Today I am not bringing you a recipe for you to eat well while taking care of your health, today I am proposing a series of tips to take care of the world because, after all, taking care of where we live is taking care of ourselves. I have been concerned about this issue for a long time. When I was only 8 years old, I wanted to spend the summer at an ecological camp, where they gave me a T-shirt.
I don’t know what surprises me more, that 26 years later I still care about the subject and I tried to convey it to as many people as possible or that that shirt still looks good on me. It’s true that I don’t wear it much but I have an infinite affection for it.
Just this year, 2019, I have decided to give more strength to this thing of truly taking care of the world around me.
I try to share everything I am changing in my life to pollute less.
Because one of my purposes in life is to leave the world a little better than I found it.
Contributing is not just about changing myself, but about making this change felt in the world and making life easier for others.
After all, that’s my job, isn’t it? To make CHANGE easy.
One of my reasons for polluting less is to take care of myself. By taking care of our wonderful bodies and treating them with love and care, using products that are not toxic to our bodies or our homes, we are taking care of the planet.
So let me explain to you what little things I have been changing (for the better):
In the kitchen
I try to buy as many foods in bulk as possible: vegetables, fruit, cereals, legumes, fish, eggs… I buy everything without packaging. I try to go to the store carrying my cotton bags, or the same containers where I store the products; this way I avoid having to buy bags along the way.
For cereals, flours, legumes, or spices, I use glass jars of all sizes like the ones in the photo below. Although a good idea is to reuse cans. The key is to reuse them instead of buying something new. Another thing I try to do is to make my vegetable milk whenever I can and store it in glass bottles that I reuse. For every liter I make, I save a carton.
Cleaning products
Regarding the products I use to clean my house, I do two things: I make them myself or I buy them in bulk. But always non-toxic and natural.
I don’t like my house smelling like cleaning products. I identify that smell as toxic and I find it extremely unpleasant.
If the same thing happens to you, preparing your products at home is super easy and cheap. With vinegar, baking soda, and essential oils you can get almost anything, so if you’re up for it, I invite you to tr my friend Victoria Moradell’s Toxic-Free Home Challenge.
You can also buy cleaning products of this type in bulk at the Barceló Market. They even have a container for reusing containers if you don’t have one.
Hygiene
The bathroom may be the place where I have changed the most things.
Starting with ear sticks ( I buy biodegradable ones since I know that they are the most polluting product along with straws), all my bathroom products have been changing for the better. For my body and hair ,I use solid soaps and shampoos, which I am super in love with. The truth is that they are what leave my hair the best, by far; in addition to being the healthiest option for me and not polluting at all.
Clothes
To wash colored clothes at home, we used, at Ivan’s initiative, washing nuts apple cider vinegar a,nd our favorite essential oil A foolproof mix!
For one wash, you need 4 washing nuts cut in half, that is, 8 halves that you should use with water at 40º or higher. To soften clothes, add a good splash of apple cider vinegar or cleaning vinegar and a few drops of your favorite essential oil to the fabric softener box.
If the clothes are white, the process will be the same but adding 2 to 4 large tablespoons of percarborate.
If the clothes are white and very stained, soaking them overnight in hot water and percarbonate will work great. One tablespoon per liter of water will achieve impeccable cleaning.
Out of the house
When we go out, we also have more respectful options than others.
I use glass or stainless steel Tupperware, or reusable silicone freezer bags I always carry stainless steel water bottles ,which, in addition to not polluting, also prevent the endocrine disruptors found in plastics. I either don’t use straws, or I use stainless steel, bamboo, or glass ones. Remember that they are one of the elements that pollute the most.
