Your Body Temple or Garage

May 10, 2023/in Healthy Living

Your Body Temple or Garage

Is your body a temple or garage? Stop what you’re doing and ask yourself, “Am I treating my body like a temple? Or am I treating my body like a garage?” Maybe the answer will make you feel really good. Or maybe you won’t be happy with your answer. Either way, both are important eye-openers. Day-to-day life is busy for most of us. We spend so much time inside our own minds that we can forget, we have an entire body we’re attached to. God gave us one body that we’re tasked to love.

God wants us to be happy and healthy. Are you healthy? “Health” looks different to many people. I say it’s not the absence of disease which is how most people define health. However, health is defined as a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. Meaning, when you were fearfully and wonderfully made by our Creator, the intention was for you to be in good physical, mental, and spiritual health. I’ll ask again, are you treating your body like a temple or garage?

I was recently asked to speak on a podcast about this topic, which happens to be my favorite topic! You can listen to it here: Your Body Temple or Garage. As a Naturopathic Doctor, I love helping women with their health.

This podcast is a Christian perspective on taking care of the body. Nikki Davis is the host on her own journey to find holistic healing and go back to God and nature. Nikki is a Realtor, Magazine Editor, Wedding Expert, Artist, and Hobby Farmer. Nikki takes you along for the ride as she navigates the ups and downs of being an introverted, networking-centric small business owner in Midwestern Life.

Her podcast is called This UnBee-Lievable Life.

You can find Nikki on FB At Revival Farms River Valley

Black Bean Lentil Tacos

May 7, 2023/in Healthy Recipes

Black bean lentil tacos are a high-fiber meatless alternative to traditional tacos. They are also more economical and quicker to prepare than meat tacos.

I wanted to share my favorite brand of gluten-free wraps. They are Siete brand and found in the refrigerated section of your healthier grocery store. They also have chickpea and almond flour versions.

Or instead of using gluten-free wraps, I love this on a bed of greens, organic of course. It can always be served over organic rice or quinoa as a taco bowl. Speaking of, like always, use organic ingredients to lower your toxic load.

Being primarily dairy-free is important to me as well so I use many of the products from Follow Your Heart. We love their sour cream and cheeses. Pepper Jack is my favorite version but they have a variety of other dairy-free flavors including cheddar, mozzarella and gouda.

Ingredients

1 small onion diced, 1/3 cup

2 cloves garlic, minced

3/4 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp salt

3 cups cooked green lentils (1 cup dry)

1 can (15 oz) black beans, rinsed and drained

1/3 cup salsa

2/3 cup low-sodium vegetable broth

Gluten-free taco shells or wraps.

Optional toppings: tomato, lettuce, avocado, dairy-free sour cream, cilantro, olives

Directions

Heat half the broth over medium-high heat in a large skillet. Add and saute the onions for 6-7 minutes.

Add garlic, cumin, chili powder, and salt. Heat for 2-3 minutes.

Reduce heat to low and add lentils and black beans. Stir all to combine.

Add salsa and vegetable broth. Stir and heat for about 5 minutes. Add remaining broth if necessary to keep it creamy.

Spoon into a taco shell or on a bed of greens. Add toppings of your choice.

Makes 6-8 servings or tacos.

Note: Taco seasoning can be made up in advance. I purchase organic bulk herbs from Mountain Rose Herbs and save so much money.

Cauliflower Egg Salad

April 6, 2023/in Healthy Products

Cauliflower Egg Salad

Potato Salad is a staple in the South. At one cookout, there could be 4-5 different potato salads! I don’t know that there is an occasion where potato salad wouldn’t be accepted. According to my Digestive Health Test results, my body doesn’t digest potatoes well. Which is a bummer because I love potato salad as much as the next person. So, I created the best of both worlds! Potato-less Potato Salad! Yep, you heard that right. We’re going to use that vegetable that can replace almost anything, cauliflower. Check out this Cauliflower Egg Salad recipe!

Ingredients

1 head of cauliflower (steamed or boiled)

3 boiled eggs

1/3 cup (appx) veganaise

3 tbs of mustard

3 tbs of pickle relish

1/8 cup of chopped raw onion

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Steam or boil cauliflower and set aside

Boil 3 eggs

Mix all together

chill overnight

optional: you can garnish with egg slices and parsley

Is potato salad a tradition where you live? Do you want to learn more about Digestive Health Testing? We would love to chat! Set up your Wellness Strategy here. If you want to try another, new cauliflower recipe, check out this Broccoli Cauliflower and Apple Salad.

