I cringe when I see a teacher getting the table prepped for snack time. Out come the Clorox Wipes as the whole surface is disinfected—germ free. The fact is that those germs are much less harmful than a chemical-covered table. So now these little bodies are taking in denatured ethanol, dimethyl benzyl ammonia chloride, dimethyl ethyl benzyl ammonia chloride AND over processed cheese fish. Our poor kids!
I have a recipe for you. This is a powerful disinfected that is all natural, effective, smells nice, is safe to breath and won’t give you cancer or even a headache. Make up a bottle for your kid’s teachers as a start-of-the-year gift.
Disinfectant
2 cups water
20 drops thyme oil
Mix in a 16 oz. spray bottle, shake well before each use.
Another great cleaner to use in the sinks and refrigerator is a simple mixture of 1 cup baking soda and 5 drops eucalyptus oil. Shake it up really well, sprinkle on grimy surfaces, for added cleaning power spray with vinegar and scrub clean. This is also great for toilets and bathtubs.
What is your favorite safe-for-people cleaner?
To learn more about essential oils check out my guest post at Your Natural Baby & More.
For essential oils on the go, visit Addicted to Oils.
To learn more about essential oils check out my guest post at Your Natural Baby & More.
For essential oils on the go, visit Addicted to Oils.
Thank you thank you for this timely post (at least for me)! I was about to make up a cleanser using fresh thyme- do you know if there are any differences in using fresh? It's a bit more work because you have to boil it I think, so if I can use the oil it may save me some work!
ReplyDeleteThe essential oil is WAY stronger, so it will make a more powerful disinfectant. It really depends on what you are going for in a cleanser. Both are great for your home, but you are right about the boiling and more work than drip and shake.
ReplyDeletei've been wanting to do the liver cleanse for a while now, but don't know how you administer it each morning. just drop the oils in your mouth? squeeze some lemon juice each day or keep some in the fridge? and can i do it with my young children? while nursing?
ReplyDeleteYou can keep the lemon juice for your liver cleanse in the fridge, or even freeze when lemons are abundant and just thaw the day before in the fridge. You mix one drop peppermint and one drop lemon oil with 1 tablespoon lemon juice, swirl it around some and drink. It is good for kids as well.
ReplyDeleteIt is safe while nursing, but peppermint can decrease milk supply, so be aware if that becomes a problem. I have a whole document written up on the cleanse I do. Give me your email if you want me to send it to you.
When I see the Clorox, etc. out before snack time, I almost lose my whole grain cookies. Thank you for this post and for joining us on YNBAM. We always love having our favorite cook, and Essential Oils in-house consultant!
ReplyDeletemy email is rrr622@hotmail.com thanks for the cleanse info.
ReplyDeleteWow! You are a woman of many talents! I really enjoyed your post on the other site. I have always been interested in healthy alternatives to cleaning and health. I get such bad headaches every time I use a product with bleach, and I cough like mad whenever I use Ajax or Soft Scrub. I can't wait to try out your advise on cleaning with essential oils!
ReplyDeleteStarleen
FYI- One drop of essential oil is equal to 1 lb of the plant....
ReplyDeleteHi, I'm a lurker here and love your blog! I'm also interested in the liver cleanse info. I've had 4 children in the past 5 years and would be really interested in a post on getting back into shape between pregnancies. My children have been coming every 19 mos. I haven't had too hard a time so far just eating healthy foods but this may be a problem as I start to get older (I'm 28). I'm learning lots here! My email is theresa.branch@gmail.com. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteUmm...could I ask you to email me the liver cleanse info as well? I want to try for baby #2 soon and I want to cleanse, cleanse, cleanse beforehand! I can't get off your blog, btw. It's the healthiest addiction I've ever had. I just keep making lists and more lists of future purchases and recipes to try. Thanks so much, Rachel
ReplyDeleterwj1000@gmail.com
P.S. How do you store all your grains and flours? I'd love to just buy a container set that would keep them organized and fresh - is there one you use or would suggest, or should I just buy anything I see at Target?
Do you use this for everything kitchen sanitation? Even for raw meat clean up? Is there anything that you use the "hard stuff" for?
ReplyDeletePETE is the best grade of plastic. My grains are in gallon PETE jars: http://goodlookingcook.blogspot.com/2009/02/one-grain-at-time.html
ReplyDeleteThyme oil is for super sanitation, I use it for meat, sick germs and pee. For day to day you could use lemon oil mixed the same way in a spray bottle. Lemon oil is antibacterial too, just not as strong as thyme and of coarse lemon smells so lovely.
I was wondering if you would be interested in doing a class on essential oils. Some of my family and friends would be interested. Let me know what you think!
ReplyDeleteStarleen
I could get a little class put together, is there a specific direction you had in mind?
ReplyDeleteI would be interested in all of the things that you mentioned on your blog about cleaning and what you wrote about on the natural parenting blog about using oils for preventing illness, curing illness, and detoxing. I don't know if that's too much info to cover in just one class or not, but my friends and family are interested in all of these subjects.
ReplyDeleteStarleen
Yes Starleen, as those are the things I know most about, we can cover as much as there is time for. Let's set something up.
ReplyDeleteOK. I need to get more specifics from you about how many people I need to gather together for a class to make it worth your time and effort, and also the cost and dates that you might be available. Can you email me and let me know? Thanks :)
ReplyDeleteStarleen
Can you buy "lemon oil" at Sprouts? I'm sure there is a way to make it, but I'm clueless! Also, what would the proportions be?
ReplyDeleteYou can buy it at Sprouts, though the quality is low and you would need to use twice as much for cleaning and I would not us it for anything else. Check out Ready and Well http://readyandwell.com/readyandwell/Lemon.html
ReplyDeleteTheir products are excellent as they are true therapeutic grade. These you can use for aromatherapy, bleeding and viruses. Making your own essential oil is possible, but is an elaborate, time consuming and expensive unless you have a lemon tree.
I would like to see some scientific information (published studies), showing the effectiveness of such a dilute thyme oil solution on disinfecting surfaces.
ReplyDeleteJust because it comes from a natural source DOES NOT mean it's not toxic. Over centuries, plants have developed potent toxins to protect themselves, so before you condemn something as harmless as ethyl alcohol make sure you really know whether your solution really works and whether the "natural" way isn't MORE toxic and dangerous than those "evil" chemicals.
Matt, sorry I deleted your previous comment, I thought it was spam. Feel free to add it again.
ReplyDeleteMelaleuca Wellness Company has been making this disinfectant with thyme oil for many years, which is where I got the idea to make my own and save money. They claim that it is 99.9% effective and approved by the EPA.
While we all know studies are swayed by money, it is good to have a source of "scientific" caliber when suggesting a new way for the world. knock yourself out; Current Medicinal Chemistry, Volume 10, Number 10, May 2003 , pp. 813-829(17)
As always, I am only sharing what works for me and what I feel good about. Please do your own research and make your own choice, this is a blog for goodness sakes!
Here is more research without all the mumbojumbo; http://www.rmbarry.com/research/thyme.html
ReplyDeleteAnd the safety data sheet; http://www.saferforyourhome.com/pdf/SolUGuardBotanical%208-10-05.pdf