House Hunting?

by Lucinda Curran | 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…

Thus, I have curated this course.

I want you to:

Be able to confidently cross places off your list, keeping only the good ones;
Avoid having to gather the energy to look at places, only to be sick for weeks after;
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! 🙂

Is My House Making Me Sick? Pt2

by Lucinda Curran | air fresheners, detoxification, fragrances, high frequencies, indoor environmental health, mobile phone, perfumes, personal care, personal care products, radiofrequencies, scents, self-care, sleep, VOCs, water damage

Is My House Making Me Sick?

PART 2

>> Is My House Making Me Sick? Part 1 is here <<

3. Sleep… in peace!

There is a lot of emerging research that shows device use interferes with our sleep, and that blue light can damage our eyes.

The mental stimulation when Googling things, interacting on social media, and even video calls can make it hard to sleep.

Our tablets, smart phones and smart watches contain LED lights.

The evening use of such devices which has been associated with:

Poor quality sleep,
Reduced concentration the next day,
Poor mood, and
Reduced accuracy…

… According to recent research.

As well, there is a reduction in melatonin – a hormone that has antioxidant actions.

Antioxidants play an important role in detoxification and keeping us healthy.

When we began this conversation, I shared with you about the importance of sleep in the healing. Anything that interrupts sleep, for whatever reason, needs to be reduced.

Send this to my inbox

Did You Know?

Did you know that apps used to measure sleep have uncovered an insomnia epidemic?

BUT did you also know that the wireless technology required for these apps to function has been linked to sleep disturbances?

“What Can I Do?”

At the very least, don’t sleep with your phone!

4. Smell… naturally lovely!

I want to tackle the topic of “fragrances” here. Fragrances are in everything from perfumes, air fresheners and deodorisers. They are in our laundry products, sanitary protection, and even in our cosmetics. Nappies, doggy-do bags, and toilet paper also are scented… and that is just the tip of the iceberg!

If you ever see this word on a label, it means “a cocktail of many ingredients.” Fragrance, parfum and perfume all mean the same thing, when reading labels.

The ingredients used in perfumery are primarily chemicals, most of which haven’t been tested for safe use by humans, some that have been tested really aren’t good for us (causing cancer, irritating our skin and lungs, messing with our hormones…).

Our exposure to fragrances is enormous and our bodies need to deal with this. For some people, this constant exposure is physically exhausting.

Did You Know?

Did you know essential oils are a better option that synthetic fragrances? But please bear on mind that they are very potent – so use sparingly and avoid using them 24/7. For people who are environmentally sensitive, even these can be problematic. Please use them with care (and NEVER eat/drink them).

“What Can I Do?”

Don’t buy anything that contains fragrance, parfum or perfume.

Send me a copy, please!

5. Stay… mould-free!

Have you noticed there has been a lot of media stories about mould and how it is making people sick? It has definitely attracted a lot of attention, and was the subject of a 2018 Parliamentary Inquiry, instigated by Senator Lucy Wicks. Mould comes in many different colours, and it doesn’t have to be black to cause health problems.

Mould spores are everywhere and play an important role on our planet. Only 25% of the spores can grow, the other 75% are “dead” (that said, it doesn’t make them less problematic for someone who is sensitive).

However, we don’t want mould growing in our homes.

When you think about it, all mould is waiting for is the right conditions to grow. This centres on the right amount of moisture. Moisture can come from leaks, burst pipes, spills, condensation and many other places.

Did You Know?

Did you know that flexible braided hoses (the bendy pipes on your taps and toilets) account for over 20% of water damage claims in Australian homes? They only last for around 5-7 years and erode faster in the presence of chemicals. (What is under your sink?)

“What Can I Do?”

Deal with water quickly – mop up spills, fix leaks, dry out anything that has become wet within 24-hours.

I trust this has given you a lot to go on with…

If you have any concerns, or want to get in touch, please book a call.

Lucinda, can you call me?

Is My House Making Me Sick? Pt 1

by Lucinda Curran | air fresheners, air pollution, building biology, buildings and health, detoxification, dust mites, gases, health, indoor air quality, indoor environmental health

Is my house making me sick?

PART 1

You’re not quite on your game. Your health has declined – your energy is low, you feel “off”, when you wake up you definitely don’t feel vibrant and refreshed any more. Each day has become a struggle and even a morning coffee doesn’t get you through the day.

The doctor says everything is fine, but your gut tells you it isn’t.

You’ve been to numerous health professionals, medical doctors, complementary medicine practitioners, and jeepers, with the amount you have forked out on testing, you are wishing you had bought shares in the pathology labs!

