A Healthier Home

Last night I worked a Gymboree seminar, sponsored by Healthy Child, Healthy World. I wanted to be there anyway, so it was pretty sweet that I got paid for it. I kind of consider myself to be well informed about creating a healthy environment for our little tykes. I was wrong.

Studies show that more than 125 million Americans, especially children, now face an historically unprecedented rise in chronic disease and illness such as cancer, autism, asthma, birth defects, ADD / ADHD, and learning and developmental disabilities. Credible scientific evidence increasingly points to environmental hazards and household chemicals as causing and contributing to many of these diseases.

Now I'm not going to go crazy kung fu paranoid on our family, to Paul's relief. At my very core, I trust in the purposes of God and in His inherent goodness to allow whatever He sees fit in our lives. But He also asks us to take care of ourselves - body, mind, and soul - so we can fully and completely honor Him. Therefore, I will be making some changes little by little to reduce our exposure to chemicals and toxins that are taking up residence in our home and in our bodies.

Here are 5 ways to get started, as suggested by http://www.healthychild.org/.

1. Manage pests safely
2. Use non-toxic cleaning products (cleaners, personal hygiene products, home furnishings)
3. Clean up indoor air (often the air in our homes is more toxic than city pollution)
4. Shop smart (eat organic and healthy foods)
5. Be wise with plastics