Eco-Chick · The modern girl's guide to living green & fabulous.

5 Ways to Reduce Your Chemical Exposure Before You Even Think About Getting Pregnant

Image courtesy Flickr User Trocaire.

 

I have never been pregnant and I do not have any children. I do, however, plan on being pregnant one day (but not anytime soon!). So you might be curious why I think I’m entitled to share pre-pregnancy tips with you.

It’s pretty simple: the facts! Being a healthy mom means starting on a healthy track well before you’re ready to get pregnant.

Budding mommies-to-be avoid smoking and alcohol without hesitation, as both butts and booze have long been widely accepted as fetotoxic — poisonous to a growing baby. But what many women don’t realize is that there’s a long list of other toxic chemicals lurking in their homes and daily beauty routine at this very moment– which could harm her eventual baby, not to mention herself.

These harmful chemicals pervade our personal ecosystems, disguising themselves in everyday items we use and consume. While clever and visually appealing packaging may assert that they’re safe, “eco” or even natural, a pre-pregnant or pregnant gal would probably prefer to avoid them if she knew the full story.

Many of the toxins in products we use daily bioaccumulate in our bodies over a long period of time after we’re exposed to them, sometimes even decades. (This is scary stuff for a woman who foresees herself becoming pregnant 10-15 years down the line, let alone just a few years.)

Toxins typically find their home in our fat cells, and because women naturally have more body fat than men, we store more toxins, (especially in our breasts and belly where babies grow and then nurse from). Heavy metals and other toxins don’t just bioaccumulate in our own bodies, they also build up in the bodies of animals, (especially large fish, which is why pregnant and nursing women shouldn’t eat  fish like tilefish, swordfish, kingfish and tuna). These metals work their way into the atmosphere through emissions from coal-fired power plants and other sources, and then get distributed into the oceans.

As an aspiring mother in today’s world, it’s incumbent on you to take your health and your future baby’s into your own hands. This never-been-pregnant gal is here to help with these five ways to reduce your chemical exposure whether you want a baby next month, next year, or sometime way down the line!

1.) Use non-toxic cleaning supplies. Household cleaners contain nasty chemicals culprits  such as phosphates, phenols, phthalates, triclosan, glycol ethers, ammonia, and petroleum solvents. Sadly, I could go on. Many of these have been linked to reproductive and neurological issues and birth defects, and traces have been found in breast milk and umbilical cord samples. Gross.

The bottom line: Look for purveyors of non-toxic and safe ecological cleaning products  such as Ecover, Mrs. Meyer’s or Method. You could even make your own with ingredients like baking soda and vinegar!

2.) Buy organic fruits and vegetables. Women should avoid pesticides and pollutants found in non-organic food, as pesticide exposure can cause both short-term (acute) and long-term (chronic) health problems for animals and humans. Exposure to pesticides known as organophosphates, during pregnancy can permanently decrease children’s IQ, memory and ability to focus on tasks. Growth hormones found in dairy and meat products should be avoided as they can increase the risk of disrupted development and cancer in humans.

The bottom line: Shop organic and use the Environmental Working Group’s “shoppers guide” as a resource to avoid pesticides in produce.

3.) Junk your toxic beauty and personal care products. The average woman exposes herself to 167 different chemicals on her body and face during her daily beauty regimen.  Since we absorb 60% of what we put onto our skin, this means that you’re allowing chemicals to be absorbed into your body.

The bottom line: Shop for beauty and personal care products including lotions, shampoos/conditioners, deodorants, toothpastes, perfumes, nail polishes, you name it,  that are free of harmful chemicals such as parabens, phthalates, sulfates and DEA. Use the Environmental Working Group’s Skin Deep website to research the truth behind the ingredients in many of the products you use. Be sure to use the tool prior to making any purchases. It may not be as convenient as simply reading some label that’s lying to you and throwing it in the cart, but you and your future baby are worth the extra few minutes of time spent.
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Is Melamine Safe for Kids?

If you ever needed another reason to breastfeed, here it is. Four babies have died and thousands are ill after melamine was found in contaminated dairy products in Asia.

The industrial toxin, which is high in nitrogen, is added to milk when producers want to artificially boost protein content. According to the Associated Press, one in five national dairy companies tested positive for the chemical. The hygiene practices of dairy farmers dates back to 80′s standardization and this lack of updated regulation has allowed the antiquated technology to go largely unchecked.

After the pet-food scare with melamine it leaves one wondering what, if any, form of melamine is safe. I was recently given some kids’ bowls made from melamine. Are they at risk? Obviously the substance is solidified, but as we now know with regard to plastics, it is best to err on the side of caution.

Melamine flatware is usually created by combining the chemical with formaldehyde. Formaldehyde has been linked to asthma and cancer. In a piece for the Green Guide, Alexandra Zissu (author of The Organic Pregnancy – a great book I reviewed last year,) discusses the concern surrounding melamine and other durable plastics used in baby and toddler wares. In her article on plastics Zissu notes:

Aside from sippy cups, most kidware isn’t made of polycarbonate but of durable, colorful melamine. Melamine is a questionable choice for food because it’s made with formaldehyde, which has been linked to allergies, asthma and cancer. There’s no evidence that formaldehyde leaches out of melamine every single time it’s used, but some studies, including one by the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration, have shown that the chemical can migrate out of melamine and into food under certain circumstances, such as heat and when serving highly acidic foods.