Something isn’t quite right, and you know it.

You’ve started to notice that when you are away from your home that you feel better, and not just because you are on holidays! When you return, so do your symptoms. You being to wonder…

“Could my house be making me sick?”

Before we go any further, I want to share with you some basics of health and detoxification which many people seem to forget about.

Detoxification 101

I’m talking the absolute foundations… and that is why I call it “Detoxification 101.”

Our bodies are truly amazing – we are like finely-tuned machines. We like to keep everything at “normal” – so we remove, address and deal with whatever throws our “normal” out (medically speaking, this is homeostasis).

If we follow the rhythms of nature, we rise to greet the sun, and we sleep while the sun does. The days are shorter in winter, so ours are too.

Because we are designed to sleep at night time, this is the time our body is programmed to clean everything up and actively work to return us to “normal” so that we are completely ready to “do it all again” the next day.

At a minute level, our cells are cleaning everything up, we detoxify, we heal.

However, in the presence of stress, these functions don’t happen.

It is a little like a see-saw. Stress goes up, so detoxification goes down.

And when we are talking stress, we are talking any and every kind of stress.

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1. Breathe…easy!

The air inside our homes is unique and the quality of it is affected by anything and everything that comes into our homes. Research has shown that the indoor air can be up to five times more polluted than the outdoor air! Alarming, right?

Add to that the fact that the majority of people spend around 90-95% of their day indoors, and it starts to become clear why all of this is so important.

When we keep our doors and windows closed, the levels of indoor air contaminants build up and conversely, oxygen levels are reduced.

This can make us feel groggy, confused, itchy, sick… all depending on what is in our homes.

When we open our windows and doors and let the fresh air in, we end up exchanging the air and diluting these levels.

As a result, we often feel fresher, brighter and clear-headed.

Did You Know?

Did you know it is possible to exchange the air in your home in as little as 2 minutes?

By opening all external and internal doors and windows, it can take as few as 2 minutes to change all the air in your home over to fresh air!

“What Can I Do?”

At the very least, exchange the air inside your home each morning, each afternoon and each evening.

Start at your front door and do a lap of your home opening every door and window. Wait two minutes, and the do a lap and close the doors and windows you want closed.

Save this to read later?

2. Barefoot… and healthy!

Our shoes get to walk in all sorts of unpleasant things (I’ll leave it with you to think of some. My mind always goes back to the train I used to have to catch that was so foul, I would have a good shower when I got home, too!).

Apart from that, there are also pesticides, pollutants from traffic and roads, heavy metals, dust and so on.

When we wear our shoes inside, we can easily traipse all of this through our homes. From here it either moves about the place as dust, or if you have carpets or rugs, it becomes embedded deep within the pile.

Even a good clean may not remove all of these contaminants.

It is wiser, in my opinion, not to bring them into our homes to start with.

Did You Know?

Carpets act as a “sink” they collect all sorts of contaminants, including skin cells, mould spores and all the things you traipse in on your shoes.

I often think about a carpet as being like an archaeological site – revealing information about the lives of the people living there!

Also, where there is dust, there are dust mites.

“What Can I Do?”

Simple!

Create a no-shoe policy..

Continue reading PART 2 here…

Or, have the entire “Could my house be making me sick?”
delivered to your inbox.

Wi-Fi Free Tips to Avoid Wireless Technology

by Lucinda Curran | EMF, EMR, high frequencies, indoor environmental health, radiofrequencies, wifi, wireless technology

“We’re Wifi-Free At Night,” they said…

Recently I assessed a home where the parents very proudly told me that each and every night, they are wifi-free. What they did was to log into their router and turn off the wifi on their router *every* night. They did this every night without fail.

What an awesome effort!! That really does take commitment to do this on a daily basis.

(By the way, this IS something YOU can do if you still have a wifi router… but I prefer you don’t have one.)

It turns out that the teenagers use the wifi all night.

HOW?

Because there were powerline adapters in the house that utilised wireless technology.

So, despite turning off the wifi emitted by the router, the house was still bathed in radio frequency electromagnetic energy (RF EME), including the bedrooms.

Powerline Adapters Help with Wifi-Free

I love powerline adapters – as they mean in many buildings that the internet can be used throughout the house without having data points installed. You can finally be wifi-free!

(Note that they do add dirty electricity, so having data points installed throughout is by far the best option.)

If you want to get powerline adapters, or routers, or anything similar, then you have to be careful NOT to get ones that work wirelessly.

TIP TO OUTWIT

You can check all the specifications, but I also highly recommend contacting the manufacturer and ask,

“Can I use this wirelessly?”

