The past year of spending more time than ever at home has lots of people taking advantage of their kitchens! People have taken the time to discover how joyful and relaxing cooking can be. What they may not realize is some of the toxins that could be hanging out in what many call ‘the heart of the home’.
Here are some smart ways to keep your kitchen as healthy as possible:
If you have any Teflon pans, you may have noticed the label when you purchased it stated to only use plastic utensils. The reason for this isn’t just to make the pan last longer. It’s to make sure you last longer! It just takes two minutes of heating a Teflon coated pan for these toxic chemical gases to start releasing from the surface. If you have used metal utensils, the pieces can actually chip off and into your food. Teflon is the DuPont brand name polytetrafluorethylene, which not only contains a toxic form of fluoride but also a carcinogenic chemical called PFOA. This chemical is also known as being the American “forever chemicals”. PFOA’s turn into PFAS (thousands of fluorinated chemicals) that contaminate drinking water for over 200 million – plus Americans. Health concerns range from reproductive to developmental harm in new born babies to adult thyroid issues, to kidney and testicular cancer.
Speaking of plastics! Plastics have the potential to leach chemicals into our foods to varying degrees-including the bags you put your produce in. Studies show that even thin plastic wraps and plastics with BPA-free label leaches xenoestrogens into the food inside. Xenoestrogens so closely resembles natural estrogen that it binds to the estrogen receptors site and can cause hazardous outcomes in sensitive individuals. Can affect the brain, pituitary, gonads and thyroid. Make the move from plastic to glass for food storage and freezing. Mason jars and glass bowls with lids are perfect for on the go. Take your fruit out of store plastic wrappings and sacks and store in bowls, colanders or in the refrigerator.
Another common culprit is aluminum. It’s everywhere in the kitchen. Think about it, pots and pans, bakeware and foil to wrap your food. The great deal you found at a yard sale or cookware that you’ve had since college, may not be the value you thought when you first got it. The aluminum can build up in your kidneys, brain, and gastrointestinal tract, where it irritates mucus membranes, destroys the digestive enzyme pepsin and interferes with absorption of calcium, magnesium, phosphorus and vitamin A. Neurodegenerative disorders like Alzheimer’s and dementia have been linked to toxic accumulation in the brain. Get around using aluminum by making the switch to parchment paper and unbleached paper products like muffin tin liners. Make sure your bakeware is lead-free glass, clay from the USA or high-quality stainless steel.
These small changes can create big health results that can lead to many more delicious years!
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