Low Tox Oven Cleaner

I am about to give in and obey my doctors by taking some pretty heavy-duty medications because of Crohn's Disease, a disease that I have had for over 20 years. This is going to really lower my immune system and I will have to be super cautious not to pick up any infections. There is no cure for Crohn's Disease unfortunately and it is a life-long problem that many of us have to deal with. There are ways, however, to give ourselves the best opportunities to keep well, and I personally believe living a low tox lifestyle is one of them.

Low tox means using more natural substances for beauty and cleaning as well as fewer chemicals in the food we eat. I am slowly transitioning all my highly toxic cleaners to natural alternatives such as Young Living's 'Thieves'. Now low tox is not going to cure me but I personally believe living with less toxic chemicals will help. Let's face it, how many diseases like cancer and Crohn's are caused by our man-made toxic world?

In my opinion, one of the most harmful household chemicals are oven cleaners. They smell disgusting and it is hard to get rid of the smell from the oven after it has been cleaned. This worries me because we cook our food after cleaning an oven that has recently been nuked!

I have read that mixing Young Living's Thieves with baking soda can clean ovens. To be honest, I was hesitant about it but I decided I would give it a go because I had a dirty oven problem; I recently moved into my late dad's house and his oven was disgusting! He was too sick in his later years to care about cleaning the oven.

You can see the photo I took below before I cleaned the oven using natural products.

Here's what I did: I sprayed undiluted Thieves onto the surface and then sprinkled baking soda and left it for half an hour. Then I scrubbed the mixture and to my amazement it worked! It did take a fair bit of scrubbing as the oven door had caked on mess. There was a pleasant odour left and now I'm willing to use it!

Here are some suggested ratios to clean your home with Thieves

• All-purpose cleaner: Combine 1 capful Thieves Household Cleaner and 2–3 cups water.

• Degreaser: Combine 1 capful Thieves Household Cleaner and 2 cups water. For heavy cleaning, use half or quarter the amount of water. If necessary, use a cloth to apply Thieves Household Cleaner undiluted. After cleaning, wipe the area with a cloth dampened with water.

• Glass and mirror cleaner: Combine 1 capful Thieves Household Cleaner, 5 drops Citrus Fresh™ essential oil blend, 1 teaspoon white vinegar, and 3 cups water.