You read that right! I want you to ask the OPPOSITE of what we are seeking. This is because almost everything can be used via ethernet or cables.

When they get back to you with, “I am so sorry, this cannot be used wirelessly,” you know you are on a winner.

#EMF #powerlineadapters #wififree #datapoints

The Benefits of an Outdoor Workplace

by Lucinda Curran | air pollution, building biology, buildings and health, EMF, EMR, health, indoor air quality, indoor environmental health, informed choice

Outdoor Workplaces

An outdoor workplace may sound odd – perhaps you imagine a landscaper, gardener or builder being people who have outdoor workplaces. But most of us can move our workplaces to the outdoors. It’s easier than you think, and well worth the benefits to health and wellbeing.

Here’s Why Outdoor Workplaces Are So Important

If you’re like a large population of Australians, you likely spend most of your day working in an indoor office setting. According to research from the Australian State of the Environment, the average Australian spends about 90% of their day indoors. For many, this often involves sitting at their desks and staring at computer screens for up to nine hours in a day.

Sitting all day indoors has many health repercussions, including exposure to indoor air pollutants, increased risk of heart conditions, and even sick building syndrome.

Human beings are biologically built to live in changing scenery conditions, which aren’t offered inside buildings. More and more our modern environments are controlled by HVAC systems, artificial lighting and air fresheners.

While adjustments like addressing humidity levels and reducing EMF and following best practices can help, working outdoors is the most effective solution.

Benefits of Outdoor Workplaces

Research shows that exposure to natural sunlight, trees, and outdoor fresh air can positively impact our wellbeing, creativity and performance.

While not all jobs can be conducted outside, a workplace that has things such as outdoor lunches, walking meetings, indoor plants, and allowing remote work can all make a difference in our health. The best workplace will combine both a well-maintained indoor building and the setting of nature.

For those of you who work from home, make sure you take your meal breaks outside, introduce plants into your home office, and open the windows!

To learn more about the benefits of an outdoor workplace, check out this new infographic from BigRentz. From improving your memory to honing your focus, the benefits show the value of taking your work from your desk into the outdoors.

Outdoor Workplaces

Created by BigRentz

EMF Bombardment Three Simple Steps to Cope

by Lucinda Curran | earthing, EMF, EMR, health, indoor environmental health, wifi, wireless technology

#EMFexposures #EMFBombardment

No matter where we go these days, we tend to be surrounded by free wi-fi, phone towers… Those that are aware of the harmful effects (whether they experience them or not) often ask, “What can I do to keep myself safe?”

There is the temptation to buy something that will magically set up a forcefield that blocks out all radio frequency electromagnetic energy (RF EME).

There is a level of desperation for those who suffer in the presence of it.

There is the urge to stick something on the phone to make it safe. But none of these make any measurable difference.

Instead, here are three steps that can make a considerable difference.

1) MAKE YOUR HOME A SAFE PLACE – free from wireless technology

This is the #1 most important step of all because this the place you spend time when your body is healing and detoxifying. Whilst you cannot control what happens out there (and gee, I wish I could!!) you can control your home and what happens in it. Take action there.

2) SPEND TIME IN NATURE

Go barefoot in the garden, on the beach, or “forest bathe.” All of these will help you to “discharge” and earth. As well, there is research that shows that spending 1 hour in the forest has health benefits that last for a whole 7 days!

3) MINIMISE your exposure

The greatest risk with buying a sticker for your smartphone, or a piece of plug-in plastic, or wearing a pendant with rainbow swirls is that it can make you feel safe, and therefore instead of reducing your exposure, you INCREASE it.

If you have to go somewhere where there are high levels of wireless technology, then keep the time capped and head off into nature straight afterwards.

I have to LOL while I write this as it sounds very closed-minded… I have an open mind to what MAY help, but I also see so many people suffer that I need to be clear with this. While I cannot show any measurable difference with any of these things, I cannot recommend them. Building Biology Brain means precaution all the way.

If you do decide to get a piece of jewelry, a plug-in, a sticker, a rock… whatever it is, please consider this “an added bonus.” If it helps, bonus! If it doesn’t do anything, then at least it wasn’t too expensive. The main thing here is to do no harm.

EMF Exposure – Understanding How You Can Reduce Your Exposure

by Lucinda Curran | building biology, buildings and health, dirty electricity, electric fields, EMF, high frequencies, indoor environmental health, magnetic fields, radiofrequencies

EMF Exposure – Understanding How You Can Reduce Your Exposure

EMF is a sneaky thing – because you can’t see or smell it, it is often not considered.

