Sep 22 2024 22 mins
Host Lena Livinsky, shares her personal journey with concerning medical symptoms and how they led her to focus on maintaining a healthy home environment.
Here are five easy tips she recommends to help keep your home healthy and safe, especially as the seasons change.
1. Airing Out Your Home
Indoor air quality can often be worse than outdoor air quality due to the accumulation of pollutants like volatile organic compounds (VOCs), dust, and mold. To improve air quality, it's essential to ventilate your home. Lina suggests opening windows for just 10 to 15 minutes a day to increase airflow and remove indoor toxins. For optimal results, open windows in different parts of the house to create a cross-breeze, allowing fresh air to circulate throughout.
2. Regular Dusting and Vacuuming
Dust contains allergens and pollutants that can affect your health, particularly for children with allergies or asthma. Regular dusting and vacuuming can significantly reduce exposure to dust mites, pet dander, and mold spores. Lina recommends using a vacuum with a HEPA filter and microfiber cloths for effective cleaning. While it may seem overwhelming, she emphasizes that vacuuming a room usually takes just a few minutes, making it manageable to do multiple times a week.
3. Using Healthy Home Cleaning Products
Many commercial cleaning products are marketed as "green" but may still contain harmful additives and fragrances. Lina advises opting for cleaner alternatives, such as Force of Nature, which uses vinegar and salt to create a natural cleaning solution. If budget constraints are a concern, simple ingredients like vinegar can serve as effective cleaning agents. Vinegar has antimicrobial properties and can be used to clean surfaces without the harmful fumes associated with bleach and other harsh chemicals.
4. Cleaning and Soaking Produce
Even organic fruits and vegetables can carry pesticide residues. To ensure your produce is clean, Lina recommends soaking it in a solution of water and vinegar. This method helps remove pesticides, dirt, and bacteria, making your food safer to consume. Research shows that vinegar can effectively reduce pathogens like E. coli and salmonella, providing an extra layer of safety for your family's meals.
5. Checking Ingredients in Food Products
With many children's diets consisting of over 70% processed foods, it's crucial to be mindful of what you're purchasing. Lina encourages parents to check ingredient labels and opt for organic products when possible to avoid harmful substances like glyphosate. If a product contains ingredients you don't recognize or can't find in your kitchen, it's best to avoid it. Educating yourself on reading labels and understanding what goes into your family's food can lead to healthier choices.
Conclusion
By implementing these five easy tips—airing out your home, regular cleaning, using safe products, soaking produce, and checking food ingredients—you can create a healthier living environment for you and your family. These practices not only help reduce allergens and toxins but also promote overall well-being. As Lina emphasizes, maintaining a healthy home doesn't have to be time-consuming or expensive; it just requires a little effort and awareness.
[00:03:08] Tips for a healthy home.
[00:05:16] Indoor air quality tips.
[00:07:34] Cold air benefits for health.
[00:12:00] Vinegar as a cleaning agent.
[00:15:55] Cleaning produce with vinegar.
[00:19:18] Importance of reading labels.
Send Lena a DM at https://www.instagram.com/lena.livinsky/