Is your paint harming you?

People have been painting for thousands of years. Cave men and women used natural ingredients to make lasting marks on the world. Of course, modern man had to screw that all up by adding lead and chemicals into paint to help it last through a nuclear winter. So, jump to modern times: we've taken out the lead, because we knew it was bad, and added in less deformity-inducing substances called volatile organic compounds!

What are volatile organic compounds (VOCs), you ask? VOCs are chemicals in household products, including cleaning supplies, pesticides and paint, that become airborne and can cause serious health issues. The EPA found that these organic pollutants were two to five times higher indoors than outdoors.

Some common health issues associated with VOCs include irritation of the respiratory tract, eyes, nose, and throat, and depending on level of toxicity and exposure, can result in liver damage or visual disorders.

So, you've got VOCs in the home. How can you reduce exposure and keep your eyes, nose, and throat happy and healthy?

– Make sure to use cleaning solutions and high-VOC compounds in limited quantities. When you do use them, OPEN THE WINDOWS! I know it seems like a simple solution, but do it. The more air you get, the less you will be inhaling the nasty stuff.

– Use paint that's low in VOCs, and keep windows open after painting. Regular paint is high in benzene, a known cancer-causing agent, so try to use low-VOC or no-VOC paints.

– Make sure to dispose of any unwanted chemical compounds properly. Don't keep them under your sink, improperly sealed, or under the bed. Get rid of that stuff if you're done with it.

By getting rid of volatile organic compounds, you make your home a haven for happy, healthy humans. It's better for the environment, too!

Diaper Service

There are lots of babies out there, and 4 million new ones each year in the United States alone. What do babies do best? Eat, sleep, and the most disgusting and smelly of this trifecta: poop.

Where does all that poop go? In diapers, of course, unless you have some magically trained baby that can use a toilet straight out of the womb. But all those disposable diapers make a lot of disposable waste in our landfills.

So what's the alternative? Let your kid go commando and hope he learns to use the toilet in four days? That seems a bit messy. Want something more logical (and that won't get lots of baby turds on your carpet)? Cloth diapers are a great alternative.

Cloth diapers were all the rage back in the day, before plastic was invented. They come with one major problem: the average newborn poops four to eight times a day. That's over 30 diapers a week. That's a lot of diapers to wash and a lot of poop to clean up. So what's a parent to do? San Diego has some great cloth diaper services that will pick up your poopy diapers and bring you fresh clean ones.

While disposable diapers will inevitably be cheaper than a diaper service, using cloth diapers is cheaper and obviously better for the environment. Use cloth diapers for as long as you can handle them, then get some help with cleaning them!

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