Kris Carr: So we’ve talked a lot about your energy saboteurs, those sneaky habits that undermine your health and drain your wellbeing. Well, today I want to talk about one of the sneakiest ones: environmental toxins. Toxins in your environment and in your products that you use can create a chemical buildup in your body. And this is also known as your “body burden.” As the name implies, those chemicals can strain and stress out your system. Now the chemicals themselves range from industrial chemicals and flame retardants to pesticides and hormone disruptors.

And some of these nasties have a very long shelf life in your body. For example, it’s still possible to find chemicals in your body that were banned decades ago. Stuff like DDT. Yes. Can you believe that? I couldn’t even wrap my head around that when I learned that. So since the 1970s, over 80,000 chemicals have been approved for use. But get this: only around 1000 of them have actually been tested for their carcinogenic effect.

So while you choose what to stop doing today, I want to encourage you to start to say No to these unnecessary chemicals too. Here are a few clean swaps that would be a great place for you to start.

First, begin swapping out your beauty and skincare products for clean, nontoxic options. Now here’s the thing you don’t have to throw everything out at once. But as you finish things, replace them with better options. Today, there are so many affordable choices out there, even at your local drugstore. And here’s why this is so important. The average woman uses 12 personal products per day, so that’s a lot of chemicals that build up over time that you can cut out.

Second, I want you to consider opting for nontoxic cleaning products. They smell good. They work just as good. You can buy these or even make them yourself, for a swap that’s good for your wallet, your body, and the environment. You can also find out how to do that at my website (KrisCarr.com) I’ve got lots of recipes for you.

Third, try to buy organic food when possible. Remember, we’re gonna try to eat more fruits and veggies—so good for us! The fiber, the phytochemicals, the vitamins, minerals, oxygen, enzymes. So we want to try to buy more organic versions. Now, I know it can be more pricey. And if it’s better for your budget, just start by opting for organic alternatives to the EWG’s Dirty Dozen. EWG stands for Environmental Working Group, and they put out a list every year called The Dirty Dozen. These are the 12 crops that contain the highest proportion of pesticides. So you can avoid those and you can give your system a break by opting for their organic counterparts.

All right. Are you with me? One more. Finally, don’t forget your lawn care. Your beautiful lawn. So there are a ton of eco friendly options that will give you a healthy yard and garden without surrounding your home in a circle of pesticides.

So for every swap you’re able to make, you can lower your toxic body burden and start to feel more energized over time. Not to mention that the animals and environment will thank you too. Win, win. All right, so can you commit to make just one smart swap today?