Do You Have These Cancer Causing Agents At Home?
Dear students and friends,
We design our homes to be safe havens… a place where our loved ones and ourselves can feel safe and protected, a place where we are sheltered from harm, a place where we nurture and care for those who are close to us, a place in which we invest the best that we can offer to our families so that they have a comfortable life.
But sometimes, we may unintentionally bring home items that could potentially harm the very people that we love. After all, it is impossible for us to know every single detail about what is good or bad for our homes.
I personally always try to ensure the places in which I live are safe and free of harm… my dogs are like my children and the Ladrang people are my family. So I am always open to learning the latest information on how to improve the living environment for those who work, live and stay there. After all, prevention is always the best cure.
I thought this article would be helpful for all of you, as these harmful items are commonly used on a regular basis. It is important to read the labels on the products you purchase for your home.
I wish everyone to have good health and a long life so that you may practice the Dharma in this life to benefit others without obstacles.
Tsem Rinpoche
6 Cancer Causers At Home You Should Get Rid Of
We have grown to believe that our home is our castle. But things have changed long ago and nowadays our homes might be hiding more danger than safety. Indeed quite a lot of information has been shared about the infamous formaldehyde, nitrobenzene and methylene chloride – all carcinogens that can be found in everyday items such as rubber, plastic, dyes, perfumes, and shampoos.
Take a look at a few of the items you thought harmless and see the health problems they can provoke. Then make sure you take the right decision and rid your home of many cancer-causers and ensure a healthy environment for you and your family.
1. Air fresheners
Many air fresheners have carcinogens, volatile organic compounds and toxins such as phthalate esters in their formulas. A Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) study of 13 common household air fresheners found that most of the surveyed products contained chemicals that can aggravate asthma and affect reproductive development.
According to a 2008 study by Anne Steinemann of the University of Washington, all air-fresheners tested gave off chemicals regulated as toxic or hazardous under federal laws, including carcinogens with no safe exposure level. None of these chemicals, however, were listed on the product labels or Material Safety Data Sheets. As a replacement, try natural fragrances from essential oils.
2. Candles
According to a study by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), 40 percent of candles on the market contain lead wires inside their wicks. Scented candles most commonly contain lead wicks. Fragrance oils soften the wax, so the manufacturers use lead to make the wicks firmer.
A candle with a lead-core wick releases five times the amount of lead considered hazardous for children and exceeds Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) pollution standards for outdoor air, says the CPSC. Exposure to high amounts of lead may contribute to hormone disruption, behavioral problems, learning disabilities, and many other health problems.
If you want to keep your home softly lit and cozy without risking your health, go for beeswax candles with cotton wicks.
3. Art supplies
Certain art supplies like Epoxy and rubber cement glues, acrylic paints and solvents, and permanent markers contain chemicals linked to allergies, organ damage, and cancer.
Children are particularly vulnerable to toxins because of their higher metabolisms, and immature immune systems, so it pays to exercise extra care with the products they use.
4. Shampoos
Unlikely as it may sound, conventional shampoos have too many toxic ingredients. Funny as it may sound, their effects are still being researched, and there is no scientific consensus whether they cause cancer. But if you want to be on the safe side, you can use any of the myriad of handmade shampoo bars, offered on etsy.
5. Antiperspirants
Most conventional deodorants and antiperspirants contain several ingredients linked to virulent cancers. Since deodorants and antiperspirants are designed to stay on our bodies for hours, this allows the potential absorption of harmful chemicals through the skin.
6. Shower curtains
Plastic shower curtains leach toxic chemicals not only into your shower or bath, but also into the environment, emitting harmful chemicals called volatile organic chemicals or VOCs.
Reducing your contact with any of these products, in addition to conventional cleaners, will surely make your home your castle.
[Source: http://www.healthy-holistic-living.com/6-cancer-causers-home-get-rid.html?t=soe]
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While this is a scary thoughts to discover the common hazards in our homes comes from our convenient purchase of household products. Many of us know that, household products, including cleaning supplies often contain agents that can be very harmful to us and stored them safe to help protect our kids without realizing our health actually.
Thanks you for the article sharing, it’s great to understand health and wellness is not simply about diet and exercise, but be aware of the exposure to toxic that applies in our daily life. I’m aware of all the items shared and will take action to limit and remove them. If possible will try to explore further to replace with natural alternatives.
Interesting to know and be aware of these cancer causing agents at home. Thank you very much Rinpoche and blog team for sharing this article .?
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this article. The above items are the most common products that we use in our homes. Surprisingly they are the most dangerous and cancerous products to our health. It is best to use products that are natural and not synthetic. Also when we purchase a product, we need to read carefully it’s ingredients.
So, we better get rid of these cancerous productsfrom our homes before it’s too late.
Regards,
Vivian
Air fresheners, deodorants, shampoos…all innocuous stuff but the damage they cause is immeasurable…how can you put a price on the time you’ve lost once you get cancer?
Sometimes progress isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. For convenience’s sake, we’ve created a lot of shortcuts in our lives that have led to problems extending into the future that we are only just seeing today. Every day we are learning something new about how a technology may possibly kill us. 30-40 years ago, margarine was thought to be fine; 5-10 years ago, we learn that it is not.
When TV was first invented, it was touted as a modern way to spread the news and education. Thanks to TV, the Vietnam War ended much sooner than it otherwise might have, because images from the war were beamed into American homes for the first time ever, educating viewers and leading them to protest against the American government for sending troops to fight far away from home.
