After reading an article in Conceive magazine, I was horrified to learn that many of the chemiclas in our soaps, shampoos, conditioners, cosmetics, cooking utensils and food storage, and cleaning products could very well be contributing to the rising numbers of infertility (new numbers are now 7.3 million women with 20% unexplained infertility), not to mention birth defects and cancer.
I have to say this article kinda freaked me out, especially when I read that some children are potentially being born infertile because of the chemicals in things we as women use every day! I was freaked, then I got angry because a few of these chemicals have been known to be contributors to infertility, brain damage, nerve damage and cancer for decades and are now banned (and have been for years) in Asia and parts of Europe, but are still not only legal in this country but WIDELY USED!!! Can you believe that!?!?
What are these you ask? So glad you did!
*BPA: this can be found in plastic food containers, water bottles, baby bottles, lining of meta food cans, CD cases, eyeglasses, some dental sealants. It cause premature puberty, miscarriages, and adverse affects on male reproductive development. Limit exposure by using glass instead of plastic to store food, water bottles like SIGG bottles (found at most outdoors stores such as REI or Whole Foods stores), avoid plastic containers that have a 7 or higher in the triangle at the bottom of the container
*Phthalates: can be found in vinyl flooring, plastic shower curtains, cosmetics, fragrances, shampoos, lotions pharmaceutical and herbal pill coatings, medical equipment and IV bags and tubing. It causes ovulatory irregularities and increased time to pregnancy, malformation of male reproductive tract and decreased semen quality. Phthalates are not listed on most products (lucky us!) but since Europe has banned this product any shampoo, conditoner, cosmetic, or lotion produced there would be free of this. Also, anything fragrance free is generally free of this as well. (Check out cosmetics from L'Oreal, Revlon, Aveda and The Body Shop for US companies that do not have these)
These are two of the biggest that impact fertility, others include Mercury and Lead. Mercury is mainly found in the kind of fish you eat and lead in dental fillings. To find out more about these and other chemicals in things you use every day go to these helpful sites:
I have already visited the cosmetics sites and was appalled to discover that most of the products that I use are higher than I would like on the scale of what is considered safe exposure to certain chemicals; the highest one that I use is Dove deodorant, which was a 7 out of 10; 10 being very bad. Many companies have signed a compact stating that they will phase out the chemicals that are known to cause cancer, birth defects, infertility, etc. within three years of signing ( you can find them on the cosmetics sites I have listed above). Surprising to me was that Mary Kay, a company that is proud of being a partner with the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation has refused to sign the compact. Well, they've just lost my business I can tell you!
What we can do to stop companies from being allowed to poison us and future generations is to first of all make the choice to buy smarter by reading up on the chemicals most used (the websites above are a great resource) and then buying products that have low or none of those chemicals. We can also contact our Congressmen/women and ask that more pressure be but on companies to phase out these chemicals and request our lawmakers to pass laws to ban these chemicals.
Of course an organic diet also helps. Conceive magazine says that if you can't afford to buy all organic foods buy meats, dairy products and eggs that are organic or at least from animals that are fed a vegetarian diet, are not injected with hormones and have some kind of free range. This may sound organic, but it's just shy and yet still healthier than options that guarantee none of the above.
Also some fruits and veggies seem to be exposed to and absorb more pesticides than others so you should concentrate on buying these organic if you can. Because this posting is already so long, you can find a list of these on www.conceiveonline.com Just look for their Green Fertility article.
I know this sounds daunting, but Dan and I have already started the organic diet and have noticed some really positive changes in how we feel. We've decided, because we want to prevent cancer, birth defects, infertility for our child and start reversing any infertility effects that may have come from these chemicals we will take the plunge and start making our home Green. It's going to be a process. We are going to keep an eye out for inexpensive cast iron skillets to replace our non-stick pots and pans, and replace skin care products with safer alternatives. We'll take it one step at a time. And that's my advice if you want to start thinking of going Greener: take a look and see what you can start to change first. Every little change helps.
1 comment:
Hey girl,
So glad to see you're putting such helpful, clear info out there for people. Since you're looking for cosmetics without all the chemicals in them, let me recommend some for you. I buy Beautescentials from a friend of mine who produces it. It's good quality stuff and affordable, and it's made from minerals and without all the chemical crap that causes these problems. She also uses Green packaging to help protect the environment. If you want more info, let me know.
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