Clean up your cleaning products
Look at all cleaning products including Tub and Tile Sprays, Countertop Cleaners, Window Cleaners, Laundry Detergent
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- Replace these products with non-toxic cleaners. Trader Joe’s, Sprout’s, Whole Foods, Target, Fresh and Easy, and Safeway all carry natural cleaning products. Some brands to look for are Seventh Generation, Meyer’s, and Eco Friendly.
- You can also replace the more toxic cleaning products with vinegar. Use equal parts of vinegar and water; this cleans windows, countertops, tubs, and floors very well.
- If you need some scrubbing power use lemon juice and sea salt, this works well on countertops and tubs.
Look at all Bath and Body Products: Soaps/Body Washes, Lotions, Shampoo/Conditioners
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- Replace all products containing ingredients you cannot pronounce. Be sure to avoid anything containing the following ingredients Paraben, Sodium Persulfate, Potassium Persulfate, Titanium Dioxide, Benzyl Alcohol, Triethanolamine, and Laureth sulfate Avoid scented products (“fragrance” as an ingredient)- including perfumes, colognes, deodorants, lotions, etc.
- Check out this website to see how healthy your beauty products are: www.cosmeticsdatabase.com.
Avoid microwaving in plastic containers or plastic wrap as these contain phthalates which can increase the toxic burden.
Clean up the outside of your home
- Avoid having your home sprayed for pests, roaches, spiders, and scorpions. There are a couple of local companies that use non-toxic means of detouring common pests, including Lady Bug Pest Control Specialists and Arizona Organic Pest and Termite Control.
- Avoid using pesticides and weed-killing sprays. Get some exercise and pull the weeds out yourself!
- These chemicals have to be processed by our livers; if we have a low intake of antioxidants these chemicals can cause problems such as; sensitivity to odors, headaches, stomach aches, hyperactivity, and difficulty focusing/paying attention.
Diet
Begin a dairy-free diet: Check out www.taca.com, www.gfcfdiet.com, www.glutenfreecookingschool.com for GF/CF recipes. The Kid Friendly ADHD & Autism Cookbook, by Pamela Compart and Dana Laake is an excellent gf/cf cookbook. Recent studies have shown that gluten and casein can have some negative effects on brain functioning. Purchase Organic Foods when possible, especially focusing on organic meats!
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- Chickens are feed arsenic to fatten them up.
- Check out www.foodnews.org/ for the most important fruits and veggies to buy organic. Non-organic foods will contain amounts of pesticides that have been found to increase the toxic burden in children with ASD.
Limit the following sugars: cane juice, glucose, molasses, honey, and agave. AVOID high fructose corn syrup, white sugar, corn syrup, aspartame, NutraSweet, Equal, sucralose, Splenda, acesulfame potassium, and saccharin.
Avoid preservatives: BHT, BHQ, BHA
Avoid artificial colorings: Red #40, Yellow#6, etc
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- The preservatives and artificial colorings have been found to contribute to hyperactive behavior, and difficulty concentrating.
Limit exposure to heavy metals like mercury, lead, cadmium, and aluminum
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- Environmental Working Group has a calculator to help you find the safe amount of tuna to eat based on your weight; http://www.ewg.org/tunacalculator/
- The following fish should be avoided or eaten very infrequently; Shark, Swordfish, King mackerel, Tilefish, Tuna steaks, Canned tuna, Sea bass, Gulf Coast Oysters, Marlin, Halibut, Pike, Walleye, White croaker, and Largemouth bass.
- The following may be eaten once a month: Mahi Mahi, Blue mussel, Eastern oyster, Cod, Pollock, Great Lakes salmon, Gulf Coast blue crab, Channel catfish (wild), and Lake whitefish
- The following are the lowest in mercury, but still contain levels of mercury; Blue crab (mid-Atlantic), Croaker, Fish Sticks, Flounder (summer), Haddock, Trout (farmed), Salmon (wild Pacific), and Shrimp
- Avoid smoking altogether, but if someone in your life is a smoker; avoid smoking in the house or car. Cigarettes increase levels of cadmium in the body.
