Plastic-Free July (and every month)

by | air quality, building biology, building materials, buildings and health, chemical sensitivities, chemicals, cleaning, cleaning products, drinking water, endocrine disruptors, fragrances, health, healthy home, indoor air quality, indoor environmental health, informed choice, personal care, personal care products, scents, self-care, simple life

Why Avoid Plastic?

Avoiding plastic has always been something high on my agenda.

When I was a teen and a twenty-something, it was about protecting the environment –

  • not creating waste,
  • minimising the creating of single-use items, and
  • protecting our beautiful planet (in a very general sense)

As I have gotten older, and understood more about the environment and health, it has become even more important.

Here are three really big reasons to avoid plastics.

 

1. Pollutants from Plastics

Plastic bottles and containers can leach phthalates, xenooestrogens and other pollutant into the food, personal care or cleaning product with them.

This can play havoc with our health, as they interfere with our hormones (“endocrine-disrupting chemicals”).

What is more, they can also effect other animals that are exposed to them.

 

2. Plastic Polluting

Most of us already know about the piles of plastics in the oceans that form islands…

Our PET bottles, condoms, bags, and so on, all sweep the oceans and accumulate in certain areas.

As well, very small particles can break off plastic items (including synthetic clothing) to form microplastics.

These tiny pieces are a massice problem in the environment.

 

3. Killing Wildlife

One example is seabirds.

I saw a documentary where seabirds needed humans to help them survive.

 

Parents were feeding their young plastic that they had “caught” in the oceans…

Of course, the young were not able to digest it…

So it accumulated in their stomachs.

There were three big consequences of this.

a) The presence of the plastics in stomachs of the youing birds could leach endocrine-disrupting chemicals… which might have devastating effects on the species.

b) The birds were not being nourished properly – as plastic isn't food!

c) The baby birds were heavy with all the plastic in their stomachs – which meant that as they headed out to sea, they would not be able to fly, and would then drown.

The scientists would catch the youngsters as they headed to the water…

And get them to vomit out all the plastic.

There was a surprisingly (and alarmingly) large amount of it!

By removing the plastic from their stomachs, they were being given the best chance to survive.

 

It was truly heartbreaking to see this.

So, what can you do about it?

Join the Challenge –

In my free Facebook group, we are doing a Plastic-Free Challenge.

Consider alternatives to plastic –

 

Choose Your Tactic

PlasticFreeJuly.org has compiled this great resource – download it here – then review it and choose which ones that you can action.

P.S. This is a great one to involve the kids with 😉

House Hunting?

by | building biology, buildings and health, chemical sensitivities, chemically sensitive, ehs, electric fields, electromagnetic radiation, EMF, EMR, family, gases, health, heavy metals, house hunting, indoor air quality, informed choice, lead, mold, mould

Moving (and house hunting) is a highly stressful time…

Add to the mix the need to avoid environmental stressors, keep to a tight budget and manage with low tolerance – house hunting becomes almost impossible.

Sound familiar?

I get it – not only have I been there myself, but I've also guided many clients through this process.

I have also seen things go pear-shaped. Very pear-shaped… Like one of my earliest pre-purchase inspections. 

You would not believe what happened…

My client arranged for me to do the inspection… So I arrived on this sunny afternoon, excited to determine if this house was suitable for him.

“Let's go in!” I said.

“Uh-uh! Not me. Every time I go in there, I get sick. You go in and assess it.”

I did a double-take.

Why would he want me to assess the place if he can't be in while I inspect it????

I explained the scenario to him – all set to head back to the office. But he wanted to go ahead. So, I did. And my report recommended that he keep looking. My professional advice was disregarded. He bought the place…

And moved out almost as fast as he had moved in.

There is no need to make the same mistakes.

If you have been looking for a new place no doubt money is tight. You may not have enough time to organise a professional indoor environmental health assessment done. Stress levels are through the roof.

You've moved before, and it is essential that you don't have to move again because you can't end up in another place that is unsafe, nay, uninhabitable.

The track running in your mind goes something like this:

What do I do? 

How can I avoid the things that make me sick? 

How can I protect your health and that of my loved ones? 

Am I right?

So here's what you can do:

  • Learn my “Crystal Ball” method;
  • Draw on my training, experience and insight so that you can keep a property on or your list or cross it off with confidence; and
  • Become EMPOWERED to make sound decisions for your health and that of your loved ones.

You don't need to invest tens of thousands of dollars or years of time training and equipment…

You just need someone to show you #PROtips and tricks so that you can shortlist properties for yourself with confidence…

eco-health-solutions natural

Thus, I have curated this course.

I want you to:

  1. Be able to confidently cross places off your list, keeping only the good ones;
  2. Avoid having to gather the energy to look at places, only to be sick for weeks after;
  3. Save time, money and energy.

All of my years of training, experience, up skilling and knowledge have been consolidated into 13 online lessons, complete with worksheets, my black book of online resources and the essential 122-point checklist so you know you've covered all bases.

Just what the doctor ordered, hey?

  • Do you suffer from environmental sensitivities?
  • Desperately trying to find a home that isn’t going to make you sick, or sicker?
  • Feel forced to settle on a less-than-ideal home because funds are tight?
  • Multiple home assessments haven’t helped you find the perfect place, but you can’t afford to keep coughing up cash?

A LIFE-CHANGING ONLINE COURSE THAT’S ONE-OF-A-KIND 

In Looking for a New Place? How to Avoid the Pitfalls, indoor environmental health expert Lucinda Curran reveals how to streamline the house-hunting process, eliminate uninhabitable homes with confidence, and make a promising shortlist of homes for professional assessments.

