In today’s world it is vital to make natural choices whenever possible. Making the natural choice is important for two reasons: 1. to keep you and your family healthy 2. to keep the planet healthy. In recent years we all have seen and read so much about how the world continues to change. Our natural resources are diminishing. It is becoming more and more challenging to turn a blind eye to this information. We are surrounded by movies, books, magazine articles, posters/billboards, songs, and conversation focusing on this topic. The most recent powerhouse of a movie that I have seen relating to our food and the world is “Food, Inc.” This movie illustrates the current food epidemic that we are experiencing in our country. The ultimate message of the movie is to eat locally and sustainably. It is a powerful message; but for many families, turning this into reality may seem farfetched.
What does it take in today’s world to raise a child naturally? A perfect place to start is in your home. Transforming your home into a natural one can be easy when following simple guidelines.
How to Change Your Home to a Natural Home
Raising your child naturally won’t seem like an enormous task if you tackle one category at a time. Create an inventory of what you have in your home that is synthetic, then slowly replace these products one by one. Almost everything today has a natural substitute. Some examples:
- Replace synthetic cleaners and detergents with natural versions such as Seventh Generation brand. Even a simple change such as this can lead to significant benefits. For my own family, when we changed laundry detergents, the ‘sleep issue’ became easier. My son began to sleep through the night, I was less restless, and my husband, with a history of asthma, had an easier time breathing. I even noticed how I no longer itched at night!
- Replace your child’s soap and shampoo with a natural version such as Tom’s of Maine or California Baby brand. So often, we take for granted some of the symptoms that we deal with on a day-to-day basis. Changing the brand of soap you use to a more natural one can eliminate previously irresolvable issues such as daily redness or rashes on the face and even residual cradle cap on your child’s head.
- Make the choice to only buy clothing made mostly with natural fibers such as cotton or wool, rather than polyester or acrylic. If this seems like an expensive option, consider going to children’s consignment stores. This is a growing movement. There are many children’s consignment shops in Connecticut that house great quality clothing. Often, these shops are located in trendy shopping areas. Some great options: ‘Just Kids’ in Canton, ‘Best Dressed Kids’ in Bloomfield, and ‘Max and Lily’s closet in West Hartford. Additionally, many everyday stores such as Target and Kohl’s sell 100% cotton children’s clothing.
- Buy produce that is organic or natural and free of pesticides and growth hormones. It is true that organic foods are more expensive. Hopefully, one day, this will change. One option is to search for a local Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) co-op farm that sells memberships. These farms provide great natural produce through the warm months of the year for a reasonable price. Some CSAs provide a winter share as well. One CSA example is ‘Holcomb Farm CSA’ in Granby. Another example is Urban Oaks Organic Farm in New Britain which offers a summer CSA as well as a farm stand. A great website to search for local CSAs in your area is: www.ctnofa.org/CSAs.htm. Another wonderful option is local farmers markets and farm stands. Farmers markets and farm stands can be a lot of fun for children and they allow you to buy straight from the farmer. When considering other types of natural foods, there are many ‘regular’ supermarkets that sell natural meats without growth hormones or other synthetic additives.
- Eliminate soda pop and candy in the house. It may be challenging to avoid sweets altogether but making a rule of no candy in the house is a positive start.
- Choose foods that are free of high fructose corn syrup and other added sweeteners, chemicals, partially hydrogenated oils (commonly referred to as “trans fats”), and genetic modification (GMO). Searching for recipes that can be modified to include natural sweeteners is another helpful strategy. Natural sweeteners can be substituted for sugar and other synthetic sweeteners in most recipes. Some great options for natural sweeteners include: pure maple syrup or maple sugar, pure honey, raw agave, palm sugar, date sugar, coconut syrup or coconut crystals. Some of these sweeteners can be expensive but if you can find them in bulk, you can get great prices. Maple sugar, for example, can be ordered in bulk through www.dennisfarmsmaple.com. As for GMO foods, more and more studies are finding genetic modification has negative effects. GMO foods are outlawed in most European countries. The challenge in this country is that genetic modification is not listed on labels. Some foods that are typically genetically modified in this country include corn and soy. Currently, buying ‘organic’ means non-GMO.
Ultimately, this process comes down to reading labels. As a parent, this process can seem even more challenging because it begs the question, “Do I need to change my own habits?” For a child, the most important factor is family support. Ideally, to support the child optimally, the whole family should adopt these changes. Each family member should be informed of the potential benefits of this major change in their home. In addition to the health benefits to yourself and your family, making the transition to a natural home is a great way to support the environment. There are many websites today that offer information on how a natural home can help the environment. This is one great way to involve children in the process of change.