Dr. Bonnie Schnautz Naturopathic Doctor, Digestive Health Specialist and Mental Fitness Coach opening the door

Health Information Forms

March 8, 2023/in Healthy Living

Welcome to B Renewed Wellness Solutions! Your next step is to complete the health information forms. This provides the background of your health and the current symptoms that you are experiencing. The more details you can provide, the better I can help you balance your body and manage your stress.

Please complete the following forms at least 24 hours prior to your appointment.

1. Food and Beverage Intake

Be sure to track your food and beverage for a minimum of 4 days. More is better. We don’t need to know calories, just whether you dine in or out and what time you are eating or drinking.

You can track your food in a notebook and share it with me if you prefer. If you use a food tracking app, you can also share that with me instead of using the forms. The more details you can provide, the better I can help you determine the source of your stressors. If you like to use the online form, you can do that here.

2. General Health Assessment

Complete the Health Assessment

3. Hormone Assessment for Women

This applies to women over the age of 13 or who have started menstruating.
Complete the Hormone Survey

4. Mental Fitness Assessment

Curious about what a mental fitness assessment is? There are two parts to the assessment. One is the percentage of time you are being hijacked by the negative saboteurs that we all have. These negative saboteur thoughts are creating loads of stress which is impacting our mental and physical health. Take the Mental Fitness Assessment here.

The second part of the assessment is your total PQ score. This measures your potential for happiness and success in everything you do. Once complete, you’ll receive the results (two separate results) via email. Forward those to me at bonnie@brenewed.com.

I’m looking forward to helping you overcome your health challenges and restore your body and mind to wholeness. You deserve this!

If you have any questions, please email or call. Or check out our page of Frequently Asked Questions.

Thank You and God bless.

Bonnie Schnautz DHS, ND

B Renewed Wellness Solutions

www.brenewed.com

812-461-8922 call

843-203-8003 text

Note: The consultation is not designed to treat, cure or diagnose an illness. This is for educational purposes only.

Rev 1/31/2024

Essential Oil Diffuser Blends

December 22, 2022/in Healthy Living

If you use essential oils in your home, you will love these essential oil diffuser blends!

If you don’t use essential oils, let me share what the hype is all about. In short, they have a ton of uses. Some of those include DIY cleaners, laundry detergents, and soothe skin. They also replace candles which are loaded with toxins that are released into the air when we burn them. There are different types of essential oils and they are not all the same quality, but, we’ll discuss that in a different post.

Here are some of our favorite diffuser blends:

Peaceful Mind: 2 drops orange, 2 drops bergamot, 2 drops rosemary, 2 drops peppermint, 1 drop frankincense

Sunshine: 3 drops lime, 3 drops of lavender, 3 drops bergamot, 2 drops of geranium

Just Beachy: 4 drops lime, 3 drops lavender, 1 drop rosemary, 1 drop eucalyptus

Happy Camper: 5 drops patchouli, 4 drops bergamot, 2 drops black spruce, 1 drop frankincense

Vacation: 3 drops cedarwood, 3 drops tangerine

Summer Twist: 4 drops lime, 2 drops cilantro, 1 drop lemongrass

At The Beach: 4 drops of Joy or rose oil, 2 drops lime, 2 drops of lemon

Seashore: 4 drops lime, 3 drops tangerine, 2 drops sandalwood

Road Trip: 2 drops bergamot, 2 drops cypress, 2 drops lemon

Irish Rain Showers: 3 drops lavender, 3 drops lemon, 3 drops peppermint

Welcome Fall: 1 drop clove, 1 drop ginger, 2 drops frankincense, 3 drops wild orange

Fresh Rain: 2 drops patchouli, 1 drop lavender, 1 drop lemon

Fun Fact: Our like (or dislike) of certain oil smells can actually change daily! For example, if I have an upset stomach, I react well to peppermint. If I feel great, peppermint may make my eyes water. Our bodies are intuitive and we can have fun trying new oils the same way we have fun trying new foods!

If you are just starting to explore oils, we would love to help you! Click here for our great quality at great prices favorites! We love to try new blends and would love to hear what you have tried! If you want to chat more about environmental toxins, how to can start to reduce them, and how we can help, check this out!

Reasons to Consider Neurotransmitter Testing

November 9, 2021/in Healthy Products

Reasons to consider neurotransmitter testing. Not sure if you should invest in this type of health testing? I’ve been helping women for years and I’ve honestly found few women who wouldn’t benefit. But, I’ll let you decide.

Did you know 85% of our health issues are related to our emotional health? Most practitioners don’t even consider this when putting together a plan for rebalancing the body. When we work holistically, we always consider the three key areas of stress in order which are Emotional, Nutritional/Chemical, and Physical. Our goal is to reduce the stressors we can on our bodies in these areas.

