When I discovered I was pregnant, I became a woman on a mission. I spent countless hours pouring over books and online articles to find out what was safe and what wasn't. Some information is easy to find: don't eat processed lunch meats or unpasteurized cheeses, avoid alcohol. Some information was more controversial and less clear cut: avoid phthlates, parabens, pesticides, BPA. It is only recently that the data has begun to show that it is imperative to avoid these chemicals (and many more!) throughout the nine months you carry your child (and longer if you are nursing). My life changed when I became pregnant. And not in the typical, "holy crap I'm going to be a mom" type of way. But in an "oh my god what I put in/on my body gets into the system of my tiny developing baby." I cleaned out all products ending in -paraben, got rid of all cleaning chemicals, changed our laundry detergent, switched facial and hair products, and now ALWAYS choose organic foods, instead of the 75% rule that I used to abide by. It's not a perfect system, I seem to keep finding out that ingredients that seemed harmless in certain products are actually unsafe, so my journey to a healthy home keeps evolving. But if I can pronounce it and know where it comes from, typically I'm okay with it being in my home; not a hard and fast rule, but it works for the most part. I could go on and on about this topic but I won't. Just know that more and more research is finding that unhealthy habits can start before the baby is born.
Dr. Greene is possibly one of my favorite pediatricians. He's written two fabulous books about raising children "green" and has been on Dr. Oz several times. He is impressive and incredibly smart, but the best part is he has research to back him up.
http://www.drgreene.com/blogs/drgreene
http://www.drgreene.com/blog/2011/02/08/toothpaste-matters
http://www.drgreene.com/ewgreport/cord-blood-part-one
No comments:
Post a Comment