Following are some of the dangerous ingredients found in household products with some of their possible effects on human health and the environment: Ammonia: burns, blindness, lung disease Arsenic: cancers, heart damage, stomach & liver problems Butane, Isobutane & Propane: burns, suffocation Chlorine: eye & skin damage, leads to dioxin formation Cresol: burns, anemia, liver and kidney damage Dioxins: cancers, skin disease, reproductive problems Hydrochloric Acid: respiratory & gastrointestinal damage Formaldehyde: reproductive and menstrual problems, cancers Lye (Sodium Hydroxide): burns, blindness, lung damage, lesions Naphthalene: anemia, cataracts, kidney & liver damage Paradichlorobenzene: liver problems, possible carcinogen Pesticides: leukemia, cancer, birth defects, reproductive problems Phenol: reproductive & development problems, burns, heart problems Phosphates: threaten aquatic systems Phosphoric Acid: seizures, abdominal & respiratory damage Sodium Hydroxide: see Lye Solvents: reproductive problems, cancers Sulfuric Acid: burns Tetrachloroethylene: probable carcinogen Note: Many of the reproductive effects are for males and females. Many of these substances contaminate groundwater, a common source of drinking water. Most of these chemicals are especially dangerous around children. Many (but not all) of the commercial products in this guide contain the ingredients listed in their categories. The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry provides ToxFAQs - a series of summaries about hazardous substances - that contain information on many of these ingredients.

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