The place where you spend most of your time, raise your family and your pets?
Use the Check List below to gradually detoxify your home.
Did you know that the average American home contains over 63 hazardous products? From shampoo, to toilet bowl cleaner, plastic that we wrap our food in, skin care products and “air fresheners”. And since we spend between 80-90% of our time inside, we’ve become the test lab for the modern chemical revolution; exposing ourselves to unprecedented amounts of toxins, nutrition-deficient foods and chemical compounds that our bodies are simply not equipped to deal with.
Dr. Todd LePine, a Dartmouth Medical School graduate and Board Certified physician in both Internal Medicine and Functional Medicine, says that he believes children with Autism are the canaries in the coal-mine.
They are reflections of how toxicity our environments have become. Many of these children have a genetic reason their bodies do not handle toxins well. But this genetic predisposition isn’t a new genetic trait, our DNA doesn’t change that fast. Our environment does. In our newly toxic environment these genes are triggered and therefore expressed.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) estimates that up to 23.5 million Americans suffer from autoimmune disease, and that the rate is climbing.
One in three women and one in two men will be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime.
The American Cancer Society states that only 5 to 10 percent of all cancers are caused by gene defects. In other words, we know that 90-95% of cancers are linked to diet, lifestyle, and environment. That’s great news! Why? Because much of this is under our control…and it all starts with what we allow into our homes and our bodies!
Here’s The Check List:
To slowly begin to detoxify your home environment look out for the following:
1) Mold – Showers/bathrooms, ceiling leaks, Christmas trees grow mold quickly. Houseplants – keep on the dry side to decrease mold growth. Keep out of the bedroom due to mold sensitizing.
2) Petroleon (Mineral Oil): commonly found in cosmetics, lotions, creams, lip balms, & skin care products.
3) Blue jean buttons – seriously! use clear nail polish on the back to keep from skin exposure to nickel
4) Perfume – minimize use (volatile organic compounds)
5) Candles – as allergenic as cigarettes
6) Soaps and detergents – choose ones with no phthalates
7) Carpeting – get rid of it due to the dust mites and built up dust/allergens.
8) Spices – key offenders: coriander, poppy seeds, pepper, paprika, cumin, saffron. Buy organic
9) Wall paint – volatile organic compounds. Look for cleaner options.
10) Beer and alcohol – corn, barley, rye, agave (makes tequila), are all high in sulfur dioxide
11) Dry-°©‐cleaned clothes – air out outside with plastic off before bringing inside.
12) HVAC filters – change every three months minimum (with the changing seasons)
13) Parabens (anything that ends with “paraben,” like ethylparaben, methylparaben, propylparaben, etc.): commonly found in cosmetics, shower products, lotions, and more.
14) Scuffed non-stick cookware. The non-stick coating is toxic.
15) Don’t heat your food or store your food in plastic containers. The flimsier the plastic the more the plasticizers will leach into your food.
16) Pets – out of the bedroom! – Well this one you gotta pick your poison…
