Are You a Victim of Toxic Living?

Now, what did you think about that title? Does that describe you in some way, now or at one time? Are you on a Journey to healthier, Greener Living?
Where are you on your journey?
-Not doing it,
-Thought about it,
-Don't know where to start,
-Don't know who to believe or what to think,
Took my first step,
-Started integrating greener/healthier living, or
-Full-fledged Green?

What exactly is a victim of toxic living? How can you tell if you are one?
Well...here is something to think about.The unimaginable amounts of toxins that we are exposed to every day can manifest through different health problems such as allergies, headaches, low energy, depression, bowel irregularities, digestive problems and skin issues.
Everyone has a different reason to get started, and in the end, there are no wrong reasons. The biggest regrets I've heard are that people didn't realize the impact of their choices sooner.
So what are or would be your reason for looking at greener, healthier choices?

Many women or parents will tell you that the moment their children entered their world, everything was thrown on its head and they had to re-think their way of living. Others, sadly, come to the healthier choices after health issues escalate. Thoe good thing is, whether you get there by choice or consequence, you made it! So pat yourself on the back and take comfort in knowing that our bodies are amazing, and given the right conditions, can do some pretty incredible things in the way of improving and even restoring our health. 

So just where are these chemicals? EVERYWHERE.
They are in our food, our clothing (thanks to flame retardants on children's PJ's, the laundry soap and softner we use, and let's not forget dyes and such), our toothpaste, shampoo, soap, shaving cream, creams and lotions, hair products, just to name a few. When we talk about perfumes and fragrances, either the ones we apply to our skin or the ones used in our products, well that's even scarier, because there are literally hundreds of chemicals used to make a fragrance or perfume, and the companies don't have to list them anywhere. 
When it comes to our food, in my home we eat organic. When you think about the amounts of pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, larvacides, and such that are sprayed on our food crops, it's not something I want to put into my body, or my family's. Consider that they use 250lbs of chemicals for one acre of coffee...(I'm even happier not to drink it, but I do love my ground date pit 'coffee' so I can make pumpkin spice lattes).

pic from the link I gave you

Do you remember doing an experiment in school with food dye and celery or flowers? Here's a link to check out one such experiment. So you'll understand that even if you wash your produce, you cannot remove what is inside the plant. It soaks into the ground and is absorbed by the plant. The other issue with non-organic produce is the soil. Healthy soil has 52 minerals and micro/macro-nutrients, whereas conventionally grown produce has 3...the ones they keep spraying on the depleted soil. Crop rotation was there for a reason.

OK, back to the point of the post! WHAT can you do to take control of your health and well-being? Take a step, fall into action, make a change. If you don't want to go full-on organic, then take time to look up the "Dirty Dozen" and avoid those foods unless they are organic. Learn about the "Clean Fifteen" and add them to your routine. Start reading labels. If there are more than 5 ingredients on the list, most of which you can't even pronounce, you might want to look them up or find better products. That goes as much for food as for moisturizer, laundry soap and any product going in or on your body. What you apply to your skin gets into the bloodstream in as little as 26 seconds.
Another thing you can consider is adding essential oils to your routine. (Not the cheap ones bought at the grocery store, but pure oils that you know contain no chemicals added in along the way.) 

According to Health Canada, essential oils have been proven and accepted to be used in aromatherapy;

• for symptomatic relief of acne/boils,
• to relieve minor skin irritation/cuts/bruises/burns,
• for symptomatic relief of eczema/dermatitis,
• as a nervine/calmative,
• to help relieve joint/muscle pain associated with sprain/strain/rheumatoid arthritis,
• to help relieve a headache,
• as a carminative/antispasmodic for symptomatic relief of digestive discomfort, and
• to help relieve colds/cough.

And if you take a few minutes to look up the benefits of the individual oils, you're in for a nice surprise. Every oil you add to your routine is a toxic product you've left behind. It literally takes me a minute to make a bottle of foaming hand soap, enriched with essential oils, and costs less than a dollar a bottle. I use, trust and love Young Living essential oils and their products. Their Thieves household cleaner amazes me every time I use it. My husband is now a believer as well.

All you have to do is give it a try. You will notice the difference when you lower the amount of toxins in your daily life. I was reading somewhere where they pointed out that someone who added smoothies to their morning routine improved 1/3 of their diet. 
My husband eats vegan/organic here at home and uses the non-toxic products we have, but he also eats out every weekday, and no...it's not organic or vegan. Nonetheless, he realized that he no longer suffers from allergies. Imagine how he'd be feeling if he embraced this full on! 

If you want more info on Essential oils, give me a shout. I'd be more than happy to help you begin your journey. Young Living offers you an amazing deal, a starter kit of 11 essential oils and a diffuser, plus a whole slew of little goodies on the side for $199.75 Canadian, or $160 US. (You get 24% off all following purchases for a year, so it's even better than a Costco card! No offense to Costco, but I paid cash just to get my card, here you get a great kit in exchange!)

