Anytime I make a big change, I like to start with the easiest thing first. I know I’m more likely to keep up with a smaller change right away. This first win motivates me to keep going. When I began to learn about the ingredients in our everyday products that could affect our endocrine system (and my kids’!), I wanted to jump right in and switch everything out with better products. However, as a stay at home mom of three (two at the time), my budget was limited and I wanted to get the best bang for my buck. In this blog series, I’ll share how we made the switch over time, making the first changes the ones with the biggest impact.
Know Better, Do Better
Picture this – Before I became a stay-at-home-mom, I was a high school math teacher in an extremely small classroom with sometimes up to 30 students in the room at a time. Sometimes I taught them right after P.E. Sometimes the A/C in my classroom leaked and left a smell. My classroom was also next to the faculty bathroom and lounge. There were so many smells that floated in throughout the day (ever had someone burn a bag of popcorn in the lounge microwave?!?).
So I did what I I had an automatic-spray air freshener. I always had a highly scented candle on my desk and I burned it often. You could usually find one of those scent warmers plugged into the wall of my classroom. They all helped – a bit. However, I started to notice that I seemed to have this endless cough. I went to my doctor multiple times about it, and he’d never find anything wrong with me. He would simply write it off as my allergies and suggest that I buy an over the counter allergy medication.
During parent-teacher conferences one year, a parent told me that I should throw away the air fresheners plugged into my wall because they were probably causing my cough. I tried it, and it helped. A lot. So I started looking into why it would make a difference and I found out about fragrance as an ingredient.
What is Fragrance?
When we think of fragrance, we usually think of a scent, a smell, a perfume. While this is a simple definition of fragrance, when you see “fragrance” on an ingredient label, it can actually include multiple synthetic chemicals, including phthalates, known allergens, and more, that are used to create a distinct smell that lasts. In the U.S., fragrance can be listed as an ingredient without disclosing exactly what is included in the “fragrance,” even if it is a known allergen. On the other hand, there are at least 26 recognized fragrance allergens that must be listed on product ingredient lists in the E.U.
If you walk down the aisles of cleaners, air fresheners, candles, laundry detergents, beauty products, etc. in a store and get a slight headache, or start sneezing, your body is probably reacting to the fragrances. Many of these products also include phthalates, VOC’s, endocrine disrupters, and more. Phthalates are used to “carry” the fragrances and make them smell longer – and phthalates have been linked to endocrine (hormone) issues, which can affect overall health as well as reproductive health. Once I realized how these ingredients were affecting me, and how they could possibly affect my children, I was ready to find a healthier alternative (and some relief!).
How Do I Avoid Fragrances?
I love walking into a great smelling room like most of us do. I don’t, however, love the headache, the sneezing, or the coughing that sometimes results from doing so. Does this mean I no longer get to enjoy wonderful smells anymore? Absolutely not! It’s actually a simple switch. First, find a diffuser. While I love my Young Living diffusers, and that’s what we use in our home, you can find others in stores or on Amazon that work well for a lower price.
Essential oils, however, are not all made alike. Some are distilled with harmful chemicals, some are not pure (they include fillers and synthetic additives, and yes, even “fragrance”). Some are very watered down, so you get what you pay for when it comes to essential oils. The ones I have used for the past 6 years are Young Living essential oils. I especially love that since they are 100% pure essential oils, it doesn’t take much to fill the room with beautiful scents wafting from your diffuser, which means your bottle of essential oil lasts quite a while.
Tips & Tricks
- Start slow. If you have never used YL essential oils before, start with one to two drops in a diffuser full of water. I suggest starting with a single oil that you enjoy (like lavender or peppermint), then move to trying out blends (like valor or Thieves).
- Search online for diffuser recipes to try. There are so many on blogs, Pinterest, and Facebook. If you have ordered with my YL number (3868620), you have access to my Facebook group where I share lots of these. I especially love to search for seasonal recipes (Christmas, Fall, Floral, etc).
- I love to keep a diffuser on a nightstand or dresser in the bedroom (add relaxing oils to help you drift off to sleep), a small diffuser in the bathroom (fresh scents like lemon work well for bathroom odors), and a large one in the living room and/or kitchen. Some diffusers have settings where it will turn itself off and on periodically, which is perfect to keep rooms you aren’t always in (like the bathroom) smelling wonderfully throughout the day.
- Some people like to put a different smell in each room, others like to have the same smell throughout the house.
- Plan to fill multiple diffusers with the same scent? If a recipe calls for 1 drop of each oil in a diffuser, put 10 drops of each oil in a small glass bottle (an empty oil bottle works well for this), close it, gently mix, and then drop 2 – 3 drops of the blend in each diffuser instead of carrying around all of the oils you plan to use.
- I also like to bring a small pitcher or bottle of water with me as I fill up diffusers throughout the house so I don’t have to keep returning to the kitchen for more water (I use water from my Berkey filter). Clean, empty Ningxia Red bottles are great for this use!
How Do I Start?
To make your first switch, choose a diffuser and order a few quality essential oils to begin your collection. Want the best bang for your buck? Try out an essential oil starter bundle, which comes with a diffuser and some of our most popular oils. Not sure which one to choose? Here are my recommendations:
Want a Small Diffuser? Try the Haven Starter Bundle
Comes with:
– Haven Ceramic Diffuser
– Lemon Essential Oil (15ml)
– Lavender Essential Oil (15ml)
– Peppermint Essential Oil (15ml)
– Peace and Calming Essential Oil Blend (5ml)
– 2 Glass Dropper Bottles (15ml) – perfect for making your own blends
Want the Most Popular Oils? Try the Premium Starter Bundle with the Desert Mist Diffuser
Comes with:
– Desert Mist Ultrasonic Diffuser
– Frankincense Essential Oil (5ml)
– Lavender Essential Oil (5ml)
– Lemon Vitality Essential Oil (5ml)
– Peppermint Vitality Essential Oil (5ml)
– Citrus Fresh Vitality Essential Oil Blend (5ml)
– Digize Vitality Essential Oil Blend (5ml)
– Thieves Vitality Essential Oil Blend (5ml)
– PanAway Essential Oil Blend (5ml)
– Peace and Calming Essential Oil Blend (5ml)
– Raven Essential Oil Blend (5ml)
– Stress Away Essential Oil Blend (5ml)
– Valor Essential Oil Blend (5ml)
– 2 AromaGlide Roller Fitments
– Thieves Spray
– 10 Thieves Waterless Hand Sanitizer Sachets
– 2 Ningxia Red Singles
– Product Guide and Product Price List
– Essential Oils Magazine
– The Essential Edge Newsletter
– Member Resources
Want Something for Your Kids? Try the KidScents Little Oilers Premium Starter Bundle
Comes with:
– Feather the Owl Diffuser
– KidScents SniffleEase (5ml)
– KidScents SleepyIze (5ml)
– KidScents Owie (5ml)
– KidScents GeneYus (5ml)
– KidScents TummyGize (5ml)
– 2 AromaGlide Roller Fitments
Or you can always order just the items you want.
Let me know when you’ve completed this month’s swap to more natural products, and check back here next month for the next easy swap.
References:
https://www.niehs.nih.gov/research/supported/assets/docs/j_q/phthalates_the_everywhere_chemical_handout_508.pdf
https://www.cosmeticsinfo.org/ingredients/fragrance/