It may alarm you to realise that in countries such as Australia and America there are very limited regulations on the safety of which chemicals* are used in household and beauty products, and that this lack of protection can have a significant impact on not only your health, but also your babies and even your grand babies.

Chemicals that we are exposed to can be pass through our to offspring, and can even cross generations. This can unfortunately have a mutli-generational effect on health and fertility. Fertility rates are declining through generations and while there are many factors responsible for this, chemical exposure that passes through to our babies and affects their fertility and their children’s fertility is something that we need to become educated about and take responsibility for.

In a article I have written for Casa de Karma I discuss the benefits of reducing and removing chemical exposure from your diet and lifestyle, for both yourself and for your children. You can read a preview below, or click the link to read the full article which also discusses the relationship between chemicals and genetics, which chemicals to watch out for, the effect of chemicals of sperm health and some ways to reduce chemical exposure.

Read the full article here: http://casadekarma.com.au/why-choose-chemical-free-products-mum-baby/

Chemicals found in newborns

A study by the Environmental Working Group in 2005 examined the umbilical cord blood of 10 newborn babies and found a total of 287 chemicals, with an average of 200 chemicals present per baby. 28 of these were waste byproducts such as Formaldehyde, PCBs, Mercury, Petroleum and Dioxin 1, 4. 47 of these were consumer products such as Bisphenol A, Dioxins, Pthalates, Triclosan, Brominated Flame retardants, Pesticides and Preservatives.  Of these, 212 chemicals and pesticides had actually been banned or restricted in use 30+ years ago, giving us a scary insight into how chemicals can be stored in our bodies and be passed onto our offspring despite not having current exposure to them.

Other studies have shown that many of these chemicals were passed down the line from the grandmothers generation, however the chemicals were present in higher amounts in the children, suggesting that they are transferred across the placenta and breastmilk.

A precautionary approach

What does this mean? One of the lessons I take from this information is that chemicals which are currently viewed as safe but are not inert, are still best to avoid, as many of the harmful chemicals detected in this test were at one stage viewed as safe.

In Australia, the approach to chemical regulation is different to countries more progressive in this area – an absolute evidence of harm is required before a chemical is removed by use in Australia, compared to the EU where a more precautionary principle is in place – they believe that “When human activities may lead to morally unacceptable harm that is scientifically plausible but uncertain, action shall be taken to avoid or diminish that harm.”

In order to navigate this lack of protection we must take more responsibility ourselves.

Penelope Jagessar said in her Ted Talk: The Toxic Baby “It is only a parent’s awareness that stands between chemicals and our children”…

You can read the rest of the article here: http://casadekarma.com.au/why-choose-chemical-free-products-mum-baby/

*I would like to address the often presented argument that “everything is a chemical”. I agree that this is very close to the truth (with the exception of sound and light which is actually matter). However, in this article I am using the term chemicals for the sake of convenience, and actually referring to toxic and Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals, substances which are known or suspected to be capable of interfering with hormone receptors, hormone synthesis or hormone conversion which are in commercial use and have been proven or suspected of contributing to disease and dysfunction in humans, and chemicals which have shown to cause damage in ways such as mitochondrial dysfunction, neurodevelopmental toxicity, immune toxicity, oxidative stress and various levels of inflammation.

The post Why You Should Choose Chemical-Free Products For You & Your Baby appeared first on Alison Mitchell Naturopath.

I’m going a bit out of my ordinary style of posts here, and sharing some kid related content – rest assured, these type of posts will be only occasional. Ash is now 20 months (18 months when this photo was taken) and my efforts at coming up with fun things to do are often directed by my desire to keep harsh chemicals to a minimum, mostly because he likes to put things in his mouth.

One of these adventures involved my making a batch of edible finger paint, which got smeared around a roll of butchers paper (as well as his face and the table), tada, Art. Thank goodness it was easy to wash off and it didn’t bother me that some of it was ingested. This recipe is made from items you can find in your pantry, and is quick  (and kind of fun!) to make. Even though it’s ‘edible’ it’s not actually a food, so I would try to discourage kiddo from eating it, but not being concerned if he gets it in his mouth or does actually swallow some.

I’ve shared my recipe below. Let me know how you go, or even better share your piccies!

Ingredients

4 tablespoons of corn flour

a splash of cold water

1 1/2 cup of boiling water

Liquid food colouring

Method:

1. In a medium saucepan, mix the cornflour with enough cold water to make a paste.
2. Pour in 1 cup of boiling water and stir thoroughly so there are no lumps.
3. Turn the stove on to medium heat, and keep stirring. Soon you will see the colour start to change, and some sections may become thicker. Turn the heat off but keep stirring, and eventually it thicken.
4. You may want to add some more water if it is too thick, up to an extra 1/2 cup. Keep stirring well while you do this.
5. Spoon equal amounts into empty containers and add food colouring. I chose shades of blue and green (because the red was missing!) Aqua is 2 drops of green, 4 of blue. Lime Green is 3 yellow, 1 green. I did a straight blue, green and yellow (however the yellow wasn’t that visible on the paper). Mix until completely combined.
6. You can keep it in the fridge for about 2 weeks, covered with a lid or gladwrap. I suggest using it up sooner if your kiddie has a tendency to put it in their mouth.

Tips:

If the mixture has harden from being in the fridge, adding a little bit of boiling hot water or sitting in a warm spot will soften it again.

Use a few layers of paper on top of the table or put some plastic in between, as the paint will soften the paper and it may tear, particularly if bub is rough.

Have some wipes or a wet cloth handy so they don’t then take off and smear hands everywhere (speaking from experience here).

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