7 Ways to Detoxify Your Home

Your home is a sacred place where you rest and recharge, but it may not be as restorative to your body as you think. Chemicals lurk seemingly everywhere within our homes in everything from our personal care products to our food, but we can make healthier swaps and, in turn, reduce our contact with them. Here are seven ways you can detoxify your home and start living a bit healthier.

Replace dryer sheets with dryer balls

Dryer sheets are full of chemicals containing fragrances that can be endocrine disruptors, fatty acids that act as softening agents, and many more. These chemicals are designed to coat your clothing so the scent sticks around. However, they interact with the air to create VOCs, volatile organic compounds, that can react with the air around them to produce harmful gases. Opt for wool dryer balls, as they reduce static and soften clothing without any of the added toxins. And if you really miss the scent of dryer sheets, you can always infuse dryer balls with a few drops of essential oils — wildcrafted and organic to ensure they’re solvent-free.

Buy air-purifying plants 

The Environmental Protection Agency reports that indoor air is two to five times more polluted than outdoor air, with household cleaners, synthetic building materials, personal care products, and pesticides, among others, to blame. The same report says that Americans spend around 90% of their time indoors — either at the office, school, or at home — which adds up to a lot of time breathing in polluted air. Since so much of your indoor time is by obligation (work, school, etc.), how can you combat this? You could always buy an air purifier, but we like the greener alternatives: buying plants that are known for their air-purifying abilities. Try these varieties that are especially known for their air-purifying powers: aloe vera, spider plant, dracaenas, English ivy, and bamboo. Also, open your windows daily to let fresh air circulate — yes, even in the winter.

Use a diffuser instead of air fresheners

Air fresheners and their many forms — aerosols, plug-ins, candles, potpourri, etc. — can all pose a threat to your health since most contain fragrance comprises a slew of toxic chemicals. Unfortunately in the United States, manufacturers are not obligated to disclose fragrance and flavor ingredients in order to protect their trade secrets, so there is no way of knowing what exactly makes up each scent. Since the word “fragrance” is an umbrella term for any number of chemicals, you can’t trust what the labels say. To avoid adding even more pollutants to your indoor air, use a diffuser with essential oils.

Make your own hand soap/cleaner

A 2009 study in the journal Environmental Science & Technology showed that the average house may contain as many as 400 different chemicals. Our household soaps and cleaners undoubtedly make up a part of this, so why not swap them for a homemade version where you know exactly what you’ve put in it? We like this all-purpose cleaner recipe by The Spruce, and this one for homemade hand soap by Live Simply. If you’re not much of a DIY-er, there are a lot of store-bought products out there to choose from. Just be wary of greenwashing, read your labels, and consult sources like the Environmental Worker’s Group Database.

Install a water filter

Water filters work by using activated carbon to attract impurities and contaminants like metals, chlorine, pesticides, and organic compounds, and they’re an easy way to improve the taste and quality of your tap water. Most tap water has been treated to remove contaminants, although outbreaks can and do happen. Whether you decide to use one or not is up to you, but if you do, make sure you change the water filter within the manufacturer’s recommended time frame (even though we are all guilty of forgetting to!), since unchanged filters can become built up with bacteria. 

Swap out your vinyl shower curtain 

Using a hemp, linen, or cotton shower curtain instead of a vinyl or plastic one is an easy non-toxic bathroom upgrade. Cloth liners may be more of an investment, but they are more sustainable (you can throw them in the wash instead of tossing them out!) and they don’t emit poisonous gases like liners made with PVC do — that “new shower curtain smell” is actually a cocktail of harmful chemicals that can have both long- and short-term effects on your health. 

Leave your shoes at the door

This is the easiest way to start detoxifying your home right away: take off your shoes and leave them by the door! Shoes pick up all kinds of dirt and bacteria, and a University of Arizona study found they could track in everything from E. coli to allergens. Nab yourself a pair of cozy indoor slippers and making the switch will be seamless.

Now that you’ve purified your home, it’s time to detox your physical and mental space. Try our Body Scan meditation class or our 7-Day Detox yoga series on Alo Moves.