During the pandemic, our disinfecting practices as a country increased dramatically, and for good reason. Unfortunately, there is increased concern in the scientific community about cleaning product ingredients contributing to a public health risk, as cleaning product manufacturers are not required to do pre-market safety testing on their ingredients and the effect of those ingredients over the long term. A study showed that daily cleaning product exposure is as damaging to adult lungs as smoking a pack of cigarettes every day. Disinfecting products often contain extremely toxic chemicals, need to be used with proper safety precautions, and are particularly concerning when we use them around children. Here’s what you need to know about how to effectively disinfect your classroom and school without exposing you, staff or children to harmful chemicals.
Force of Nature: Classroom Super Hero
We’re your classroom-disinfecting secret weapon. Unlike conventional disinfecting products, Force of Nature uses a gentle, yet effective antimicrobial called hypochlorous acid (HOCl). HOCl has been used in for disinfecting hospitals for decades and is the same substance created by your own immune system to fight infection. Force of Nature is EPA-registered and included on List N, the disinfectants approved for use against SARS-CoV-2. It’s EPA registered for sanitizing and disinfecting daycares, nursery schools, preschools, and even NICUs, so you can feel good about using it in your school to eliminate common sickness-causing germs, viruses, and bacteria. Unlike bleach and Lysol, it also contains no harmful toxins or allergens. A lot of people don’t know that children are disproportionately impacted by toxic chemicals because of 3 factors:
- Given their smaller size, they breathe, eat & drink 3 times as much per pound of body weight as adults do.
- Their typical habits like sitting and playing on the floor expose them to more risk.
- Their respiratory, endocrine and nervous systems are still developing.
Here’s how you can use Force of Nature on virtually every surface in your school to protect your teachers and students from germs without exposing them to harmful toxins.
5 Ways Force Nature Can Help You Effectively Disinfect Your School
#1 Stop Germ-Spread
Stopping the spread of sickness-causing germs is always top of mind for school administrators and educators. Force of Nature meets the EPA’s stringent germ-kill requirements and is a medical-grade EPA registered disinfectant that kills 99.9% of viruses, bacteria, mold and mildew including Staph, MRSA, Salmonella, Listeria, Pseudomonas, Norovirus, and Influenza A and is on the EPA’s List N, the disinfectants approved for use against SARS-CoV-2, the cause of Covid-19. It contains no toxic chemicals, residues or fumes and disinfects with no need to rinse.
#2 Reduce Allergens
In the US, about 40% of adults and 30% of children have allergies, which means that in schools, the cleaning product choices you make have a direct impact on the health and safety of someone with asthma or allergies. The most common cleaning product ingredients, including fragrances, dyes, preservatives, surfactants, quats and bleach, are all known allergy or asthma triggers. In fact, exposure to toxic cleaning products is one of the leading causes of allergies and asthma in children. It’s frustrating that the products you use to keep children safe from germs and allergy triggers are actually themselves harmful, triggering and exacerbating these conditions and putting them at risk – one study found that exposure to toxic cleaning products increases the risk of developing these conditions by close to 50%. The good news is that because Force of Nature doesn’t contain any chemicals that can exacerbate or trigger asthma and allergy symptoms, it’s a great solution to use around students and around teachers who struggle with these conditions.
Force of Nature cleans dirt, grease, grime, oil, sticky messes, on just about any surface from desks, toilets, and water fountains to chalkboards, windows andfloors, and it can eliminate indoor allergens to help reduce allergy and asthma triggers in your school and classroom.
#3 Save Money & the Planet
We know school budgets are incredibly tight, and that schools would much rather spend money on resources for students and staff than on cleaning products. That’s why we designed our systems to save up to 80% per oz vs typical disinfectants.
Besides reducing cleaning product expenses, Force of Nature dramatically reduces the environmental costs of typical cleaning products. We’re proud to be Carbon Neutral certified and Green Seal certified for meeting the highest standards in protecting health, ensuring clean water, preserving the climate, and minimizing waste.
#4 No Protective Gear Required
Most of us have a false sense of security when it comes to the safety of cleaning products and, as a result, do not use them with the precautions necessary to keep us safe from exposure to the harmful toxins they contain. Disinfectants, in particular, contain a laundry list of chemical ingredients that are caustic, toxic, and generally not safe to come in contact with delicate tissues like skin, eyes, and our respiratory systems. This is particularly important when children are exposed to these chemicals, whether it be during the cleaning process or even much later as a residue on recently cleaned surfaces.
Always follow the precautions on the manufacturer’s label and to wear protective gear as instructed, wear gloves and eye protection when handling disinfectants, especially disinfectant wipes, and wash your hands after use. Store products safely: poisonings from cleaning products are extremely common with over 300 children treated every year for poisoning, including from ingesting medications and household cleaners.
Disinfecting wipes are among the worst offenders when it comes to containing toxic ingredients and should never be used by children or on surfaces that they will be coming into contact with, as they pose a threat to their health.
The good news: you don’t need to use protective gear when using Force of Nature, such as gloves, masks, or eye protection, because it’s gentle enough to spray directly on surfaces without the need to rinse.
#5 Gentle on Skin (No Rinsing!)
One of the reasons you don’t need to worry about rinsing classroom, office, or playground surfaces, or wearing protective gear while using Force of Nature, because it has no fragrances, dyes, preservatives, surfactants or other ingredients that are irritants. It’s certified 100% skin-safe and best for sensitive skin by Mayo Clinic’s allergy rating system, SkinSafe. In fact, our active ingredient, Hypochlorous Acid (HOCl), is being used in wound healing and eye care products because it’s so gentle.
Learn More
We know that schools and businesses of all kinds work hard to keep their students, staff, and administrators safe. At Force of Nature, our mission is to end the compromise between cleaning and health, for people and our planet. Our appliances come in 2 sizes, Force of Nature, which makes 12 ounces at a time, and Force of Nature Pro, our system for large and high traffic spaces which makes 32 or 64 oz at a time. Both make our powerful yet gentle all-in-one formula multi-purpose cleaner, deodorizer and EPA registered disinfectant that costs up to 80% less per ounce than the top brands. We designed Force of Nature to be budget-friendly and accessible to every school that wants to reduce plastic waste and the health risks associated with typical cleaning products.
Purchasing for a large business or organization? We can customize pricing, assortment and training for you! Just click here to get started.
