5 Low-Tox Living Tips

The air we breathe, the food we eat, the water we drink, anything that touches the skin—all of these elements can bring toxins into the body. Your body has processes to help manage your toxic load, but you can also help reduce that load by making more conscious choices and switching to natural alternatives when possible.

Here’s 5 Simple Steps to Reduce your Toxic Load:

1. Ditch and Switch your Cleaning Supplies

   The average home today contains more than 60 environmental toxins that negatively affect your health and the health of your family. Every day, cleaning products are sold off the shelves that contain known toxins, like ammonia and formaldehyde. Fragrance-filled sprays and plug-in air fresheners can release synthetic chemicals into the air you’re breathing in, causing issues such as allergies, congestion, hormone disruption, and more.

   Thankfully, there are companies that take our health into account and have created cleaning products that don’t rely on the use of toxic chemicals. They are just as effective and better for your health. You can also make your own cleaning products out of natural, whole ingredients, using things such as baking soda, vinegar, and essential oils. When in doubt, you can Pinterest do-it-yourself (DIY) cleaning recipes, so you know exactly what is going into the products you’re using in the home. (Check out some of our favorite cleaning replacements & recipes HERE)

2. Avoid the Plastics

   Many stores have ditched plastic for paper, in big part because of the environmental impact plastic has had in recent decades, but did you know plastics also have an impact on our internal state?

   Bisphenol-A (BPA) is commonly found in plastics, and is a weak synthetic estrogen found in many plastic products, food can linings, dental sealants, and on the shiny side of paper cashier receipts (to stabilize the ink). It’s estrogen-like activity makes it a hormone disruptor, like many of the other chemicals in plastics. Food containers can even leach these chemicals into the food you eat, so it’s best to use glass containers, and glass or stainless steel water bottles.

3. Buy Aluminum-Free Deodorant & Fluoride-Free Toothpaste

   Commercial deodorants that contain aluminum have been linked to cancer. Antiperspirants especially tend to contain aluminum, and also block the sweat glands from releasing toxins.
   Fluoride is a known toxin, which is why you have to call poison control when a child ingests toothpaste. Long-term exposure can lead to the weakening of the skeletal system, cause arthritis, create problem in the thyroid, be harmful to the kidneys, and more. Check out this article to learn more about the dangers of fluoride.

   You can make your own natural homemade deodorant and toothpaste or find a clean brand that omits these toxins.

4. Use a Water Filter for your Shower and Drinking Water

   A three-year investigation by the Environmental Working Group (EWG) of the country’s drinking water found that water flowing to about 85 percent of the population contains 316 contaminants – over 60 percent of these have no safety standards and are not regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency. The Safe Drinking Water Act is undeniably outdated, as not a single contaminant has been added to its list of regulated chemicals since the year 2000. Standards for judging whether or not a chemical is harmful at certain levels have not been updated since 1974.

   So, now that we know about the chemicals and toxins being put into our tap water, did you know you’re also taking those in while you bathe? If you get dizzy in the shower, this could be one of the causes. It is recommended to get a shower filter that eliminates these toxins, such as chlorine, fluoride, lead, and pesticides. (Learn more about what’s in our water HERE)

5. Are your Cosmetics Making you Sick? Take a look at the Body Care Products and Makeup in your Home

   Our skin is our largest organ and our first line of defense against toxins, pollutants, bacteria, pathogens, etc. It absorbs a large percentage of what is put on it.
   For example, Dr. Elizabeth Plourde, Cancer & DNA Research Scientist, found nicotine & birth control patch ingredients were detected in the bloodstream within 5 minutes and within hours was detected in the liver, spleen, kidneys, and brain.

   The cosmetics and products we use on our hair and skin may make us look pretty on the outside, but they can cause disastrous effects on the inside! Many don’t realize that symptoms like weight gain, congestion, and migraines are often caused by constant exposure to their beauty products. Small amounts over time will eventually make it more likely that your body will hold onto these toxins, creating more problems for you down the road. If your kidneys, liver, thyroid, and other organs are constantly being exposed to harmful poisons, they can’t do their job properly. Read more about this topic and see some of our favorite brands in our blog post HERE

We offer educational classes such as Toxic-Free Body Care here in our office in Clearwater, FL or over the phone. If you’re interested in learning more, call or text us today: 727-250-5006

In Good Health,
Nutritional Wellness & Chiropractic