Once we learn something is important, it is impossible to keep it to ourselves!
Nelson Mandela once said, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world”.
Teaching and educating is my passion! My desire is to stir a ‘proactive spirit’ in people regarding their choices and the danger of harmful chemicals. Many people are not aware that what they are currently using is harmful to our environment.
University of Bergen Study
The University of Bergen in Norway recently performed a study of 6000 people over a 20 year period, who had regular exposure to cleaning products. It was found that their lung function had been significantly affected as much as a person who had smoked a pack-a-day for 20 years as well as put them at a 40% higher risk of developing asthma.
The study revealed was that “the small particles from the spray [cleaners] can remain in the air for hours after cleaning. The small particles can travel deep into the lungs and cause infections and ageing of the lungs” Dr. Svanes explains. Dr. Svanes, the main author of the study, recommends “You [do] not need a lot of chemicals after all, when cleaning. Microfiber cloths may be just as effective.”
Norwex performed chamber tests to compare the number of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs or small particles) released by chemical spray cleaners and paper towel vs. Norwex Microfiber cloths and water. The results were AMAZING!!! Traditional chemical cleaners released 800 times the VOCs than Norwex products! There is no need for dusting sprays, room deodorizers, artificial fragrances, floor cleaners, all-purpose cleaning sprays… when you have a Norwex EnviroCloth and water!
Problem: Paper Towel
Let me share some information about the truth about paper towel consumption in North America… and how Norwex provides a solution.
On average, a person uses and disposes of 2,400 – 3,000 paper towels every year.
Paper towels are used in 90% of households.
The average family of 4 uses about 26 rolls of paper towels a year. That’s an annual expense of approximately $91 for a single-use, throwaway item that is clogging our landfills!
Paper towel creates 13 billion pounds of waste every year! That works out to a whopping 3,000 tons of waste daily… comparable to the weight of 1650 economy cars!!!
Most are made from virgin tree fibre and used only once.
One paper towel is often not enough for many jobs, and some brands are even bleached with harmful chlorinated compounds—not good for your family or the environment.
Residential dwellings are the largest contributor to pollution, not industrial.
Long-term exposure to many of the cleaning products you use in your home every day has cancer-causing potential.
What does it take to produce just 1 ton of paper towels? Approximately, 17 trees and 20,000 gallons of water!
In North America, we have a huge paper towel habit. 3,000 tons of paper towel waste is produced every day and accounts for the consumption of approximately 51,000 trees and 60 million gallons of water!
Paper towels, even when made of recycled materials still produce an environmental impact. The recycling process still uses water, energy and chemicals.
If everyone cut back by one sheet of paper towel per day, it would save North America 571,230,000 pounds of paper towel waste, every year. Now imagine, if, one-by-one, households began to eliminate paper towel waste altogether…what kind of impact would we see then?
Solution: 4 Norwex Cloths
Norwex is a company that provides solutions for problems like paper towel. Let me highlight a few different eco-friendly Norwex products you could use to replace your paper towel.
EnviroCloth
The EnviroCloth is Norwex’s flagship product!!! The microfiber cloth has the ability to remove 99% of bacteria from a surface when following the proper care and use instructions. It contains Norwex’s exclusive Baclock™ agent – micro silver antibacterial agent – goes to self-purify and inhibits odours from bacteria, mold and mildew growth within the cloth within 24 hours so that it is ready to use again. The microfibers in the EnviroCloth are 1/200th the size of a human hair and if unravelled, have a maximum length of more than 3 million meters (10 million feet). The splitting process that happens during manufacturing creates open spaces in the fibres and enables the cloth to lift away dust and dirt and absorb serval times its own weight in water. And it only needs water to clean; no cleaner, chemicals or sprays required.
Doesn’t that sound better than a disposable paper towel??
Window Cloths
Window Cloths are designed to be used with the EnviroCloth. Once you have cleaned a surface with an EnviroCloth, use a Window Cloth to polish it to a streak-free shine. No paper towel or window spray required. If you love clean windows, but hate how long it takes, the EnviroCloth and Window Cloth will take 50% less time to clean and leave you with better results. The Window Cloth or ‘polishing cloth’ is constructed of tightly woven Norwex microfiber with the self-purifying Baclock™ agent, is lint-free, traps dust and grime in the cloth so your surface is cleaner, only needs water so there is no “chemical muck” left behind. This cloth will change your cleaning regime.
