“Stress is not so much what you do, but how you react to what you do.”
Dean Ornish, American Physician
This post is less about providing information and more about encouraging a balanced perspective when it comes to toxic components in our stuff. If you prefer to stick to the science and the product reviews, you might want to skip this article.
It can be daunting trying to navigate the modern world, knowing that we are constantly being exposed to substances that may harm our health. Choosing what to avoid and what to ignore can be tedious and frustrating. A family with young children may prioritize replacing leaded vintage products, while a single person may focus on environmental sustainability, such as reducing single use plastic and exposure to micro plastics.
If you read other blogs focused on non-toxic products, you may be forgiven for thinking the sky is falling and every aspect of modern civilization is designed to poison you. Yes, historically, and today, industries are poisoning communities and the planet with all sorts of toxic substances. It’s not an acceptable status quo, but it’s predictable given how money, lobbying, regulations, and politicians operate and conflicts of interest corrupt every regulatory space.
Sometimes it can feel like most conventional consumer goods are potentially toxic, ready to wreck havoc on our lives or increase our lifelong risk for cardiovascular disease, cancer, and other nasty health conditions.
So, given all the concerning things that are happening in the world, we thought it was time for a chat about keeping risks in perspective!
First, take a nice, deep breath of fresh air – but make sure the air quality index in your city is good. Grab your cute glazed mug, but first verify it meets current Prop 65 and FDA leach test standards. Now fill it with your favorite dairy milk. Make sure the farm doesn’t use plastic tubing made with phthalates. Add your much loved cocoa powder. Did you check their lab reports for lead and cadmium? Good. Now stretch out in your easy chair. Just make sure the polyurethane foam doesn’t contain added flame retardant chemicals and the fabric isn’t sprayed with PFAs. Do you feel calm yet?
I don’t feel calm yet but I feel done!
After nearly three years of being involved in topics surrounding non-toxic living, it’s frustrating to see how many substances we are exposed to every day that aren’t optimal for human health. Over a long period of research and soul searching, I have come to one enduring realization: I have neither the time, nor the inclination, nor the capacity as a mom to realistically address or avoid all materials that are potentially toxic to human health, toxic to my babies, and toxic to the planet.
So the only sane answer in a developed country, filled with manufactured things from all over the world…the best way to safeguard our mental and physical health, aside from improving regulations from the top-down to limit substances damaging to human health…is to minimize life-sucking worry and anxiety over non-toxic issues, prioritize what makes sense to your family, and let the rest ride.
From my perspective as a person who uses handheld XRF, I often find trace heavy metals in our things. I‘ve detected trace lead, cadmium, and antimony in more objects that I care to count and I’m here to say most of the time it doesn’t affect my use of the product unless that thing is a toy a child will chew on or a material that can leach into food or drink.
Most consumer goods with trace toxic metals aren’t a high priority and are unlikely to hurt you. In fact, very few things will cause you demonstrable harm, and only if you are exposed to them in specific ways and concentrations sufficient to impact your health.
It’s true, there is no safe threshold for lead exposure. We need to be protective of children’s health.
But one of our core messages is that trace heavy metals in most products aren’t worth worrying about and are unlikely to have any impact on your life as an adult going about your business.
Now before you start celebrating, note we recommend avoiding or replacing items made with high amounts of lead and cadmium, because there are better options available and we want to be protective of children, the environment, and workers who make our things.
But no one is perfect along this journey. And we don’t live in a perfect world, nor make ideal choices for everything we buy. So relax, take a deep breath, splay on the couch with your cat or dog or child, and stop worrying so much about non-toxic living.
We only have so much time on this Earth, and our lives are short compared to the age of the cosmos. Make better choices going forward and don’t be hard on yourself for past mistakes. Cherish every moment with your family, take some precautions if they make sense to you, vote for people who will regulate toxic junk, and enjoy an imperfect life.
I hope this message is a breath of fresh air!
