Do No Harm
What we do to the Earth, we do to ourselves. What we do to ourselves, we do to the Earth.
I had a health appointment the other day and my doctor suggested that I take some actions to detoxify myself from a lifetime of plastics exposure. I was surprised. I have never before had a mainstream doctor advise direct action in this regard.
The issue of endocrine disrupting plastics exposure in my home is certainly on my radar, and I have tackled this with mixed effectiveness.
As a sustainability professional I am aware that plastics in the environment and that exposure to microplastics is a global health issue. Much of my focus on issues related to plastics have been at the macro level focused on policy, engagement, education, recycling or circularity at organizational or governmental levels.
My doctor’s suggestion of lifestyle changes feels a little futile. For instance, if I do all that I am supposed to do to remove exposures in my home and buy all the right products and sweat that sh** out, is it really all that effective if microplastics are in the water supply and in the food chain? I don’t think I can personally shop my way out of this.
What if everyone reallocated time and money spent on detoxifying their homes and their lifestyles to advocating for policies and programs to solve this at scale? Wouldn’t we all be better off?
However, self-preservation is a human imperative and I suppose I’ll be making some changes.
Sharing is caring so here are the suggested actions with some of my editorial comments mixed in. It mostly seems like good lifestyle habits- many of which I do to some extent anyway. I am not a medical professional so don’t take this as medical advice.
Use an infrared sauna 3x a week for 30 minutes. (I don’t have a sauna, and it is very unlikely I’ll buy one. I find this suggestion a little out of touch TBH. Whatever happened to an Epsom salt bath?)
Dry brushing with a loofah.
Buy organic foods as much as possible. Particularly the “Dirty Dozen” as defined by the Environmental Watch Group.
Hydrate with water with lemon (40 oz); drink half the body weight in fluid oz daily
Don’t use personal care, cleaning, dish or laundry detergents with a rating above 3 according to Environmental Watch Group via the Think Dirty App.
Use an air purifier to filter the air at home and at work.
Regular use of herbs and spices (love this one).
Include phytonutrients, antioxidants and adequate protein intake (with a long list of healthy foods that are what you might imagine sourced from the Institute for Functional Medicine’s Detox Food Plan Comprehensive Guide).
Up dietary fiber in general.
Less screen time (I know, I know).
Here’s some more reading on the pervasiveness of microplastics:
