This week’s weekly challenge can help set you off on the right foot and in the right direction for bringing health to this week and the many to follow.

In a recent eye-opening study, researchers from the University of Washington analyzed an array of scented products to see if they were emitting chemicals not found on the labels. These included air fresheners, laundry products, fabric softeners, personal care products, and cleaning products. Turns out, many of them were. The use of the blanket term “fragrance” in an ingredient list may be covering up the inclusion of hundreds of hidden chemicals you don’t even know you’re being exposed to.

What’s worse, many of the products tested made some sort of claim about being green, natural or organic. Even these “natural” products were found to contain toxic ingredients, some of which are known to be carcinogenic. Yikes!

These toxic ingredients can be difficult to avoid since cleaning products, laundry products and air fresheners are not required to disclose ingredients. I recommend making your own cleaning products from natural ingredients like lemon juice, baking soda and vinegar.

This week, take a look at the products you use. If they are scented, chances are they’re a toxic soup. Check your personal care products. Is “fragrance” one of the ingredients? If so, drop it and run for the hills!

Bottom line? When buying any product, look for unscented or fragrance-free versions to be sure that you are getting the purest one available.