Ready for Spring? Give Your Bathroom a Healthy Makeover!
Last updated on March 3rd, 2018 at 10:28 am
Germy toilets. Grimy showers. Cluttered cabinets. It’s easy to see why the bathroom may be one of the unhealthiest rooms in your house.
Take control of your bathroom this year by giving it a healthy makeover for spring. Some simple reorganizing, cleaning and change of habits will have your bathroom clean and sparkly in no time. Here are eight easy makeover tips from Donna Duberg, assistant professor of clinical laboratory science for St. Louis University:
Bathroom Makeover Step No. 1: Clear the clutter.
Leaving cosmetics on the counter exposes them to bacteria, which is then applied to your eyes, face and mouth. “Keep them in something covered if you do,” says Duberg. In addition, lotion bottles, toothpaste and hairbrushes give dust and other germs an additional place to settle. Too much clutter also discourages routine cleaning. Instead, stash these products in drawers and closets.
Bathroom Makeover Step No. 2: Bring toothbrushes out on the counter.
Sealing them up in a closed environment, like your medicine cabinet, encourages bacterial growth, says Duberg. If you must keep them there, try drying the toothbrush with a clean towel first. If you keep your toothbrush on the counter or sink, keep it as far from the toilet as possible to avoid any germ spray if someone forgets to close the lid before flushing. Also, whenever someone in the house has diarrhea or a respiratory illness, replace toothbrushes as soon as the illness ends.
Bathroom Makeover Step No. 3: Purge your medicine cabinet.
Get rid of medications that have expired or that you no longer need. Read labels carefully for instructions on disposal. Call the local trash and recycling service and ask about drug take-back programs. If there are no instructions or programs, mash up the drugs and mix them into coffee grounds or kitty litter. Seal them in a plastic bag or coffee can before throwing them in the trash.
Bathroom Makeover Step No. 4: Post a reminder over the toilet.
The reminder should say something like, “Always close the lid when you flush.” This is important because toilets contain more than 3 million bacteria per square inch, says Duberg. Flushing creates an aerosol that allows the germs to land on toothbrushes, counters and magazines — and anything else that’s close by.
Bathroom Makeover Step No. 5: Check the vent.
Dust, mold and bacteria can collect in vents too. When you turn on the vent, it distributes these unhealthy organisms. Give your vents a thorough cleaning or vacuuming once a month.
Bathroom Makeover Step No. 6: Wipe down the shower and tub.
And be sure to do it after each use too. Viruses and bacteria from your skin collect on these surfaces. The moist setting also provides a breeding ground for mold. Spritz surfaces every few days with a mixture made up of one part vinegar and nine parts water. Vinegar doesn’t require rinsing and is safe for children and pets. If you prefer a 10 percent bleach solution, keep in mind that it has to be rinsed off and prepared freshly every day in order to kill mold.
Bathroom Makeover Step No. 7: Wash the floors.
Wipe down the floors with the vinegar and water mix you use on the shower surfaces. Use washable rugs that are easily tossed in the washer and dryer. And don’t wear outdoor shoes in the bathroom — or anywhere else in the house.
Make Your Home Healthy for Winter
Last updated on September 12th, 2015 at 10:47 pm
With all the time spent inside during the winter, it pays to make your home a healthy sanctuary. All it takes is a handful of small changes to help protect yourself and your family against viruses and toxins, as well as boost immunity and well-being, says Dr. Frank Lipman, director of the Eleven-Eleven Wellness Center in New York City. Here’s how:
1. Winter Worry: Indoor Air Pollution
Smart solution: Houseplants
Indoor air pollution is a bigger worry in winter months because very little fresh air is coming in – meaning that chemicals released by everything from cleaning products to dry cleaning bags stay inside your home. “Plus, families are more 
likely to use fireplaces and candles, which both release pollutants into the air,” says Dr. Philip Landrigan, director of the Children’s Environmental Health Center at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City. When your immune system is distracted by these toxins, it’s less likely to fend off cold and flu viruses that come your way. The good news is: “Just one small plant can help remove pollution from 100 square feet of space,” according to Dr. Lipman. Spider plants, English ivy and Boston ferns are some of the best air-filtering houseplants.
