If you are like most women, your plans for changing your health include a lot of changes to your foods and your exercise routine. But what if I told you, that you can get some amazing results by changing the items that you use each day?
Think I'm overstating things? Well think again! Today, I want to show you how just making a few simple swaps in the things that you are already buying on a regular basis can pay off big when it comes to your health and hormones.
I also have a few free resources tucked in here, so be sure to read through to the end!
The average woman uses 12 different personal care products every day, coming into contact with approximately 168 chemical ingredients! And this doesn't take into account the many different cleaning products that we use as we go about our daily lives and deal with all the sticky, stinky messes our kiddos leave behind.
Many of these chemicals are known as EDCs- endocrine disrupting chemicals. These can cause disruptions in our immune system, reproductive system, and neurological system. Not to mention a host of annoying symptoms like: headaches, a runny nose, sneezing, rashes, etc...
The good news is, that swapping out your current products for healthier alternatives is not only easy, but it is often a similar or lesser cost than what you are already buying! Let's take a look as some super simple swaps that you can make today.
Natural Soaps
How many times each day do you wash your hands, especially during this pandemic? Probably more than you can count off the top of your head! Soap is such a simple thing, yet current soap-making practices have added so many extra ingredients that it's hard to fit on the back of the soap container!
Instead I like to support local businesses, and businesses who are passionate about getting natural products in the hands of everyone. For our showers and baths, I love to buy bars of homemade goats milk soap from my favorite local family business. It is just a handful of ingredients blended into a safe, effective soap! If you prefer to use a liquid soap for your hands, I get mine from Grove Co, a curator of natural home products at better prices than you can find them at the health food store!
Get Your Clean On
Ever decided to deep clean your bathroom and ended up with a raging headache after just a few minutes of having your head in your bathtub as you scrub away the dirt trails left behind from the kids? This is usually an immediate reaction to the chemicals in the cleaner you are using, but there are also things going on in your body that you won't notice right away, especially at the level of your hormones.
Do some research on green cleaners for your home, and you'll even find loads
of DIY house cleaners you can make with items you likely already have in
your kitchen. Keeping your house clean is necessary, and you don't have to
use loads of hormone-disrupting chemicals to achieve that!
And as a gift to help you get started on this right away, I have even created an ebook with a few super simple and cheap recipes to make your own cleaners! Grab it here! Or, if you aren't a DIY sort of person, or you need a strong disinfectant, I highly recommend Force of Nature. It has been shown to disinfect surfaces from you-know-what, but it is gentle enough for your toddlers toys!
Fragrances Are A No-Go
Whenever you can, go fragrance-free. Companies are not required to disclose the chemicals that they use for their fragrances, that is considered proprietary information, and as a result it can mask anywhere from 50-300 distinct chemicals! Because you truly never know what you are getting, I always avoid fragrances as a rule.
Fortunately many natural companies are coming out with fragrance-free options, or disclosing the natural ingredients that they use to make their products smell fabulous! This is another great time to search Grove Co, as they do have a good selection of fragrance-free products!
Swap Plastic
Plastics with BPA and PVC are proven hormone-disruptors. Try
reducing the number of plastic products you use in your life from plastic bags
to plastic wrap and everything in between. Start replacing your plastic
Tupperware with glass, choose reusable ziplock bags, and simply become
more aware of these simple ways you can lessen the chemical load in your
life. If you can't totally replace plastic, at least don't put hot foods in them as that increases the leaching that occurs!
I don't want this post to lead you to fear the things around you, but I do want it to give you confidence that you have this in your control! We can choose what to put in, around, and on us and our families, and that is an empowering fact. Choose just one or two of the categories to commit to making improvements to in the coming months, and know that you are taking firm steps toward your health goals!
Now let me know in the comments which categories were the most surprising for you and what steps you are planning to take!