A 2011 survey by Statistic Brain revealed that the average American household spent $42 per month on household cleaning supplies. These include laundry detergent, dishwashing liquid, furniture polish, bleach, insecticides and air fresheners.

While the financial cost of keeping our homes clean may not amount to much, evidence collected by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proves that we are paying a huge price in the form of environmental degradation that results from the use of harmful chemicals in commercially available cleaning agents.

In the United States, 31,000 tons of hazardous waste is annually produced from the use of chemical cleaners in residential and industrial settings. A significant portion of this waste is not biodegradable, and many compounds degrade to even more harmful chemicals.

These affect the environment on land, sea and air. They enter the food chain and affect our health. Let's see how.

Volatile organic compounds

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are a class of chemicals that includes:

  • formaldehyde, used in furniture polish and carpet cleaners
  • 1,4-dichlorobenzene and naphthalene, used in air fresheners and deodorizers
  • d-limonene and a-pinene, used as artificial fragrances in laundry detergents

VOCs evaporate or off-gas at room temperature and react with nitrogenous oxides in the air to form ozone. Ground-level ozone leads to smog. Its lung-irritating effects are keenly felt by senior citizens, children and asthmatics during summer months when the ozone concentration in the air increases. Ozone also harms crop and vegetation growth.

Apart from this shared harmful attribute, each chemical classed under VOCs is harmful. For example, benzene and formaldehyde are considered carcinogens, having been linked to cancers of the blood cells and throat, respectively.

Phosphorous and ammonia

Phosphorous and ammonia are major water pollutants. The run-off into storm drains ends in the streams, rivers, bays, seas and oceans. Both these chemicals contribute to one of America's most extensive and funds-draining ecological problems — nutrient pollution.

Ammonia breaks down to release nitrogen. Excessive nitrogen and phosphorous in water lead to rapid growth of certain types of aquatic flora. Algal blooms are the most common example.

The phenomenon, known as eutrophication, deprives other aquatic plant forms of dissolved oxygen and sunlight, because of the algal growth covering the water surface. The disrupted balance between oxygen and carbon dioxide disturbs the breeding patterns and growth of aquatic fauna. The entire food chain is affected.

Contamination of groundwater with an excess of phosphorous and nitrogen and their compounds like phosphates and nitrates is another aspect of nutrient pollution. Children under the age of six months are at greater risk from ingesting nitrates from drinking water. The nitrates are converted into nitrites that oxidize hemoglobin and prevent the oxygenation of blood, resulting in blue baby syndrome.

With rains, ammonia in the atmosphere gets deposited in the soil. It reacts with water in the soil, increasing soil acidity. The pH of the soil thus lowered, prevents plants from absorbing nutrients such as iron, calcium, potassium and magnesium. This affects crop growth.

This list of household cleaners containing toxic chemicals has been compiled by the Environmental Working Group. Green, organic cleaners are a safer substitute for petroleum-based, commercially made cleaning agents. The ingredients in these eco-friendly cleaners degrade easily and pose little or no risk to our bodies as well as the indoor and outdoor environment.