Debbie Brown: Young Living Independent Distributor #11073874

The Veggie Burger

 Since going gluten-free, bread has been pretty much ousted from my diet. I actually liked white bread sandwiches, (with peanut butter or those crust-free buffet sandwiches), way back when...but then in came GF, and there is no GF substitute that comes near to a slice of white bread...and then in came the choice to go vegan. Honestly, it was easier to replace the filling from a tuna salad sandwich or an egg-salad sandwich with vegan options -which actually taste better than the original version, than finding decent bread.

So, (yeah, yeah, I'm getting to the point), eating a hamburger in a bun was a memory that was tossed into the category "never gonna happen again" until now! YES, I have a solution. Kamut hamburger buns, Earth's Choice provolone cheese slices, and the burger recipe I'm going to share with you in a moment, cooked on the BBQ, I might add. OK, I bought a plaque I put on the BBQ grill because I wasn't sure if they'd hold together, but wow....it was awesome! Ready to try it?

Step one:

The night before, get these things soaking, all night.

1/3 cup sunflower seeds,

1 cup pecan nuts,

1 ½ cup oats,

Yes, covered with water, in a glass dish if possible, all night. You will want to rinse and drain well before use.

Make a flax egg and set aside until it thickens:

2½ Tbsp ground flaxseed mixed with ½ cup warm water

In one pot,

¾ cup (uncooked) red rice, rinsed, drained and cooked, (I suppose you could use white or brown)

The Grilled Patty

In another pot,

1 cup (uncooked) green or brown lentils, rinsed, drained, and cooked

Add a veggie broth cube to the water, or 1 Tbsp veggie broth powder

1 red onion (about ½ cup),

1 medium-sized Portobello mushroom (about ½ cup),

IF you don't do mushrooms, you can use zucchini instead)

½ a red pepper

a handful of fresh parsley,

½ tsp baking powder

Now you can add about ½ Tbsp of steak spices or add the following to taste

¼ tsp Freshly ground pepper

½-1 tsp Fresh ground pink salt

½-1 tsp Garlic powder

1-2 Tbsp tamari sauce

Put the vegetables, sunflower seeds, and pecans into the food processor and pulse a few times, you want small pieces.

Then add the rice, lentils, oats, and seasoning. Pulse some more. I like to really give it a go because I don’t want to see chunks of vegetables or seeds. Add the flax egg and mix well. We’re trying to get it to look like a burger.

This makes a good-sized batch, so you can shape and freeze some patties for use at a later date. They freeze really well, and you can put them on the BBQ plaque frozen.

We had more than enough to feed 5 people, twice. ( 3 adults, 2 kids)

Oh! If you are not going to BBQ them, you can add a drop of liquid smoke or a 1/2-1 tsp of smoked paprika, then adjust to taste. You don;t want it to overpower the taste.

Happy, Healthy Family

Routine is back in full swing now, work and school as vacation time becomes a memory. Sadly, after the first few days of being back at work or in school, the first signs and symptoms of a cold tend to appear. As you all know, I am a big fan of essential oils, having used them for over 25 years, but ever since I've been introduced to Young Living oils, I'm over the moon.

Now, I am a learning junkie...reading something new every day, learning more and more on so many different topics, from teaching to crafts, sustainable living to health topics, science and nutrition, and then there are my language studies and writing...to name a few.

So with my in-depth hunger for oily knowledge, I have horrifically discovered just how toxic daily living can be. And I thought I already knew! (Making me even more determined to remain on an organic, toxin-free lifestyle). Did you know the average woman has applied or come in contact with over 300 chemicals by the time she leaves her house in the morning? In a nutshell, if you can't pronounce the ingredients in your soap, detergent, shampoo, deodorant, perfume (most ingredients are secret), laundry and cleaning supplies, then you probably don't know what they are, and neither does your body. You wouldn't eat them, so why should you breathe them in or apply them to your skin?

As you may have read, I  had been primarily using essential oils (EO) in my homemade products. I was never much of a candle burner or incense user, so aromatically was more of an occasional thing, and I turned more often to nutrition, herbs, and homeopathy before I'd have used EOs for health-related issues. I have since learned some pretty great things. Oils are amazing! I've heard that in Romania, the government pays doctors to treat their patients with EOs.

By putting a drop of oil on your skin (with a carrier oil like coconut or almond oil for children and those with more sensitive skin), the teeny, tiny molecules are absorbed into the body in a matter of seconds....can be found in the blood after 26 seconds, and will have made it to every cell in the body after twenty minutes. Crazy! Now if you are using a diffuser, the process is slightly different, but the oils still get into the body and work their magic. Yes, magic.

