SOUTHERN ILLINOIS — With the COVID-19 outbreak, many of us are taking more time and effort to wash our hands and clean up around the house more often. While keeping our environment clean is a good thing, one local health department is reminding residents to be smart about cleaning up.

Shawnna Rhine with the Southern Seven Health Department says residents are using non-traditional ways to clean, and that is doing more harm than good.

The Illinois Poison Control Center is reporting that exposures to cleaning products are up about 30 percent this year over last year because of the coronavirus pandemic.