Question from SL

Does anyone have actual experience with either the Essentia all latex natural memory foam beds (debraslist.com/essentia) or Euro-Flex latex beds (www.euro-flex.com)?

In addition to chemical and scent sensitivities, comfort is key as I am underweight due to illness and have a lot of pressure point and spinal pain.

Thank you so much to all contributors!

Debra’s Answer

Readers?

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Question from dalilah61

I purchased a pillow from essentia and it had a horrible odor. It was the classic pillow and very pricey ($199). When I contacted the company, they told me that they do not return pillows and to air it out. I aired out the pillow for over a week and could not sleep on it because the odor was so strong and smelled like chemicals. The woman I spoke with assured me in our many conversations they do not use any harmful chemicals in their products despite it smelling like it does.

They eventually took back the pillow and sent me another one (the forma spa) which was better, but still had a strong smell to it. I aired it out for a week and purchased a dust mite cover with the hope that it would mask the smell. It helped, but it was not 100%.

I have had the pillow now for months and I no longer notice an odor. I really like the forma spa pillow as it is very comfortable, supports my neck and does not get hot to sleep on. I had considered purchasing their mattresses, but they do not offer financing and if the pillow reeked for so long, I can’t even imagine how bad the mattress would smell.

I would suggest considering this if anyone is very sensitive to smells. While I do not have chemical sensitivity, I am like a blood hound when it comes to odors and I could not tolerate having my face/olfactory senses that close to something that smelled so bad to me all night.

Debra’s Answer

I contacted Essentia about your comment, as it didn’t sound right to me that you said the pillow smelled like chemicals. Here is their response:

No chemicals are used to make their mattresses or pillows. They are made from 100% natural latex and essential oils. I asked about any odor from their essential oils, and was sent this response:

I think if the pillow smelled like chemicals, it picked up chemicals along the way during shipping. I’m glad you persisted and got a replacement pillow and that you are happy with it. It’s always a good sign to me when a company is willing to make things right with the customer.

www.debraslist.com/essentia

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Question from Mary Marston

Hi Debra, I purchased a stick vacuum by Germ Guardian for occasional use when I don’t want to drag out my regular vacuum. The dirt cup has Silver Clean technology to help fight the growth of odor-causing baceria and mold, according to their website.

By the time I realized what that meant, I had used the vacuum for a few minutes and didn’t feel I could return it. I am presuming it blows silver nanoparticles into the air but perhaps it does not.

Do you feel the nanosilver is safe? Would it be safe to use this vacuum for a few minutes occasionaly, perhaps every few months? Should I not use it at all and get rid of it? Or should I use it without hesitating and not worry about it?

I’d appreciate your thoughts about this.

Debra’s Answer

I went to the Germ Gardian website and it said:

What this means to me is that the interior of the dust cup is lined with silver particles. It doesn’t say that silver particles are emitted into the room. I think it controls bacteria in the vacuum.

This certainly is not clear.

I personally stay away from products with nanotechnology of any kind.

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Question from Shauna87

I am interested in finding out if anyone has done any testing on Emile Henry Cookware. I did read on your site that back in 2008 someone tested a lasagna pan with some sort of metal meter and it did test positive which saddens me because their website does say the glaze has NO lead and cadmium which is better than lead-free which, from what I have read here means there legally can still be some lead in it. I thought about getting Xtrema which according to tests does not leach anything and does meet CA Prop 65 but is not lead free according to the manufacturer. Don’t want to take that chance. Thank you for any help out there!

Debra’s Answer

I think the reason Xtrema may have said their cookware is not “lead-free” is a legal one. There is no lead added to their ceramic material, but since lead is ubiquitous in the natural environment, it is not possible to guarantee anything is “lead-free”. If you are looking for cookware or anything else that has 0.000000 lead in it, you’re not going to find it.

I’ve been using Xtrema for a few years now and like it a lot. I have no concerns about toxic anything leaching from it. My health has improved during that time period. So I am not concerned and feel confident recommending it.

