About Debra's List

 

Start "window shopping" by choosing a category from the list in the left hand column. A double click will open a world of new possibilities for purchasing nontoxic, natural, and earthwise products of all kinds (note that subcategory lists open below most of the categories when you click on them, so click on the  subcategories too).

 

The purpose of Debra's List is to organize, make accessible, and make known the wide variety of products and services that are currently available that are free from toxic chemicals that can harm your health and the environment...and to inspire you to use them in your everday life. This doesn't mean I intend to put a link to every possible product that qualifies! Not only would that be impossible, but such a list would not make it easier for any of us to find products we are looking for.

 

What this site contains are websites I've come across that have piqued my interest and I think you will like, too. Many other websites delve deeply into a single product and that's great. But as consumers, we all are purchasing a wide spectrum of products for our everyday lives. So this list is more about variety than completeness, and quality over quantity.

 

All the links on this website have been personally chosen by me and meet the criteria I've outlined below to the best of my knowledge.

 

When choosing websites, I'm looking at what is good about their products, not searching for their faults. Personally, I have found that it works better to support the good people and businesses do rather than boycott what I disagree with. By putting attention on and supporting good works, they expand and strengthen. So every website here is being acknowledged for the good they are doing, even if they have imperfections.

 

In posting these links, I am recommending them to you consumer-to-consumer. As I continuously look for product resources for my own use, I am passing them on to you. I have done no independent scientific testing, though many of these products I have tried and use myself or have seen samples of. Some companies I have been recommending since I started writing on this subject in 1982.

 

Debra's List is a work-in-progress. It's like putting together an enormous puzzle that eventually reveals a picture of a world that cares about supporting life. I am continuously adding new links. Mark this site as a "favorite" and come visit again and again.

 

If you don't find what you are looking for, send me an email. Chances are I've got at least a few links for you and can make it a priority to post them.

 

 

Debra's List began almost thirty years ago when I compiled a resource list of nontoxic and natural products for a little book I self-published. At that time, the list of nontoxic products I could find fit on 3 x 5 cards in a shoebox. Over the years, my resource list expanded with the publication of each new book. But books could only be published every few years, and even by the time they were published the resource lists were outdated. With the publication of the new revised edition of my book Home Safe Home in December 2004, the resource list became so large, that it required a move to the internet. Thanks to the technology of the world wide web, I can now keep my ever-growing list up-to-date and quickly correct any errors.

 

 

Though there are a number of other directories that list similar products on the internet, Debra's List is different:

 

 

 

When choosing websites to include on Debra's List, I am looking for websites that meet certain criteria for being toxic-free.

 

 

These icons run across the top of each website listing. 

At the bottom of each website listing there are corresponding "Tags" links (i.e. nontoxic, recycled, etc). If you click on those tag links, you will be taken to a page with links to other websites that have the same rating, qualifer, or disclosure.

 

The first badge in the row is a good-better-better-best general rating that is used to sort the entries, with the highest rated listed first under each category.

 

This is my logic.

 

These products and businesses that really inspire me. They are on the leading edge, usually for multiple reasons, and go far beyond the ordinary in their materials or features. They are especially pure, wonderful, unusual, or creative in some way that is notable or are "best-in-class" with some exceptional features.

These products reduce many indirect exposures to toxic chemicals in the environment and also benefit the environment in other ways. Most toxic chemicals come from manmade manufactured materials. Earthwise products are made from renewable natural resources grown organically, harvested in a sustainable way, or made of recycled or reclaimed materials (recycled and reclaimed materials reduce toxics by using less energy in manufacture, thereby reducing toxic air emissions from producing energy from fossil fuel sources). They can be disposed of safely, being biodegradable for composting or recyclable. Some are manufactured using renewable energy or help us save resources when we use them. Earthwise products include organically grown food and fibers, recycled paper, products made from sustainably harvested wood, energy-efficient products, and others. 

Natural products are nontoxic products made from renewable resources or abundant minerals. I use the word natural with reluctance, because most natural products are not in their natural state, but it is the best term since products with this rating are those that we commonly refer to as "natural"--natural foods, natural fibers, natural cosmetics. The primary components of these products are natural and renewable, but they are not taken in a sustainable or nonpolluting way that maintains continuous supply or fertility of the local ecosystem ("natural" foods, for example, are grown with toxic pesticides and fertilizers). While they are generally considered safe for human use, their manufacture is somewhat less than sustainable for the environment. Often these products are called natural because they do not contain petrochemical ingredients such as artificial colors and preservatives.

 

 

Recognizing that we don't yet live in the best of all possible worlds, there will be times when there is no earthwise or natural product available. The next best choice is a product that is made from nonrenewable petrochemicals, but contains little or no toxic chemicals in the final product. Even these have some environmental benefit, being less toxic in manufacture and disposal than their more toxic counterparts. The minimum requirement for a website to be listed on Debra’s List is that most of the products they sell must be nontoxic, or the least toxic choice in that category if a nontoxic product is not available or cannot be produced. Often products that are nontoxic are made from nonrenewable resources and are manmade. Includes products made from petroleum and products made from metals. 

Qualifiers

Primary Qualifiers

Products need to qualify for at least one of these badges to be on Debra’s List:

Indicates the business sells products that are nontoxic to the end user. 

 

While my primary interest with this icon is to indicate businesses that sell nontoxic alternatives to any products--such as cleaning products, pesticides, paints, adhesives, caulk, bedding, etc--I also give this icon where the products sold are inherently nontoxic. Nontoxic products are not only healthier for the user, but often using them prevents toxins from getting into the ecosystem during manufacturing, use and disposal of the product. Since toxic chemicals are inherently antagonistic to life, eliminating toxic chemicals is a essential part of sustainability.

The way I determine if a product is nontoxic is by looking at the ingredients and methods used to make the product. Over almost three decades, I've learned to identify substances and materials that are toxic and nontoxic. I also look for certifications that indicate the products have third party testing.

 

Indicates the business sells devices that remove pollutants from water or air. 

Indicates the business sells products made from renewable resources--resources that renew themselves within a short period of time. Automobile fuel made from vegetable oil, for example, is renewable, whereas fuel made from petroleum, which takes millions of years to produce, is not. Renewable resources include plants, animals and abundant minerals (such as clay and sand). Fossil fuels and metals are non-renewable resources.

Indicates the business sells products that are created from a resource that has already been used. “Recycled” is a broad term that can include  products made from other products that have been used, discarded, collected and reprocessed made into a new product (such as recycled paper or recycled glass bottles) products made from materials “reclaimed” and used directly to make another product (such as flooring made from old barn wood, or patchwork quilts made from old clothes) Any product that is previously used or owned and sold again (such as items sold in thrift stores, antique stores, flea markets, used book stores, salvage yards, etc) Buying previously owned products eliminates the need to use resources to make a new product. Reused or reclaimed items can be high quality, beautiful, durable and valuable. Recycled, reclaimed, and reused products help reduce toxic pollution in the environment because they greatly reduce the amount of energy needed to make them (purchasing a used product as "new" to you requires zero energy for manufacture).

Indicates the business sells products that help us use less of valuable resources, thereby saving them to be available for the future. These would be products like energy-efficient lightbulbs, programmable timers, low- flow bathroom fixtures, water-saving irrigation devices, solar lighting tubes, fuel saving devices, energy-efficient windows, rain barrels, etc. Saving energy and water can save money, sometimes quite a lot. Again, these products help reduce our exposure to toxic pollution because of reduce energy needs.