Are you toxic?

Good evening!

As I mentioned yesterday Dutch and I want to share with you some of the research we have done on the risks of chemicals and toxins in your body.

First here is a video that does a great job of showing how many toxins and chemicals we are exposed to on a regular basis.

Top 3 most dangerous toxins include:

1. Propylene Glycol:

The main ingredient in anti freeze, found in shampoos, cosmetics, lotions and toothpaste. Can penetrate the skin so quickly EPA warns factory workers to avoid skin contact with the chemical to prevent brain, liver, and kidney abnormalities.

2. Sodium Laurel Sulfate

Found in soaps, shampoos, detergents, and toothpaste SLS is the most dangerous of the three toxins. A study at the University of Georgia medical college indicated that SLS penetrated into the eyes as well as the brain, heart, liver, etc and showed long term retention in the tissues. The study also indicated SLS penetrated young children’s eyes and prevented them from developing properly and caused cataracts in adults.

3. Diethanolamine (DEA):

Found in shampoos, lotion, creams and other cosmetics provides rich lather and consistency. DEA can react with other ingredients in the cosmetic formula to form an extremely potent carcinogen called nitrosodiethanolamine (NDEA) which is readily absorbed in the skin and is linked with stomach, esophagus, liver, and brain cancers.

After learning the risks of using products containing such toxins I decided to take a look at some of the natural products I was using to see whether or not they contained the toxic ingredients. To my surprise many of my Natures Gate and Seventh Generation products listed the top three toxins in their ingredients list. This made me realize just because a product is labeled natural or is known to be a natural brand does not mean it is free of toxins. Dutch and I spent awhile at Kroger today in order to compile a list of products we feel are non toxic and safe to use in your home. We are not experts in this area, all of the items listed below are our own personal observations. Please let us know of you see anything that is not safe as the labels are quite difficult to understand and many toxins can be disguised using different names.

Our recommended list of non toxic products:

Shampoo/Conditioner:

Hugo everyday Naturals were paraben free, SLS free, and smelled great.

All of the Avalon Organics products were free of  toxins and had a great ingredients list at a great price.

This brand was also great, made with organic ingredients it is sulfate free and contains a blend of citrus, rosemary, lemongrass, and willow bark. I chose to purchase Giovanni shampoo and conditioner because of the salon quality and large bottles. I cannot wait to try them out!

Soap:

Toms had great ingredients at a great price.

Kiss my face was also quite affordable and had a great ingredients list.

Dutch and I currently use goats milk soap we purchased at Dove’s landing farm which I love, but it is quite expensive at $4 a bar so when I run out I will definitely be testing out one of these brands to see how they compare.

Face Products:

I started using these products about a month ago and absolutely love them.

Lotion:

I love kiss my face lotions I have been using them for over a year. The fragrances are very light and smell great. My favorite is the A&E.

Burt’s Bees products all looked great although they were one of the more expensive brands and came in tiny bottles.

Laundry Soap:

I currently use seventh generation laundry soap and fabric softener which after looking under the label I noticed contains sodium laurel sulfate. This was the only brand I could find at Kroger that didn’t contain SLS. The two were comparable in price and I will definitely be purchasing this brand in the future when my seventh generation soap runs out.

Dish Soap:

Once again I use seventh generation dish soap which contains SLS. This brand was free of all toxins and contained a blend of essential oils. It was also a great price cheaper, than any of the other brands.

Dish Detergent:

I am not currently using a natural dish detergent, but after checking out this product’s impressive ingredient list I will be purchasing it next time I need soap.

Toothpaste:

I currently use Jason sea fresh toothpaste which is fluoride free as well as free of toxins. Although it works great I am not a fan of the taste, texture or price. I will definitely be switching back to Nature’s Gate as soon as this one runs out!

Natures Gate toothpaste is my absolute favorite toothpaste, the flavor is awesome and you feel so refreshed after using the product. It is also free of the top three toxins as well as fluoride free. Kroger didn’t carry this product but you can find it on vitacost.com.

Deodorant:

Kiss My Face deodorant was the only brand we could find that did not contain propolyene glycol. Deodorant is one of the most important items to purchase toxin free, (heres why)  yet it is one of the most difficult products to find that is both safe and effective.  I was searching for new deodorant as the last brand I purchased (Desert Essence) contained the toxin. I haven’t used this brand yet, but I will be sure to post my opinion of the product after I give it some time. Dutch also purchased a different brand of natural deodorant i’m not sure the name, but we will do a review on that sometime soon as well!

Food Storage:

We purchased a few glass storage containers in an effort to phase out our plastic ones.

I also picked up a few stainless water bottles @ marshalls for $3 each, the rubbermaid ones I have used in the past are all made of toxic material as well!

Once again this is a list in our opinions of what products we believe are the best. We have not tried them all yet but plan to in the future. I hope this list will help make it a little less overwhelming when trying to decide which natural products are safe and which are not!

After all the research we have been doing on the effects of toxins Dutch and I also agreed to start  purchasing as much organic as we possibly can. We rarely go out to eat and have been cutting back on expensive fish to help with our food budget. Here are a few organic items that I picked up today @ Whole Foods:

I always try to buy the items off the dirty dozen list organic, especially the ones we use in our green smoothies.

I also picked up some black and white beans, red lentils, pecans, blue cheese, canned salmon, psyllium husk, and deodorant! I got a lot of organic goodies for $50 bucks!

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Coming up this week:

great recipes including; vegan lasagna, shrimp bisque, almond banana soft serve, and dark chocolate pecan butter!

also part two of my journey to health,

another surge training video,

and reviews on some of our new products!

Question of the day:

Do you buy organic? If so what items do you think are most important to buy organic?