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Question from Natalie

I want to try oil pulling, but would like to buy a toothbrush sanitizer to use afterwards. I found one called UVZ Health Systems ESA302 Wall Mount Family Toothbrush Sanitizer at amazon. Do you think this is a good sanitizer? Since there’s lots of toxins that I will be brushing out of my mouth when oil pulling I figured I should probably buy something to kill the bacteria. Thanks for any info.

Debra’s Answer

I personally don’t think it’s necessary to have a big plastic box to sanitize your toothbrush. And it may not even be necessary to sanitize your toothbrush. I don’t and I have no dental problems.

A dental website says:

So unless you have an infection, there’s no need to sanitize.

I’ve done oil pulling too, and my understanding is that it is pulling toxins out of your body, which are not necessarily bacteria. I think a good rinse of your mouth is the most important thing, and you can also rinse or soak your brush in hot water.

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Question from HEG

In 2 weeks I am moving into an apartment that was painted with traditional latex paint in May (about 2.5 months prior to my move-in date). I was wondering if anyone could estimate how long this paint may be off-gassing for and if there is anything I can do to seal in the VOC’s, like apply a sealant to the walls or paint over with a no-VOC paint like Mythic? Any suggestions would be much appreciate. Thank you.

Debra’s Answer

Well, that paint should be offgassed by now, especially since it’s summertime.

In general, you don’t want to seal in VOCs, you want to evaporate them out. Heat will do that, so the solution would be to turn up the heat and “bake” it out.

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Question from Molly

My husband and I have gone through 2 organic latex mattresses and were not satisfied with either of them. Both made claims to be similar to the traditional memory foam mattress. Both ended up leaving permanent impressions where my husband would lie only after a few months. He is 6’3 & 200 lbs. He is fed up and so am I. I was thinking of going with an organic spring mattress, but my husband found this the Eco Memory Foam Toppers at Costco.com.

Do you know anything about it? From this product description, do you think it sounds safe?

Traditional memory foam mattress toppers and pillows conform in the presence of your body heat and mold to your body shape, relieving pressure points while improving circulation. Now, EcoMemoryFoam mattress toppers and pillows accomplish these things and also use new technologies to create additional benefits.

Functional Benefits:

EcoMemoryFoam is more open, with greater air flow, producing a cooler night’s sleep
Toppers are ”Ready for Immediate Use” – Packaged with the Cover Already Installed
EcoMemoryFoam mattress toppers and pillows are part of the first ever bio-based memory foam consumer product line in North America for those consumers who are committed to sustainability and environmental responsibility
Pillows have patented shoulder relief construction for the ultimate in softness and a better night’s sleep

Environmental Benefits:

Debra’s Answer

Their explanation is more than a little confusing.

There is only one company that I know of that actually makes a plant-based memory foam: Essentia. When I couldn’t get anyone on the phone at Costco.com, I wrote to them and asked if they were making mattresses for Costco.

They responded with this link to their research into “eco-foam.” It totally agrees with what I’ve found to be true: most eco-foams, as I’ve written here before, contain only a small percentage of plant-based material, the rest is the same toxic polyurethane as in regular mattresses. Read more about this at:
www.myessentia.com/research/soy-memory-foam.

They don’t sell a topper, but you could ask…they might be able to make you one.

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Question from andreawk

I was thrilled to discover Maggie’s soap nuts after reading about them on your website.

After about a month of use, I reluctantly gave up. I had a few problems, and maybe you can help me figure out a solution.

I have a new HE top-loading washer. What I found was that the brown from the soap nuts made my water slightly brown–not a dark, gross color, but still it changed the color of the water. This happened in cold as well as hot water.

I tried using fewer nuts, but it didn’t change this and then there were zero suds. I know that soap nuts are low-sudsing, but it’s my understanding that there should be some suds, right?

I tried adding a few nuts (in the cloth bag) to a small amount of hot water first and then adding that to cold water, but the small amount of water turned brown too. Hasn’t anyone else noticed this?

It seems to me that the reason that the soap nuts don’t work so well with whites isn’t because there aren’t any whitening additives in the nuts but because the water is discolored! And I’m not too thrilled with the idea of washing dark clothes in discolored water either.

Debra’s Answer

Well, I’ve been using Maggie’s Soap Nuts since they first came out and I’ve never had that problem. I’m stumped too.

Readers, any ideas about what’s going on here?

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