Have you ever walked into the bathroom after your other half has just used and felt like you were choking for dear life. Not because of the err natural gases left behind but because he or she had used and overused an air freshener purchased from the store.
Many of us have fallen prey to commercial air fresheners and often enjoy trying out the new and latest fragrances that hit the store shelves, but have you ever wondered what actually goes into an air freshener. In this modern-day, it is something that most homes use abundantly as it is a quick fix to freshen up the home.
Now an air freshener in my home is not a common product as I prefer to freshen up my home with natural scents from my essential oils. Diffusing essential oils is my absolute favourite way to get rid of nasty smells although I do also have candles and reed diffusers around the house. Using essential oils mean I get the added benefits of having natural anti-bacterial, anti-virus properties to help cleanse the air.
After a little research, I found that air fresheners can emit and generate a range of potentially hazardous air pollutants that can impair air quality. Even the so-called green and organic air fresheners can emit hazardous air pollutants. Air freshener ingredients are largely unknown and undisclosed, owing to regulatory protections on consumer product ingredients and on fragrance formulations. In studies, fewer than ten per cent of all volatile ingredients are typically disclosed on air freshener labels or material safety data sheets.
So, it was no surprise when I learnt that from an indoor air quality perspective, air fresheners have been indicated as a primary source of volatile organic compounds within buildings. From a health perspective, air fresheners have been associated with adverse effects, such as migraine headaches, asthma attacks, mucosal symptoms, infant illness, and breathing difficulties. There seems to be a long list of risks associated with this seemingly harmless product.
In fact, air fresheners emit over 100 different chemicals, including volatile organic compounds? Emissions from air freshener products have been studied around the world, examining multiple types of air fresheners (e.g., sprays, gels, solids, disks, oils, cartridges, diffusers, evaporators; both active and passive), the results from these studies indicate that all types of air fresheners have the potential to emit high concentrations of volatile organic compounds.
Today air fresheners are used in many spaces by individuals, industries, and institutions ranging from buildings and facilities such as offices, schools, hospitals, churches, theatres, stores, hotels, health clubs, restaurants, and restrooms; transportation such as aeroplanes, airports, cars, buses, trains, terminals, and boats; residences and care facilities, including homes, apartments, homeless shelters, detention centers, elder care and child care facilities the list goes on making it an ever-growing global market that exceeds USD 10 billion and still increasing around the world, but at what cost to our health? (Reference: sciencedirect.com)
If like myself you want fewer chemicals around your home, there are a few options. In addition to diffusing essential oils in a traditional diffuser, you can also make your own de-odorisers and air fresheners.
Here’s a DIY Baking Soda Air Freshener recipe for you to try out
You will need
- ½ cup baking soda
- 10-15 drops of essential oil ( I like Lemon or Lavender)
- 1 coffee filter
- 100ml mason jar with jar ring
Directions
Cut down a coffee filter to fit on inside of jar ring, you can use the inner lid as a guide, making it about a 1/2 inch bigger than the inner lid. You will not need the inner lid after this unless you want to store your air freshener and not use it. The coffee filter allows the air freshener to breathe and absorb odours but keeps the mixture from spilling out. Place the baking soda into a 4 oz mason jar.
Add in essential oils and the baking soda mixture together. Pop the lid on and give it a shake to mix the oils and the baking soda. Take off the lid and place the coffee filter on top of the jar, tighten the ring around the jar keeping the coffee filter in place.
To use, place in your area of choice and let it absorb odours. You may need to shake it occasionally to keep it fresh. Add more essential oils as needed.
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