2. Winter Worry: Musty Smells
Smart solution: Oranges
Without fresh air circulating in your house, you may be tempted to buy an air freshener or spray a deodorizer. “But they can emit harmful chemicals called particulates,” warns Dr. Landrigan. Give your house a pleasant citrusy scent by baking orange peels at 300 F for about 15 to 20 minutes, then cracking open the oven door to let the aroma spread throughout the house.
3. Winter Worry: Bacteria and Viruses
Smart solution: Slippers
You know it’s important to wash your hands. But for another source of germs, just look down….to your feet! A University of Arizona study found nine species of bacteria on people’s shoes, which can easily transfer them to tile floors and carpeting. What’s more, boot and shoe soles can track chemicals (like those from road de-icers) into your house as well! To keep your home healthy, keep a pair of slippers in a basket by the front door for each family member. Not only will they be comfier, but your house will be a lot easier to keep clean too.
4. Winter Worry: Dry Air
Smart solution: Humidifiers
Low humidity in your home can dry out nasal passages, causing cracks. Any germs and viruses that do get into your house can get stuck in the cracks, making transmission much more likely, according to research at Mount Sinai School of Medicine. A humidifier can help, so it’s smart to set humidifiers up for the entire sneezin’ season rather than waiting until you get a cold. Just keep in mind that you must empty the humidifier of water daily and dry it out before refilling, as well as do a more thorough cleaning every three days so it doesn’t spread mold or bacteria.
5. Winter Worry: Carbon Monoxide
Smart solution: Carbon monoxide detectors
This colorless, odorless gas given off by furnaces, propane stoves and portable generators sends 15,000 Americans to the emergency room every year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In fact, the CDC notes that the most accidental carbon monoxide poisonings occur in January. So if you haven’t already, install a carbon monoxide detector on each floor of your home. Be sure to include the basement, because that’s where most heating systems are and a problem can be detected there first. However, don’t place it within 15 feet of a heating system or gas-burning appliance because it may emit a small amount of carbon-monoxide on startup. And just as with your smoke detector, be sure to change the batteries every six months, suggests Landrigan.
6. Winter Worry: The Blues
Smart solution: New Lightbulbs
Lack of sunlight can trigger seasonal affective disorder (SAD), a form of depression that tends to occur in winter. Your body’s levels of melatonin, a hormone produced during darkness, may increase, causing such symptoms of depression as sleep problems, lethargy and anxiety. Fortunately, there’s an easy preventive measure you can take for that: replace your regular bulbs (or at least those in rooms where you spend a lot of time) with full-spectrum ones that mimic natural sunlight, suggests Lipman. You can pick them up at most hardware stores.
Keep Your Family Safe: How to Detect & Avoid Gas Emergencies
Last updated on September 13th, 2015 at 12:12 am
As we steamroll into the winter months and the holiday season it is almost certain that there will be more reason to use the gas supplied to your home. Whether it’s in the form of cooking more with your gas stove or using your gas furnace to heat your home or your water heater, winter is prime time for gas usage and also gas emergencies. Have you ever come home to the sound of hissing or a rotten egg smell in your home or garage? Well if you have you should know that the rotten egg smell was put there by the gas company to alert you that gas is leaking in the area and there is a problem.
What can cause gas to leak in my home? The gas coming into your home is usually piped in and can be piped to all areas of your house depending on your home. The gas leak itself may be from something as simple as the pilot light being out in your stove or water heater, or it can be as complicated as a broken gas pipe in the area due to digging or construction. Regardless of what caused the gas leak you need to be aware that this is a dangerous situation and remove yourself and everyone else with you from the situation. Next you should call 911 from OUTSIDE your home and let the fire department determine what the problem is and if necessary work with the gas company to resolve the matter. The few minutes it takes for the fire department to arrive and assess the situation could mean the difference between life and death for you or your family.