Counter Cloths
Norwex introduced Counter Cloths as a great alternative to paper towel. They are the same size as a half-sheet paper towel, come in beautiful colours, are made from 50% recycled materials, have a super-absorbent unique new weave for quick spill clean up. These beauties are perfect for your kitchen and bathroom. They even have Norwex’s self-purifying Baclock™ agent in the cloth. Seriously, with these handy little cloths, you won’t ever grab for a paper towel again!
Napkins
For anyone who loves to use a half-sized paper towel as their dinner napkin, Norwex has an alternative for you too. On average, a family of 4 uses more than 3000 paper napkins/paper towels a year. The Napkins are made from 50% recycled materials (5 plastic bottles per set of 4) and are lovely. They come in either charcoal or peacock blue, the microfiber also has Baclock™ agent so you can use them more than once before laundering, they are quick-drying and very absorbent, plus they make your dinner table look pretty. Saving trees and dressing up dinner all at the same time… not bad.
So, what can you do?
Let me give you a challenge! Next time you start a new roll of paper towel, take a pen and write in the date inside of the roll. First, try if you can go 4 months with one roll, then 6… then try if your family can stretch one roll of paper towel to last an entire year! You can do it! Other customers have done it, I know you can do it too. Imagine with me the impact that would be realized by simply changing the way we use paper towel.
Become an Educator
Since I started my Norwex journey in 2006, thousands of Consultants have been working with me to spread the word about these amazing products. I believe Nelson Mandela’s statement about the power of education… which means, we have a lot more educating to do! Every grocery and department store has at least one aisle stocked with toxic cleaning chemicals. Only 2% of North American homes use Norwex products… we have a lot of people to educate! Join my team, become an educator and help Norwex make a difference.
Are you going to take the paper towel challenge? Leave a comment about how it went. Was it easier or harder than you thought?
Delores VandenBoogaard is an Independent Norwex Sales Consultant from Edmonton, Alberta Canada with customers and consultants throughout Canada and the United States including; New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Quebec, British Columbia, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Prince Edward Island, North West Territories and Ontario. She also has customers and team members in; Michigan, Texas, California, Massachusetts, Florida, Arizona, Missouri, Colorado, North Carolina, South Carolina, Idaho, Washington, New Hampshire, Iowa and Maine.
The first Norwex product I owned was the Window Cloth, it didn’t take me long to use it wrong. The cloth didn’t come with any instructions, so I used it with Windex. I thought I was being environmentally-friendly by not using paper towel with my Windex. Needless to say, my windows and mirrors were a mess.
The Window Cloth is now one of my favourite products and I give it as a gift to bless other homes. It is often the first product customers will try and love!
What Can It Clean?
Windows / Mirrors
Shower Doors / Glass Tables
Crystal / Jewelry
Granite Counter-tops
Stainless Steel and Black Appliances
Chrome / Knickknacks
Patio Tables
Shiny Surfaces
It is woven with the superior microfiber embedded with the Norwex exclusive BacLock™ agent. The BacLock in the cloth goes to work to self-purify and inhibits odors from bacteria, mold and mildew growth within the cloth.
How To Use:
Mist water on the surface and wipe with the Window Cloth.
For dirty surfaces, first wipe the surface with a damp EnviroCloth and polish dry with the Window Cloth.
*Note: Do not use on anti-glare coated surfaces.
Getting your windows clean quickly is not easy. Using paper towels to dry the glass around your home just adds to the problem of overloaded landfills and deforestation. In addition, many of today’s popular glass and window cleaners contain harmful chemicals like butyl cellosolve and ammonia.
Did You Know?
Butyl cellosolve is a chemical commonly found in glass cleaners. Readily absorbed through the skin, overexposure can irritate mucous membranes and may cause liver and kidney damage.
Delores VandenBoogaard is an Independent Norwex Sales Consultant from Edmonton, Alberta Canada with customers and consultants throughout Canada and the United States including; New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Quebec, British Columbia, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Prince Edward Island, North West Territories and Ontario. She also has customers and team members in; Michigan, Texas, California, Massachusetts, Florida, Arizona, Missouri, Colorado, North Carolina, South Carolina, Idaho, Washington, New Hampshire, Iowa and Maine.
Getting all of the surfaces in your home as clean as possible, as quickly as possible, can be challenging. In addition, many of today’s popular cleaners contain harsh chemicals. One would assume that since they are sold in our local stores that they were tested and are safe to use.
I was shocked to learn that; “About 80,000 new chemicals have been introduced into the environment in the last 50 years. Sadly, only about 200 of these have ever been assessed for their impact on human health.” Bjorn Nicolaisen (co-founder of Norwex)
When first introduced to Norwex, I was intrigued and excited, but my husband was the skeptic. Hearing that Norwex EnviroCloths could clean the surfaces in my home without the need for additional chemical cleaning products was foreign to me. On top of that, the claim that I could clean my home in a quarter of the time seemed too good to be true. But, I loved a clean home and was more than willing to remove the chemical cleaning products from where I was raising my young family.
