Spring Clean Naturally – Kitchen

With spring peaking it's warm weather around the corner, many of us are starting to get the urge to do that annual routine of Spring Cleaning. This article will be the first in a series for Spring Cleaning your house naturally. Today we start in the kitchen.

More great kitchen cleaning tips can also be found in our "Vinegar and how it can be your household friend" article.

Your dishes:

• Reduce your water use while cleaning dishes by shutting off the water if you are not directly using it.


• Save on your energy bill by not drying your dishes with the heat cycle on your dishwasher. Simply run the dishes then open your dishwasher door so your dishes can air dry.


• Another great way to go green in your kitchen is by switching to low phosphate or phosphorus-free dish washing soap. Unfortunately, I can't recommend any because I have not fully tested them in my household.

Your sink and garbage disposal:

• Does your garbage disposal smell? Next time you have an orange or lemon, throw the peels down the drain and turn on the disposal. The peels will help clean and deodorize that nasty smell.


• To clean up hard water stains and soap scum, use white vinegar.


• You can also polish chrome fixtures and appliances with white vinegar.


• To remove rust stains on your sink, use lemon juice on a cloth and pour cream of tartar on the stain. Scrub.


• Baking soda is a great natural cleaner. To clean and shine your sink, pour baking soda on a damp sponge and scrub.

Kitchen counters:

• A solution of 1 part white vinegar and 1 part water is a great everyday cleaner for kitchen counters.


• For stains use a paste of baking soda. Use 3 parts baking soda and 1 part water. Allow it to sit for an hour or two then wipe clean.

Refrigerator:

• Again your solution of 1 part white vinegar and 1 part water can be used to wipe down the refrigerator.

Appliances:

• To clean your coffee maker. Run 1 cup of white vinegar through a normal brew cycle. Follow with two pots of water to rinse the vinegar.


• To clean the grease off your chrome appliances, wipe down with white vinegar.


• To clean your microwave, mix a 1/2 cup vinegar and a 1/2 cup water in a microwave safe container. Then bring it to a boil in the microwave so it steams. Then just wipe down the inside of your microwave.

Many of these cleaning solutions require white vinegar. If you or members of your family can't stand the smell of vinegar, keep in mind that as the vinegar dries the smell will dissipate. You can also dilute the vinegar in water, this will cut down on it's effectiveness on some cleaning situations but will also cut down on the smell.

There are many great commercially made "Green" cleaning products. However, I have not fully tested many of these products and would not want to recommend a product I have not tried myself. In the coming weeks and months we are planning on reviewing some products to help you become better educated on the many "Green" products available. Stay Tuned and please remember to add you comments and recommendations.

Happy Earth Day!

Happy Earth Day to all the inhabitants of this beautiful planet. What are you going to do today to celebrate? Are you going to leave your car at home and walk or ride your bike to work? Perhaps take a walk or hike through a national park? My suggestion, go for that walk. Take a minute or 30 and enjoy this earth and what it has given us and reflect on what you can do to contribute to it and help make it healthy again.

For today's post I'm going to list a few fabulous sites that can help you go green and organic. Take some time to read through them and find some great tips that you can incorporate into your everyday life. These are just a few that I myself reference frequently. If you have a site you love, please send it my way. Also, let us all know what you are going to do to celebrate Earth Day. Leave us a comment.

Organic Consumers Association - This site offers wonderful information on going organic. There are articles about going organic as well as a list of organic products.

Refill Not Landfill - Help make our Earth healthier by committing to the Refill Not Landfill campaign. Stop throwing your plastic bottles on our landfills and reduce your use of plastic bottles.

Care 2 - A wonderful community site with hundreds if not thousands of articles on how you can go green and organic. I have found this site useful for years.

Treehugger - Another site with articles and tips to help you incorporate green living into your everyday life.

Go Organic – Switch Your Milk

If you are looking for just one product to get you well on your way to living an organic life. Start with your milk.

In the United States, the use of rBGH, Recombinant Bovine Growth Hormone is still licensed by the FDA, EPA and Department of Agriculture for the use in dairy cows. rBGH is a genetically engineered, variant of the natural growth hormone Bovine somatotropin. It is used in dairy cows to increase milk production. In both Canada and Europe, rBGH is banned. In many cases this hormone is known to make cows sick. The diseases that these cows suffer from, end up in our milk as well as the antibiotics they are being treated with.

Milk contaminated with rBGH contains high levels of natural growth hormone and is thought to cause breast, colon and prostate cancer.

Genetically engineered milk is not required to be labeled as being derived from rBGH treated cows, so many Americans are not aware that they are at risk for consuming not only high levels of hormones but also pesticides and unnecessary antibiotics.

To learn more about what may be in your milk, pick up the book "What's in Your Milk" by Samuel S. Epstein M.D..

Milk labeled as organic with the USDA Organic seal are produced under strict restrictions including not being allowed to contain antibiotics, hormones, genetic engineering, radiation or synthetic pesticides or fertilizers. Take the time to read your milk labels and only buy organically produced products. In recent years, those products have become easier to find and prices have come down. Though some organic milk can be a bit more expensive than non-organic, it's worth it.

My family personally likes products made by Horizon Organic. Not only do they produce Organic Milk but also yogurt, cheese, cottage cheese, eggs, etc. They of course are not the only organic dairy producers out there. It's all a personal taste preference. So look in your dairy aisle and try a few products out. You may enjoy one organic milk over another.

