When you hear the phrase “toxic load”, what do you think of? Toxic load is an accumulation of several different unhealthy or less-than-ideal components that have a negative effect on our overall health and wellness. This can include environmental issues like poor air quality and tainted water, physical problems like overconsumption of ultra processed foods, forever chemicals found in household products, and artificial fragrances found in things like candles and personal care products, and mental/emotional overstimulation and stress caused by what/how much we consume online or in the media. The combination of these things puts us in an inescapable sea of what many people refer to as toxic soup. We feel worse than we ever have (on all fronts) and have the rates of disease and illness that we do today. Our bodies are fighting battles that we sometimes don’t even know about.
It seems nearly impossible to avoid all of these problems completely (because it is) but there ARE ways you can reduce your toxic load – small changes that add up and will make a difference. It is incredibly overwhelming when you try to look at the fine details of every single little thing you consume, use, or have in your home. I know I felt like there was just no way I could avoid these issues and like there was no point to even try. But I knew that like most things, if I could pick one place to start, the rest would come with time. So rather than freak out and be so anxious that I did nothing (or go the opposite way and purge everything in my house), I picked one thing that was easy to change at that moment and used it as my starting point.
In the beginning some of the changes are likely going to be pricey; let’s not pretend that it’s cheaper to try and be healthier (this goes back to my discussion on organic food as well, found here). It’s okay to choose the things that work and make sense for you and your family in your household. Eventually the benefit of being healthier will outweigh the initial cost of making these changes. I would argue that it costs more – more money, more time, more livelihood, more stress – to do nothing and end up negatively impacted by things that could have been changed. The idea is not to live a perfectly toxic free life, as that would be unattainable (and would cause more stress than anything, wreaking havoc on our body and nervous system in its own terrible way). The ultimate goal is to make little changes and choices where and when we can that will add up over time in a positive way, balancing out the good and the bad in all areas of consumption and existence in a modern society.
Here are some of the ways I reduce my toxic load.
Environmentally:
- No wearing shoes inside the house
- Water softener & reverse osmosis system installed in my house
- Multiple air purifiers in the house
- Change the air filters for the AC every 6 months
- Vacuum & dust often
Physically:
- Eat as much organic + nutrient dense food as possible
- Take supplements to make up for possible nutrient deficiencies
- Switched to natural based cleaners/soaps
- Minimal synthetic fragrances
- Workout + walk daily
- Red light therapy
Mentally/Emotionally:
- I literally DON’T watch the news
- Limit screentime/mindless scrolling + no phone at the dinner table
- Phone on DND from 8pm to 5am
- Only follow accounts that are adding joy to my life/inspire me/teach me things
- Actively practice gratitude
As usual, this is not an end all, be all list. Wellness doesn’t have to be all or nothing. Part of the balance of living is understanding that you can’t always control everything around you, and that it’s okay. Add good stuff where you can and swap out not so good stuff when possible. What you do and the choices you make when you’re in your own home still has a significant impact even when you’re out somewhere else!
I will post links for items and products we use in our home to lower our toxic load in a separate post, so you can find them under the Household Products section on my Links to Faves page!