Car Air Fresheners

It’s time to stop making air fresheners for cars, and phase them out just as skin-exfoliating products were, the polluting microbead kind.

Air fresheners expose us to all sorts of inhaleable toxins that come in through our lungs and skin, where they rapidly enter our blood stream.

Do you know what are the 4 common chemicals found in air fresheners?

1-Formaldehyde (linked to cancer and leukemia)

2-BHT (damages our livers and kidneys)

3-Fragrance (artificial synthetic and linked to asthma, hormone disruptions and reproductive issues)

4-Acetaldehyde (asthma, cancer, respiratory irritation and linked to reproductive issues)

Many car-riding services (Uber for example) have these. You can ask that they remove it while you are in their car. I have many times, and never had a problem.

The thing is, air freshener isn’t actually freshening anything at all. They work by spraying a whole bunch of chemicals that simply mask the smelly air, while exposing us to an inhalable toxic cocktail that bypasses most of our organs of detoxification by coming in through our lungs and skin, where they rapidly enter our blood stream and then make their way around the body.

There are several great non-toxic air freshener alternatives

-Find the source of the odor. Air fresheners don’t destroy odors; they just cover them up. Discover what is making your environment so stinky and clean it up (using non-toxic cleaners, of course).

-If the car smells bad, use nature’s air freshener – actual fresh air! You’ll be surprised at how a real breeze can improve odors.

-Use essential oils, which are naturally anti-fungal and anti-bacterial. In your car, simple adding a few dabs in discreet places like on the dashboard, under the seats where they won’t make direct contact with clothing, can be very helpful. Bonus: you can even use oils like peppermint, bergamot or lavender, which will freshen the air while also warding off motion sickness.

-Make your own natural air freshener. Just mix a few drops of your favorite essential oil with water in a spray bottle. Shake before spraying.

-Use baking soda, nature’s deodorizer. Sodium bicarbonate has the natural ability to pull odors out of the air. Vacuum the baking soda up after 30 minutes.

As for Uber, Taxis and Other Enclosed Public Spaces

Just as it’s no longer legal to smoke in public places, air fresheners and other fragrances should be part of this restriction. As a customer, we shouldn’t have to endure this kind of toxic exposure when getting a ride in a car. When it comes to taxis and ride sharing programs, if we, as the customer, are hiring this service and we can ask to have the radio, heat or air conditioning turned up, down or off, and choose if we want the windows opened or closed – shouldn’t we also have the right to a fragrance-free ride?

Be part of positive change by letting Uber know: You’re awesome @Uber, but please ban the toxic air fresheners. via (add your twitter handle here)

Partially sourced from: https://www.meghantelpner.com/