What Does "Organic" Really Mean?

Do you often find yourself standing in an aisle at the market staring at products that say "Organic", "All Natural", "Made with Natural Ingredients", "Cage-Free", "Free-Roaming", etc. and wondering what it all really means? I know I do. I often wonder, are the "Cage-free" eggs the same as the "All Natural" eggs? If they say they are free of hormones and are free roaming does that also mean they are feed an organic diet? What really are the USDA organic standards?

Let's examine.

The current USDA Certified Organic standards are pretty strict. The problem that has been coming up recently in the news, is that some companies are trying to push bills that will lower the standards.

Any product carrying the USDA Certified Organic seal must contain at least 95% organic ingredients and be produced without antibiotics, hormones, genetic engineering, radiation or synthetic pesticides or fertilizers.

So that you are sure you are getting a certified organic product, look for the little green seal that says "USDA Organic".

So what's the difference between organic and all the rest?

All Natural or Natural - According to the USDA, products, especially food, can only be labeled "All Natural" or "Natural" if they contain no artificial ingredients or added colors and are minimally processed. However, this does not mean the product is organic and it also means that animal products that contain artificial hormones and genetically modified products can still be labeled "Natural".

Cage-free or Free-Roaming - These two titles can mean completely different things. A "Cage-Free" chicken simply means that the chickens are not kept in small wire cages. They are allowed in some cases to roam around a shed. A "Free-Roaming" or "Free-Range" chicken stated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture must be allowed access to the outside. Though many feel both of these scenarios are better for the chicken, it still does not mean the chickens or the eggs they produce are organic. For an animal product to be organic it must be feed an organic diet and not be given artificial hormones, antibiotics and so forth.

I guess I could really take this article on and on, regarding what every definition means. But to be safe, if you really want to start moving towards a more organic lifestyle. Look for the USDA Certified Organic seal on the products and foods you buy. Even though something says "Organic", "All Natural" and so on, it does not mean it has met those standards unless it carries the seal. Unfortunately though, many of the smaller organic companies can not necessarily afford the USDA Certification. And many of these companies operate and produce their products to that standard and sometimes higher than the standard. That's when you need to do your research. There are countless websites on the Internet where you can find help and information.

If you want to keep up on changes to the standards or read more about what it means to be organic. Subscribe to the Organic Consumers Association newsletter. It's a great resource on all things organic including a guide to shopping.

Vinegar and how it can be your household friend

For years I was like many other people when it came to cleaning the house. I used those harsh chemicals that you buy in the store, that say they are the best cleaner for this and that, and every time I would clean, especially the bathrooms I would develop horrific migraines. I always felt that having to open the window while I cleaned was a good sign that these cleaners were probably harmful to me. So I searched for a better solution and I found it, right in my kitchen.

White vinegar is an excellent alternative to using harsh cleaning products. Since it is a mild acid it helps dissolve dirt, grease and soap scum but is still gentle enough to use in everyday cleaning. Now not many people may like the idea of cleaning their entire house with vinegar. I personally happen to love the smell of vinegar (however my husband does not). So for those that don't like it, the smell will dissipate as the vinegar drys.

Here are just a few great tips and ways to use vinegar to help clean your house.

Bathroom

• Soak your shower head in full-strength white vinegar over night to remove soap scum and hard water deposits.


• Shine your chrome fixtures.


• Clean the grout of your shower. Spray full-strength vinegar on the grout and let it sit then scrub with an old tooth brush.


• Use undiluted vinegar to remove mildew and soap scum from your shower and tubs.

Dish Washer & Dishes

• Vinegar can be used to clean up detergent residue. Just run a cup of vinegar through a full cycle every month to keep fresh.


• Use to clean up soap deposits on your sink


• Clean water stains off glassware

Kitchen

• Clean and deodorize the refrigerator by washing the inside with an equal mixture of white vinegar and water.

Laundry

• Remove perspiration odor and stains on clothing by spraying full-strength white vinegar on underarm or collar before placing in washing machine.

Microwave

• My other personal favorite is cleaning the microwave. You know how gross that can get. Mix a 1/2 cup vinegar and a 1/2 cup water in a microwave safe container. Then bring it to a boil in the microwave so it steams. Then just wipe down the inside of your microwave.

Pets

• I personally use vinegar every time I clean our rabbits cage. Our rabbit is litter trained and I use it to clean up urine stains. It breaks down the urine like a champ and keeps the litter boxes fresh. Great for cat boxes as well.

Walls

• Vinegar works great to clean of stubborn stains on the walls including crayon without stripping the paint. I typically use full-strength vinegar for this job.

Windows & Mirrors

• Dillute with water and place in a spray bottle to clean windows both inside and out as well as your mirrors.

As there are so many uses for white vinegar, we will start adding them to the site and this post with a "Tip of the Day". Please feel free to submit your tips.

Wired Science . Video: What's Inside Your Fridge? | PBS

Wired Science . Video: What's Inside Your Fridge? | PBS



I just had to post this. While watching Wired Science the other day, I was fascinated by their segment "What's Inside Your Fridge?" In this episode they breakdown the ingredients of store bought Cool Whip. I think you'll be amazed too.

My advice. Buy organic heavy cream and whip it yourself. It tastes great and doesn't have all the scary ingredients.