Like many parents, I have “green potential.”  In my desire to do what’s right for both the health of my family and the environment, I tend to quickly adopt small changes like buying more organic produce and stepping up recycling efforts. But I guiltily put off the larger ones as they often seem pricey and overwhelming to a parent like me who is both on a budget and short on time. 
But with spring, the season where everything around us is “going green,” right around the corner, I’m feeling inspired to incorporate healthier, more eco-friendly products and habits into my household.  If you too are among the green at heart, read on for expert recommendations—from spring cleaning to backyard maintenance—and encourage your family to live up to its “greenest potential.” 

It Is easy Being Green

A greener home needn’t be a time-consuming or costly undertaking, and in some cases it can actually be cheaper to be green. For instance, you can make your own cleaning products out of inexpensive household items (rather than buying expensive name brands. Additionally there’s a cost-savings that comes when families start instilling a sense of environmental responsibility in their children and everyone works together to create a more energy-efficient household.

But perhaps the most pressing reason to green your home is to realize the health benefits to your family, as children are physiologically more susceptible to the harmful effects of chemical contaminants found in many of the products that are currently in our homes.   

“Children are uniquely vulnerable because they drink more water, eat more food and breathe more air per pound,” explains Leonardo Trasande, M.D., M.P.P, co-director of the Children's Environmental Health Center at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City. “This means that their dose of chemical exposure is much higher.  Their organ systems are just developing, and an injury caused by an environmental exposure can have permanent and/or lifelong consequences.”

Patti Wood, executive director of Grassroots Environmental Education in Port Washington, a non-profit organization that educates the public about the links between common environmental toxins and human health, stresses the importance of minimizing exposure in areas where children sleep, play and eat. She offers the following suggestions for improving the quality of your child’s surroundings.

Greening the Spring Cleaning
Choose healthier ways to clean.  “Many common household cleaning products contain toxic chemicals that can be inhaled and absorbed through the skin when used and then leave a toxic residue on surfaces where your child eats or plays,” Wood says.  She recommends products that are bio-based, offer fragrance-free versions and don’t use artificial fragrances, brands such as Ecover and Seventh Generation.  “Or make your own green cleaners using common household items such as baking soda, white vinegar and lemon juice.” For directions to assemble a green cleaning kit see the source in our sidebar.

Air out the house during warmer weather.    “Indoor air is 100 percent contaminated with cleaning products, and today’s more energy-efficient homes don’t leak heat, but also don’t let out contaminants,” explains Wood. 

Also, avoid air fresheners, odor eliminators and scented candles, which contain chemicals that linger in the air and create a breathing hazard, especially for children with asthma.  “A house smells nice by simply keeping it clean and opening windows,” explains Wood.

Redecorating Alternatively

If you’re considering redecorating your child’s bedroom or playroom, Wood notes that many materials and finishing products contain hazardous chemicals known as volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that can “outgas” or vent fumes for weeks or even months inside your home.

“These chemicals are typically found in synthetic carpet and padding, furniture made from particleboard, and finishing products such as wallpaper, paints, stains, floor adhesives and sealants,” she says.
 Consider the following when purchasing these items:

• Buy solid wood furniture.  “The VOC formaldehyde is commonly found in plywood and particleboard,” explains Wood.   If new solid wood furniture isn’t within your budget, consider buying used. But always check old painted furniture for lead using a lead-detection kit, available at most paint and hardware stores.
• Use VOC free paint, which is now offered by most major manufacturers, or milk paint, which Wood notes “is the safest paint because it’s made the same way it was 300 years ago, from milk powder and organic color pigments.” 
• Ideal flooring options include wood, tile, cork or bamboo and organic cotton or wool area rugs. “Synthetic carpeting is made of materials that can be harmful to your child’s health,” says Wood. “Formaldehyde and other VOCs commonly found in carpeting carpet backing, padding and glues, emit toxic fumes, which can last for weeks or months after installation.”

Greener Kids’ Spaces

According to Wood and Jill Schwartz, a representative from LI Green (a not-for-profit corporation whose mission is to improve the energy efficiency of Long Island’s homes and to educate the consumer in green issues), parents should consider creating greener, healthier spaces within the four most child-centered areas of your home: bedroom, family/playroom, kitchen and yard. Here are their suggestions.

