we know how they work to keep disease at bay: They kill the germs that cause infections and rot things down, and they remove the grub and grime that the bacteria feed on. And they do get things clean and gleaming. Adding some essential oils does an even better job of scenting the home and killing germs.

They’re Cheap

2. I did a quick comparison at my local supermarket of a box of baking soda and a bottle of vinegar vs. a squirt bottle of spray-on cleaner (for the bathroom, I think). The combined baking soda and vinegar were cheaper than the one bottle and would have lasted longer. Plus, I can use baking soda and vinegar for cooking and first aid, which I can’t do with the bathroom spray cleaner.

They Aren’t Harmful to You

3. Chemical cleaners always leave my skin cracked (if I make the mistake of breathing in too hard around them if I use them) and my head aching. I’m not alone; some people react even worse to the harsh chemicals used in commercial cleaners than I do. You don’t get these reactions with natural cleaners, except for soap, which can dry out skin if you don’t rinse it off.

They Aren’t Harmful to the Environment

4. If you flush them down the drain, natural cleaners will break down easily and quickly. Also, manufacturing them isn’t harmful to the environment. I’d hate to think about what’s involved in manufacturing some of those commercial cleaners. Still, vinegar, essential oil, and alcohol are all plant-based products, while salt and baking soda are naturally occurring minerals that can be extracted with minimal environmental damage.

They Multitask

5. Many natural cleaning products can be used for multiple purposes. To take one example, my trusty bottle of dilute vinegar (a 50:50 dilution with water) with a dash of tea tree oil is good as an air freshener in the lav, for getting glass and mirrors gleaming, and for cleaning down the porcelain bits of the loo, too. You can’t say that for commercial air fresheners or glass cleaners.

They Don’t Clutter Up Your Cleaning Cupboard

6. Because natural cleaning products can multitask, you don’t need a billion bottles shoved under the sink (for homes without small children) or up on a high shelf (for homes with small children). You don’t need to keep them in the cleaning cupboard, as half of them are used in the kitchen.

Making Your Own Is Satisfying and Makes You Feel Good

7. Making your own is satisfying and makes you feel good. Making stuff that works and is cheap helps you feel more independent, clever, and resourceful. And as you’re using natural materials, you are also doing your bit to stop humans wrecking the planet—more brownie points.

You Can Personalise Your Cleaners

8. A dash of essential oil usually goes a long way towards enhancing the disinfecting powers of a home-made natural cleaner. And if you don’t like the smell of tea tree oil, you can easily substitute lavender oil. Or eucalyptus. Or pine. Or lemon. Or…

You Create Less Waste

9. If you make your natural cleaners, you probably reuse the bottles and jars you keep them in once you’ve made them. This means that you’re creating less waste, unlike the commercial cleaners, which need a new bottle each time (and even the refill packs generate more waste as you go through them quickly).

A close-up shot of small glass containers with essential oils

What Is Toxic Overload, And What Are Its Symptoms?

One of the biggest reasons for switching to natural cleaning products is that most proprietary cleaners contain toxins you will breathe in, touch and absorb almost constantly. The modern world, particularly in urban areas, contains a vast barrage of environmental toxins from industry, transport and waste. Still, the place where we are exposed to most toxins is in our own homes. Most of these toxins are ones we have introduced into our environment to get cleaner and (ironically) healthier – and paid good money for the dubious privilege.

So what? Is it really a problem? Isn’t the body tough enough to deal with toxins in the system? To a certain extent, yes. The body is good at fighting off and eliminating toxins—this is one of the liver’s primary functions. However, depending on your diet, lifestyle, and genetics, you can get too many toxins: this is called toxic overload.

Many of us take the symptoms of toxic overload for granted and just put them down to stress, a Nasty Bug Going around, genetics, or The Way Things Are. The list of toxic overload symptoms is extensive and quite surprising. Switching to natural cleaning products and a few other steps can often reduce or even eliminate these common health problems.

Symptoms of toxic overload include some or all of the following:

  • Tiredness or fatigue that won’t go away after a good night’s sleep and other healthy sleeping habits;
  • Asthma and autoimmune problems, either because the chemicals in commercial cleaners are triggering allergies or because the immune system is under-exposed to bacteria thanks to a “too clean” environment (this latter factor is known as the “hygiene hypothesis”);
  • Cancer: many of the active ingredients in commercial cleaners are carcinogens;
  • Headaches: usually caused by artificial fragrances, but any toxin can be to blame;
  • skin problems ranging from dry, itchy skin to full-blown eczema and psoriasis;
  • Hormonal issues: some cleaning chemicals affect the body’s chemical pathways, thus disrupting the hormones, which may lead to issues like depression, infertility and worsened PMS symptoms;
  • Weight problems: If the body can’t flush out toxins via urine or sweat, it will lock the culprits away where they can’t cause problems—in the fat cells. The more toxins, the more fat cells are needed to bury them.

The six worst culprits for introducing toxins into the household environment are:

  • Cigarette smoke: you know smoking will kill you, so quit – now, and with no excuses;
  • Artificial fragrances, especially the plug-in type that continually releases compounds to “bathe your house in aroma” (translation: submit you to a continual barrage of toxins);
  • Dry cleaning products: don’t dry clean clothes unless you have to;
  • Oven cleaners: Some gynaecologists suggest that pregnant women shouldn’t use these. Do you need any more information?
  • Drain cleaners: it’s corrosive enough to melt through blockages made by the hair, soap, skin particles and general goop, and require the use of rubber gloves = nasty;
  • Dishwashing powder: if you don’t have time to switch to handwashing dishes, be careful not to breathe in the steam when you open the dishwasher.

How To Avoid Toxic Overload By Simple Lifestyle Choices

  • Exercise more and work up a good sweat: sweat purges toxins from the system and improves overall health.
  • Drink more water. Fluids flush out toxins via urine, so you need plenty to get rid of the nasties. Other beverages, such as green tea, fruit juice, and even tea and coffee, will do. Green tea and fruit juice also contain detoxifying antioxidants.
  • Eat more fresh fruit and vegetables, preferably organic. This will strengthen your system to deal with the toxins you face and provide antioxidants to fix some damage. Fibre in fruits and vegetables also cleans the colon, where toxins can get trapped.
  • Relax! Stress creates toxins and makes it harder for the body to cope with the toxins already there.

About the author 

Nick Vassilev

Nick blogs about cleaning. He is a cleaning expert with more than 25 years of experience. He is also an NCCA-certified carpet cleaner. Founder and CEO of Anyclean.