I'm going to share over a few posts just how easy it is to leave the toxins behind, giving you, your family, home and environment a clean start. Every oil you add to your lives is a toxin (or toxins) you've kicked to the curb! Yeah! It's that easy.

The Young Living Premium Starter Kit


There are three ways to get started in the Young Living, natural, healthy, vibrant lifestyle. How cool would it be to get up every morning and feel jazzed about the day ahead? To have more energy than you can remember having in a long time, knowing that your home, environment, and body are on a path to wellness...Young Living offers it all.
So if you're on a path to green living, are looking to improve your overall health and well-being, want to provide a toxin-free environment for your family, then hear me out. You might just like what I have to offer.

The photo on the left shows you the three starter kits. Let's go through them one at a time, and I will even share some cool recipes on the other pages, too. For now, let's start with the oil starter kit.

Let's start with What are Essential Oils?

Essential Oils are the very essence, the lifeblood of the plant that initiates regeneration into the cells. Anything that our blood does for us is pretty much what the essential oils do for the plant. Our blood cells carry nutrients and oxygen to the different organs in our body and can effectively combat the damaging effects of toxins, impurities and harmful substances in and around our body. But you knew that, right?

Oh, and pure Essential Oils will NEVER expire, what expires are the carrier oils mixed into the blends.

Essential Oils have a unique ability to penetrate the cell wall and are made up of very tiny molecules that have the ability in its chemical structure to penetrate the cell membrane and transport oxygen and nutrients inside the cell, thus giving more support to the immune system. Essential Oils are very powerful antioxidants,  which create an unfriendly environment for free radicals that our bodies are in contact with daily. Free radicals come from sources outside your body, such as tobacco smoke, alcohol, toxins, or pollutants, and can damage your body's cells, proteins, and DNA by altering their chemical structure. We come in contact with these elements every day, whether we are aware of them or not. And to give you an idea of just how potent an antioxidant EO's can be. Let's look at Clove oil, its ORAC* level is off the charts, coming in at over 1,000,000 ORAC, compared to blueberries which are at 9,000 ORAC. Now that puts things into perspective!

In a nutshell, Essential Oils are:

• Immune-enhancing
• Support the body’s natural defenses
• Aid in maintaining normal cellular regeneration

• Are mood elevating
• Are high in antioxidants
• Are aromatic
• Are oxygenating
• Boost stamina and energy
• Help you relax
• Help manage stress and frustration
• Improve mental clarity
• Promote overall health, vitality, and longevity

Premium Starter Kit- PSK

Young Living put these 11 oils together so you can do just about everything with this one kit. Using them on their own, or combining them will not only make your space smell better, but you will benefit from their many attributes.

Your PSK comes with these oils:

Lavender, Peppermint, Lemon, Frankincense, Copaiba, Black Spruce, Thieves, R.C.,  Pan Away,

Purification,  and DiGize, 

Then you get The Dew Drop Diffuser, A roller-ball top, 10 mini Sample bottles to share or travel,

2 NingXia Red Singles, A non-toxic hand sanitizer, and all sorts of information.

The PSK is sold for 199.75

Health Canada recognizes that Essential Oils are in fact, beneficial, and many of the Young Living essential oils have been classified as Natural Health Products.

In fact, this is what Health Canada says in regards to Aromatherapy...
Essential Oils are used in aromatherapy;

1. for symptomatic relief of acne/boils.
2. to relieve minor skin irritation/cuts/bruises/burns.
3. for symptomatic relief of eczema/dermatitis.
4. as a nervine/calmative.
5. to help relieve joint/muscle pain associated with sprain/strain/rheumatoid arthritis.
6. to help relieve a headache.
7. as a carminative/antispasmodic for symptomatic relief of digestive discomfort.
8. to help relieve colds/cough.

Now there are many studies on the benefits of essential oils, and with the world wide web at our fingertips, it's worth it to take a few moments to look into them. Of course, once you start to use them yourself, you'll know what all the hype is about. BTW, this is not a new fad or craze. Essential oils have been around for about as long as man has been documenting things...and we can find references dating back thousands of years, first recorded in China between 2687-2597 BC. You can find over 600 references in the Bible as well.

I fever you would like to know more about Young Living and their products, don't hesitate to contact me...I would love to have a chat about oils. I am an independent distributor for YL, sharing my passion, one drop at a time.

Debbie Brown
YL Member # 11073874


*Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity (ORAC) is a method of measuring antioxidant capacities in biological samples in vitro. Wikipedia definition.

Medical Disclosure: None of the comments or opinions expressed here are meant to treat or diagnose any disease or illness. The information found on this site is for educational purposes only, and neither intended nor implied to act as a substitute for professional medical advice. Always consult your healthcare provider when it comes to any questions you may have or decisions you intend to make regarding your medical condition or treatment.