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10 Easy Ways to Reduce the Toxic Chemicals in Your Home

May 7, 2017 by admin 13 Comments

I first became interested in chemicals in the home, when I realised the association between a flare up of eczema for Scarlett and redecorating her bedroom and chlorine in the swimming pool.  Slowly over the years as I’ve learnt more, I’ve reduced as many harsh and toxic chemicals in the home as possible.  We certainly can’t avoid them all (car fumes, smoking) and we can’t change everything at once but we can do lots to reduce them considerably in the home environment, this diminishes the burden on our endocrine (hormone) system, our liver and it can even impact weight loss, read more about this on my previous post.

My top 10 ways to reduce toxins in the home:

  1. Go natural for cleaning your home.  Most things can be cleaned in the home with a combination of vinegar, bicarbonate of soda, lemon, borax and I’m a big fan of using anti-bacterial, anti-viral essential oils.  Chemical cleaners can contain up to 90% cheap chemical fragrance and every time you spray it, you inhale these toxins into your lungs.
  2. Buy Eco Friendly No-VOC paint for decorating. There are some great suppliers that have brought out some really innovative products, after some research I found mineral based paint such as Frenchic Chic.  I recently transformed my kitchen using this non-toxic furniture paint, it’s really widely available and no vapors when painting which really makes all the difference.       
  3. Use Natural Soaps for Cleaning your Hands. Antibacterial Products have been found to be ineffective and damaging to your gut microbiome. These products are now banned by the FDA in America but marketing still makes many believe that you need to kill 99.9% of germs. You save yourself lots of money by using Castille Soap like this one, it effectively and gently cleans your hands while not wiping out all your good bacteria and ultimately this will help protect your immune system.
  4. Reduce your use of plastic.  Change over your plastic containers to glass jars such as Mason Jars or even Jam Jars.  Avoid buying plastic bottles of water where possible, instead buy a reusable metal container like this one and fill it up with filtered water for journeys, it’ll save you – money, toxins from the BPA and help save the environment of more disposable plastic, it’s a win win!
  5. Don’t use non-stick kitchen equipment.  Make sure if you do use non-stick it is still intact because these materials knows as perfluoroalkyl acid have been linked to many diseases even infertility.  I use a cast iron skillet and enameled cast iron saucepans, they’re heavy but I love them and really do stay non stick.
  6. Fill your house with house plants.  Did you know that even NASA has been researching plants for space stations for years. Plants such as aloe, spider plants, peace lilly and English ivy are known for cleaning the air of benzene, formaldehyde and trichlorethylene.
  7. Choose natural fibers in your home. Synthetic furniture now contains flame retardants called PBDE, this can make up to 30% of the weight and it is transferred easily to clothes and skin.  Better than new, buy vintage furniture no “new smell” (chemical out-gassing from new plastics etc) and you can cover it with your no VOC paint!
  8. Use natural fragrances for your home.  Most synthetic brands contain carcinogenic and endocrine disrupting chemicals which just mask the smells.  Try a natural beeswax candle or better still invest in a diffuser and some pure essential oils that will kill pathogenic bacteria whilst smelling divine and even helping to improve your mood.
  9. Buy food with very little packaging such as an organic food box.  Supermarkets are packaging more food in plastic and they often contain phthalates (pliable plastic) linked to infertility and endocrine disruption.  Lives are busy these days so getting your organic food delivered in a recycled cardboard box can be one less item to consider.
  10. Allow nature to flourish naturally in your garden.  Roundup is the most commonly used pesticide for lawns and the WHO have labelled this a probable carcinogen.  The odd daisy and dandelion doesn’t have to be unsightly and in fact we’ve been known to chuck our dandelions in a smoothie, they provide an incredible prebiotic food to your gut microbiome.

I hope this gives your some simple ideas, can you think of any more?  Please add your suggestions below I would love to hear from you.

Filed Under: Lifestyle, Uncategorized

Are toxins halting weight loss and making you sick?

January 29, 2017 by admin 38 Comments

toxins

When it comes to health and weight loss most of us consider nutrition and exercise to be key but have you considered that the chemical toxins that you come into contact with on a daily bases could be a contributing factor. Our body’s natural detoxification pathways are meant to be detoxing us all the time but when our health is compromised or bombarded with excessive toxins it becomes increasingly difficult for our detox organs to function optimally.

  • Do you consider how many toxins you put in and on your body in the home environment?
  • Did you know that chronic toxic exposure is also linked to obesity?
  • Did you know that toxins can mimic and interfere with your endocrine (hormonal) system, these toxins are called endocrine disrupting chemicals?

Chronic toxic exposure is now a leading cause of obesity, a 2012 study in the Environmental Health Journal refers to “obesogen”.  Studies have concluded that obesogens are linked to risk of obesity and type 2 diabetes.  When your liver cannot process excessive toxins in the body, as a protective mechanism, toxins are filtered to your adipose tissue (fat cells).  The National Human Adipose Tissue Survey has been studying our toxic exposure in the adipose tissue since the 60s but the consequence of this could mean that your body is holding on to fat cells to reduce the toxin burden making you sick!

Some of the Main Toxins

  1. Endocrine disrupting hormones – these can be found in plastic, pesticides, cosmetics, fragrance, cleaners, paints
  2. Pesticides – glyphophate (roundup or weedol) is used on and found in many of our foods and crops and the World Health Organisation recognises this as a probable carcinogen.
  3. Fluoride – in toothpastes and water has been now classified a neurotoxin by prestigious medical paper The Lancet
  4. Antibacterial products – 17 of the chemicals used in these products were banned by the FDA (Food and Drug Association) in the US (NOT the UK, yet!), effective September 2017.  Not only were they found to be ineffective but they were also damaging to our body’s gut microbiome, ironically damaging our immune system.

 

Toxins in our Beauty Care

The Environmental Working Group established that the average woman is using 18 personal care products a day which amounts to a shocking 168 chemicals.  60% of what goes on your skin is entering your bloodstream, absorption is 5-10x higher on the face and at a staggering 100% absorption through the armpits, endocrine disrupting chemicals have been found in body fluids, breast milk and tissue.

Just a few examples of toxins in our beauty care:

  • Formaldehyde is used as a preservative and antibacterial in shampoos and cosmetics (skin irritant and carcinogen)
  • Sodium Laurel Sulphate is used in 90% of products as a foaming agent, shown to cause eye, lung and skin irritation and when it combines with other products it can also become a carcinogen
  • Parabans used to preserve cosmetics bind to oestrogen receptors causing mimicry and hormone disruption
  • BPA (Bisphenol A) still used in many plastic containers has been linked to obesity, infertility, CVD and cancers even at very low levels.

 

The Good News

The good new is that most of these toxins can be avoided, we are in control of our home environment, we can limit our exposure and support our detoxification systems flush toxins out of the body.  Simple steps to make.

  • Make your own skincare and cleaning products – much easier that you think!
  • Use essential oils instead of perfume, it will offer additional health benefits and you’ll smell divine.
  • Buy organic produce to avoid pesticides
  • Stop using plastic containers – buy a reusable water bottle and keep your food in glass pots.
  • Source the most natural products on the market, there are some great companies now providing everything from chemical-free nail varnish to toxin-free paint.
  • Let your skin breathe, for millions of years our sensitive skin microbiome has been harnessing it’s own bacteria to keep us healthy. Reduce excessive soap and cleanliness, you’ll likely discover you’ll smell better and your skin will thank you for it!

Don’t try to be perfect and change everything at once, the real secret lies with creating awareness around what you put in and on your body.

 

Filed Under: Lifestyle

Vanessa Woozley

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