What differentiates the two is how “micro” the fibers in the Norwex cloth are. The cloths available at your local store generally have a fiber size of approximately 1/6 the size of a human hair while the EnviroCloth fibers are 1/200th the diameter of a human hair. It is how “micro” the fibers are that determines the cleaning ability of your cloth. If we were to completely unravel an EnviroCloth, the 2.9 million meters of microfiber would reach all the way from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada right down to the Gulf of Mexico!
As incredible as that is, there is still more cleaning ability contained within the cloth! The Envirocloth has BacLock™ in the cloth – micro silver antibacterial agent – that goes to work to self-purify and inhibit odors from bacteria, mold and mildew growth within the cloth. This self-purification process ensures the cloth is ready to use again within 24 hours.
The Norwex Microfiber has the ability to remove up to 99% of bacteria from a surface when following the proper care and use instructions. The super-absorbent cloths pick up and trap everything that was on the surface until you rinse it out.
Our family was totally sold on the Norwex product collection when we learned the cloths were already being used to clean hospitals. It was this simple; if these cloths cleaned to a level high enough to pass the stringent testing required to be used at the hospital, they certainly were good enough for our home!
Key Benefits:
Cuts cleaning time by up to 75% by using only water.
No need for harmful chemicals.
Saves money by using only water.
Eliminates the need for paper towels, creating less waste.
Used them dry for dusting, it creates static electricity that lifts the smallest particles of dust and dirt up into the cloth and prevents them from resettling on the surfaces.
Did You Know?
Norwex Microfiber products are created in state-of-the-art factories with optimal working conditions. Check out my posts about China.
Most paper towels are bleached and then patterned with dyes. Drying your hands with them can leave your skin rough and cracked.
Warranty:
Two Year Warranty
60-Day Money Back Guarantee
As a leader, I was very selective in naming our Team. My group of consultants are located throughout North America are called: “The Solution Team.” Norwex is the solution! You’ll clean safely, quickly and thoroughly, using super-absorbent EnviroCloths. You’ll save time, money and the environment by using only water to clean your home. You will reduce landfill waste, prevent chemicals from getting into our waterways and protect your family’s health as you minimize dust, allergens and chemicals in your home!
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Delores VandenBoogaard is an Independent Norwex Sales Consultant from Edmonton, Alberta Canada with customers and consultants throughout Canada and the United States including; New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Quebec, British Columbia, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Prince Edward Island, North West Territories and Ontario. She also has customers and team members in; Michigan, Texas, California, Massachusetts, Florida, Arizona, Missouri, Colorado, North Carolina, South Carolina, Idaho, Washington, New Hampshire, Iowa and Maine.
Do crayon, marker and scuff marks decorate your walls? What about soap scum on your bathtubs and shower stalls? Many scrubbers are too abrasive, cleaning chemicals are toxic, and a cloth just doesn’t fix your problems.
I can relate. As a mother of three creative girls, I know what it’s like to feel as if I need to walk behind them scrubbing their trail as they go.
My good friend Carole’s daughter has had a love for art since the age of 3, which became evident when she decided to draw on the basement walls of their home. She told her mom she was making them look “prettier”.
It makes me laugh thinking about how children’s brains function; their imaginations are so precious and it is something I wholeheartedly believe should be encouraged, no matter what. However, freshly painted walls are also something you wouldn’t want to ruin…
Norwex’s Micro Cleaning Hand Pads are a safe and effective alternative to leading brand cleaning erasers; products you don’t want to leave lying around your kids.
These cleaning pads are eco-friendly and chemical-free, unlike many similar products.
They will not cause skin irritation or absorb toxins into your skin while in use!
This product is tough on stubborn stains, yet less abrasive than a scrubber.
Works great on easy-to-scratch surfaces such as: walls, plastic furniture, tile, and most kitchen and bathroom surfaces.
They are great for erasing scuff marks from the: linoleum floor, trim, molding, baseboards, interior consoles, and dashboards, patio furniture etc…
Works with little pressure applied.
How to Use:
Cut a piece off the pad – since it disintegrates with use.
Dip into warm water and squeeze out excess water.
Rub the surface with a light pressure.
**Not recommended for polished or glossy surfaces, or for brushed satin, dark or faux finishes. Not for use on auto paintwork.
I have a couple of favourite demonstrations for this product at my Norwex parties:
Take an old tea cup, with bad stains from tea…within seconds it is totally clean!
