Scented Candles Stealing Your Family's Energy?!

In a study by the University of Washington, an Environmental Engineer revealed that scented home-care products emit a variety of dangerous compounds into the air within our homes, therefore sapping the energy of us and our loved ones. Studies show that 25 popular air fresheners, candles, detergents and other home-based, scented products emit an average of 25 Chemicals—17 of which have been deemed toxic under federal laws.

Unfortunately, even the savviest shopper wouldn’t be able to spot these unhealthy products in a line-up because none of them listed the ingredients on the product labels, as these particular types of product are not required to list the ingredients (unlike personal care products & food).

Products with fragrance are hard to decipher because there’s no easy (or reliable) way to tell what is really in them. Most fragrances are a blend of chemicals, usually referred to as 'synthetic fragrances',  (most of which are never disclosed and therefore potentially harmful) & alcohol which mimic natural scents (i.e.:  Glade’s French Vanilla or Apple Cinnamon scented candles). Not to mention that when you put fire to something (i.e.: a scented candle) you are creating a chemical reaction—but that’s another post for another day.

However, this daunting information doesn’t mean that you can no longer enjoy a beautifully scented house or car; what it does mean is that you will simply have to go about it in another fashion.           

Here’s what you do: if you love the smell of an Apple Cinnamon or French Vanilla candle/spray but do not want to risk constantly inhaling unnecessary chemicals, you can try blending essential oils (which can be found online or in wholefoods).

For this example you could purchase cinnamon essential oil & along with a fruity smelling essential oil of your liking (as there is no essential oil of Apple and therefore everything Apple scented is probably constructed of a harmful mixture of chemicals that imitate the scent of real apples)—I like blood orange essential oil as it blends well with a hint of cinnamon.

You’d simply take a cotton round (or any type of un-dyed, absorbent material) and combine about 10 drops of the fruity oil w/ about 3 drops of the cinnamon (as this essential oil can have a strong scent); depending on the size of the room make several cotton rounds w/ the essential oil blend. Place the cotton rounds in window seals, near heating vents or anyplace which will allow the oil to disperse into the air better –and viola your home is now full of a beautiful scent (custom-made by you) and you know that it’s chemical-free!

The same can be done for the car-simply stick the cotton rounds under the seats or in the ashtray (if you don’t use it of course) and let the sweet smell take over. It’s that simple!