Many people use glass cleaners. In fact, more than $150,000,000 worth was sold in 2007 alone. Poison control centers get lots of calls, too—thousands a year. But Consumer Reports finds the safety information on many glass cleaners far from crystal clear.
Certain concentrated cleaning products are required to have warning labels on the outside of the container. Glass cleaners are not. But some companies do include safety information on their bottles. However, it's on the back of the front label…where you might have to peer around a bar code sticker and through the plastic bottle and colored liquid in order to read it.
Many glass cleaners are roughly 90 percent water, but some contain ammonia or other potentially toxic ingredients, which cause nausea or vomiting if you ingest enough of them. Glass cleaners accounted for more than 9,000 calls to poison control centers during a recent year…which topped the number of calls for more-toxic drain cleaners.
When parents call, they're usually quite frantic. They're concerned because the child is upset. They're usually crying. Their eyes are irritated. Some glass cleaners, such as Earth Friendly and Seventh Generation, do label safety information on the back of their bottles. So why don't all cleaners do that? It might come down to cost. One label simply costs less than two. That's unless you factor in the cost of safety.
The American Association of Poison Control Centers recommends keeping all cleaning products in their original containers to help avoid accidents. If your child does accidentally ingest glass cleaner, call the poison control center at 800-222-1222.
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