In their bedroom:

• Choose a solid wood or metal bed frame to avoid the VOC’s commonly found in furniture made from plywood and particle board.
• Purchase an organic mattress with a latex or foam core that’s free of flame-retardant chemicals. 
• Select organic bedding and curtains made from natural fabrics like cotton, wool and linen that are free of stain- and water-resistant chemicals.  If this isn’t possible, wash items several times before using, first with baking soda and white vinegar and then in detergent.

Get the kids involved by letting them pick from an array of organic bedding and décor items.

In the Family Room/Playroom:

• Choose latex- or foam-filled upholstered furniture that hasn’t been treated with stain-resistant chemicals.
• Avoid plastic storage bins and toys made from polyvinyl chloride (PVC) which is widely recognized for its toxicity.  Use fabric or canvas bins or baskets for storage, and purchase plastic toys that are labeled phthalate-free or PVC-free.
• Energy-efficient light emitting diode (LED) bulbs are a safer option than compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFL’s).  “CFL’s contain a small amount of mercury so only use them in lighting fixtures that are safe from accidental breakage by children,” Wood says.

Get kids involved by buying fabric or canvas toy storage bins and letting them decorate using fabric markers, paints and stamps.  

In the Kitchen:

• Use a water purification system, such as Carbon Filters, Reverse Osmosis, Distillation and Hybrid Systems, to remove contaminants including microorganisms (bacteria and parasites), toxic minerals (such as cadmium and lead) and organic chemicals (including fertilizers and pesticides) in drinking water.   
• Use glass and stainless steel for cooking and storing food. “Plastic storage containers may contain chemicals that can leach into food and liquids,” says Wood. “Ongoing studies of the chemicals contained in plastics bearing the recycling codes #1 (PETE), #3 (PVC), #6 (PS), and #7 (often polycarbonate or PC) show that ingesting even trace amounts of these chemicals can be harmful.”  
•  Choose stainless steel sports bottles and sippy cups.  “Scratched plastic surfaces will leach chemicals more readily and may also harbor bacteria,” says Wood.  “But if plastics are your only option, look for those labeled as BPA-free or phthalate-free.”

Get the kids involved by enlisting their help in sorting through plastic storage containers and discard any that contain codes #1, #3, #6 or #7 on the bottom.

In the Yard:

• Use organic lawn care products. Wood says children are particularly at risk (to chemical exposures) as they naturally want to play outside on lawns, where they can be exposed to toxic pesticides via skin absorption, inhalation and accidental ingestion through typical hand-to-mouth behavior. 
• Incorporate simpler, chemical-free methods for lawn care.  Schwartz suggests aerating the lawn; seeding heavily (more lawn means less ability for weeds to grow); planting different varieties of grass (making it less prone to bugs); and avoiding overwatering or overcutting.
• Be leery of older wooden playground equipment, furniture and decks that may have been treated with chromated copper arsenate (CCA) – a known human carcinogen - to prevent them from rotting.  According to Wood, if the equipment can’t be removed or replaced, the wood should be sealed with several coats of water-based latex paint or oil-based sealant to stop the chemicals from leaching.

Get the kids involved by planting, caretaking and harvesting an organic garden together.

It’s important to remember that most of the changes mentioned here simply require behavior modification, which for most people doesn’t happen overnight, and that every small step we take does make a difference. “Green is a lifestyle that should come naturally overtime,” says Schwartz.  “Small, gradual changes add up and it all falls into place.” 

Making greener choices is as much about educating our children as it is about health and environmental benefits.  “Kids are our future adults and if we can instill a sense of respect for the environment and an understanding of how and why it’s so important to protect our fragile ecosystems, as well as how important it is to protect our own health, then they can begin to undo some of the mistakes our past and current generations have made,” says Schwartz.   (See our sidebar for more tips to help instill green-living concepts in your children).

Maureen Heaney has designated her 6-year-old daughter as “energy monitor” of their East Northport home.