If you’ve ever chosen an organic food or product over the conventional option, you likely already grasp the concept of reducing your odds of exposure. Yes, sometimes there are still toxins in or on our organic product, but we understand that there are undoubtedly more toxins in the conventional option. One of the simplest ways to promote health and healing is to eliminate potential barriers, like toxins. Yes, you can detox, but you’ll see far greater results if you don’t re-tox! The goal is to reduce your odds of exposure.
As a first step, simply tour your cabinets and start reading labels. The more label-reading you do, the more you’ll become familiar with the most common chemicals being used. The Environmental Working Group (EWG) databases are an excellent resource for beginner label-readers to get a sense of how dangerous each chemical is and its associated symptoms and conditions.
Let’s break this household tour down into categories of common exposure in the home.
Water
Most U.S. municipal water contains chlorine, fluoride, and other chemicals in amounts that are acceptable to our EPA but aren’t really acceptable to me. For smaller quantities, consider a Berkey system. It’s a pour-through tabletop system with robust filters that require infrequent replacement.
For larger quantities or a whole-house solution, consider something like a reverse osmosis (RO) system. Take care to research before pulling the trigger, as RO is considered “dead water,” with nearly no mineral content left after filtering. RO is a great way to ensure that bath, shower, and laundry water are chemical-free. If you’re simply looking to reduce exposure, a Berkey system used for drinking, cooking, humidification, and other smaller-quantity household purposes will take you in the right direction.
Food
This is a huge topic for another article. The gist is that organic is likely less exposure than conventional (when store-bought). The beauty of buying directly from the farm or farmers’ market is that you can simply ask what was used on the current produce.
Medicine/First Aid Cabinet
A few non-pharmacologic staples in my medicine cabinet are silver hydrosol spray and gel, iodine tincture, food-grade hydrogen peroxide, and herbal antimicrobial tinctures. I rely on Anthony William, the “Medical Medium,” for clean supplements guidance since metals and toxins can be found even in alternative or non-pharmacologic products.
Toiletries (bath and body)
If you’ve never looked up the ingredients in everyday products, such as shampoo/conditioner, toothpaste/mouthwash, deodorant, lotions, makeup, and feminine products, you’re likely in for a surprise. Use the EWG Skin Deep database to see how your choices rate.
Air Fresheners
Synthetic fragrances have long been shown to disrupt the endocrine (hormone) system. Hormones have overarching control of nearly all body systems and actions. Removing all synthetic fragrances from your life is perhaps the easiest and most impactful environmental detox you can perform.
If a fragrance doesn’t come from a whole food or plant, its oil, or its essential oil, it is likely synthetic. In addition to the plug-ins, hangers, potpourri, and room sprays, remember to check toiletries, cleaners, and other product labels for perfume or fragrance.
At least one houseplant in every room is a great way of adding air filtration and healthy frequency to the environment.
Household Cleaning Products, Kitchen, and Laundry
The trick with these products has to do with labeling laws. Have you ever flipped over a bottle of cleaner to find no ingredient list? Some newer products that claim to be less toxic or more environmentally friendly offer a bullet-point list of what’s in the bottle. The public has become wary of chemicals they can’t pronounce, so marketers use recognizable language like “plant-based surfactant” on these lists. They give the look and feel of an ingredient list, but they don’t always list everything in the bottle. Current U.S. law does not require all chemical names to be listed on a product label.
My own cleaning staples include organic Castile soap, organic white vinegar, baking soda, vitamin C powder, sodium borate, food-grade hydrogen peroxide, and thyme, rosemary, and tea tree essential oils.
I realize some jobs, like de-greasing and removing serious scale, may require something heavier duty. If you perform your routine cleaning with the products above, however, you’ll reduce your odds of exposure.
Appliances That Create Contact with the Body
I created this category for things like cookware, food storage and drink bottles, and diffusers, where the food or water contacting the product will either be ingested or inhaled. Steer clear of metal-on-metal grinding parts, non-stick chemical coatings like Teflon, BPA plastics where heat will be applied, and perhaps the most prevalent but problematic metal—aluminum.
Textiles
Sadly, we live in a time where even our clothing and linens are often coated in fire-retardant or anti-mold chemicals. Imagine the contact time these textiles get with your largest absorbent organ—your skin! Where possible, opt for organic bed sheets, and—at a minimum—launder new clothes and textiles at least once prior to use.
Finding the Right Products
While vital to your holistic health, detoxing your home can be another rabbit hole that ultimately leads to unnecessary expenditures. Yes, many products out there will one-up the big-chemical product line of the 60s, 70s, and 80s, but odds are you don’t really need those either. Truth is, it doesn’t take much to keep a clean and tidy home.
So now that you’ve made your throw-away pile, what to do? Visit AngelaGBallardLLC.com for a comprehensive list of my favorite products that help reduce the odds of exposure.
Haven’t made the throw-away pile yet? Feeling overwhelmed? I offer home evaluations, where I will visit your home and work hands-on with you to evaluate, sort, remove and replace sources of exposure. Call Angela G Ballard LLC to schedule your evaluation and start reducing your odds of exposure now!
Angela’s 25-year background in nursing, 46 years living with chronic illnesses, and a 6-year journey back to health make her a natural Wellness Guide. While every individual is unique, her services lay a foundation for healing to occur.
For more information or to schedule, call 860.856.8567 or visit: https://www.angelagballardllc.com/