Healthy living begins in the home. In order to optimize current and future health, it is important to create a nontoxic, nurturing home environment. Once you do, you will feel better and be on the road to good health. To do so, start with addressing the following elements:
- Air
- Water
- Food
- Exercise
- Household Cleaning Products
- Personal Care Products
- Lawn Care
Many people don’t realize that part of healthy living is using chemical free natural products. For example, using an SLS Free Shampoo is much safer for your family and the environment.
While we will dive into each of these categories individually in future articles, let’s take a look at how to improve your health by making basic and practical changes in each element, starting today.
Air as Healthy Living Basics
Air quality is fundamental to our well-being. In an article about environmental impact of air quality, we find that, on average, a person inhales about 14,000 liters of air every day, and the presence of contaminants in this air can adversely affect people’s health. People with pre-existing respiratory and heart conditions, diabetes, the young, and older people are particularly vulnerable.
You can make simple changes today by:
- Changing your HVAC’s air filter
- Regularly check and clean your home’s air ducts
- Change and clean the air filter and AC in your vehicles
- Purchasing air filtration systems and even plants for inside your home.
To Live Healthy, We All Need Water
Water makes up more of our bodies than any other substance so we need to be sure we are drinking it and using the purest forms of it when we clean and cook. To improve your water quality, you can take simple steps such as:
- Running cold water before using so what has sat in your pipes is not used to cook
- Re-routing your runoff
- Utilize water filters for any water being consumed
- Be sure your household plumbing is up to current building codes for safety
Food for Healthy Living
We’ve all heard it said that we are what we eat, but how do we improve our nutrition to ensure health and longevity of life? Tyr small steps, such as:
- Focus on Freshness
- Eliminate the Artificial
- Purge what is Processed
- Stay on the Outer Aisles of the Grocery
- Eat as Whole as Possible
- Shop the Seasons, Eating what is Freshest
- When in Doubt, Eat the Rainbow
Healthy Living involves Exercise
The first thing to note is that the more we move our bodies, the better for your health. An exercised body is one that will have increased mobility, flexibility, strength, and even improved sleep quality and ease in pain and stress or anxiety. Focus on these slight improvements to start out:
- Start Small-Think 30 Minutes Maximum
- Don’t Push too Hard-Walk before you Run
- Stretch Daily
- Consult a Professional-This is Especially Important if You Are Inexperienced
Cleaning Products for Healthy Living
Using green cleaning products, or those better for the environment, actually promote a healthier experience for you and your family as well. Reducing exposure to chemicals can improve our breathing quality while still getting our surfaces sanitized. Try these first:
- Baking Soda and Lemon Paste-This is perfect for tiles and removing grit and grime
- Mix Borax and White Vinegar to remove stains in the kitchen, bath, and laundry
- Cut lemon and hot water can clean everything from the stove and microwave to the shower and tub
- Adding two teaspoons of white vinegar to dishwater or bathroom cleaning solution will sanitize whatever you clean
Healthy Personal Care Products
This tip is for every member of the family—not just women for beauty products and makeup. Improving the health of your personal care products include everything from the soap and shampoo we use to the basic medical care products we keep in our bathroom cabinets.
According to an article on toxins in beauty products, “The beauty and personal care industry are virtually unregulated, and therefore are allowed to use untested chemicals in their products. Of over 80,000 chemicals available today, only a handful are banned in consumer products. Because of this, we’ve got hormone disrupting ingredients in skin care, cosmetics containing lead and other heavy metals, carcinogens in shampoos, and many more harmful chemicals in products we use on our bodies every day.”
Try these improvements:
- Read the Ingredients-If you can’t pronounce it, consider putting it back
- Search for Certifications-If the product had to be third-party certified, they must have met higher standards of qualifications
- Honor the Hazard Label-A group called EWG (Environmental Working Group) gives labels assessing the health hazard of most products.
Lawn Care
What we use to treat our lawns can end up in our soil, our gardens, and even on our children when they play outside so it is crucial to take some simple steps toward improving what we use to improve the quality of our health.
- Turn Your Downspout toward your Lawn
- Reduce or Eliminate Fertilizer Use, Outside of Organic
- Eliminate the Use of Chemical-Laden Pesticides or Herbicides
- Wash your Car on the Lawn with Chemical-Free Soap
- Minimize Your Use of Road Salt in Winter
Remember, making simple changes daily will have big benefits over time for how you feel and how healthy you are living. Don’t set out to take on the world in a day, but instead, focus on one way to improve your health at a time.
Dr David M. Spitz is the founder and clinic director of the Chiropractic Health Center of Bristol, located in Bristol, CT. Since 1982, he has treated thousands of patients for various conditions ranging from neck and back pain, to migraine headaches. He specializes in treating patients who have suffered whiplash injuries and/or back injuries in a motor vehicle accident.
Dr Spitz was a volunteer EMT-I and a lieutenant for several years at the Burlington Volunteer Fire Department. He has lectured throughout CT on various topics including, chiropractic, stress management, headaches and preventing back injury in the workplace.
