Your Toxic Household

Hate to be the bearer of one more thing to worry about, but you should think about the toxic possibilities in every day household items.

Let’s start with aluminum. It is one of the most commonly ingested heavy metals – and some people are worried there is a link with Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s, ALS, and kidney failure. We take in aluminum in many ways, from cookware to antacids to anti-antiperspirants to soda cans. While a little may not harm you, many different sources adds up to more exposure. Why take the chance? If you have any Alzheimer’s in the family, start eliminating aluminum sources from your diet and daily life. It just makes sense.

Sources of Aluminum

• Soy milk (stored in aluminum containers)
• Canned foods (leaching)
• Aspirin
• Douches  Â
• Anti-perspirant
• Cooking foil
• Baking powder
• Food containers
• Food starch modifiers
• Pickling salts
• Antacids
• Antidiarrheal drugs
• Cake mixes
• Self-rising flour
• Processed cheese

Alternatives

• Try stainless steel and avoid non-stick surfaces
• For anti-perspirant, Tom of Maine has several non-aluminum formulas
• Use plastic wrap instead of foil
• Use more whole, fresh foods instead of canned
• Drink teas, juices, water instead of soda

That’s aluminum out of the way. What about all the other toxins? Continuing debate over whether bad, nasty chemicals in plastic containers (called plasticizers) do or do not leach into food and drink, posing health risks. After thinking this through, it seems to me that the best thing to do is let the experts and researchers battle it out. Don’t stress my little head with the stats and the science. Just give me sensible precautions, not zealotry. This much most people seem to agree on.

• Use the right container. Microwaving safety dictates that you avoid metal and foils in the microwave, sure. Best practice is to use only use glass or ceramic containers and NO plastic containers of any kind. Yes, that means Lean Cuisine go in the oven.
• Reconsider that paper towel. Paper mills get in trouble for dumping their toxic by-products into rivers. That white paper towel has been treated to look white. Chemicals. If you microwave on that paper towel, the process could introduce those chemicals into your food.
• Limit exposure and bring a ceramic mug to the office and quit using styrofoam. Year after year, bringing that cup to your beautiful lips and swallowing down a heated drink (which could facilitate leaching) is not smart.
• While you’re at it….Think through all repetitive exposures from lipstick (you are constantly ingesting petroleum from your lips) to shampoos and other commonly used products, even hair color. Not to be alarmist, they are all filled with chemicals. Dark hair dyes have also been studied for a possible relationship to lymphoma. And have you ever thought about all those tampons over the years? Here’s why we think Organic tampons are worth the price.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, May 16th, 2007 at 7:07 pm. It is filed under Body and tagged with housekeeping. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.