Clean Takes on a New Meaning | Tox Out with Kitchen Shift
Clean living starts at the source. It starts at home and it starts with you.
Each and every decision you make trickles out into other parts of your life so how we keep our “house” in order is often how we keep our life in order. When we say house, think of the vessel, the abode you live in that is your body as well as your physical home.
We’re publishing this on Earth Day in honor of taking care of Mother Earth and doing what we can to improve our own physical environment, but we also want to challenge you to think about your “house”, your body, and how you are treating this earthly suit you’ve been given to live in. It’s a lifelong journey to really clean up what we can both in our physical environment around us and inside us. It starts in our home and our bodies and will grow into a better, cleaner world around us.
Clean Cooking
When it comes to cooking, most of us (myself included) are more focused on the food we’re cooking, the ingredients, the oils were using and more. But sometimes we forget to take a closer look at HOW we’re cooking and what we’re using to cook.
Teflon is the patented name of a chemical related to PFC’s or perfluorinated compounds, used to coat frying pans to create a non-stick environment. Sure, this is nice for cooking when you don’t have to worry about rigorous clean-up. But the problem with Teflon is that it's used in a host of other products you may not be aware of- from pizza boxes, to computer mice and your cosmetics and clothing. Yes, they use the same stuff on things you’d never dream of putting anywhere near your mouth of those of your family.
This is an easy fix, though. Instead, cook with green pans or other alternatives. Choose to cook with “clean” nonstick pans free of PFC’s, PFOA’s, and PFOC - all of which are definitely not something you want to be eating off of.
Use stainless steel pans such as the Lodge pan*, a classic suite of cast iron pans and more. Or, you can try the Green pan. It’s a Belgian company who creates pans with a non-stick, and non-toxic material called Thermolon, simply put, it’s a tough, non-stick ceramic coating and works wonderfully.
Clean Cleaning
Post mess-making, in the kitchen or otherwise, clean-up is essential and never truly seems “done” no matter how long or how deep we seem to clean. That being said, most of us travel to the local grocery store and get the most popular brand name product we see on commercials that promises things like “remove build-up”, “dissolve grease”, “remove mold and mildew” and so much more. But what you may not know is that the use of these chemicals, and while they get the job done most of the time, are cleaning your space but harming your body.
Certain chemicals in cleaning products that most households use have been linked to infertility among other long-term effects on the body. Not to mention the container they come in is often plastic.
Plastics contain toxic additives such as BOS, phthalates, heavy metals, and other compounds that can leach out into your food and water over time. BPA exposure is linked to multiple hormone-related health issues and increases your risk of infertility, cancer, and obesity.
Unfortunately, BPS, the replacement for BPA, is not safer either.
You can do better, and here’s how.
Avoid plastics with the recycle symbols #3, #6, #7
Never microwave plastic
Do not wash plastic in the dishwasher (handwash only)
Use glass jars or ceramic when possible. Try something like these reusable glass containers*.
Choose a reusable stainless steel or glass bottle for drinking water. Here are a few I love to carry with me:
Finally, clean with clean products too. I swear by Mrs. Meyers multi-surface cleaner. My preference is Mint* (it smells amazing!), but it comes in so many amazing natural scents.
And for laundry, we’re all in on Charlie’s Soap* and/or Molly’s Suds*. They clean clothes incredibly well and lets us rest easy knowing it’s not harmful on my skin, or my kids, and doesn’t have harmful chemicals.
Clean Smells
On the topic of cleaning, what kind of thing might you be using to make your house and spaces smell great? Those can be disrupting lots of things and causing more harm than good. Air freshener and artificial fragrances can add unnecessary chemicals to your home or office which can disrupt your hormones - what we would call endocrine disruptors.
Ditch the air fresheners and make a habit to open more windows when you can to eliminate odors and help with ventilation. Add a great fan system to your home or space that can also disinfect like these Big Ass Fans* in a gorgeous black and wood - yes, that’s the name!
To add another layer, invest in a good diffuser* and some natural essential oils*
Clean Personal Care
Finally, and maybe the most important place to start cleaning up is our personal care. From our once-in-a-while facemasks to our everyday uses like deodorant and lotion, pay close attention to what you’re putting on and around your face and skin.
Deodorant, toothpaste, shampoo, sunscreen, lotions, fragrances, and more can all be replaced with something more natural that won’t leave behind any unseen chemicals that can cause harm to you inside and out.
Approximately 6 years ago, I became a consultant at Beautycounter and my eyes were opened to the reality of toxins that exist in our personal care products. I learned that huge ingredients lists were usually not a good thing and that I didn’t know much about many of the ingredients that went into even the most natural beauty products.
My favorites are here:
Native Deodorant* (comes in incredible scents too!)
Just because it’s Earth Day doesn’t mean clean living stops for us and it certainly doesn’t stop for Mother Earth. You can do one small thing today that makes your home, both your physical house and your body, a little cleaner, greener, and all-around healthier. Happy Earth Day! Take care of yourself and your environment, no matter how big or small.
Xoxo,
Beth
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Thank you so much.