Kicking the Chemicals to the Curb

Almost two years ago, I started on my quest to get rid of chemicals in my daily routine.  Think about it......Your skin is the largest organ of your body.  Everything you put on it is absorbed into your body. So many chemicals are endocrine disruptors!  Taking care of your skin and not assaulting it with chemicals is very important for your ultimate health. Since my quest started quite a while ago, here is an update!  Below is a list of what I used to use and what I use now, effectively deleting most of the chemicals!  

My morning routine included:

• Shower using soap
• Shampoo
• Conditioner
• Brushing Teeth
• Using Deodorant
• Daily lotion

I used to use Zest bath soap......Just look at all those ingredients.  I switched to Kiss My Face soap with only three ingredients ......Water, Salt and Olive Oil.  What I found interesting about this soap is that it just lasts and lasts.  I'll go through only one bar of this soap while my hubby goes through about three of his.  And my skin feels great and is clean.  That was my first win.

The second items I tackled were my shampoo and conditioner.  Even though they were from a company that called themselves Modern Organic Products, I called them Mostly Organic Products.  The shampoo still had the dreaded SLS and both had wheat!! For someone who deletes wheat from their diet, this just needed to go!  I love the way my hair feels and have saved a ton of money with the new way.  You can read all about my new hair routine in this blog post about my No-Poo Shampoo!

The next item on the list was toothpaste.  I had been with Young Living about 6 months before I decided to try their Aromabright toothpaste.  Wow, oh wow!!  I was happy!  When my teeth were brushed they felt like they had just come from the hygienist, so smooth and clean feeling!  AND if you want to add a little whitening to it, you add one drop of Orange Essential Oil!  It is a gentle whitening for a natural looking tooth color.  You can see my one month trial picture HERE.  I had only been using it a couple of months when I went for my cleaning and she said that there was very little tarter.  Score!  But, what is in it?  NO chemicals AND NO SLS!!!!  (Water, Calcium carbonate, Cocos nucifera (Coconut) oil, Sodium bicarbonate, Glycerin, Xylitol, Xanthum gum, Mentha piperita† (Peppermint) oil, Mentha spicata† (Spearmint) leaf oil, Stevia rebaudiana leaf extract, Lecithin, Eugenia caryophyllus (Clove) bud oil, Ocotea quixos† (Ocotea) leaf oil, Cinnamomum verum† (Cinnamon) Bark oil, Citrus limon† (Lemon) peel oil, Eucalyptus Radiata† leaf oil, Rosmarinus officinalis† (Rosemary) leaf oil)   Another win!!

The next thing on my morning list was deodorant.  This was the hardest item to tackle on my original list because you just DON'T want to stink!!  So, I picked a long weekend when we weren't going anywhere.  I could wash up if I felt I was too stinky and tried the Young Living Mountain Mist Deodorant.  There were several things I noticed over the weekend and into the first week.  Did I get a little stinky......yup.  But the stinky seems to change at the end of the week.  Instead of being super awful, it wasn't bad at all.  I guess it took me a while to get the old deodorant out of my system.  Now, about a month later I don't notice hardly any smell at all.  What really threw me at first was that I actually sweat, which is good for you!  After using antiperspirant for decades having my pits wet was a new experience for sure!  My shirts do need to be laundered a little more.  Sometimes I can't wear the shirt the second day.  That's okay with me though.  Getting rid of the aluminium and the other chemicals is a big win!   I will definitely be continuing the new deodorant.  Here are the ingredients of the Mountain Mist Deodorant (Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil Extract, White Beeswax, Pure Ester 34, Zinc Oxide, Pure Ester 40, Syzygium Aromaticum† (Clove) Flower Bud Oil, Citrus Limon† (Lemon)Peel Oil, Mentha Piperita† (Peppermint) Oil, Rosmarinus Officinalis†(Rosemary) Leaf Oil), Eucalyptus Radiata† Leaf Oil, Abies Concolor† (White Fir) Oil, and Tocopherol (Vitamin E).  

