When you purchase air fresheners, either solid disks, liquid sprays or plug-in devices, do you consider this a luxury item on your list or a necessary purchase for yourself and your home?  This may be a frivolous purchase as well as a dangerous one.  These products are most likely robbing you of good health.

Many air fresheners mask the offending odour by providing a much stronger odour.  There is a wide array of chemical substances that may be used in your air freshener, as well as the propellants in aerosol products, and you may end up inhaling these substances along with the fragrance.   Among other health risks, these substances may be numbing your nerves, thereby, affecting your sense of smell.  Consider the following:

• Common air fresheners contain chemicals which may affect human reproductive development;
• Air fresheners can be dangerous when used indoors in a small space as commonly used air fresheners may emit toxic pollutants that could be at dangerous levels leading to health problems;
• A chemical compound found in many air fresheners could be harmful to your lungs;
• A component causing great concern in many air fresheners is formaldehyde. You bet this will destroy your sense of smell while being one of the worst offenders for respiratory irritation.  Anyone  with asthma, lung infections or similar disorders may be severely affected by formaldehyde;
• By using an air freshener in your child’s room, together with an air purifier that creates ozone, the result in formaldehyde levels can be 25 percent higher than recommended. Formaldehyde is  considered a known carcinogen;
• Air fresheners – particularly those scented with pine, orange and lemon fragrances can emit harmful levels of toxic pollutants into your environment.  Repeated exposure to these pollutants and  their by-products can exceed regulatory guidelines particularly in small, poorly ventilated rooms.

Add to this list an excerpt from the Australian Clearing House For Youth Studies stating cheap air fresheners are emerging as a preferred drug for many teenagers in Australia and New Zealand.  Called “huffing”, inhaling air fresheners has caused the death of three teenagers in one month in New Zealand. 

The answer is simple.  Get back to basics.  Keep things clean.  Ensure good ventilation in your bathroom, kitchen and bedrooms.  Simply open a window or use an exhaust fan if you feel the need to clear out odours.  Try a few of the following easy tips to freshen the air:

1. You can mix 2 cups of hot water, 1/8 cup of baking soda and ½ cup of lemon juice (bottled Real Lemon works too) to make a lemon air freshener spray;
2. Wrap some cloves and a cinnamon stick in cheesecloth and place it in a pot of boiling water then let it simmer on the stove while you enjoy the aroma.  You could also use citrus fruit in a pot with water and simmer gently;
3. Burn 100% pure beeswax candles without lead wicks as they are made of all natural ingredients that can be safely burned in your home while actually purifying and cleaning the air.  Most people are unaware that lead is commonly used in candle wicks as a stiffening agent. Burning even a single lead containing candle wick can release harmful levels of lead and other metals into the air.  These metals can then find their way on to the surfaces in your home and into the lungs of you and your family;
4. You can freshen up your home by boiling a small amount of water in a pan with a tablespoon of dried mint for a minute or two. This will keep your entire home smelling fresh for some time.

If you enjoy essential oils and you would like to immediately create an uplifting, fragrant atmosphere in your home or office try a nebulizing diffuser.

Keep expensive, commercial air fresheners off your luxury or necessary purchase list.  Do not allow these products into your home where they may be silently robbing you of good health.

Tags: Aerosol Products, Air Fresheners, Commercial Air Fresheners, Common Air Fresheners