SAFER FOR YOUR BABY: A Guide To Living Better with Fewer Chemicals

Safer For Your Baby: A Guide to Living Better With Fewer Chemicals 3rd Edition

This is an excerp from the authors, Lynn Tondat Ruggeri, Ph.D. and Laura Costa, Ph.D. COPYRIGHT 2008 Permission granted to print.

This book is non-toxic living made simple.

It gives the essentials to help families safeguard from toxic chemicals commonly found in household/personal care products, food/water, clothing, toys, plastics, and more...

It is perfect bound, has a polished white cover with colored cover picture and is printed on recycled paper with soy ink.

Why the need for this book?

Unlike any other time in human history, we are living in a world filled with hundreds of thousands of synthetic chemicals, most of which are petro-chemicals (petroleum-based). With over 1,000 new chemicals introduced each year into our environment and food chain, the potential for harm is staggering.

In an attempt to keep the public informed, there is a constant barrage from the media about the dangers of chemicals and additives in seemingly everything. This includes the foods we eat, the products we put on our skin, cleaning products, insect repellents, carpeting, and even plastic baby bottles. No one can tell you with certainty whether these newly introduced chemicals are harmless or harmful. Reports of safety concerns can be confusing. This book will help you to find and use safer options and explain why it’s worth your time to do so.

Buying Safer Cleaning/Household Prodcuts

There are many safer products available for purchase in local and online stores that sell natural products. These range from safer glass cleaners and automatic dishwashing powders/liquids to safer adhesives and paints. We list companies that sell safer household products as well as information on how to find non-toxic cleaners and recipes in How to Learn More.

When buying safer cleaning products, look for safer ingredients (page 29 ) and the following terms on the product label or ingredients list:

-biodegradable -enzyme-based (stain removers) -non-toxic (see page 35) -chlorine-free -phosphate-free (liquid laundry detergents) -non-petroleum based surfactants (in all purpose cleaners) -VOC-free or low VOC (in paints, markers, glues) -natural fragrance (often from essential oils)

Why is a child more vulnerable to harmful chemicals?

A child's smaller size and weight results in a higher dose (amount of chemical per body weight) compared to an adult.

A child is more vulnerable because body systems such as the nervous, immune and hormonal systems are in critical stages of development. Starting even in the first trimester of pregnancy, exposure to toxins during sensitive developmental stages has been shown to have lifelong health consequences.

The liver is the most important organ for removing toxins from the blood. However, a child is more vulnerable to toxins because his or her liver is not yet fully mature and is incapable of functioning as well as an adult's liver.