Parent Time

What makes a home? If you're talking about the resources and products that are consumed by the average Canadian household in a year, then plenty: 10,000 kilowatt hours of electricity, almost 313,000 litres of water, 1,045 kilograms of household garbage, an estimated 560 plastic bags, plus a slew of toxins. That consumption impacts the quality of our environment and, possibly, the physical development of our children.

The research on these potential hazards is not always definitive and federal regulatory bodies, for instance, have not banned the array of natural and manufactured chemicals found in most homes. Still, parents may want to adopt a precautionary approach and find ways to reduce their children’s exposure by exploring healthier alternatives when it’s time to repaint, recarpet and replace big-ticket household items in the future.

Read on for easy ways to eliminate energy-wasting appliances and dangerous chemicals from your household, while introducing healthier habits and more natural materials.

Originally published in Today's Parent, May 2008