We live in an incredibly toxic world. It seems no matter what you do, you cannot avoid exposure to harmful chemicals, compounds, and nano-toxins in your food, water, and the very air you breathe. It’s everything you own too. Numerous studies link these agents to cancer, Alzheimer’s, learning disabilities, miscarriage and a host of other illnesses, conditions, and complications. (Note that this article contains my affiliate links for products.) Let’s face it – we all live in a toxic home!
Scientists once thought babies were protected by the placenta but now research has found that’s not the case. A 2005 study done by the Environmental Working Group (EWG) in collaboration with Commonweal found “an average of 200 industrial chemicals and pollutants in umbilical cord blood,” and a total of 287 chemicals in the 10 babies tested. That’s scary! But there IS a solution…
There are ways to safeguard your family from these threats. Here are 100 ways to detox your life, your home, and your family:
DETOX YOUR KITCHEN
- Stop eating canned food
- Avoid MSG
- Don’t eat foods with artificial food coloring or preservatives
- Buy nontoxic products for your home and personal/beauty care. I have recommendations for you!
- Eat certified organic whenever possible. Here are some of the most frugal choices for eating organic.
- Avoid GMO food. Check out my frugal tips resource page.
- Eat Project Non-GMO Verified if not
- Eat the Clean 15 produce choices if not
- Avoid everything on the Dirty Dozen produce list
- Eat whole food
- Quit eating fast food
- Avoid processed foods altogether
- Don’t eat too much sugar
- Do eat some iodized salt
- Don’t eat unlimited amounts of food with soy as it can impact your estrogen levels
- If you must eat soy, only use organic
- Avoid canola and vegetable oils
- Carefully choose unadulterated olive oil
- Don’t eat synthetic sugar substitutes like Equal or Sweet & Low
- Don’t drink water from plastic bottles that are hot
- Don’t refill water in plastic bottles
- Replace plastic containers with Pyrex or Peva
- Don’t microwave food or drink
- Do reheat or melt food by putting in an oven-safe glass container and warming up your oven
- Buy a small stovetop pot to warm up your coffee
- Use a glass kettle
- Don’t use paper plates and cups coated with chemicals (most are)
- Don’t use a Keurig
- Use stainless steel or bamboo utensils or food-grade silicone
- Don’t use Teflon and nonstick cookware
- Use nontoxic cookware made with lead-free glass, cast iron or ceramics.
- Don’t use a traditional crockpot.
- Do use an Instant Pot or Vitaclay ceramic crockpot
- Avoid antibiotics if possible. If not, be sure to balance your gut while on and when you get off as they destroy healthy gut flora.
- Don’t drink unfiltered or undistilled tap water
- Do use a water purifier that can detox heavy metals, prescription drugs, and fluoride
- Use EWG’s seafood guide before eating or purchasing fish Eat fish sparingly to avoid mercury and other toxic buildups
- Avoid shellfish and tilapia
- Avoid fake food (i.e., fake crab)
- Do a diet that aids your gut, like GAPS
- If you can’t get all your health and nutrition needs met from food, be sure to take a high-quality, no-additive supplement that’s right for you
NON-TOXIC PERSONAL CARE
- Avoid fluoridated toothpaste
- Regularly bathe with Epsom salt to detox
- Don’t use hair color products that contain resorcinol or PPD
- Do use natural hair color products like Henna or Hairprint
- Don’t get conned by “pinkwashing”
- Don’t use deodorants with aluminum
- Don’t use products with undisclosed fragrance/scent ingredients
- Don’t use sunscreen products that are unsafe (i.e., oxybenzone, nanoparticles)
- Avoid chlorine when possible
- If you do swim in chlorine, shower off the chlorine immediately
- Don’t get amalgams, which are still mostly toxic. And remove those old mercury-releasing ones you do have!
- Use non-toxic products: skincare, bath care, cleaners and more! (Ask me how to get 30% discount from pure haven!!)