How can I know if there is gas leaking into my home while I am there? Since not all gas coming into your home has a smell, meaning there are a few types of gases and some are odorless and tasteless such as Carbon Monoxide, being aware of the signs of a gas exposure are key. If someone has been in an enclosed area with machinery or a motor and is now having shortness of breath, chest pain, red puffy cheeks, lightheadedness or any of these symptoms, remove them from the area, ventilate the area and do not hesitate to call 911, these symptoms can happen quickly and emergency attention may be needed. A good way to monitor the gas levels in your home is a gas detector. Gas detectors are an inexpensive way to monitor the levels of gas in your home and are available in combination form to detect more than just one type of gas and alert you before gas levels become life threatening. These detectors are available at any hardware store and possibly through your alarm monitoring company as well.
Where can I place gas detectors in my home to be most effective? When it comes to keeping your family safe there can never be enough, but think of placing them like you would smoke alarms. placing detectors outside of bedroom areas, any bedroom above a garage is a must as a car may be left running for some time, in areas where things are heated such as the kitchen or work shed, and the rule for a gas detector sounding its alarms is very easy to remember. If you hear it go off then you and your family get out! There are many stories in the news about carbon monoxide poisonings and people dying and had they had properly placed/functioning gas detectors it is reasonable to think some if not all of these sad situations could have been avoided.
Please be safe …and have a Merry Christmas!
How Safe Is Your Local Drinking Water?
Last updated on March 3rd, 2018 at 10:41 am
My friend, Kristin, – the most environmentally conscious person I know – is moving. Her hubby’s company gave him a few options for a transfer, and the family is weighing the pros and cons of each.
While Kristin didn’t have a hard time researching schools (GreatSchools.org), housing prices (Zillow.com) or air quality (StateOfTheAir.org), she was having trouble looking into the drinking water quality in her area. Her family filters water at home. But her two kids, like my daughter, are huge water drinkers and are always refilling their bottles in the fountains at school and the playground. Plus, they typically have water at restaurants — and most of the time free restaurant water is straight from the tap. It’s important to Kristin to live in a community with clean water so she doesn’t have to worry if her kids are quenching their thirst with cancer-causing chemicals still found in some local water supplies.
I told Kristin that I’d help her out. (And if you ever need anything, post your concern and I’ll see what I can do!) I started by contacting Cathy Milbourn from the Environmental Protection Agency. She said that every July, residents should be mailed a water-quality report from their local water supplier. The report lists the levels of common water containments. Check out the EPA website for help understanding the report.
That report is helpful, of course, if you’re already a resident. But what about if you’re like my friend Kristin and want to compare water quality in different towns? The EPA does provide links to the water-quality reports for many areas of the country here. The water supplier is required by law to do it if they serve 100,000 people or more. If you don’t see the report in the system, you can reach out to the water supplier directly for a copy of it. (Their contact info is on the EPA site.) While you’re at it, check whether your local community’s water contains fluoride, which helps build strong teeth. If it doesn’t, talk to your child’s dentist or pediatrician.
Another helpful resource: The Environmental Working Group (EWG) maintains a National Drinking Water Database, which compares thousands of communities. With just a quick glance, I was able to find out that Arlington, Texas, and Providence, R.I., boast the cleanest water; Pensacola, Fla., and Riverside, Calif., have the worst. Fascinating! Take a peek and also read the EWG’s tips for safe water here. How does your community fare?
Why Are There So Many Recalls on Kids’ Products?
Last updated on July 21st, 2018 at 08:45 pm
I’m checking my email on my iPhone 4S (don’t you love Siri?) and click on “an important message” from Build-A-Bear Workshop. I think it has something to do with my daughter Kate’s online game account. Nope. It says that one of the stuffed animals I bought has been recalled because parts of it present a choking hazard and that I should bring it back to the store for an exchange. I look at the picture, and sure enough, I have seen that bear before … on Kate’s bed.
I’m actually trying to decide whether I should kidnap the bear and return it to the store (will she ever miss it among the pile of other teddies?) when I scroll further down my email. More bad news: Pottery Barn Kids sent me an email about the bed I bought for Kate three years ago. It says several canopies have fallen down on children and urges me to remove it immediately while I wait for replacement parts. What the heck! I think she’ll notice that the top of her bed is missing!
