New Year, New You: 4 Easy Ways to Lower your Toxic Load

Each new year feels like a blank slate…a fresh start! Not to be a downer, but our world is full of harmful chemicals and our bodies are exposed to toxins on the daily. Toxic load refers to the stress on our bodies through exposure to various chemicals. An entire elimination of all toxic elements feels totally out of reach for us busy parents but there are easy ways to minimise our toxic load! The beginning of 2024 is a perfect opportunity to make intentional steps to decrease that toxic load… here’s a few ways you can do that!  

1 | Swap to glass 

Heating food in plastic containers can cause chemicals to leech out into your food. Glass containers are a much safer option and are such a simple swap! Invest in some Pyrex when it’s on sale and you won’t look back!  

2 | Ditch fabric softeners 

Synthetic fragrance is a huge hormone disruptor and are known to cause skin irritations and respiratory issues. For some reason, we use fabric softeners without batting an eye even though they are heavily fragranced and coat our clothes in chemicals. Choose a natural, fragrance-free laundry detergent when possible and instead of fabric softeners, use a bit of vinegar. This might seem like a strange choice, but vinegar is a wonderful cleaner and is odour-neutralising. Your clothes won’t come out smelling like vinegar, we promise!

3 | Leave Your Shoes At the Front Door  

Did you know that wearing shoes all through you house adds to your toxic load? It was news to us too! Shoes can pick up various pollutants, toxins, and chemicals from outdoor environments, such as pesticides, heavy metals, and pollutants from streets or sidewalks. When you wear these shoes indoors, you may inadvertently introduce these substances into your living space. Be mindful of wearing shoes indoors especially if you have a baby on the move because they will be crawling through whatever is on the bottom of your shoes. They then will put those cute little hands in their mouths, ingesting all those toxic chemicals. Protect your little ones by keeping shoes at the front door. 

4 | Choose Low Tox Nappies, Wipes and Cleaning Products  

All of the little choices we make really add up when it comes to toxic load and this is one of the easiest swaps to make! Babies have thinner, more permeable skin so anything we put on their skin enters their bloodstream quickly. Their little bodies cannot process toxins the ways we can as adults so they are much more vulnerable. Sadly, conventional nappies and wipes are loaded with harsh chemicals and fragrance. Not only can these toxins cause skin irritation but they add so much to our little one’s toxic load. Choose a brand of nappies and wipes that you can trust—Luvme nappies and wipes have no unnecessary nasties and zero fragrance.  

Another big component is the toxic cleaning products that many Aussie families use! Your child is being affected by this more than you might realise. For example, if you clean their highchair with a chemical-filled cleaning spray and then you put their food on the highchair, they will ingest those chemicals. Choosing a gentle, non-tox cleaning product is one easy step that will help minimise your child’s toxic load. We love Koala Eco because they use all natural ingredients that still get the job done!  

So here’s to a new year of making more informed choices and taking little steps to create a safer environment for our families! Check out our range of low tox nappies and wipes and cleaning products!