Plastic is everywhere! It’s in obvious places like Tupperware, dishware, and other everyday items. But did you know it’s also in our food, water, hygiene products, and more? That’s right! Micro plastics are in our water and food. Whether they leech into it via cookware and dishes or plastic containers and packaging or by the contamination of micro plastics in our water supply if we don’t actively try to minimize our exposure, we will consume billions of micro plastics every single day. It’s been stated that the average American consumes a credit card worth of plastic a day. I don’t know about you but that is a very alarming concept!
If you are unfamiliar with the toxicity of plastics you might be asking yourself, why does this matter? Plastics are known to be hazardous to our health in a variety of ways. PVC for example has been linked to not only cancer, but birth defects, genetic mutations, ulcers, poor gut health, and more. Phthalates in addition to cancer and endocrine disruption has been linked to infertility, asthma, endometriosis, and impairs the immune system.
There are dozens of different types of plastics, and they all have a laundry list of ill effects. Now I know it’s not realistic to avoid plastic completely. You cannot escape the micro plastics that pollute our water supply, but you have complete control over the products you use and whether they are made of plastic or contain plastic.
Here are some areas you might consider ditching the plastics.
In the kitchen:
1- Consider removing all plastic dishware; plates, bowls, cups, cooking utensils, funnels, measuring cups, etc.
2- Never microwave or cook with plastic. Spatulas, ladles, mixing spoons, etc. If it’s plastic and it comes in contact with any heat for any duration get rid of it.
3- Don’t put hot food or liquid in/on plastic. Travel mugs, dinner plates or bowls, Tupperware containers. If plastic Tupperware must be used wait until the food has cooled down completely.
4- Don’t put plastic in the dishwasher. Some might think this extreme but think about it. The steam that gets releases from the dishwasher as it runs its cycle could be potentially filling the air with micro plastics. Now there’s nothing you can do about the plastic dishwasher parts but this at least reduces the exposure.
5- Drinking bottled water
Use glass, bamboo, stainless steel, and cast iron instead. A lot of parents struggle with this because they don’t want to give their kids glass dishes and I completely understand that. We use stainless steel plates, bowls, and cups instead for all of our children’s dishes. You can find the ones we use
1- Hygiene products that contain fragrances, phthalates, parabens, or other forms of plastics
2-Cleaning products that contain fragrances, phthalates, parabens, or other forms of plastics
3- Plastic toothbrushes, hairbrushes, or other grooming tools
Throughout the house:
1- Other cleaning or hygiene products that contain fragrances, phthalates, parabens, or other forms of plastics.
2- Micro fleece clothing or bedding
3- Microfiber clothing or bedding
In an ideal world there would be zero plastic within our homes, but we don’t live in an ideal world. Do your best to eliminate plastic wherever you can within your home, but be sure to prioritize the kitchen, your cleaning products, and your hygiene products. These are the areas where plastics will do the most damage to your health and overall wellbeing. If you can eliminate your plastic exposure from those three areas, you will reduce your toxic exposure to plastics by 75-80% or more!
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