Tis the season! The weather is changing, the flowers are blooming, and it’s time for spring cleaning. But you shouldn’t stop at scrubbing floors and dusting windowsills. There are several other changes, swaps, and choices you can make to have a healthy, low-tox life!

Here are some ideas to get you started:

Makeup & skincare

There are a million skincare and makeup products out there, but did you know manufacturers in the United States are allowed to use chemicals that have long since been banned in other countries? Ingredients like parabens and phthalates cause hormonal disruptions, and fragrances can be irritants and environmental toxins. Other permitted ingredients include Formaldehyde and PEG, known toxins and carcinogens. Companies use these ingredients because they are cheap, not because they are good for consumers. Your skin is your largest organ - take care of it! Luckily, clean beauty is trending right now, so it’s easy to find brands that are working towards transparency in their ingredients and ethics in their manufacturing. Retailers like CVS are limiting which ingredients they are allowing in the skincare they carry, and Sephora has a search feature where you can refine your search to “clean” beauty. Refreshing your skincare and beauty is more than just fun, it can change your health!

Cleaning products

You may think that having a clean home means having a healthy home, but there may be toxins hiding in your cleaning products. Bleach, galaxolide, phosphoric acid, and formaldehyde, and even chloroform are very common in name-brand cleaners, but are respiratory irritants, carcinogens, and hormone disrupters. Luckily there are easy non-toxic swaps that still leave your home clean and fresh. For your Spring Cleaning, source cleaners made with natural ingredients like vinegar, baking soda, and essential oils, or take on a DIY project and make your own cleaning solutions.

Perfume

Like in makeup and skincare, fragrances used in perfumes contain phthalates, which can cause health issues including cancer, birth defects, hormonal disruptions, and respiratory illness. Luckily, there are some high-quality non-toxic perfumes out there that use non- synthetical materials and botanicals to create beautiful scents. The best part? Many of the leading non-toxic brands are vegan, cruelty-free, low-waste, or ethically sourced (and really beautifully packaged!). This spring, update your signature scent with something that’s healthier for you and the planet.

Air filters

Spring is here, which means warmer temps and more reliance on air conditioning. Before cooling your home, it is so important to get your window AC units or HVAC system cleaned. Mold, dust, dirt, and bacteria can grow and thrive in your air system, and then get into your home. Not only will cleaning help the efficiency of your AC, but it will keep you and your home breathing clean, healthy air.

Candles

You’ve heard it from us a million times - don’t burn toxic candles! Everything from synthetic fragrance to phthalates to parabens can be lurking in that candle you picked up from a box store. Keeping your home smelling great, or setting the tone with a cute candle doesn’t have to cost you your health. There are fantastic non-toxic candles like the ones we sell here at BLCC that are made without toxic fragrances and use soy wax and natural cotton wicks.

Now get out there and tackle those toxins!