When people are exposed to EMF, they can get a variety of symptoms. With regards to radio frequency electromagnetic energy (RF EME), the officials that set the exposure standards only recognise “thermal effects” – so set the standards to below the level at which tissues are heated.

EMF Exposure Standards Are Too High

I firmly believe that there are many health/biological effects that occur well before this level. I believe that the exposure standards are way too high, especially when IARC (the International Agency for Research on Cancer) recognise radio frequency EME & ELF AC magnetic fields as “Category 2B” (this means that they recognise that these types of EMF are possibly carcinogenic to humans).

There is a growing body of research from scientists (including retired ones!) that not only shows that certain types of EMF result in the body reacting in a certain way, but also are becoming more able to explain how and why these reactions occur.

Symptoms from EMF Exposure

Common symptoms from EMF exposure, based on my observation and interaction with hundreds of clients over the years:

headaches and migraines (especially unexplained)
poor sleep, including vivid dreaming
waking feeling unrefreshed
low energy
pain, including sciatica
grinding teeth (bruxism)
ringing in the ears (tinnitus)
poor concentration

Reducing your EMF exposure is important – not through gadgets and stickers, but through turning things off, switching to safer options, and making choices about when and how you use technology.

This is one of my favourite areas to work with people on. Why? Because often, simple changes to behaviour can significantly reduce your exposure.

At Eco Health Solutions, my team and I assess radio frequency electromagnetic energy (RF EME), ELF AC magnetic fields, ELF AC electric fields and dirty electricity.

EMF Exposure in the Home

Here are the top 5 sources of EMF that my team and I commonly see in homes:

1 The meter (smart or otherwise) and the fuse box on the bedroom wall

2 Power boards under the bed

3 Mobile phones and devices (sometimes even found under pillows!)

4 Cordless phones

5 Wi-fi

Reducing your exposure is important – and since our homes are our castles, they are also our safe havens.

Workplaces can expose staff members to extremely high levels of EMF – without realising it!

EMF Exposure in the Workplace

Here are the top 5 sources of EMF that my team and I commonly see in workplace:

1 Cordless headsets

2 Wi-fi

3 Mobile phones and devices

4 The “IT hub”

5 A “spaghetti” pile power cords under the desk

Given most people spend a good 8 hours at work, it is important to reduce your personal exposure as much as possible.

When Building Biology Means Building Courage

by Lucinda Curran | affirmations, building biology, buildings and health, indoor environmental health, inspiration, life lessons

Developments in My World Around Building Biology

Building courage has been important in these three great things that have happened in the last week or so.

First

Firstly, I finnnaaalllllyyyyyy completed my Advanced Diploma in Building Biology. With only one subject to go, loads of travel, and a lot of work on my plate, it was such a struggle to get this done. Pretty much every block of time that I had set aside to study, something came up or someone needed something, and my study time disappeared. I started to recognise the pattern, so I set a date. I focused and worked really hard to get through the enormous pile of readings, and do the assessments. I had to push the date out a tiny bit, but I DID IT!!

Second

The second one was the talk I did for the AustralAsian Academy of Anti Ageing Medicine conference on 3rd August. I was so ridiculously nervous. I have spoken to around 5000 people in the building industry in the last twelve months, but this one had me running scared. Why? Because I created an idea of what I thought they expected and knew I wouldn’t be doing that. I made up this story that had me all freaked out and in avoidance mode. To top it off, I was the second speaker for the day, and listening the to first one confirmed my stories (he was incredible!!). I had to really get the self-talk happening, that it was going to be fine – completely different style, completely different level of information, and perfect in its uniqueness. It was a smaller group that I was used to (around 70), but this actually made me more nervous! Anyway, I got up there and did it. I could hear a slight waver in my voice, fortunately no one else noticed. At the end, I was astonished at the positive reception I had for it. And now, all of those medical professionals are more aware of the role that our built environments play in our health, and are thinking more broadly in how best to assist their patients.

Third

And most recently, I heard back that my application to be a speaker at the Indoor Air Quality Association conference in 2019 in the US was approved! Applying for this was scary as it meant putting myself out there, possibly being rejected, and then if accepted, speaking in front of some amazing scientific minds… I did it anyway, even though I was literally terrified. Straight after sending it, I posted “I did it!” on social media – because it was such a big deal…

So, why am I sharing all of this?

I think all of us get scared of doing things, and procrastinate and push them down the list. But I think all of those things we need to do are important on the grander scale, and it is only the stories we create that hold us back.

I really want to encourage you to just do it anyway. You never know just how your action can ripple out into the world and make it a better place.

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