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Your kids and household chemicals
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If you have an new
baby you will want to keep a clean
house, and you will find yourself
spending alot of money on cleaning supplies,
soaps and lotions.
Wash and Rinse
Your children will spend alot of time on
the floor for the first year and a half;
so what you use to clean those floors
can become important for the same reason
the chlorine exposure could be harmful;
a small amount for an adult is a large
concentration for a child.
Aunt Sue suggests that you can use
chemicals when cleaning your floors and
house, but suggest RINSING THEM WITH
CLEAN WATER AFTERWARDS. This
ensures that the area has been
sanitized; then the chemicals themselves
are removed.
Probably the last
thing you want to do after mopping the
floors is rinse them; especially since
it's probably 3 am; but this added step
can certainly reduce your child's
exposure to harmful chemicals.
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Don't splurge on special soap for the
bathroom Let's be honest. If you are at
home with the children for the first 2 years you will be changing alot of
diapers. Keep in mind that every
time your change a diaper you are
handling human waste; so it's an
excellent idea to wash your hands
afterwards. This can become
expensive on special
"anti-bacterial" soap; and is
an additional item to add to your
grocery list. Why not simply use
dish soap? It's certainly
anti-bacterial; inexpensive and can even
be "soft on your hands"
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| I just had a baby, and
have cats. I heard that this could cause Schizophrenia in my baby, is this true? |
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Sue is not sure, but it certainly brings to mind an interaction we had with our daughters Great Grandmother.
We and had traveled to the in-laws over the holidays, and they have a cat.
Granny was adamant that the baby be in another room and wanted the cat to be put outside, even though it was winter. She was deadly serious.
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An old wives tale? We are not sure but still don't have
cats and this certainly was an old wife....
There is also some research that indicates that if there is a link, it is caused by a parasite that the cats carry, which adults could be immune to.
More information
here.
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Do
splurge on laundry detergent.
There is no other time in your life that
you will have clothes that are so
dirty. Your child's clothing may
have traces of feces or yesterday's
lunch. Make sure it comes clean
when you do the wash.
Baking Soda is
your friend. Use baking soda,
non-metallic scouring pads and dish soap
to clean your pots and pans; even your
bathtub. Effective, non-toxic and
cheap.
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| Wireless
Networks |
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If you are reading this article you may be doing so on a wireless connection.
While not a "chemical" per se, wireless signals are not native elements to your
environment and while seemingly innocuous today, we feel that to assume
there is NO effect, especially around young children would be naive.
There's a reason they cover those wires and it's
not called "shielding" for nothing. Transmitting a continuous signal within a confined space
could be OK for adults but if you change the body weight to 10-30 pounds perhaps the effect COULD be more pronounced. |
Over here we are old wives, and proud of it.
While not completely AGAINST wireless networks since they are soooo handy... we feel that in a home environment
with very small children perhaps it's not the best way to go if you can
afford the extra cabling.
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Use lots of
white towels, linens and bleach.
By changing diapers you are handling
human feces. White towels are
great for changing and the bath.
While not as much fun as the colored
ones, they are more practical.
Just because you can't see the stain
does not mean that it's not there..
Extend your Zinc
Cream: Cut
it 50-50 with Vaseline. Common
technique since Vaseline is inexpensive;
zinc cream can be more than $15 per tin
depending on purity.
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