Question from Louise Omoto Kessel

Dear Deborah,

Hi! My little boy, age 6, is sensitive to sugar and also very oral, he likes to chew on things (plastic, modeling clay, etc!). I would love to find a chewing gum that I felt comfortable giving him from both sugar and dental points of view. Can you recommend anything?

I found a chewing gum at our local coop that is called BETWEEN! Dental Gum and the package says it’s GOOD for your teeth. It has xilatol, Sorbital, malitol, glycerin, and menthol in it.

I don’t know anything about Sorbital or malitol. What can you tell me?

Love, Louise

Debra’s Answer

Sorbital and malitol are both sugar alcohols, similar to xylitol.

When I was reading your post, before I got to the end I was thinking “gum with xyylitol” so this one seems to be fine.

The only drawback I know to the sugar alcohols is that if you consume too much they can cause diarrhea. So if that occurs, cut back on the gum.

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Question from Mary Kathryn

Last week, I experienced sever itching, painful, throbbing blisters all around my toes and heels. The dermatologist said it was from an initial contact dermatitis caused by a chemical reaction. I have no idea where I came in contact with a chemical.

I love to use the Swiffer Sweep and often times, while cleaning, walk over the damp floor. I’m wondering if the contact with the wet Swiffer Sweeper floor caused my reaction. It felt like I was walking on tapioca pudding as the bubbles were irritating, itchy, painful and have now left a purplish skin behind. Hopefully, the skin color will return to pink. The druggist told me to use hot Epson salts and cortaid ointment. Just recently, I saw on the web to use cold oat meal paste ….. no wonder if hurt.

What do you think?

Debra’s Answer

Yes, there are several chemicals in wet Swiffer sheets that are irritants.

Question from sj

I have been using silicone ice cube trays for aout two weeks and when the ice cube melts in the drink, there is white particals floating in the drink. Is that from the silicone material?

Debra’s Answer

It doesn’t seem logical to me that silicone ice cube trays would release anything that would look like a white particle floating around in the water. I’ve used silicone ice cube trays on occasion and they were fine.

I have experienced water with white particles in it that I believe were minerals or some kind of sediment.

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Question from cl

We have chloramine in our water and started looking for a shower filter. I came upon one that states it has KDF and GAC filters. It is Crystal Quest CQE-SP-008. Do you think it’ll work?

Debra’s Answer

As far as I know, neither GAC (granulated activated carbon) or KDF remove chloramines. What is needed is either “catalytic carbon” or “organic activated carbon” (made from coconut shell, not coal) to remove chloramines.

I haven’t yet seen a shower filter that will remove chloramines, but this is certainly needed. If anyone knows of one, please let me know.

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Question from Fran

I am sure this is probably next to impossible but this was my last resort. My son is allergic to refined sugar and I have been baking with brown rice syrup and honey. I wanted to experiment with date sugar and carob chips but all the ones I found are porcessed in the same facility that processes tree nuts. He has a severe anafalaxsis reaction to tree nuts which is why I need to bake everything for him. He is really good about it but I feel so terrible when he would do anything for a chocolate chip cookie. Does anyone know of any manufacturer or anything else that I could use.

Thanks!!!

Debra’s Answer

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Question from KER

Hi Debra,

I was wondering if Polyester and other Petroleum based clothing give off VOCs? & if they do give off VOCs how long would it take to outgass them?

Debra’s Answer

Polyester and other synthetic fibers made from petroleum do offgass VOCs–chemicals that offgass are volatile, as in Volatile Organic Chemicals.

How long it takes for them to outgas depends on the fiber and the conditions and the amount of wash and wear. The VOCs decrease with time. I personally don’t wear them at all, regardless of age.

Question from kt

I bought a beautiful organic cotton shower curtain, but it’s certainly not waterproof and I’m trying to figure out a waterproof shower curtain liner that is 1) not vinyl, 2) not polyester 3) somewhat waterproof. We have some waterproof “wet bags” for canoeing that seem to be just the right weight and waterproofness, but looking at this material it appears to come either as silicon embedded nylon or polyurethane coated nylon. I’m trying to figure out which of these woud possibly outgass the most. Our canoe bags have no odor that I am detecting. Any thoughts on sustainable, non-toxic, yet waterproof shower curtains?

Debra’s Answer

I found the same problem with cotton shower curtains and so installed glass shower doors (see Debra’s Green Bathroom: The Shower).

I learned how to control mold on cotton shower curtains, but not how to make them waterproof.

Readers, any ideas?

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Question from Reenie

I do green cleaning and also give workshops on it. I got a call today from a former colleague. She has spilled Clinique perfume onto her bedroom carpet and the odor is so powerful that she can’t be in the room. She’s asking for a solution. She’s already tried water and baking soda.

I wonder if there’s some sort of powerful charcol granules to put down, or even if a certain brand of kitty litter might help, along with covering the area where the spilled happened with a thick canvas cloth. Or, what if I rented the Rug Doctor and used mostly vinegar and water (would I dare add a couple drops of lemongrass essential oil?)

This is a new cleanup matter for me. My friend is saying that’s the last time she uses synthetic perfumes! Thanks for any comments or suggestions.

Debra’s Answer

Readers?

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Question from Sunnyside

I’m sensitive to many chemicals, soaps, etc. Does anybody have any suggestions on how to remove odors, formaldehyde, etc. from new clothing. Any petro-chemical based detergent is definitely off limits for me. Your ideas will be greatly appreciated. Thank you,

Debra’s Answer

Readers, what is your experience?

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Question from Taylor

We are contemplating purhcasing a 7 yr old home but an inspector, using air samples, found a high mold count (7000) for Cladisporium. The crawlspace has block walls and a concrete floor and is dry and clean. A thorough visual inspection found a small area that had a light colored substance on the floor joists. How do we remove this? My wife is very sensitive to many chemicals and cannot tolerate bleach, either. Your suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Debra’s Answer

We had the mold in our crawlspace professionally removed (see Bau-Biologie: Mold Inspection and Remediation), but if you have only a small area, I would recommend using heat. Mold cannot live above a certain temperature or in dry conditions, and heat changes both.

You might want to have a professional take a look at it and see what they suggest, as you really want to handle this completely so you don’t have a bigger mold problem in the future.

Readers, any other suggestions?

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