When is the last time you thought about your body burden? What even is body burden? Simply put it is the amount of burden placed on your body from toxins and biotoxins. Toxins can range from Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) like smoke, chemicals in cleaners, scented items to irritants and endocrine disruptors in body care, pesticides on food, and hidden toxins in home and self care items. Biotoxins are poisonous substances created by living organisms and include things like fungus and mycotoxins (from mold) that may enter your body from an exposed living area.
If you are living in a home with mold then you are being exposed to a biotoxin and it increases the work your body has to do to function. Some body's handle this burden easier than others. And chances are you aren't even aware it is happening at first. Many see problems gradually, almost not recognizing them for what they are and fail to think of their environment as reason for their increased body burden, and some see none at all. So how can you reduce these burdens on your body? Remove yourself from the environment, discussed more
here, or make a conscious effort to decrease your body burden by eliminating toxins in other places. Biotoxins are particularly difficult because they get in your body and stay in your body. They are extremely difficult to remove and place a heavy burden on your body. Many people do not react to normal toxins (discussed below) until after being exposed to biotoxins (meaning you may have never reacted prior to environmental exposure). I want all readers to know that I understand fully the struggle of being stuck in an exposed area. It can take time to get out of substandard housing. Read on, there is more you can do and control.
What about normal everyday toxins? Where are they? How do they increase body burden? First you will need to sit and think about the ingredients in all items in your home (whoa, it's a lot). What do you use every day? Shampoo? Dish soap? Laundry detergent? Toxins are not just in the obvious like rat poison and bleach, they are in loads of stuff. Let's look at a common "green" soap. Here are its ingredients:
INGREDIENTS: Water, sodium lauryl sulfate (plant-derived cleaning agent), glycerin (plant-derived foam stabilizer), lauramine oxide (plant-based cleaning agent), caprylyl/myristyl glucoside (plant-derived cleaning agent), magnesium chloride (mineral-based viscosity modifier), citric acid (plant-derived pH adjuster), and benzisothiazolinone and methylisothiazolinone (synthetic preservatives).
They use tricky wording to make their ingredients sound safe (this is called greenwashing). But methylisothiazolinone (MI) is a very dangerous preservative and biocide. It can cause contact allergies like eczema and contact dermatitis and when tested in a lab after ten minutes of exposure it became toxic to cultured neurons (More in-depth information can be found
here).
So take a step back and look at your labels. Your skin is your largest organ and you can be exposing it to hundreds of chemicals or toxins daily without even realizing the impact it is having on your body. MI is one of 10+ ingredients in just this dish soap. How many ingredients are in your shampoo or body wash? Do you know what they all mean? It can be overwhelming and cringe worthy. For amazing support on ingredients, I recommend
this Facebook group or EWG.org.
Toxins in your home, combined with biotoxins in exposed living areas, can place a large burden on your body and its ability to function properly. If you are sick from mold or other environmental issues, you body is fighting hard to make itself well. Add in toxins from cleaners, VOC's, self-care, cosmetics, and pesticides from food and your body never gets a break from filtering and healing, let alone functioning.
Removing them is the only way to decrease your exposure and lighten the burden. Using truly toxin-free cleaners, body products, detergents, organic food, and beauty products can reduce the toxic footprint. Eliminating unsafe VOC's by filtering your air and eliminating anything that puts off a gas/scent will help. And finally living in an environment that is free from mold growth (really any moisture issues) and other biotoxins will be a final element in decreasing your body burden. Our
Resource Page is full of truly toxin-free products that will help reduce body burden. If you have favorite non-toxic items, comment below!!
Hope this helps,
B&R
Working on reducing body burden? Check out our FREE low-mold food guide
here
Legal & Discloser statement
Comments
Post a Comment