Finally, the last of my morning routine to change was my facial lotion.  I've loved Mary Key TimeWise Age-defying Moisturizer but just look at all these ingredients!!  (Water, glycerin, C12-15 alkyl benzoate, cettearyl alcohol, isostearyl alcohol, triethanolamine hydrogenated lecithin, behenyl alcohol, propylene glycol, dimethicone, bis-diglyceryl polyacladipate-2, ceteareth-20, linoleamidopropyl PG-dimonium chloridephosphate, silica, carbomer, diazolidinyl urea, lauramine oxide, disodium EDTA, betaine, glyceryl polyacrylate, methylparaben, sodium PCA, C9-15 alkyl phosphate, tocopheryl acetate, sorbitol, propylparaben, serine, threonine, proline, arginine, glycine, alanine, lysine, glutamic acid, thermus themophillus ferment.)  Yikes!!    So what do I use now.  Jojoba oil and Frankincense Essential Oil.  I put a little Jojoba oil in my hand, add one drop of Frankincense and rub all over my face.  I am literally in LOVE with this.  The Frankincense is super good for your skin and the Jojoba doesn't clog your pores either.  My skin tone has been fabulous!  

So, I hope that this inspires you to delete chemicals out of your routine.  It isn't too hard and your body will thank you.  Later this week, I'll tell you how I have expanded my quest and deleted chemicals from my cleaning products.  

Low cost Pumpkin Latte

Well, it is that time of year again.  Popular coffee stores have brought out their Pumpkin Spice Lattes.  BUT, they have lots and lots of calories!!  So, here is a low-cal version that you can use in your diffuser.  Mmmmmmm.........

Orange oil challenge

The beginning of February Ann participated in a challenge to use a drop of Young Living Orange essential oil along with her toothpaste each time she brushed her teeth.  Below is the before and after picture.  What do you think?  Was it a success?  She thinks it was.  Not a huge difference, but enough to notice!  Oh, and that toothpaste?  She uses Thieves Toothpaste.  It has been a great toothpaste.  Even the dental hygienist said that the tarter was less.

We challenge you to try the challenge and show us your before and after pictures!

Oral Health and Homemade Toothpaste Recipe

Do you know your oral health is important to your overall wellness? Good oral health can reduce heart disease and cancer. For these reasons and because 'Who doesn't want a pretty smile?', this post is dedicated to sharing a few ways you can naturally increase your oral health.
risk of serious chronic diseases

Oil Pulling
First stop is oil pulling. This is one of the oldest and most powerful ways of improving oral health. This ancient practice involves swishing vegetable oil in the mouth for 5-15 minutes. Coconut oil is now a common favorite for this practice. It is important to push the oil under the tongue and between the teeth since that is where most of the microorganisms reside. The act of swishing the oil in your mouth 'pulls or extracts' the bacteria and fungi from the crevices of your mouth. After the 5-15 minutes you spit out the oil, don't swallow it, this is because all the bacteria now in the oil. To increase the benefits of oil pulling you can also add an antiseptic essential oil such as clove.  Note: Spit into the garbage, not down the sink.  You don't want to clog up your drain!

Xylitol
Is it good or bad? People fall on both sides of this fence. We're not here to debate this topic. Xylitol while being a sweetener is also a water-soluble antiseptic. It is derived from birch tree sap and commonly found in dental products and chewing gum. We added it to our homemade toothpaste due to these reasons and because we wanted something to take the edge off of the essential oils we added for flavor.

You can read more about Xylitol's roll in oral health by clicking here.

Reducing Use of Abrasive Toothpastes
Many common brand toothpastes contain very large abrasive particles that quickly wear away your tooth enamel. Not having a thick enamel myself I felt it was time to find an alternative. Tooth enamel is not something the body regenerates and once lost, it is permanent. As you lose tooth enamel, it exposes the softer dentin material underneath it. This INCREASES YOUR RISK for tooth decay.
The particles in your toothpaste should be super fine for this reason, and yet be strong enough to scrub away the built up plaque.  Particles in some whitening toothpastes are much bigger and sharp edged than the particles in our recipe.  For those of you with the Essential Oils Desk Reference Guide, look on Page 334 for an excellent example of particle sizes.

Homemade Toothpaste

5 Tablespoons Calcium powder

3 Tablespoons Xylitol Powder

1 tablespoon Baking soda 

4 Tablespoons Coconut oil melted

2 Tablespoons Bentonite Clay

30 drops of essential oils of choice: Peppermint, Cinnamon, Thieves, Orange

20-30 drops of trace minerals
Plastic or glass bowl
Wooden spoon
Small glass container to store product.
Mask (optional) - See note below*
Distilled WATER - about 3 Tablespoons if your mix seems too hard.  We didn't add that when filming and our mix was a little too firm.

Directions:  Combine Calcium powder, Xylitol powder, baking soda and melted coconut oil. Stir until well mixed. Add Bentonite clay, stir until well mixed. Add oils and trace minerals. Mix in well and store in a glass container such as a small mason jar.

*Note: Add your powders slowly to avoid them flying into the air. You do not want the powders to enter your airway.  Using a medical mask is optional.