We at Homage Essentials believe in Robert Boyce's saying "Knowledge is Power, Knowledge shared is power multiplied." It is important to us to know what ingredients are in the products that we use everyday in our homes and around our families. There is so much information out there especially in the era of google. With all this information it can be confusing to weed out what is helpful and what is not. To make it simple for you, we use non-toxic ingredients in our products. Some of these ingredient names might sound complex or confusing but hopefully once we share what we know you will have more confidence in reading the labels on the back of the other products in your home.
Let's start off with two terms that get thrown around loosely with little content or explanation. Those two terms are "chemical" and "natural". Not all chemicals are bad and natural is not synonymous for safe.
The term "chemical" get a bad rap. Not all chemicals are bad! Water (H2O) is a chemical. We need water to live! We don't necessarily want "chemical free" products. There are good chemicals and bad chemicals. What we do want is products that are free from "harmful chemicals." Harmful chemicals, to name a few, that we want to avoid in our cleaning products are bleach, ammonia, and chlorine.
The second term that needs to be clarified and better explained is the description of "natural." Not all "natural" things are safe. Swiss scientist, Paracelsus says it best, "All things are poisons, for there is nothing without poisonous qualities. It is only the dose which makes a thing poison.” Evaluate all products through Paracelsus' viewpoint. It can be good to use products and ingredients derived from their natural state in nature but proceed with caution and knowledge for what natural things are safe and what natural things are harmful or deadly. Anything classified "natural" can be toxic to our bodies and environment or harmful when used improperly.
A couple other words get thrown around loosely in the cleaning world. Watch out for these words when reading product labels.
"Green" does not equal non-toxic.
"Biodegradable" does not equal non-toxic.
"Environmentally Friendly" does not equal non-toxic.
"Free and Clear" does not equal non-toxic.
Only "Non-toxic" equals non-toxic. Period.
Non-toxic means not poisonous or toxic. The term can be misunderstood. Non-toxic doesn't mean it won't hurt you if it is misused. Take care to read labels on all products and follow usage instructions.
Here is a list of non-toxic ingredients that we use in our cleaners.
Distilled Water: Distilled water is chemically pure water. It has been boiled down or xx to get out all the impurities like minerals or x out of the water.
Surfactant: Surfactants are compounds used in an array of cleaning products for their ability to lower the surface tension of water, in essence making the molecules slipperier, so they are less likely to stick to themselves and more likely to interact with oil and grease. As known as a fancy word for "soap" that breaks down grime and grease.
Citric Acid: Citric acid is an organic weak acid derived from citrus fruits. It acts as a natural stabilizer. You can find citric acid is a variety of products both household use and food.
Hydrogen Peroxide: Hydrogen peroxide is used as an antimicrobial agent and an oxidizing agent offering a lightening/whitening effect. Hydrogen peroxide breaks down into water (H20) and oxygen (O). Hydrogen peroxide is unstable in its natural form and breaks down in the presence of light. To best preserve hydrogen peroxide, storage away from light or in a dark opaque container.
Xanthan Gum: is an effective thickening agent and stabilizer to prevent ingredients from separating. It is made from the fermentation of glucose with a bacteria found in cabbage.
Fragrance: Fragrance oil(s), also known as aroma oils or aromatic oils are blended synthetic aroma compounds and/or natural essential oils. There are wide ranges of fragrance oils both synthetic and natural. We use high quality fragrance oils. Skin safe, cosmetic grade, phthalate free, no parabens.
Polysorbate 20: Its stability and relative non toxicity allows it to be used as a detergent and emulsifier to combine oil and water.
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