Toxic Chemicals All Around Us That Affect Children’s Health.

Kristina: Welcome. Today, we will talk about the hidden TOXINS all around and how families can live a more toxic-free lifestyle. Hello, my name is Kristina Campos. I am the founder of The Impactful Parent. I help parents of school-aged children turn their chaos into connection with their adolescence. I offer free parent education videos every week, online courses, and coaching. And if that wasn’t enough, I bring experts in other fields onto The Impactful Parent stage to teach you even more, and today I have a special guest. Her name is Dr. Jenna Hua. And Jenna is the founder of a company called Million Marker. It’s a company that empowers people to detox environmental toxins out of their lives and educates the public on harmful chemicals from plastics and everyday products that affect health. I’m really excited to have Jenna on today. This is an amazing episode you do not want to miss.

Toxic Chemicals

Jenna: Thank you, Kristina.

Kristina: I want to start off with, Where are these toxins that you’re talking about?

Jenna: So they’re actually everywhere. I don’t want to overwhelm your audience, but they are everywhere. It could be coming from the air you breathe, the food you eat, or the products you use. They’re pretty much all around us. There are over 80,000 chemicals in use today, and only 1% of them have sufficient safety data. I think it’s important for people to be aware and to avoid these chemicals whenever possible.  They are affecting your health.  But you can’t avoid what you don’t know, so awareness of these chemicals is step one. These chemicals have no business being in our bodies. They only do harm. They don’t do any good.

Kristina: Can you tell me the top harmful chemicals that parents need to know about and where we can find those chemicals?

Jenna: There are several classes of these chemicals. Most have heard about heavy metal, right? We know about arsenic in rice. So you want to make sure that you wash your rice multiple times.   This will decrease the arsenic content of the rice.

When you think about heavy metal, you think about mercury, right? Mercury frequently is found in fish. Always check your local fisheries if the mercury level is high. If the mercury is high, try not to consume as much.  If you’re pregnant or thinking about getting pregnant, it is even more important to limit exposure.

Another class is pesticides. Pesticides occur in fruits and vegetables. So always wash your vegetables. And if you can consume organic, always choose organic over inorganic.

Home cleaning products is another place to pay special attention to. There are three kinds of chemicals in these products that are pretty significant. People probably have heard about BPA. BPA is in plastic and can show up on thermal receipts. If you go to a gas station or supermarket, the receipt’s ink and coating could have BPA. If you touch it, you will get exposed. Instead, we always tell people to not touch the receipt. If you absolutely have to touch it,  make sure you wash your hands after. BPA also occurs on the lining of canned foods and canned drinks. So limit the consumption of canned food.

With new BPA laws, manufacturers must label their product BPA-free. But they changed the formula to BPS and BPF.  They literally can keep changing the name until Z.  It is just too difficult for policymakers to actually keep up with this kind of regulation. We tell people to avoid plastic as much as possible. BPA is also in wraps and food packaging. They can also occur in personal care products.

Then look out for parabens. Parabens are used as preservatives in personal care products. All these chemicals that I talked about are called hormone-disrupting chemicals.

Toxic Chemicals

And then the last class is called benzo fino. You can find this chemical in sunblock. This is also the chemical that kills the coral reef. When you buy your sunblock, make sure you buy a sunblock without oxy benzos or phenol.

Kristina: Wow. This is really eye-opening. One of the questions I have for you is about fruits and vegetables. If I eat a fruit peeling off the skin, is it necessary to buy organic?  Some people are on a budget, and buying ALL organic can get expensive.

Jenna: That’s a good start. However, pesticides are also sprayed on the seed. You will have chemical contamination within the fruit itself. So, consume as much organic as you can. If you buy strawberries, always go organic. Whenever you buy spinach, always go organic. These two are the most heavily contaminated fruits and veggies.

Kristina: What are some of the health impacts of these chemicals?

Jenna: These chemicals are hormone-disrupting because they mess with your hormones, as I mentioned before. Your hormone system actually controls every part of your body. Sleep is actually controlled by your hormones. Fertility is controlled by your hormones. Your metabolism and your mood are controlled by your hormones.

The earlier you get exposed to these chemicals, then the potential detrimental impact you could have. Some other side effects include decreased sperm count and other male fertility-related issues. There is also research linked to conditions like ADHD and kids’ IQ.

Kristina: What can parents do to live a more toxic-free lifestyle knowing this new information?

Jenna: Please don’t get too overwhelmed because you can literally take small steps to eliminate your exposures.

First, definitely avoid plastics as much as possible. Since avoiding plastics 100% is nearly impossible, be aware that not all plastics are created equal.  They are rated on a scale labeled on the bottom of the bottle.  So you if you have to use plastic, do NOT use plastics with the numbers 3,4,6 or 7.  The numbers 1,2 and 5 are okay. They’re better plastic.

Toxic Chemicals

At Million Marker, we have curated a list of good products on our website. Those are vetted by us that they’re toxin-free. Another good tip for cooking food is choosing a beeswax wrap rather than typical plastic wrap and never microwave plastic.

I also like to tell people to cook at home as much as possible.  Restaurants might use more plastics, buy heavy metal fish, and you just don’t’ know how things are made.  Also, purify your water.  Use a filter. Lastly, be a mindful shopper. Don’t touch receipts and read product ingredient labels.

Kristina: Tell me what you do at Million Marker.

Jenna: At Million Marker, we provide test kits allowing people to understand their toxic chemical exposures. Then, we offer people actionable feedback and tips for change. People can buy a test kit online.

Kristina: That is fantastic. And how long does it take to get results back?

Jenna: Usually two weeks. Then we give you an actionable report. In your report, you will find your levels, how you compare with our existing users, how you compare with the national average, and exactly what you can do. You will also find a whole section on product audits. We identify problematic ingredients that are in your consumption.

Kristina: Tell us where to find out more from Million Marker and tell us about this free PDF that I heard you’re giving the audience?

Jenna: You can find us at www.millionmarker.com 

The PDF your audience gets today is pretty long.  In the packet, you can find how these chemicals will impact your fertility, impacts pregnancy, and if you’re planning to conceive, what are the top chemicals you need to avoid. We also have a few things about optimizing your gut health and how these chemicals could impact your gut bacteria. So, check it out.

Kristina: You’re going to be able to find that FREE PDF at https://theimpactfulparent.com/toxicfree  

And if you would like to become a more impactful parent, please check out all that my website offers. I have parenting courses, family coaching, 30-day challenges, and lots of free resources for parents of school-aged children. But until next time, you got this parents. I’m just here to help.