Happy New Year!

You’ve poured the champagne and sparkling cider, kissed your loved ones, and perhaps even had a night away from your kids – now it’s time to think about your 2017 goals. The New Year is known for resolutions, which are infamous for being broken. This year, what if you were to focus on living a healthier lifestyle instead of making specific resolutions? Most of us moms, if we are being honest with ourselves, have given thought to improving our health: losing weight, eating less sugar, exercising more, and so on. Have you considered another key aspect of health – the items that you and your family use daily for your body and in your home? Eco-friendly product swaps can help.

Think about it. 

If the food that you put into your body translates to energy, metabolism, and weight, don’t products that you inhale or apply to your skin matter, too? What you breathe into your lungs, absorb through your skin, and ingest into your system all provide your body with “information” to help it function. Simply put, if you surround yourself with toxins, it gives your body faulty information and wreaks havoc on different bodily systems. It can also aggravate existing conditions such as asthma, psoriasis, acne, depression, anxiety, and more. How, then, do you make the switch? We’ve broken it down and compiled a list of five simple product swaps to help you make 2017 your healthiest year yet!

Swap #1: Scented Candles

We love a good scented candle, and we fully admit that many of them make your house smell amazing. Did you also know, though, that the scents that many candles emit utilize hazardous chemicals, such as benzene and toluene? These cause damage to the brain, lungs, your central nervous system (which literally impacts every part of your body!), and can also cause developmental difficulties.

Here’s the Swap: Remove scented candles altogether or make a healthy swap to organic, eco-friendly candles without harmful chemicals, such as the American Provenance Winter Series Candle. It is a great way to choose better health while still enjoying a delicious scent and peaceful ambiance.

Swap #2: Toothpaste

The average American goes through 20 gallons of toothpaste in their lifetime… yes, you read that correctly. Something we use so frequently should be good for us, right? Unfortunately this isn’t always the case. Most common toothpastes contain artificial sweeteners (most commonly sodium saccharin), SLS (Sodium Lauryl Sulfate), food dyes, and more. SLS is what causes your toothpaste to foam, delivering that “oh so clean” feeling. It also changes the function of your tongue’s taste buds! SLS enhances your tongue’s sense of bitter taste, which is thought to be the reason behind why certain foods and beverages taste worse after brushing your teeth. It has also been linked to skin irritation and canker sores.

Here’s the Swap: For your littles, Jack N’ Jill Natural Toothpaste is a safe choice that your kids will love. David’s Natural Toothpaste, which is safe for the entire family, is another great option. We featured them in our October 2016 Boxes! 

Swap #3: Children’s Body Wash

As many of us know, sometimes a bath just isn’t in the cards! Maybe your little is sick, maybe YOU are sick, or maybe you’re on the go without access to a bathtub. We’ve also discussed the hidden dangers of petroleum and how it might be lurking in your child’s body wash. Ditch the unhealthy options and opt for products that are natural and convenient.

Here’s the Swap: Bella B’s No Rise Baby Wash is all natural, hypoallergenic, and eco-friendly. The best part? You don’t even need water to wash your babe! It’s perfect for travel or to carry in your purse or diaper bag. We also love Baja Baby Shampoo & Body Wash for the clean ingredient list and scent options.

Swap #4: Gripe Water

There are many products on the market for gas, colic, hiccups, and teething. The issue is that many of them are packed with additives and ingredients that you likely don’t want your baby ingesting. The dilemma then becomes that your baby still needs relief, but how can you safely provide it?

Here’s the Swap: Organic Gripe Water is an easy swap that you must try if you haven’t already! I absolutely swear by it for my own littles. My now toddler used to have huge hiccups after feedings, which would cause her to spit up nearly half of what she had just eaten. Since breastmilk is considered liquid gold, I’m not ashamed to admit that I cried over spilt milk, so to speak. Gripe Water helped combat gas and hiccups, allowing feeds to be stress-free.

Swap #5: Diaper Changing Cleanser

Not everyone uses an extra cleanser during diaper changes, and not every baby needs it. To be perfectly honest, my two littles definitely do! Let’s just say they are very proficient poopers. I tried all kinds of wipes but never felt like they were really clean, and we have had a revolving door of diaper rashes.

Here’s the Swap: Utilizing organic aloe, witch hazel, and botanical extracts, Honest Company Soothing Bottom Wash helps prevent rashes and leaves your little’s diaper area clean. I keep a bottle in both diaper bags (the benefit of multiple diaper bags is a topic for a different post), in each bedroom, as well as one to spare. Take your ecofriendly routine one step further by swapping to organic Babee Greens cloth wipes and a wipes solution like Baby Bits, as featured in our February 2017 Mom & Baby boxes.

These five simple product swaps will reduce the amount of harmful substances in your and your family’s lives, thus promoting a healthier, cleaner, and better year. Take your health into your own hands and make some purposeful steps towards a healthier lifestyle for 2017. Check out the products mentioned above and let us know what you think!

Article Contributor

Kelsey Packard is a project manager in Austin Texas with a Masters in Human Development and Family Studies and certifications in parent-child attachment. She is a mama to two littles. She enjoys writing in her free time and supporting other mothers. She can be reached at kpackardmanagement@gmail.com