Recommendations for Natural Health:
- Gluten Elimination Diet: Gluten is a ‘pro-inflammatory’ food which means that when ingested, it contributes to more inflammation in the body. Inflammation is at the root of every illness in our body. By eliminating gluten from our diet we can support greater health and recovery. For children, eliminating gluten can also support quicker recovery from injury as well as a reduction in common issues such as allergies, learning and behavioral deficits, and more. A good resource on gluten sensitivity and implementing a gluten elimination diet can be found at the clinical services>> treatment>> nutritional wellness>> gluten sensitivity page on www.InstituteofIMT.com.
- Avoid refined sugars: Diabetes is on the rise today as documented by many researchers. To avoid this type of illness in adulthood, changes need to be made early on.
- Avoid peanuts: Consider the recent rise in peanut allergies. Peanuts are clearly allergenic to many people. What is less recognized is how peanuts can affect those that don’t present with severe anaphylactic symptoms. One strategy is to eliminate peanuts for a period of time and catalog the changes over that period of time (recommended 3 months). Very likely, there will be great benefits in skin health, learning and behavior, breathing, and more.
- Avoid synthetic additives in food: Read labels!
- Avoid toxic chemical exposure: Always consider how you can reduce toxins in your environment and in your home.
- Daily essential fatty acids: Every tissue in our body is made up of cells. The wall of each cell is comprised of essential fatty acids or EFAs. With any trauma or infection, at a cellular level, there is a tear in the wall of one or multiple cells that make up a structure such as an organ or vessel. To repair this tissue, the body needs essential fatty acids. But EFAs are not produced in the body—they have to be included in our diet. Unless we eat 2 tins of sardines every day, we are lacking optimal essential fatty acids! A great way to get the right amount of EFAs in our diet is to supplement with fish oils. Fish oils house concentrated EFAs. Some options would include daily cod liver oil or fish oil gel caps.
- Daily probiotics: Probiotics provide our body with healthy bacteria to fight off infection, increasing immune strength and warding off illness. Probiotics can be taken by capsule and can also be found in yogurt.
- Daily vegetables and fruit: Vegetables and fruit contain many nutrients and enzymes to support a healthy body. In addition, eating daily vegetables and fruit can support a healthy bowel.
Great Snack Options for Kids:
- Cut vegetables or fruit: Lots of nutrients and enzymes
- Hummus and rice crackers: Good source of protein and healthy fats
- Sun Butter (nut butter made out of sun flower seeds) and celery or carrot sticks: Good source of protein and healthy fats
- Apple sauce: Apples are great for digestion and immunity
- Raisins and dried fruit: Good source of enzymes and nutrients
- Yogurt: Probiotics! Also a good source of fat
- Coconut water: Great electrolytes (healthier then Gatorade!) and a lower sugar content then regular fruit juice
Sustainable Changes
When making the choice to change your home to a natural home, the question of cost is always a consideration. But what is often forgotten is the cost of health. The Centers for Disease Control report that diabetes is one of the leading chronic illnesses in children today. There is an obvious rise in children’s learning and behavioral disorders—just witness today’s rise in autism spectrum disorder. The only way to make sustainable changes in our health is to be proactive in our choices. There is so much that is out of our control—the escalation of global warming, the rising cost of healthcare and education, and ultimately, other people’s choices. But when it comes to our own family, we can support each other in making better choices that will lead to greater health.
Ayelet Connell-Giammatteo, PhD, PT, IMT,C is the Practice Manager and Director of Pediatrics for Regional Physical Therapy and the Institute of Integrative Manual Therapy, headquartered in Bloomfield, CT. She is also the Dean of the Connecticut School of Integrative Manual Therapy (CSIMT). Dr. Connell-Giammatteo has taught courses in IMT nationally and internationally for over 15 years. She received her doctoral degree focusing in neuropediatrics, with a concentration in autism.
Dr. Connell-Giammatteo is a Physical Therapist and Certified Integrative Manual Therapist. She has been practicing in the field of IMT for over 15 years. Dr. Connell-Giammatteo is a graduate of the Institute of Functional Medicine’s program “Applying Functional Medicine into Clinical Practice” focusing on nutritional wellness. She is also a local of this community and has been living in the Greater Hartford area for many years. In addition to managing the clinical and educational arms of IMT, she also integrates a healthy lifestyle at home with her husband, children, and dogs.