Clean up your act and clear out those chemicals

I’m on Day 28 of  Kelly Brogan MD’s 44 Day Vital Mind Re-set, and I’m LOVING it!

It’s far from plane sailing but I’ve been down the detox route before so I knew a little about what to expect. However what I didn’t realise was just how all encompassing her re-set would be. Diet is a huge part of the programme along with other detox protocols like dry skin brushing and coffee enemas (more about these in a future post). In addition to clearing out the debris already accumulated the reset invites us to “clean up your act and clear out those chemicals”. So the re-set is also about stemming the flow of what is coming in.

Health and Happiness Talks

In my next Health and Happiness Talk  entitled  Are we what we consume? I will address in more detail the main areas we need to think about in terms of flow in; where they are all coming from and what we can do about it. A recording of this talk, and all the others, will be released to members of my mailing list so if you can’t make it along then sign-up and receive them free into your in-box.

Check these out

In the meantime the contents of personal care products has generated some discussion so here are a few places to check out what might be in them and why many, or even most of them are not a good idea to be absorbing or ingesting.

Twelve Chemicals to Avoid in Your Beauty Products

10 Toxic Beauty Products to Avoid

EWG’s Skin Deep – a data base of chemicals, simply enter the name and check out what it says.

The No-Poo Method – this article contains a list of brands and chemicals with their toxicity rating and a how to guide for anyone wanting to transition away form hair products altogether.

Although I still have a few products to check out here are some of my thoughts about my trawl so far. Also, just so you know, I was already mostly using what I thought were free from nasty- chemical products bought from sources I trusted and believed to be safe. What an eye-opener!

Suggestions for change

Just because it says natural, organic, herbal or that it’s free from certain chemicals does not mean it doesn’t harbour other things you may not want in or on your body. Check the label. Then use EWG’s Skin Deep to check out the ingredients.

You have to decide for yourself what risks you are willing to take. No-one can do this for you, you have to decide if what you put on or take into your body is worth the potential toxicity issues.

Although a chemical may be deemed safe in small quantities we do not always know what the cumulative affect is of repeated use. We use some products daily, others contain the same ingredients so our dose is higher and some are continuously in contact with our skin.

Equally we do not always know if these chemicals can be easily excreted by our bodies or do they bio-accumulate. Many chemicals and heavy metals are not easily disposed of and instead our body stores them, often in fatty tissues, think brain here folks.

What about the combination of all of these ingredients, how does that affect us? There is little or no research as far as I can see other than the mass experiment being conducted on the human population currently by using them. If we were all vibrantly heathy and well it would not be an issue, but we are not. 

And what about the environment? Many of these chemicals are not only harmful to us but they contribute to the ever rising levels of toxins in our environment, making their way into our water supplies, oceans and the plants and creatures we share our planet with.

Why are we using the things anyway? Do we need to? Have we been sold a story by the advertising in our consumer culture telling us we need these products to make our hair shinier, our skin clearer, our ageing evaporate and so on? Do you want to be at the mercy of these big corporations using you to line their pockets. You may find a few issues to tap (EFT) on here. 

If you are vibrantly healthy and well, your mind is clear, and you wake up refreshed, happy and passionate about your day then why change? However if you have health issues, are popping pills and potions to try and feel better, your brain is foggy, you are tired, run down and have to heave yourself out of bed each morning it might be time for a re-think.

Finally, if you care about what is happening on our planet, then take care of yourself better and you will automatically take better care of the planet. The more of us who say no to chemical laden products be they food,  personal care products, clothing, household cleaners, plastics etc the less we are complicit in the polluting and poisoning of  the earth.

“The less we use the more we help.” Mairi

My conclusion is this:

As a general rule, to the best of my ability, I don’t eat food that I don’t recognise as coming from a natural source. I don’t purchased processed foods and I cook from scratch with raw, natural ingredients, so why would I not do the same with my personal care products. If I don’t want the chemicals in processed food in my body then why would I allow them to be ingested or absorbed from personal care products.

It is entirely possible to use completely natural products, ones with ingredients we recognise and would probably be happy to eat, and that’s the clue, if you would happily eat the ingredients of your products then go ahead and use them, if you wouldn’t then I would question using them.  Our skin is an organ, it absorbs what we put on it, so what you slather on will make it’s way inside, are you happy with that?

If not check out this informative post by Emily at Homemade Gifts Made Easy

The DIY Guide to Natural Bathroom Products

Not only does she provide lots of helpful information about what to look out for she also offers us DIY recipes for making our own. No excuses now folks.

“I believe that the greatest gift you can give your family and the world is a healthy you.”

Joyce Meyer