No more:

  • Time wasted on pointless inspections
  • Money spent on unnecessary assessments
  • Needless exposure to toxins at inspections
  • Settling for uninhabitable properties
  • Heartache on learning that the ‘perfect’ home wasn’t right after all

“THIS COURSE IS A MUST” 

“I am now better able to rule out unsuitable properties from the comfort of my home which saves me time, energy and cuts down on exposures. The checklist of what to look for in and around the property is very comprehensive and makes it so easy to look for the potential dangers that may be lurking. This course is a must have for anyone wanting to know what to look for and avoid when searching for a healthy home.”

– Genevieve, VIC

Check it out here. 👉

Please note: this course does NOT take the place of a professional Indoor Environmental Health Assessment.

BUT it does mean you don't have to have so many! 🙂

Pests – Managing Them In The Garden, Chemical-Free

by | building biology, chemical sensitivities, chemically sensitive, chemicals, environmental sensitivities, glyphosate, health, indoor environmental health

Pests: What Are They?

When you really stop and think about it, pests are critters in the wrong place at the wrong time.

They are important parts of nature and they do play a role however, we don’t always want them in our gardens. I have lost countless seedlings and a lot of fruit crops to pests, so I get it!

For this post, I am also going to broaden this concept of “pests” to plants as well – weeds and the like.

But How Can We Manage Pests Without Chemicals?

There are many ways that we can do this.

dandelion

WEEDS

Instead of Round Up or other glyphosate-based* products, pull them up by hand (or with a hand tool).

Alternatively, you can simply use steam or boiling water.

Most steam mops can be taken outside and used to steam the pavers and any places where weeds are growing.

*If you want to read more about Glyphosate, grab your copy of the e-Mag here. Stephane Seneff wrote an article in it. 🙂

snails

SNAILS

There are ways to deal with snails without poisoning them.

Snails like to slide along surfaces. They can’t slide across rough surfaces.

So, sprinkle sawdust around the plants you want to protect.

NOTE: You do need to reapply this after it has become wet (frost or rain).

aphids

APHIDS

Oh! Aphids!!!

Did you know that ladybirds FEAST on these?

One strategy is to plant lots of plants that attract beneficial insects.

The other method is to spray them with a detergent-water solution and then pick them off by hand.

Make sure you use a detergent that does not contain fragrances and chemicals.

OTHER IDEAS

  • Diatomaceous earth sprinkled around can kill insects
  • Bird nets over fruit trees will protect the fruit
  • Planting nasturtiums and garlic around tomatoes to distract birds and prevent insects, respectively
  • Don’t plant in rows – this is like setting up your garden for “pacman” to come along and chomp through everything
  • Owl ornaments can deter rodents
  • Plant extra, we all have to eat!

I hope you found that helpful. 🙂

I approach things from a precautionary standpoint.

If you would like help to work out how you can minimise your exposure to chemicals, book a call.

Avoiding Sick Building Syndrome in the Workplace

by | building biology, buildings and health, chemical sensitivities, chemically sensitive, chemicals, cleaning products, environmental sensitivities, indoor air quality, indoor environmental health

Sick Building Syndrome – Avoid this in the Workplace

Sick Building Syndrome (SBS) incorporates many facets of the built environment.

Focus on Indoor Air Quality

When it comes to air pollution, we tend to think about it in terms of the outdoors. We worry about factories’ smokestacks, traffic jams and other factors that pump pollutants into the air.

Yet air pollution isn’t just an outdoor problem.

The air indoors also can be toxic for us to breathe. This is especially in an industrial facility where hazardous materials may be used. In fact, the air quality inside buildings can be so harmful that it can cause illnesses. This phenomenon, known as “SBS,” can create symptoms in people without an easily identifiable cause.

Further, people with sick building syndrome may experience respiratory issues such as shortness of breath and coughing, as well as more generalised symptoms such as fever and muscle aches.

SBS – What Does it Mean for the Workplace?

These illnesses can lead to decreased productivity and employees taking excessive time off. As a result, it’s important for industrial and commercial facilities to understand sick building syndrome and how to avoid it.

SBS can be caused by a variety of factors, all of them related to a building’s indoor air quality.

Often, sick building syndrome is a result of poor ventilation, which prevents indoor pollutants from being circulated out of the air.

Many times, contaminants such as motor vehicle exhaust or fumes from volatile chemicals used in industrial processes get trapped inside the building. Bacteria, mould and pollen from outside also can contribute to sick building syndrome.

Avoiding Sick Building Syndrome

Avoiding SBS starts with improving air flow throughout the building, such as with large fans.

From here, other measures to improve indoor air quality include:

  • selecting less toxic cleaning products and methods,
  • avoiding “air fresheners,”
  • creating a “fragrance-free” workplace,
  • choosing real wood furniture (instead of “was wood” composite woods),
  • selecting furnishings made locally that are low in volatile organic compounds, and
  • ensuring that any leaks are fixed promptly and that there is no mould in the workplace.

Improving indoor air quality and avoiding SBS are tasks that should be at the top of most managers’ priority lists.

Not only can it boost the health and well-being of employees, but it also can increase productivity and reduce health care liabilities for the facility owner.

This infographic from Go Fan Yourself provides some great tips on improving indoor air quality quality and reducing the risk of SBS.

sick building

Created by Go Fan Yourself

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#Sickbuildingsyndrome #OHS #WHS

References:

https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2014-08/documents/sick_building_factsheet.pdf