New Year, New You?

Often at the beginning of the new year we look to make promises to ourselves to be more conscious about what we are doing to or putting in our bodies, so we thought we would give a few suggestions that are not only pro-you but pro-sustainability! So here we go:

No.1 - Take care of your skin and it will take care of you. 

This is an old, but true saying. Gone are the days when we would put anything onto our face without checking the ingredients for harmful chemicals. Nowadays, it takes more than good looking packaging or a big name brand to make us part with our hard earned case.

There are thousands of chemicals in your products, many of which are being absorbed into your body. These companies have cart blanche to use any ingredient or raw material without government review or approval.

This industry is highly unregulated. There is no pre-product approval before a product hits the market and enters your home. A minuscule approval process exists, but only for color additives and ingredients classified as over-the-counter drugs.

Many of these synthetic chemicals are skin irritants, skin penetrators, endocrine disrupters and are carcinogenic. I can’t go through all of these harmful chemicals, but here are 10 you should highly avoid:

- Parabens

- Synthetic colours

- Fragrance

- Phthalates

- Triclosan

- Sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) / Sodium laureth sulfate (SLES)

- Formaldehyde

- Toluene

- Propylene glycol

- Sunscreen chemicals

At No.2: Eat a more plant based diet

Meat production is one of the most environmentally destructive industries on the planet, responsible for massive amounts of water use, pollution, greenhouse gas emissions and habitat destruction. You have three chances a day to improve the health of the planet — by reducing your meat consumption in even just one meal a day you can reduce your environmental footprint.

Eating locally sourced fruits and vegetables also lowers the amount of fossil fuel used to transport food over long distances... sounds like a pretty good idea hey!

 

No.3: Pay more attention to where products come from and what they are made from.

From coffee to fruit to clothing, the number of options out there can get overwhelming — but there are some clear leaders when it comes to minimising your impact on wildlife and the planet. If you're a coffee drinker, look for “shade-grown” coffee, which is grown while keeping forest habitats intact for migratory birds and other species.

Choose Fair Trade certified goods when possible to support companies dedicated to sustainable production and paying labourers a fair wage. Buy organic food whenever possible; it may cost a little more, but it keeps harmful pesticides out of our land and water, protecting farm workers, wildlife and your family.

No.4: Drink more filtered tap water out of a reusable water bottle. 

If we think about drinking water, most conscientious people tend to make sure they get their daily quota in one way or another, however, the quality of water, and the way it is delivered to your body can make the world of difference to you, and our planet.

Our planet is being over run with plastic pollution so drinking filtered water out of a re-fillable bottle will help to do your bit for the environment, whilst at the same time prevent running the risk of putting the toxins that seep from the single use water bottles into your water... In short, buy a good quality water bottle and a water filter, and you'll be doing your bit for your health, and the health of our world.

If you're feeling creative, you can even infuse your water with lemon, mint, basil, or cucumber, for that extra refreshing flavour.

 

At No.5, and a very important one for our planet: Cut back on the plastic you and your family uses every day.

This means; take a reusable plastic bag to the supermarket, drink filtered water out of a reusable water bottle, eat locally produced food that doesn't come with lots of plastic packaging, so no to plastic straws in drinks, buy products that are sold in glass containers/packaging or other sustainable products... in short, there is no excuse for single use plastic.

Good luck and good health for 2018 and beyond… to you and our beautiful planet.