In my home we have been using glass, stainless steel, #5 plastics and wood. As far as plastics go, it is wise to never use abrasive detergents or scrubby sponges as this can cause degeneration, which can lead to leaching. Zissu discusses what she feels are the best alternatives:

My daughter eats from our own lead-free ceramic dishes. She also eats from small stainless-steel prep bowls purchased at a kitchen supply store, and even the occasional glass bowl. I know some moms and dads worry about shattering glass, but she’s never broken one, despite the fact that the floor under our dining table is poured concrete (inherited from someone else’s renovation). It probably helped that we have firmly explained to her over and over and over that she may not toss the things.

Avoiding all things plastic is not a new concept. The idea of toddlers throwing glass and ceramic bowls at the dog can be daunting, but as Zissu says, teaching can help alleviate flying objects (at least ideally.) People go back and forth with the plastics debate. A few weeks ago a study was released saying “everything is OK – you can use BPA” and some of my friends told me they felt duped into buying BPA-free. But, here’s the thing. If we know we are already exposed to all of these chemicals in our environment and have a higher body-burden than our civilization has ever seen, isn’t it wise to err on the side of caution? When so many still use microwaves and plastics together, this just seems like a no-brainer to me. We put this stuff through the dishwasher (heating to high temps,) we serve hot food on it, and we bang it around and scratch it up. The attitude of “well, everything is dangerous – everything causes cancer” is resigning responsibility and leaving the well-being of our youth up to Dow and Monsanto, who as we know, have done a bang-up job so far.

Mothers Milk Project: The Anti Nuclear Weapon

For those living within fifty miles of the Indian Point Nuclear Power Plant, there is a new way to document the potential impact of nuclear energy and radioactive waste. Breast milk: who knew it could be an (anti-)nuclear weapon?

The Mothers Milk Project is an endeavor founded by longtime activists Nancy Burton (of Connecticut Coalition Against Millstone) and Gail Merrill (a breast cancer survivor.) Rock the Reactors is a project supporter. Whether through spent nuclear fuel, radioactive waste, or medical by-products, Strontium-90, a radioactive isotope, is present in our environment.

According to Burton, goat milk sampled 5.5 miles from the Millstone Nuclear Power Station in Waterford, Conn. has tested high for strontium-90. She says the surrounding area has a high incidence of leukemia, early childhood mortality, miscarriage, bone cancer, childhood cancer and breast cancer. She wants to see if the same is true for the areas surrounding Indian Point Nuclear Power Plant in Buchanan, New York.

Nuclear power proponents claim there is no health risk with nuclear energy. However, plants such as Indian Point deposit Strontium-90 and other radionuclides into our atmosphere, affecting living organisms within a certain radius of the facility.

Here is a map representing the fifty mile radius of the plant, within which the current testing is occurring.

Mothers Milk Project is taking samples from women in Fairfield County in Connecticut and Westchester and Rockland Counties in New York state. The donated cup of milk will be divided into four parts: 1/4 cup for the NY State Department of Health, 1/4 cup for Entergy (parent company of Indian Point and Vermont Yankee,) 1/4 cup to be retained by the project’s independent laboratory and 1/4 cup to be retained by the project for possible re-testing.

The Project has also requested that New York State continue testing of local animals and mammals, which it did until 1991, then stopped.

The biological activity of Strontium-90 is similar to that of calcium. It enters our body through contaminated food or water, and is deposited in our bones, teeth and bone marrow, where it can disrupt cellular activity.

During routine operations, Indian Point is designed to release fission byproducts into the air and water. One such radionuclide, krypton, rapidly decays to strontium-90, a beta particle which mimics calcium in its chemical composition. Strontium-90 is readily absorbed in bone tissue and teeth. With a half-life (decay period) of 30 years, it disrupts nearby cells and is known to cause leukemia, bone cancer, diseases of the immune system and cancers of soft tissues such as breast and lung. Children and developing babies are especially vulnerable to its effects.

Strontium-90 is linked to cancer, leukemia, and diseases of the immune system. If you live within the 50 mile radius of the plant and are currently breastfeeding, donate your milk! Anonymity is respected, as only zip codes are recorded.

“Breastfeeding mothers and others are entitled to know if harmful radioactive effluents are entering our milk supply,” Burton said. “We believe ‘breast is best’ and our babies should be protected from insidious contaminants,” she added.

Sweet Pepita Clothing

Shannon Kline is the creator of Sweet Pepita Clothing. Using recycled fabrics from old, funky tee’s and 100% organic cotton, Sweet Pepita blends sustainability with hip, retro style. You can send Shannon a favorite old tee-shirt that you don’t want to get rid of and she will give it new life as a baby-tee. I have requested she make duds for us adult folk also but for now its just for the wee ones.

I love to sew custom baby tees. Customers send me their old favorite adult sized t-shirts and I transform them into clothing for their babies. I just read that Americans throw away an unspeakable amount of clothing every year. And I know that we all have t-shirts we’re holding on to that we’re never going to wear again. Sewing them into baby tees feels really good! We’re recycling and giving a child a piece of her parent’s history.

Eco Holiday

This year, to enjoy the holidays, we are minimizing gift-giving and enjoying time together. Here are some simple ways we are doing this:
~Clearing out old stuff and donating it to Goodwill and shelters
~Enjoying warm cups of organic vanilla and spice tea
~Heading out for a hike
~Lighting the soy Jack Frost candles and turning off the lights while enjoying some locally harvested food and organic nog (gotta have nog – soy for me!)
~Doing artwork
~Listening to corny Frank Sinatra songs
~Playing frisbee with the dog in the snow
~Taking the babies out and pulling them on their wooden sled

Starre, Thanks so much for all that you do to keep Eco Chick thriving!
Wishing everyone a warm, snuggly holiday.
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