Four Steps To Organic Motherhood

From Mercola.com:

More and more parents want to raise their children in an environment as free from toxins as possible.

In response, retailers are producing more products suitable for this goal. Sales of organic baby care products were up 34 percent in 2005, and preliminary numbers show an even greater increase in 2006.

Pregnancy and childbirth focus many parents' attention on health and environmental concerns. Numerous studies have shown that blood contaminants can pass from mother to fetus with alarming ease, and that the developing organs and tissues of children are more susceptible to damage from toxins.

Deirdre Dolan and Alexandra Zissu, authors of The Complete Organic Pregnancy, recommend the following common-sense first steps:
1. Don't renovate your home during pregnancy or early childhood to avoid exposure to sometimes-toxic dust
2. Switch to non-toxic cleaning products
3. Choose organic foods when possible
4. Use all-natural products

The Daily Green May 12, 2007

Dr. Mercola's Comment:
Oftentimes, concerns over health and environmental issues don't hit home until you're faced with the responsibility for a brand new life -- your baby. Since toxins in a mother's bloodstream can easily transfer over to the fetus during pregnancy, many pregnant moms start questioning the safety of products used everyday.

You do live in a highly toxic world, surrounded and submerged in chemicals of all kinds, some worse than others.

The Daily Green Web site offers some tips to get you started on your quest to limit the potentially toxic dangers to your child, including a number of strategies I have previously recommended on this site, such as switching to non-toxic cleaning products and other all-natural products, and choosing certified locally grown, organic foods whenever possible.

If you want to go even further, which certainly couldn't hurt, you can take a look at Dolan and Zissu's new book The Complete Organic Pregnancy to guide you along the way.

In addition to "Going Green," don't forget to take animal-based omega-3 fats -- especially during pregnancy. Omega-3 fats like DHA:
Prevent the vast majority of premature deliveries
Maximize children's intelligence
Optimize vision in infants

Related Articles:
Toxins, Brain Chemistry, and Behavior
Cleaning Products Can Harm Your Children
Six Reasons Why Cancer Rates Among Teens are on the Rise