Part two of The Home Detox Series.
So, you’re trying to live a healthier life, right? You’ve been cleaning up your diet and maybe even working out a little bit, but there’s one room in your house that you may have forgotten about: the bathroom. That’s because when it comes to toxicity, the bathroom can be a real hot mess.
This is one of the most important rooms in your home when it comes to detoxing because it’s where you cleanse your body. Are we getting clean if we are using chemicals to wash our hair? Or, are we helping our skin by moisturizing with all kinds of chemicals?
Unfortunately, many of the products we use in this room can be toxic and harmful to our health. So when we are cleaning and organizing our bathroom, it is important to start to look at the products that we use not just to clean but also what we put on our bodies.
Getting rid of toxins in the bathroom (or anywhere in the home for that matter) is a journey. It is about taking baby steps. It can’t be done overnight. And, if you try to get rid of everything all at once, it can be stressful! And stress is never a healthy thing!
But don’t worry, I’m here to help you detox your bathroom and get it under control. I promise you, when you are all done you are never gonna want to leave the bathroom!
So, let’s get started with the basics…
Get rid of Bathroom Clutter
Just like the first article in The Home Detox Series, we want to start by cleaning stuff out.
Start with one cabinet at a time, one drawer at a time. Gather some baskets, bags or even some old Amazon boxes (you know that you have them) to help organize everything. Place all like items together.
Then, get rid of any hair products that you know just don’t work for you (we all have them, those full bottles that you used once and never again because it made our hair look like crap!) Get rid of any old makeup and that eyeshadow pallet with the colors that you thought that you could pull off. Clear out the stuff that you know that is almost empty or that you don’t use.
Now that everything is out and together by category, it is time to get to a cleanin’!
Clean Everything
Once everything is out of the cabinets and drawers, grab your non-toxic cleaning products (or the ones that you DIY’d) and wipe everything out. You might need to get a handheld vacuum as well (for all of that hair that somehow makes it into a drawer!) Don’t worry about cleaning the mirror or the toilet yet, you can do that later. Get to the inside of the medicine cabinet, under the sink, in the drawers. Wipe it all down.
Organize By Item
Here is the fun part, putting it all away!
Now that everything is all sparkling clean, gather all of the items that you have already categorized and keep those like items together.
Have one shelf in the medicine cabinet for hair products, another for moisturizers… you get my drift. Having it all together within reach will make it easier to find.
If you have drawers, store all your hair tools in one so that they are all together. If you don’t have drawers, Use baskets under the sink. If you don’t have extra baskets on hand, use what you have. I started using magazine holders to keep my stuff together under the sink. I had them and wondered what I could do with them and they would up working great!
Store everything in a way that will work best for you. Having everything together by category and within reach will make your morning routine so much easier!
Take A Look At The Bathroom Products That You Use
After you have gotten everything neat and, in its place, it is time to take a look at the products that you use.
Personal care products can have over 10,000 chemical ingredients, some of which are known or suspected carcinogens, hormone disruptors, may cause reproductive harm… Who wants that near their body?
Think that the government has laws in place to protect us? Nope. Our nation’s regulatory system for cosmetics and personal care products is way outdated. In the United States, we don’t require health studies or testing before the product is sold. Crazy!
So, what are we to do?
Think about switching your personal care products that have safer ingredients. A good place to start is The Environmental Working Group’s Skin Deep Database.
EWG is an advocacy group that works to make the consumer aware of the chemicals in everyday products and works to get laws changed. They rate their products on a scale of 1-10 based on ingredients of concern.
With that being said, there are some products that they may not have all of the data on and will rate them higher because of it. You have to take the database with a grain of salt but, it is a good place to start.
Look for products at the lower end of the scale and look for products that are EWG verified.
There are also two phone apps that I trust. The first on is Clearya. They color code all of the ingredients in products from red being the most toxic to green being of no concern. Plus, you can go right to Amazon through the app, pull up what you are looking for and Clearya will give you all of the information about toxicity. There is also a “discover” tab so you can find safer comparisons.
The second app is Silent Spring’s Detox Me. You can scan barcodes on products to find relevant tips.
You can also use their buying guides to decode product labels and find non-toxic alternatives.
Now, personal care products can be a hard switch. We love our shampoo because of how it makes our hair look. We love our concealers because we know that they work for us. We get very attached to our products! It may take a bit of trial and error. But, there is a safer product out there that can do the same job, just with safer ingredients. Plus, most of the companies have trial sizes that you can try first so if you don’t like it, you don’t have all those bottles cluttering up your bathroom.
Make Your Bathroom Feel Like A Spa!
Now that everything is all clean, organized, and you are on your way to getting rid of the chemicals, why not make it comfy? Here are some things to think about for your new spa like atmosphere.
Towels
Look for towels made from organic cotton that don’t use chemicals in the manufacturing process.
Bathmat
Try your best to stay away from mats that have a rubber backing. Look for latex instead.
Shower Curtain
You know that smell when you get a new shower curtain liner? Yeah, you don’t want that. Stay away from PVC (which gives off that smell) and look for a fabric liner instead.
Candles
Moving on to atmosphere… instead of burning candles that are loaded with chemicals and can put VOC’s (volatile organic compounds) into the air, look for battery operated, rechargeable or beeswax candles.
Two great companies for all things bath are Avocado and Healthier Homes. You can find organic towels, robes and bathmats plus a whole bunch of other items to make your bathroom feel luxurious!
Conclusion
I know it can be overwhelming to try and change so many things at once. But even making one small change will have a positive impact on your health and the environment. If you want more ideas, head over to my website for tons of tips on living a clean, organized and non-toxic sustainable life.
I hope this post has shown you that going green doesn’t have to be hard – or expensive!
Where will you start first? Share any tips and tricks that you may have in the comments below.
Get your Beginners Guide To Creating A Healthy Toxin-Free Home
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