One aspect of green building is about reducing the toxins we use in the building process. For example our green renovations of Brooklyn brownstones use no toxic glues (Liquid Nails, for example). Our meter is that if a child can’t be in the room while we are doing it then we aren’t interested in doing it. Period.
But this does nothing for the people who move into the home and continue to consume product without knowledge of their ingredients. The world is full of toxic products. Legal, widely used, and often from companies with great reputations.
For example BPA (Bisphenol A) is a chemical present in massive amounts of products, from your bathtub rubber duckie to all the tin cans that hold your food. It is estimated that 95% of people in the US have elevated levels of BPA and it has been linked to many disorders from obesity, Neurological issues and cancer.
A good book to buy is called “Slow Death By Rubber Duck“. They will wake you and give you easy advice on how to lessen the amount of chemicals you bring into your house.
Five easy steps they outline are:
don’t use plastic containers
no tuna for pregnant women
avoid all bath products with triclosan and phthalates (read ingredients)
no purfumed body products
no non stick food products or no stain products (no stain rug spray for example)