Sue Maschak was concerned that there was something wrong psychologically with her children. They had recently moved into their new home in western Pennsylvania, according to a story recounted in The Healthy Home. She had developed a nagging cough while the rest of the family complained of headaches and trouble sleeping. And the kids seemed more depressed and irritable. The Maschaks thought they were doing something wrong. Several years later, they learned it was their home. Chemical toxins escaping from the building materials became trapped inside their tightly insulated home and contaminated the air.
Today, most homes are tightly sealed to make them more energy efficient. But to save we may have sacrificed something more important── a healthy home. A tightly sealed home hinders natural ventilation, allowing toxins and pollutants to accumulate from the materials we used to build our homes to the products we use to clean them.
For the next several months, we are going to look at the health of our homes by highlighting one room each month—and this month we will start with the kitchen where we spend roughly 67 minutes of our day, according to a New York Post article. Having a healthy kitchen means storing and preparing food in a sanitary manner. It also means using eco-friendly products that will clean our kitchens and not leave behind chemical residues that will get into the food we prepare. Take a moment to do an audit of your home with the checklist we compiled. You may be surprised at what made the list and why.