You all know that baking soda is used for well...baking. But did you know that it can be used for a lot of other things as well? Like perhaps...cleaning, deodorizing, or whitening teeth? But that's just the basis of them all. I'll go into more depth of how you might be using baking soda for more than those delectable goodies.
One way to use baking soda is for whitening teeth. It's abrasiveness targets plague on teeth enamel to gently lift up surface stains and help whiten the enamel of your teeth. It also helps freshen your breath with its deodorizing abilities. To use: Simply sprinkle some baking soda onto your toothbrush with toothpaste and brush as recommended by your dentist. OR you can use it as a gargle/mouthwash, just dilute a bit into a cup of water and gargle for 30-60 seconds to neutralize bad breath.
Another use for baking soda is for removing product build from your hair. Just as it lifts and removes stains for teeth, baking soda does the same thing with product build up. It simply acts as a "stripper" for your hair. To use: Blend together a palm full of shampoo (or more as needed for length of hair), and about a tsp. of baking soda, shampoo as normal, and condition if necessary. This has been known to leave hair a little dry, so I recommend doing this only when absolutely necessary. I have oily hair, so I use this about every other day or so and condition regularly between and during uses.
You can also use baking soda to prevent sweat stains on blouses and clothes. Simply sprinkle the armpits or garment with baking soda after applying deodorant, or with the deodorant itself. The basic property of the soda cuts down on the acid of sweat, and helps to block moisture flow from seeping into fabric.
Another common use for baking soda, is as a washing detergent for clothes. As for many years with the use of either liquid or powder detergent, people have been adding baking soda into the wash to help remove stains and eliminate odors in our laundry. It works quite well I might add, and does harm fabrics like bleach does. Just add about a cup to each wash load in your washer to help brighten clothes and eliminate odors.
One last common household use for baking soda is of course as I mentioned before: a deodorizer. We use this in my house quite frequently. You can sprinkle a little onto pet stains to help eliminate odors, sprinkle into litter boxes, onto carpet before vacuuming, in laundry, or just open a box and use in the refrigerator to eliminate odors from smelly foods (this also helps to prevent some foods from absorbing the taste/odor qualities of other smelly foods such as an apple with an onion).
As you can tell there are multiple uses for baking soda, and the uses go far beyond the scope that I mentioned here. If you have any suggestions for how to use baking soda, feel free to leave a comment below.
As always, have a wonderful day! :)
~Angel
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Alternative Uses For Baking Soda
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