Plastic’s omnipresence in the world is equivalent to that of the Gods themselves! They are literally everywhere and in everything including our most basic needs – food, clothing, and shelter.
Our environment i.e. Mother Nature is detrimentally impacted due to the manufacture, use and disposal of plastic and there is enough being said about this but it really does not seem to really create a reduction in the consumption of plastic. Most environmental campaigns are on the lines that question - Isn’t she, our home? Is it not our responsibility to keep her clean and take care of her?
I love Mother Nature and I am completely aware and in awe of her ability to nurture, heal and protect us. My shift towards ‘No Plastic’ and ‘No Chemicals’ started because it hurt to see what they are doing to her. When AJ came along, I realised that it is not only her (MN) who is getting hurt but also our children who never contributed to this disaster we have gotten ourselves into.
It soon occurred to me that we humans today are the most attached to our bodies, which technically speaking is our primary home and unless we can really understand the harm EDCs cause to our primary homes, more importantly our children, we might not really make the shift! At the risk of causing a lot of discomfort to my dear readers, I have in this article tried to highlight the negative impacts EDCs have on our health.
Our bodies are run by a network of hormones and glands that regulate our development, metabolism, and behaviour – the endocrine system. Plastics and personal care products contain and leach hazardous chemicals, including endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) that disrupt the endocrine system by responding to the DNAs instead of hormones. The disruption can lead to various ailments that are on the rise today including diabetes, early onset of periods, PCOD/ PCOS, infertility (a boom in the healthcare sector in this area in the last few years), breast cancer and prostate cancer. EDC exposure is not only a current problem, but it poses a serious threat to future generations as well due to altered DNAs especially when a pregnant woman is exposed.
While they have identified the most harmful one of these as Bisphenol A (BPA) in plastics and parabens in personal care products, there is little to almost no evidence that the other chemicals in plastics and personal care products do not have similar effects on the endocrine system.
If that is not all, Researchers have found that sponges regularly cleaned in soapy water have harboured more of a bacteria called Moraxella Osloensis. The bacteria grow in non-alkaline (i.e. synthetic) moist environments. While this bacterium is generally not harmful, it does cause infections in immunocompromised systems like that of young children, aged adults and people who are already ill. I do wonder if plastic toothbrushes that remain in enclosed moist environments host this bacterium.
Some obvious sources of EDCs – toothbrushes, personal care products, scented products, toys, plastic cutlery, plastic cookware, plastic storage solutions and packaged food.
If you do struggle with your child constantly falling sick, try observing if any, some, or all forms of plastic around the child can be replaced with natural alternatives. While this may sound like a massive amount of work, it’s easy to implement when we plan a phase wise shift.
I sincerely hope this article brings to you the grave reality of how detrimental it is to manufacture, use and dispose cheap and easy to replace or one-time disposable plastic ware and the pressing need to make a change for gifting our children a healthy future – not only their bodies but also the environment.
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