For customers with dimpled white-handled appliances…totally wipe them clean!
This is an inexpensive solution to the irritating stubborn stains and scuff marks around your home. Give it a try!
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Delores VandenBoogaard is an Independent Norwex Sales Consultant from Edmonton, Alberta Canada with customers and consultants throughout Canada and the United States including; New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Quebec, British Columbia, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Prince Edward Island, North West Territories and Ontario. She also has customers and team members in; Michigan, Texas, California, Massachusetts, Florida, Arizona, Missouri, Colorado, North Carolina, South Carolina, Idaho, Washington, New Hampshire, Iowa and Maine.
It is often tragedy in our lives that causes us to want to lead healthier lives; tragedy tends to bring about change. Few around the world have been fortunate enough to have been unaffected by cancer, allergies, or disease. Prior to the Industrial Revolution, cancer affected 1 in 87,000. Today, cancer is present in 1 in 3 people, and 150 chemicals found in the home are connected to allergies, birth defect, cancer and psychological disorders*
In 2000, I had my wake up call. My dad was diagnosed with cancer and passed away six weeks later. Born and raised on our family farm, we had all been blessed with perfect health. My dad’s sudden passing was a shock! We had grown our own vegetables, raised our own beef, grew chickens for meat and eggs, and drank milk straight from the dairy cows. Mom had us ‘canning and jamming’ every fall. The water in our taps ran off the local glacier. Our diet would be perfectly described as what is now often referred to as “Clean Eating”. However aside from preparing our own food, we were unaware that how we tended to some areas of the farm could be harmful to us in the long run. We stained the fences and then washed our hands and arms with farm gas, mixed fertilizer with our bare hands, and inhaled and absorbed all sorts of chemicals inside and outside of our home.
Sir Tom Blundell, Chair of the Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution, said, “Given our understanding of the way chemicals interact with the environment, we are running a gigantic experiment with humans and all other things living”. And indeed, we are. We are the human guinea pigs of many major chemical companies, and in turn, need to ask ourselves how these products will affect us in the years to come.
Research done by Dr. Dick Irwin, a Toxicologist of Texas A&M University, has proven that “Chemicals have replaced bacteria as the main threat to health. The diseases we are beginning to see as the major causes of death in the latter part of (the 1900’s) and into the 21st century are diseases of chemical origin.” Thankfully, Norwex allows to us to move forward into a brighter, healthier, and chemical-free future.
Whether you purchase your cleaning products from store aisles stocked with chemical-containing products or from a company like Norwex, it is your choice how to maintain your home and body. We all are exposed to a myriad of chemicals daily, but the only environment we can truly control is that within our own homes. Use of Norwex product is an easy way to radically reduce your exposure to chemicals within your home and ultimately improve the health of you and your family. While we cannot prevent illnesses from occurring, we can certainly be conscientious about the choices we make for ourselves and our loved ones.
It has become my mission to educate home owners that they have other options in the cleaning of their homes. I believe when consumers are taught that cleaning can be effective and efficient with the use of natural products, they will definitely choose Norwex!
One home at a time, I will spread the word. As a team of consultants we are on a global assignment to be good caretakers of this earth and to help others do the same.
Resource: The Consumer Protection Agency.
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Delores VandenBoogaard is an Independent Norwex Sales Consultant from Edmonton, Alberta Canada with customers and consultants throughout Canada and the United States including; New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Quebec, British Columbia, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Prince Edward Island, North West Territories and Ontario. She also has customers and team members in; Michigan, Texas, California, Massachusetts, Florida, Arizona, Missouri, Colorado, North Carolina, South Carolina, Idaho, Washington, New Hampshire, Iowa and Maine.
Norwex introduced Counter Cloths as a great alternative to paper towel. They are the same size as a half-sheet paper towel, come in beautiful colours, are made from 50% recycled materials, have a super-absorbent unique new weave for quick spill clean up. These beauties are perfect for your kitchen and bathroom. They even have Norwex’s self-purifying Baclock™ agent in the cloth. Seriously, with these handy little cloths, you won’t ever grab for a paper towel again!
For anyone who loves to use a half-sized paper towel as their dinner napkin, Norwex has an alternative for you too. On average, a family of 4 uses more than 3000 paper napkins/paper towels a year. The Napkins are made from 50% recycled materials (5 plastic bottles per set of 4) and are lovely. They come in either charcoal or peacock blue, the microfiber also has Baclock™ agent so you can use them more than once before laundering, they are quick-drying and very absorbent, plus they make your dinner table look pretty. Saving trees and dressing up dinner all at the same time… not bad.
