DETOX: The Home

Written by Emma Tommasini

Sure, you’ve heard all about clean eating but what about clean living? Considering we spend 90% of our time in the great indoors, it makes sense to give your home space some all-natural love and attention.

Our homes can be filled with over 500 different chemicals. It’s estimated that air quality inside the home can be up to 2-5 times worse than outside air pollution.

Reducing your contact with chemicals— even a little—can yield clear health benefits. You might experience less allergies, asthma, headaches, skin irritation and fatigue. Long-term, you may even lower your risk of infertility, respiratory disease and cancer.

Here, we list some low-effort, high impact ways to minimise the toxic load in your home and boost health;

GROW INDOOR PLANTS

According to studies done by NASA, indoor plants can improve the air quality inside the home. Plants pumps out loads of fresh oxygen and filter toxins and harmful chemicals out of the air. The best purifying and easy to grow indoor plants include Ivy, Lily, Spider Plants, Bamboo and Ferns.

OPEN YOUR WINDOWS

On a daily basis or as much as you can, let the breeze flow through your home. This ventilates out the stale stagnant air and brings in fresh more pure air, so your home will feel and smell cleaner.

NO SHOES IN THE HOUSE

Have a “No shoes in the house” policy. Shoes are magnets for dirt, germs, road sealant, pesticides, lead dust and whatever else you’ve been walking around on, so its best to leave them at the front door.

LESS ELECTRIC RADIATION

Avoid electrical products like mobile phones and TV's in the bedroom. Electro-Magnetic radiation is linked to many health risks including poor sleep. If you can't bear to leave them out of the bedroom, switch electric items off at the wall and turn on your mobiles blue light filter and flight mode when going to bed.

NATURAL CLEANING

Use natural, green cleaning products. Better for your health, the environment and cheaper if you make your own. You can make highly effective cleaning products yourself including multi-purpose spray, glass cleaner, toilet cleaner, oven cleaner, air fresher, dish liquid, laundry liquid, fabric softener, stain removers and more. All with 5 simple ingredients- white vinegar, baking soda, castile soap, lemon and essential oils.

REDUCE PLASTICS

Eliminate as many plastics in your life as you can. A plastic free home is almost impossible, but taking steps to gradually reduce it will go a long way to improving your health. Opt for natural alternatives to plastic packaging like glass or recyclable cardboard. When your plastics containers and kitchenware need replacing choose glass or stainless steel. Plastics marked with a 7, should especially be avoided as they may contain BPA which is more likely to leech out when heated in a microwave or dishwasher.