What About Laundry Detergent?

If you would like to help care for God’s creation there are many little things that you can do, and they all add up. The little things really do make a difference. There’s no one better place to begin than another, but today I have chosen to start with laundry detergent.

I will continue to interweave little tips like these throughout my more substantial blog posts, and I hope you find them informative and useful.

Laundry detergent negatively effects the environment: “Sodium triphosphate and trisodium phosphate can make their way into the water and interfere with sea life development.  ^[10] In fact, phosphates that make their way into the water can increase the growth of toxin-producing algae which can kill plants, fish, dolphins, and other sea creatures.”

Laundry detergent negatively effects our health: “Researchers have found that detergents can disrupt endocrine function and interfere with hormone balance. ^[4]”

So what can we do? Switch laundry detergents. Compared to the name brand Tide, the Seventh Generation brand, which is plant-based (see: http://www.seventhgeneration.com/products) does not have all those harmful chemicals and is only $1 more per bottle at Target. See them at target.com here: http://www.target.com/p/seventh-generation-natural-liquid-laundry-detergent-blue-eucalyptus-and-lavender-100-oz/-/A-13221027?lnk=rec|pdpipadh1|related_prods_vv|pdpipadh1|13221027|2 AND http://www.target.com/p/tide-clean-breeze-high-efficiency-liquid-laundry-detergent-100-oz/-/A-13918062.

Now I know you might be saying $1 adds up, but isn’t $1 worth helping the planet and future generations, not to mention keeping you and your family healthy.

I look at it this way; we are all called to give, right? Well this is one way of giving that you can definitely feel good about. You can consider your extra $1 a month for laundry detergent or $12 a year a charitable thing to do.

Another way to save is by using less detergent. Studies have been done that show most people use almost twice as much detergent as they need to. And with the exceptionally clean water we have in Duluth you can use even less.  “If you put too much detergent into the wash, residue will remain on your clothes. This residue is what leads to skin irritation, rashes, endocrine disruption, and possible respiratory distress. ^[14]” 

I usually go to line 1 with small loads, line 2 with medium loads and line 3 with larger loads, never do I use a full cup of laundry. Worried about not smelling fresh? Well, unless its a natural, fragrance is actually toxic (more on that anther time), and most people will smell just fine with clean clothes and bodies and do not need to add fragrance, which is usually very overpowering.