I appreciate getting recall notices. I really do. I don’t want my daughter playing with dangerous toys, sleeping on a hazardous bed or eating contaminated food. But, geez, why couldn’t they get it right the first time? I vent to Nychelle Fleming of the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), the agency that tracks all the nonfood recalls and advocates for stronger safety standards: “How widespread is the problem?”
Fleming shoots me off a list of the recalls for the last month: rattles (choking hazard), lunchboxes (problems with the cool gel), desk chairs and stools (lead paint), gas grills (fire hazard), even bike helmets (don’t meet standards to prevent injury). In the first three weeks of January, in fact, there were nearly 20 different types of products recalled, representing almost 1/2 million items sold. Honestly, with as much stuff as we have in our house (send me your de-clutter tips!), it’s no wonder I don’t own more recalled items. Fleming actually thinks I might. “Do you check regularly for recalls?” she asks.
I confess; I don’t. I knew about the stuffed bear and the canopy because the companies sent me emails. More and more businesses, she says, retain purchase records and alert consumers to a problem. In addition, Fleming thinks I should also fill out product information cards on items I buy. I often resist 
doing this — I get plenty of junk mail already — but she says a recent law prevents companies from doing anything else with the info except contacting you if something goes wrong. Of course, she says the CPSC also posts all the recalls on its home page, CPSC.gov. And for food recalls, you can look at Recalls.gov/Food.
The CPSC doesn’t think there will be a drop in recalls anytime soon — standards are higher, and reporting of injuries is better than ever — so it’s just something we’ll all have to deal with. Grrr. But at least so far in my experience, companies are trying to make things right. Kate got a cute new bear, and Pottery Barn Kids is sending a repairperson to my house to fix the hardware on the canopy. And with the millions of dollars recalls must be costing big businesses, it’s certainly in their best interest to make their products safer the first time around.
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PedSafe Editor’s Note: If you’d like to check if a product you’ve purchased for your child has been recalled, we have a “Recalled Product Search Tool” that we host on our Innovations page that will enable you to search the CPSC database
Beware of Falling Furniture
Last updated on March 3rd, 2018 at 11:11 am
Be honest. Most of us do not consider the furniture in our homes or even the television to be dangerous to our children. The kids run and play and laugh and occasionally knock over a chair or bump into a desk or fall off the furniture but that seems to be the extent of our worry when it comes to furniture. Well according to a new study furniture related injuries are on the rise and if your kids are anything like mine, we have some work to do.
According to the study conducted by the U.S Consumer Product Safety Commission, most furniture tip-over-
related injuries occurred among children younger than 7 years of age and resulted from televisions tipping over. More than one quarter of the injuries occurred when children pulled over or climbed on furniture. Children ages 10-17 years were more likely to suffer injuries from desks, cabinets or bookshelves tipping over. Head and neck injuries were most common among younger children, while children older than 9 years were more likely to suffer injuries to the lower body.
Despite warnings from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, the number of injuries involving televisions and other furniture tipping over onto children has increased in this country since the early 1990s.
“There was a more than 40 percent increase in the number of injuries during the study period, and the injury rate also significantly increased during these years,” said study senior author Gary Smith, MD, DrPH, director of the Center for Injury Research and Policy at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. “This trend demonstrates the inadequacy of current prevention strategies and underscores the need for increased prevention efforts.”
So what can we as parents do? Parents can minimize risks to children by placing televisions low to the ground and near the back of their stands and strapping televisions and furniture to the wall with safety straps or L-brackets. Purchasing furniture with wide legs or with solid bases, installing drawer stops on chests of drawers and placing heavy items close to the floor on shelves will also help prevent tip-overs. Additionally, parents can reduce a child’s desire to climb furniture by not placing attractive items, such as toys or the remote control, high on top of furniture or the television.
Caregivers and even those of us in the emergency medicine field should be aware that furniture tip-overs are an important source of childhood injury and that education geared towards simple prevention steps will decrease the number of injuries to children associated with furniture tip-overs.”
