Never doubt that a small group of thoughtfully committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." ~Margaret Mead Do we know our plastics? The past few years we have been inundated with information on BPA, phalphates, and lead in our children's lunchboxes. Little Chick was a baby when all of this information was being splashed all over the news. I immediately tried to find safer toys, bottles, sippy cups and anything else that involved creating a healthier home for my baby. As I said in yesterday's post - this can be very overwhelming and can get expensive! I ended up finding companies online where I could buy Haba toys (most made in Germany). The European standards on toys and many other consumer products are much higher than here in the United States. Why this is, I am not sure. But it shows we really need to do our homework before purchasing things, especially for our children.
When Little Chick was a baby I got rid of most of my plastic storage containers and got glass containers instead. I also switched to Pyrex for cooking. Debra Lynn Dadd has a lot of information about what is safer to cook with. Her link is to the left. She also contains a plethora of information having to do with toxins in all products and the hazards they have on our health. She has a great book called Home Safe Home. Another must have to use as a reference.
Do I still use plastic? Yes. When trying to find the safest things for Little Chick and packing her lunch I researched her lunch box, back pack and containers. If I could use glass I would. But I am sure the teachers would not appreciate glass with a bunch of three year olds. So I use #5 containers for her lunch. I never put anything in them that is warm or hot. I also taught Little Chick from early on to eat off of our regular china dishes, as well as to use our utensils. Does she have plastic toys? Sure. Plastic is all around us, but I have tried to cut it out as much as possible. Especially when food is involved. So click here for information on safer plastics. Click on What to do for a list of what to use and what to avoid. Regarding bath toys, unfortunately many have BPA and phalphates. There are not a lot that don't, but Sassy has come out with about ten safer toys, as well as Boon.
I don't have all of the answers and I am trying my best to make healthier choices for my family. I just want to share some of the great references I have encountered while trying to educate myself.
You ARE a good mama! Wow. That's a lot to consider! PS - the pic of your little chick is adorable!! I bet she is a character!
ReplyDeleteI hate how expensive good things are for us like organic food and safer options instead of plastic... Why is that? Makes me wonder...
ReplyDeleteKnowing the harmful effects of BPA is crucial, specially if you have young ones in your family. Living without plastic is a big change and kudos to you for heading that way. I just always make sure all of our plastics are BPA free and high quality.
ReplyDeleteFollowing you back. Thanks for the follow!
ReplyDeleteWow. You have really done your research on plastics. After the rating came out about the plastic recycling numbers I stopped cooking leftovers in the storage containers. I try not to microwave everything and using saran wrap instead of a lid was a no no. But avoiding plastic is almost impossible. I googled Phthalate and it's used in TONS of things. Shampoo bottles, hairspray bottles, baby powder bottles, lotions, makeup containers, milk jugs,water bottles, the list goes on. The best thing we can do is watch what we allow our children to come in contact with.
ReplyDeleteWell hallelujah! I'm totally with you here, and we've tried to do the same thing over the past couple years. We switched out everything...soaps, shampoos, cleaning products. It's funny, I just ordered some new dishes and cups for the kids for summer. I want non-glass items they can take outside, but without all the yuckies! Can't wait for them to arrive! It's nice to hear other people are doing the same, because my parents think we're crazy! :-) Great post!
ReplyDeleteohhh... thanks for the links, mama. i never know where to get started when researching stuff like this. thank you!
ReplyDeleteI have found that it's something to keep up with too. We had a water bottle that we thought was safe. Turns out it had another ingredient in the plastic that made it unsafe. Everything changes all the time.
ReplyDeleteI found some Boon Rubber Ducks on clearance at Target. I bought 6 of them! No chemicals, and no holes on the bottom for water to turn in to mildew. My little girls uses glass containers at school...so far no breaks! I need to work on getting rid of some of the plastic utensils we still have lingering around. Thanks for posting about this.
ReplyDeletethanks for coming by! love ya blog. New follower! *smile*
ReplyDeleteu sure are good! Loved this post. Zara's been learning bout the similar thing at school & comes home & teaches me. we here also try to avoid plastic as much as we can. But like u sed glass cant be safe with kids around so we left with no choice, but ofcos use plastic of good quality. Thanx for sharing!!
ReplyDeleteIt can get overwhelming, can't it, trying to make all the best choices? For our health, for the environment. I try to educate myself a bit at a time and make small changes. It's not much, but it's something. Here from Blog Flow.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.wanderlustlust.com
Kind of off topic but I am the same way with food! I just had a freak out moment today about the fact that they don't have to say on the label exactly what is in food. (Which is extremely frustrating for vegetarians! I'm actually making my next blog post about this.)
ReplyDeleteIt also reminds me of a really great documentary about vinyl siding. Called 'Blue Vinyl'. You should check it out. Very eye opening!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5zbmkyoB_jQ
Take Care,
KareyEllen
KareyEllenDesigns.blogspot.com
Thanks for stopping by! I am very careful about plastic bottles for drinks. I know that the chemicals from the plastic will go into the drink, especially if it's been sitting in a car...yuck!
ReplyDeleteWow, I really need to pay more attention to this now that I have a little one! Also, thanks for following my blog, I'm following you now too!
ReplyDelete