Yet since the advent of the TV, the number of people leading a sedentary lifestyle has increased and in fact, children are encouraged to lead such a lifestyle from a young age. This can lead to potential weight problems in the future (obviously this is an oversimplified view of the relationship). Technology has led to other modern ‘conveniences’ too, for example TV and frozen dinners with poor nutritional value. But is it really convenient if it saves you time now, but leads to physical problems later?
What I take away from all this is this – be as natural as possible. As cheesy as it sounds, our body came from the earth – it has the same composition as other organic materials – so the best thing to do for it is to sustain it with natural materials from the earth. And the other thing I took away from this is not to get so caught up and hung up about every single little thing because you never know what you’re doing or using now, that will be discovered in the future actually leads to cancer! Hehehe 😀
Having said that, the cancer-causing agents above aren’t exactly essentials and there are natural alternatives so giving them up isn’t really the end of the world…
Most of the things listed here are the things that almost everyone of us uses every day, I must say that it’s very shocking to see these items on the least. What I didn’t expect to see is actually things as simple and ordinary as shower curtains and shampoos.
Cancer is a very common disease nowadays, it’s almost as common as flu or fever. About 40% people out of all the friends and family I know have cancer, some have passed away, some are still fighting against it and some are the survivors of cancer. But unlike the olden days, cancer now can be treated with proper treatments, if we are determined and kin enough to do what is necessary to survive including dietary restriction, going for treatments and etc, there is a higher chance of surviving but still there’s no guarantee.
I don’t think that we can really stop cancer because even with the environment where we live in now, it’s not even cancer-proof per se. But we should try to stay away from these cancer-causing materials so that there’s smaller chances of getting cancer. What is important is even though we may have cancer, we should face it with a positive attitude and be disciplined to ourselves. To me, our mindset is very important, we may have a healthy body but if our minds are not, there’s no use of having a healthy body. Just for example, people who have depression. They may have the healthiest bodies, but they allow their negative minds to take charge and further destroy their lives. Life is uncertain and unfair but it’s up to us how we live it.
This article tells me that using natural things and ingredients is probably the best way to go.
Cancer seems to be a common illness nowadays. Many people whom I know who pass away had some sort of cancer. Death is inevitable and is based on our karma. If we keep creating things that affect our health, we are also creating the karma to get sick. In this case, cancer.
I looked at The American Cancer Society website and found a long list of cancer causing agents. Most items I have never heard of and we are exposed to them in one product or another. This is the karma that we, as humans, have created for ourselves in the midst of modern technology and advancement. What’s disturbing is that our governments do not put a stop to all harmful substances in products exposed to us.
The American Cancer Society explains as follows:
“What is a carcinogen?
Cancer is caused by changes in a cell’s DNA – its genetic “blueprint.” Some of these changes may be inherited from our parents. Others may be caused by outside exposures, which are often referred to as environmental factors. Environmental factors can include a wide range of exposures, such as:
Lifestyle factors (nutrition, tobacco use, physical activity, etc.)
Naturally occurring exposures (ultraviolet light, radon gas, infectious agents, etc.)
Medical treatments (radiation and medicines including chemotherapy, hormone drugs, drugs that suppress the immune system, etc.)
Workplace exposures
Household exposures
Pollution
Substances and exposures that can lead to cancer are called carcinogens. Some carcinogens do not affect DNA directly, but lead to cancer in other ways. For example, they may cause cells to divide at a faster than normal rate, which could increase the chances that DNA changes will occur.
Carcinogens do not cause cancer in every case, all the time. Substances labeled as carcinogens may have different levels of cancer-causing potential. Some may cause cancer only after prolonged, high levels of exposure. And for any particular person, the risk of developing cancer depends on many factors, including how they are exposed to a carcinogen, the length and intensity of the exposure, and the person’s genetic makeup.”
For more info about what causes cancer, please log on to:
http://www.cancer.org/cancer/cancercauses/othercarcinogens/generalinformationaboutcarcinogens/known-and-probable-human-carcinogens
Thank you Rinpoche for your kind reminder on cancer causing agents commonly found at our home.It is strange that the things that most of use daily recommended by renowned manufacturers could endanger our health in the long run.
We should consider to use naturally derived alternative to substitute the common deodorant and cleaning agents to stay healthy and refreshed. Those items could be a bit more expensive but in the long run could prevent expensive medical bills.
I was shocked after reading this article to know that the things that millions of people use everyday are actually more lethal and poisonous than they actually may seem.
Even something such as a shower curtain can increase our risk of getting cancer and release a lot of poisonous chemicals in to our home.
Though it may be shocking to see that the many household products that we use in our own homes it is at the same time hardly surprising as companies aim to maximize profits and to lower operating costs, they tend to add more toxins and chemicals and less natural ingredients in order to achieve that.
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this post.
It is a bit shocking to know that these things we use everyday can harm us and the environment.
It really surprising to find out that such harmful things can live inside stuff that we use everyday. We do not usually think that most scented candles are harmful, thus we just keep using them not knowing what these things hold. It is also quite hard to believe that shampoo’s also contains harmful ingredients, why?? Because everyone (including me) Has been using shampoo for so long that we don’t realize it!!
This is a very informative post. Thank You Rinpoche for sharing this extremely helpful article!!