Make your own Cleansers

•••Harmful or fatal if swallowed
•••Use only in a well-ventilated areas
•••Causes severe burns on contact

When I became aware of poisons in everyday products, I went on a search for cleansers I could make at home. There are a lot to choose from that work well, not always as good as what we've become 'addicted' to using, though. How clean is 'clean' and how much is over-kill? How much poison do we absorb with each cleaning? How much of the over spray have we inhaled over the years? How many of us actually put on rubber gloves before we tackle a cleaning job?

Baking soda, salt, lemon juice, cornstarch, club soda, ammonia (disinfects), castille soap (free of additives), borax, white vinegar (deodorizes) and hydrogen peroxide are all good to use for cleaning and sanitizing. If you use bleach, never mix it with anything except water. For an All Purpose solution that will clean, deodorize and cut grease, mix about 1/4 C Baking Soda with 1/2 C White Vinegar, which makes a small amount to use for a cleaning project without having to worry about storing left overs.

A cup of white vinegar added to the wash cycle does wonders for your laundry, especially for the Stinkies. Speaking of stinkies...for the bathroom, two parts Borax and one part lemon juice mixed together can be used as a Toilet Bowl cleaner. Cornstarch sprinkled on your carpets acts as pick-me-up between shampoos. Leave it on for about 20 minutes, then vacuum. (I wonder if that would work for my hair, too? or on my dog for that matter! but I better not try to vacuum the mutt.)




My bathroom is finished in cedar. I made my own oil to treat it with. I combined olive oil with vegetable oil (50/50 mix) to which I added several drops of cedar, lemon and cypress essential oils. I used a soft cloth to rub the oil blend into the cedar boards. Once a year I re-oil the wood to maintain it's natural beauty. The oil has a pleasant scent, too.

Personal hygiene products are full of additives and poisons, too. Now the argument is that these ingredients in small amounts are not harmful, but I would like to point out it's the build up over the years of using these lotions and potions that becomes harmful in one way or another.

Take toothpaste and flouride for example. Flouride is a poison. I don't want to add that to my existing gum disease (was it part of the problem? and what about flouridated city water?) I make my own tooth powder consisting of a blend of betonite clay, tea tree oil, pepperment oil, salt crystals, stevia powder (to sweeten a bit) and MSM powder. I use a coffee grinder to mix it all together which helps dispurse the oils. Just place about a half teaspoon of powder mix in palm of hand, moisten the toothbrush, dip it in powder mix and brush as usual. Now if I could only FIND the recipe to give you the measurements of the stuff used to make it!  I also use a store-bought oil mixture that really helps reduce the severity of my gum disease. It's called Denti-zyme and it is made specifically for periodontal hygiene (says so on the label, I didn't come up with That myself!)  While we're on the subject of teeth, here's a link for a choice of natural toothache relief.  And Here are some other good natural tooth cleaning recipes.

I use minimally processed shea butter to mix with cocoa butter and vitamin E oil as a base for body lotions. Granted, I use the microwave to melt the butters, but I don't think that bothers the elements. At least I haven't run across any warnings regarding the practice. I haven't got making body butters and lotions down to an art just yet, so I can't sell my lotions, heck, I probably couldn't give 'em away! But they work for me! My favorite store-bought oils are made by Home Health, especially Almond Glow Jasmine Skin Lotion-it smells divine! I use them in my concoctions. They are free of parabens, preservatives, artificial fragrances, mineral oil and petroleum.

I have tried natural shampoos and rinses but I just can't get that soft anti-static finish that store-bought conditioners give my hair! I end up getting a bottle of Herbal Essence shampoo and add my own oils to it, rosemary, lavendar and tea tree. In a bottle of store-bought conditioner I add apple cider vinegar to feel better about it! Geesh! My hair is thin, very thin, and I have 3 major cow licks that won't behave without me trying to get them to curl the opposite direction. I am still experimenting on natural hair care! I guess that will wait for another posting session.

Cheap Remedies... but do they work?

Have you heard about Baking Soda Cures? Well, I just did and I'm hear to tell ya about it!

I'm sure a lot of you have a box in your frig for odor control, and some use it to brush their teeth, maybe even a little in the armpits for more odor control? And who hasn't used it for indigestion on occasion?

What I recently read posted on Torah Women was about its ability to alkalize the body.

The folks at Arm & Hammer recommended doses for colds and influenza back in 1925 were:

• Day 1 -- Take six doses of ½ teaspoon of baking soda in glass of cool water, at about two hour intervals
• Day 2 -- Take four doses of ½ teaspoon of baking soda in glass of cool water, at the same intervals
• Day 3 -- Take two doses of ½ teaspoon of baking soda in glass of cool water morning and evening, and thereafter ½ teaspoon in glass of cool water each morning until cold symptoms are gone

I am willing to try this next time I feel a bug coming on and I will let you know how it works for me!

According to Arm & Hammer’s dosing instructions, we're not exceed seven doses of ½ teaspoon per day, or three doses of ½ teaspoon daily if you’re over the age of 60... and not to use the maximum dosage for more than two weeks. I guess there's only so much alkalizing the body can take!

Here's a link for some indepth medical information.

Here is some info from the above link:

Materia Medica, pharmacology and Therapeutics (Bastedo, Page 88) clearly outlines these rules to follows when taking Arm & Hammer Baking Soda:

“The effect of an alkali in the stomach will vary according to the nature of the stomach contents 
at the time of administration. In the resting period (after food is digested) sodium bicarbonate merely dissolves mucus and is absorbed as bicarbonate into the blood, to increase its alkalinity directly.

“In the digestive period it reduces the secretion of gastric juice, neutralizes a portion of the hydrochloric acid, liberates the carminative carbon dioxide gas, and is absorbed as sodium chloride.“In cases of fermentation or ‘sour stomach’ it may neutralize the organic acids and so result in the opening of a spasmodically closed pylorus (the opening between the stomach and the small intestine); while at the same time it acts to overcome flatulency (accumulation of gas in the stomach and bowels).

“The time of administration must, therefore, be chosen with a definite purpose. Usually for hyperchlohydria (excess of acid) one hour or two hours after meals will be the period of harmful excess of acid.  “A dose at bedtime tends to check the early morning acidity, or a dose on arising cleans the stomach of acid and mucus before breakfast.” Whenever taking a bicarbonate solution internally the soda should be dissolved on cold water.