Page 71 - Family Resource Guide Spring/Summer 2025

NORTH STATE PARENT FAMILY RESOURCE GUIDE SPRING/SUMMER 2025 HEALTH
A YEAR OF HEALTHY LIVING:
Monthly Steps Recommended by the Environmental Working Group to Avoid Toxic Chemicals, Protect Your Health and Save Money
Many parents and families want to live a cleaner, chemical-free life. However, making sweeping changes to incorporate healthier products in your family’s life can seem daunting. But making incremental changes
can be easier and can add up over time to larger life changes you may be seeking for yourself and your family.
The Environmental Working Group (EWG) suggests making small changes over a year. This organization has put together monthly steps to help you create a healthier lifestyle, one free from toxic chemicals and wasteful materials and good for your family and the planet. Follow these smart solutions to healthier living every day.
MARCH
Clean green
It would be easier to shop smarter if all ingredients in cleaning products were listed on the label, as is more commonly found with food and cosmetics. But the federal government doesn’t require full disclosure. So check labels for warnings and ingredients, not marketing claims.
Avoid products that contain:
JANUARY
Pick safer cosmetics
The cosmetic industry is largely unregulated. Many cosmetic products contain dangerous chemicals. We need to become label readers and skip those products likely to contain dangerous chemicals, like hair dyes and chemical straighteners, loose powders and products containing artificial perfume or fragrances.
Whenever possible, avoid these common ingredients: • DMDM hydantoin
• Diazolidinyl urea
• Imidazolidinyl urea
Look for Environmental Protection Agency-registered products with these safer active ingredients, which are lower in toxicity compared to conventional actives: • Hydrogen peroxide
• Ethyl alcohol, ethanol
• Citric acid
• L-lactic acid
• Caprylic acid or octanoic acid
Filter your tap water
Drinking plenty of clean water is important for your health. If your tap water is not from a pure source, consider using a water filter system.
Carbon filter pitchers, faucet mounts and large dispensers are inexpensive options. Reverse osmosis combined with a carbon filter is the most effective way of purifying water and an ion exchange filter will soften your water.
• Glycols, glycol ethers and esters
• Sodium hypochlorite, found in chlorine
bleach
• Quaternary ammonium compounds
like benzalkonium chloride and other
chemicals that end in “onium chloride” • Propane, butane and isobutane
propellants used in aerosol products • Isothiazolinone and formaldehyde-
releasing preservatives
• Phthalates and synthetic musks, often
hidden by the umbrella term “fragrance.”
Avoid pesticides
Pesticides and toxic chemicals are increasingly linked to serious health problem, especially in children, whose developing bodies are more vulnerable to chemical exposures than those of adults. Research shows some pesticides are linked to cancer, hormone disruption and cognitive and behavior problems.
• Ceteareth
• Polyethylene glycol or PEG • Talc
MAY
Protect yourself from PFAS chemicals
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)
are “forever” chemicals that stay in the environment and you. PFAS build up in
our bodies and never break down in the environment. They are present in a wide
range of consumer products and commercial applications. Many studies link these chemicals to a variety of health harms, including:
• Testicular, kidney, liver and pancreatic cancer
• Reproductive problems
• Weakened immunity in children and adults
• Low birth weight
• Endocrine disruption
• Increased cholesterol
• Weight gain in children and dieting adults
FEBRUARY
To avoid pesticides on your food, buy organic when
you can. When you can’t buy organic, buy less
contaminated conventional foods. See EWG’s Dirty
Dozen and Clean Fifteen on page 86; and on the
website, ewg.org to know when you can feel OK buying conventional.
APRIL
• Wet-mop floors and use a vacuum with a HEPA filter to remove household dust that may contain PFAS.
• Choose stainless steel or cast-iron cookware over nonstick.
• Avoid fabrics treated with nonstick chemicals. • Read the ingredients lists on your personal care products and choose products that
don’t contain PFAS. 72 www.northstateparent.com • North State Parent Family Resource Guide Spring/Summer 2025 71
To avoid PFAS exposure:
• Install a water filter
• Avoid packaged food and takeout
containers lined with waterproof or greaseproof coatings.
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