- Only go to the doctor when you need to (broken arm, need surgery, mysterious ailment)
- Avoid mammograms
- Get thermograms instead
- And do regular, monthly, palpating checks on your own breasts and annually with your doctor
- Dry brush your skin
- Never get nitrous oxide at the dentist
- Avoid root canals, or if you get one, make sure they get the whole root
- Use oil pulling if allowed
- Get on a regular probiotic
- Detox your system (tons of options, depending on your budget!)
- Remake your first aid kid with natural remedies
- Do high impacts workout a few times a week
- Ditch or reduce your alcohol consumption (it wrecks the effectiveness of your workout!)
DETOX YOUR TOXIC HOME
One of the basic items in a toxic home are those very things you use to keep it clean. But there are other problems too!
- Never buy toxic laundry detergents that contain brighteners or lasting scents, which stick to your skin for days
- Don’t use Roundup on your lawn
- Use OMRI certified products on your lawns and gardens
- Don’t use green-washed products (i.e., products that are marketed as “clean” or “non-toxic” that really aren’t.)
- Do use essential oils to scent your home but have a basic education on how
- Use a blue light filter on all your screens
- Turn off your Wifi every night
- Buy devices that reduce exposure to Wifi from your gadgets, computers, and smart meter
- Make easy DIY products for cleaning
- Ditch parabens, phthalates and other endocrine disruptors in all your products
MENTAL & EMOTIONAL DETOX
It’s not just the stuff. A toxic home can be a symptom of a mind filled with stress and negativity. You can – and should! – detox that too.
- Take time to reduce your level of overwhelm
- Pray or meditate daily. Don’t feel like He’s listening? Read how to hear from God.
- Read the bible
- Give cheerfully to those around you
- Avoid negativity
- Plan to get 7 hours of sleep per night
- Disassociate from negative people
- Turn OFF the news
- Take a break from social media
- Take a full day break from tech
- Write a daily list of things you’re grateful for
- Tell a friend how much you care about them
- Get into nature
- Place images of the great outdoors around your desk
- Get 15 minutes of sunshine (without sunscreen) every day the sun is out
- Think before you speak
- Think even harder before you hit “send” or “enter”
- Find time for “play” in your life
- Go on a date that’s outside of your routine
- Rekindle the romance with a surprise for your partner
- Resume the lost art of kissing
- Pet an animal
- Have “me” time every day
- Spend weekly quality time with people you love
OVERWHELMED? NEVER FEAR!
Ok, so you’re looking at this list and want to throw in the towel, but don’t! You don’t have to be stressed out about doing all of this at once. There is a simple procedure to clean up your toxic home:
- Pick ONE item to start. This should be something easy and affordable. For example, tossing out the plastic in your cupboard is free and replacing with Pyrex is fairly affordable. Get a quick, painless win like this on the board to start.
- Prioritize what’s next. I recommend you dig into detoxing your food since that has an immediate impact. Strategize budget, food replacements, and how to transition to cooking regularly if you’re a frequent fast-food or restaurant eater.
- Plan out your year. This is not an overnight or “in a month” process. It’ll take some time and doing but that’s ok! Everything you eliminate will make your body healthier.
- Look out for detox symptoms. As you clean out your system, you may have reactions, like a cold/flu symptoms, rash, emotional or behavioral struggles. This is a good thing! I recommend you look into homeopathy for remedies. Boiron is one of my favorite and accessible companies for products!
- Budget wisely. Some things are just costly. For example, there are affordable ways to partially detox your water but for best results, you need to look into a Berkey and a whole-home filter that removes metals, fluoride and more.
MORE WEBSITES TO HELP YOU:
There’s an embarrassment of riches getting rid of a toxic home or life but I’ve picked out a few of my favorites to help you move forward with detox.
DIY & DETOX:
IDENTIFYING TOXINS:
- Mamavation
- Made Safe: Check out the “Education” tab
- EWG
Finally, I’m always here if you need help creating a detox plan! Reach out to me any time.
