A healthy kitchen can mean different things to different people depending on where they are in their health journey. Today’s post is titled What is in a Healthy Kitchen, but instead, let’s have a look at what is NOT inside a healthy kitchen.
PRESERVATIVES
A healthy kitchen is full of good, whole, raw ingredients. It is free from preservatives. Our bodies and digestive systems were not made to break down preservatives. Our family tries to stay away from all preservatives, but especially three specific ones. BHT (Butylated Hydroxytoluene), TBQH (Tertiary Butylhydroquinone), and BHA (Butylated Hydroxyanisole).
BHT, BHA, and TBQH are all known to cause headaches, rashes, upset tummies, ADHD symptoms, as well as possible tumors, asthma, and eye or lung irritation. Add in the fact that BHT and BHA were originally made to preserve petroleum , and TBQH actually comes from petroleum and is an actual form of butane (WHAT?!), I don’t think we should be ingesting these “ingredients” at all!
ARTIFICIAL FLAVORS
We have talked about preservatives. Now, let’s look into artificial flavors. Artificial means fake or imitation. So, artificial flavor literally means you’re eating fake or not real flavor. If it’s not real, then what is it? Where did it come from? Chemicals. Artificial flavors are chemicals made in a lab. Sometimes flavors are listed out in the ingredients list, but sometimes the ingredients simply say artificial flavors. The following are known artificial flavors to avoid: cinnamyl formate/formic acid, butyl acetate, butryic acid, borneol, carvacrol, vanillin (found commonly in chocolate products), and most of the other words you can’t pronounce in a food ingredient list. Some side effects from eating chemicals, I mean artificial flavors, include seizures, headaches, dizziness, gastrointestional disturbances, ADHD symptoms and cancers. Enough said!
FOOD DYES
Dyes are very much known to cause hyperactivity in children. In the United States, food dyes are made from…you guessed it, chemicals. Why must they constantly be trying to poison us? Red 40, Yellow 5, Yellow 6, Blue 1, Blue 2, and Green 3 are the top dyes to avoid. However, all synthetic dyes should be avoided! I have noticed that dyes aren’t always listed by their color as much now, but they are listed as their alternative names. If you or your child is struggling with anger, aggressiveness, meltdowns, sensitivity, hyperactivity, asthma, insomnia, or cancer I highly recommend researching dyes and their effects on the human body.
PLASTICS
The above have all been things we shouldn’t eat. Hopefully, you aren’t eating plastic, but I bet there is still more than necessary present. The easiest way to cut down on plastic is be mindful of the packaging you’re bringing home from the grocery store. The second easiest way is to change storage containers from plastic to glass. I have switched almost all of my leftover containers to glass mason jars. Utensils are wooden spoons or stainless steel.
CLEANING CHEMICALS
Just like we don’t want to eat chemicals, we don’t want to breathe them in or absorb them into our skin either. Our skin is our largest organ, and we should be very picky about what it comes into contact with. Have you read the ingredients on the back of a package of disinfecting wipes? Where do we usually store our cleaning sprays and wipes? For most people, this is in the kitchen. You might be thinking, but the kitchen is the dirtiest place with all the food germs. Yes, the kitchen definitely needs to be clean. That’s where Norwex comes into play for my kitchen. You can literally clean with water and microfiber! Norwex does make some sprays to use with the cloths, but trust me! the cloths can do the work themselves! An envirocloth is the best start to a clean chemical free kitchen you can have.
Another good clean alternative to harsh cleaning chemicals is Force of Nature. Use code WOWCLEAN for 40% off and FREE SHIPPING. This stuff is the bomb dot com! The perfect bleach replacement! I use this on high chairs, pacifiers, food surfaces, etc. I haven’t found myself missing bleach once in the two years I have been using Force of Nature. Every household should have this product.