5 Simple Ways I’ve Reduced my Families Toxin Load

I write a lot about food and the benefits of eating a whole food diet. It’s what I know, it’s what occupies my thoughts each and every day. I’m forever striving to nourish and protect my families health in every way I know. These two blondies are my inspiration and driving force to do the best I can .

In a world where there is so much information about living a healthy life, it’s hard not to feel overwhelmed and consumed with guilt sometimes. Personally, I like to avoid feeling overwhelmed and the way I do this is by directing my time and energy into the parts of my life I feel are the greatest priority (generally things I do or am exposed to often). Because we eat and drink several times a day, food and filtered water are definitely my top two priorities (plus it helps I know food well).

Today I thought I’d share 5 simple ways I’ve reduced my families toxin load (plus a very special offer to help you to ‘Go Low Tox’ at the end of the post).

Turn off the wifi

Wireless technology is every where, right? I run an online business so wifi is a part of my life. However its effect on our health and that of our children is largely unknown and the control freak in me doesn’t like unknowns, especially when it comes to my kids health. I know I can’t avoid it altogether, but I can minimise our exposure.

So here’s what I do.

1. Keep a distance – According to building biologist Nicole Biljsma “As you double the distance away from the source, you reduce your exposure by 75%”. I have my router in a cupboard away from our main living room / bedrooms. We also always use the phone on speaker (this is not negotiable for my kids and its become the norm for them).
2. Switch off – We have much of our technology hardwired, but we still unfortunately have wifi. So at night (and when not in use) our router is always powered off. Someone on Facebook has just shared that they use a powerpoint timer to have their router automatically switch off at night (which is genius as I’m always running down stairs half asleep after forgetting to turn it off). If switching wifi of is not possible for you, place all devices on airplane mode (you should also do this if your kids are playing on devices).

There’s a heap more technical info on this subject here.

Ditch teflon coated cookware

Because it’s important to me that the food I lovingly source (as toxin free as possible) is not exposed to toxins during cooking, I recommend avoiding teflon coated cookware.

It’s been quite a while since I ditched my teflon coated pans and after cooking on cast iron (which is totally non-stick) I wish I had done so when I first moved out of home! It would have saved me a bucket load of money (replacing teflon pans when they wore out). Also food just cooks better on cast iron and I will never have to buy another pan again (it’s indestructible). I also have a collection of stainless steel pots, pans and baking dishes.

So what’s the problem with teflon? According to Alexx Stuart from Low Tox Life:

‘At just over 300 degrees celcius (pans on high preheating after just 5 mins) Teflon pans release at least six toxic gases, including two carcinogens, two global pollutants, and MFA, a chemical lethal to humans at low doses. At temperatures another 100 degrees higher, non-stick coatings break down to a chemical warfare agent known as PFIB, and a chemical analog of the WWII nerve gas phosgene. NO THANK YOU! The easiest way to tell if you’ve over exposed yourself, is with flu like symptoms. If that’s not enough, birds die when exposed to the vapours almost instantly with something actually labelled by vets “Teflon Toxicosis”.’

Now you have great excuse to shop for some lovely new cookware! Stainless steel is available everywhere, though if I were shopping for new stainless, this would be my number one choice (click here). For good quality non-stick cast iron an cast steel, I simply adore Solidteknics (and this is in no way sponsored, it’s a product I just love) – they are Australian, inexpensive and just brilliant to cook on. For a family, their new 35cm dual handle Bigga Skillet is incredible – check out the range HERE.

I do my best to avoid storing food and drink in plastic

I’ve shared already shared info about the dangers of plastics (read more here). There is no such thing as ‘safe’ plastic, even BPA-free plastics leach chemicals (read more here). The net effect, especially on children, is so very worth the little bit of extra effort it takes to minimise their exposure.

These days we have so many options for plastic-free storage – glass, stainless steel and corning ware. I remember when my daughter was a toddler, finding a stainless steel drink bottle was tough, not to mention expensive. Same with finding largish airtight glass storage containers – now both are widely available in mainstream shops and they are very well priced. They also last SO much longer than plastic containers and drink bottles (which actually saves you money in the long run).

When switching from plastic containers in my pantry to glass, I transitioned gradually, picking up a $4 glass canister from the supermarket every week until all my plastic was replaced. I also recycled any large glass jars – 1 litre coconut oil jars are very handy for storing nuts/ seeds / leftover soups.

For a great range of stainless steel and glass drink bottles and a variety of stainless steel lunchboxes, Biome is my favourite place to shop. Click here to see their range of lunchboxes and drink bottles. I also love the range of Swag bags to store my fresh produce in the fridge (plastic free) and they keep the produce fresher for longer. Click here to find out more.

Choose low-tox personal products

Toothpaste, dental floss, skin care, deodorant and make-up are all things my family use daily (okay it’s just me with the make-up lol). So I do my best to ensure these products are as toxin-free as can be. I shop for all of this stuff at Nourished Life – they have great special offers and a fabulous rewards program. I love that I can trust Nourished Life as a one-stop-shop, to vet the products they sell and ensure I’m not wasting my money or risking my kids health buying ‘fake organic’ claims (that often even sneak into health food stores). Click HERE to check out their amazing range.

I sleep on a spring-free, 100% natural latex mattress

I looooove a good night sleep (and because we spend so much of ours lives in bed) when it was time for me to upgrade my mattress not so long ago, I did a lot of research and decided that a spring-free, 100% natural latex mattress was for me. Most mattresses are a chemical landmine – it actually shocked me when I started researching this.

Like all clever marketing, it’s not enough that it’s ‘natural’ or ‘made with latex’ – it needs to be ‘100% natural latex’. Natural latex is super comfy, non-allergenic (unless latex is a problem for you), dust mite resistant, anti-bacterial and anti-fungal.

My whole family are hot sleepers and we don’t find it the least bit hot (though our latex mattress is housed in a cotton casing). Before I could afford to switch us all onto latex, I bought latex mattress toppers for the kids so at least they weren’t in direct contact with their old mattress. If latex doesn’t suit you, consider your options in wool.

Go Low Tox

It is SO empowering to learn a better way – once you know better, you will do better. I think the best, most practical and do-able guide to fully understand what to look out for and what to avoid in our increasingly toxic world, is Alexx Stuart’s Go Low Tox e-course.

So many ‘natural’ and ‘green’ products are anything but. Sadly whilst politicians can still be influenced and paid by lobby groups to prevent safety bills being passed, there will still be unsafe products on our shelves, in our personal care and the food we eat. It’s up to us, as individuals and as parents to to learn what’s what.

This e-course is just invaluable and will help you enormously, without guilt, to make changes that will improve the health of you, your family and our world. The course even includes special offers and giveaways to help to support you to go low tox.

CLICK HERE to find out more.

Questions? Post yours in the comments below!

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