We can easily be consumed by the dietary changes that we need to make when following a therapeutic diet like the Autoimmune Protocol or the Wahls Protocol. There are a lot of foods to eliminate and add in, there’s supplements and then we want to prioritize sleep, movement and stress management.
So by the time we get to addressing our toxic load, we can feel like WE’RE on overload with recommendations.
Yet, this is not a step that we can overlook.
If this is a new topic for you, let me share some eye-opening facts about chemicals and our exposure to them.
In the United States alone there are approximately 86,000 chemicals registered for use.
This includes 62,000 chemicals that were grandfathered in when the Toxic Substances Control Act was passed.
This means 62,000 chemicals were given a free pass and an automatic presumption of safety without any requirement to actually test to see if they were indeed safe.
Most people believe that very small amounts of exposure to harmful chemicals are totally safe and are too small to have any kind of health effect. While this is true for many chemicals, or exposures, it’s not 100% true for every kind of chemical.
Chemicals that mimic our natural hormones can in fact be even more harmful at extremely low doses simply because our endocrine system responds to natural hormones in the body at similarly low levels.
In fact, there are over 1,500 chemicals identified as endocrine disrupting.
Among many other things, fertility rates around the world are dropping; one key factor is likely the chronic exposures we are getting to reproductive toxins in our environment.
We don’t have to do a complete overhaul, but it’s important that we’re aware of our exposure to toxins and start to reduce it.
For some people, this could be the missing link in their healing plan and why they haven’t experienced the symptom relief that they had hoped for.
As always, it’s important to remember our bio individuality. Just as foods can affect each of us differently, so can toxins. So, not everything we share today may apply directly to you. We encourage you to listen for what resonates with you most and start there.
If you’ve listened to any of our previous episodes you know that we focus on progress, not perfection.
So let this be a new adventure versus another thing to add to your list.
On today’s episode, Alene and I discuss:
- The role reducing toxic exposure has played in their healing
- Simple ways to get started going “green” in your life
- Recommended resources for someone who wants to explore this more
Tune in and be sure to share your thoughts on today’s topic below. We love to hear from you! And join the conversation on Instagram with your fellow autoimmune besties at https://www.instagram.com/autoimmunebestiespodcast.