If you are feeling the effects of the following signs, you may want to consider Neurotransmitter Testing:

Depression
Anxiety
Insomnia
Low Energy or Extreme Fatigue
Low Pain Tolerance
Addictive Behaviors
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
Attention Deficit Disorder
Foggy Thinking
Low Motivation

As we know, many factors can cause emotional/mental imbalances. The combination of many different hormones in our bodies does its best to regulate that balance but sometimes they just cannot. Below you find the hormones listed that are tested in the Neurotransmitter test. By testing and finding out the excesses and deficiencies of these hormones, we are then better equipped to know what the next steps should be to help.

NEURO-ADRENAL PANEL

Components included in the test panel are as follows:

Serotonin
GABA
Dopamine
Epinephrine
Norepinephrine
Glutamate
DHEA
4 Cortisols

The testing utilizes a combination of saliva and urine samples. These tests are ordered and delivered to you, to be completed in your home.

View a sample NeuroAdrenal report.

With Neurotransmitter testing, you can achieve more happiness and the emotional/mental balance you desire. With a simple urine sample and saliva for cortisol, we can help you interpret your test reports and develop a unique plan to balance the body using amino acids, supplements, diet, and lifestyle modifications.

The goal is a healthier, happier, more energetic life mentally, emotionally, and physically. Let us know if we can help you answer questions or get started with your health testing needs.

Top 10 Ways to Prevent Colds and Flu

June 28, 2021/in Health Issues

Colds, flu, and sinus infections are now part of history for our family. For me, it has been over 20 years since I’ve experienced any of these unpleasant symptoms. Some of the benefits of less sick time include more quality time with my family, productive time in my business, hundreds of dollars saved in toxic over-the-counter and prescription medications, and much less misery in general!

Obviously, there are no guarantees but these are things that have worked for me, my clients, and many others who have experienced the same benefits.

I don’t buy into the germ theory as I’m around sick people quite often. And, if this theory were true, then why is it I no longer get sick as I did for the first forty-plus (unhealthy) years of my life? I can tell you it is not because I’m getting a flu vaccine or any other “preventative” vaccine. I’ve learned to put the right (whole, clean) foods in and let my body do the rest! And, I thank God for creating such amazing work in us that this process can and does happen. Can I get an amen?! So here is my top 10:

Eat predominantly organic and non-genetically engineered foods to eliminate toxic pesticides and herbicides. Not sure you understand the dangers of genetically engineered foods? Watch Genetic Roulette.
Eliminate or greatly reduce dairy and gluten. Both are extremely difficult for most people to digest, highly inflammatory, and therefore, can stress the immune system.
Replace toxic personal care and household cleaning products with natural, safe, non-toxic versions. This includes products such as antibacterial soap, hand sanitizers, toothpaste, mouthwash, laundry detergent, and cleaners. Note that antibacterial soaps and hand sanitizers contain highly toxic chemicals and destroy the good bacteria that we need. Regarding personal care, which includes cosmetics, shampoo, deodorant, etc, consider switching to a more natural version.
Reduce dining out and become a vegetarian when you do. Animal products are loaded with antibiotics, hormones, and genetically engineered chemicals. Unless you can locate a restaurant that serves grass-fed meats (highly unlikely in the tristate), become a temporary vegetarian!
Reduce sugar and sodium! Read ingredient labels on food as they are in everything from ketchup, pasta sauces, soup, and more. Even organic foods can be loaded with sodium and sugar.
Grow your own food. Vine-ripened produce grown organically provides the highest nutrient values possible. Produce that has been picked green and sat in a store for a week, can lose up to 50% of its nutrient values. Find a local farmers market or CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) in your area.
Eat more plants than animals. Plant-based foods are naturally anti-inflammatory, alkaline, and contain antioxidants and fiber. Animals do not meet this criterion which is a key to health and easing digestion.
Use a plant-based whole food superfood powder to fill the gap between what you are and aren’t able to eat every day. Getting the recommended servings of organically grown, vine-ripened, fruits, vegetables, and berries a day is almost impossible for most of us. And even if you do, our food is low in critical minerals. I use an ancient sea minerals powder that is simple (mix with water) and tastes delicious.
Take a plant-based digestive enzyme with each meal especially if you are over forty years of age. Most of us have consumed enough processed food, alcohol, and medications to reduce our natural production of enzymes.
Reduce or eliminate alcohol, caffeinated coffee, soft drinks, and drink filtered water instead. A better filter system is reverse osmosis. A great company is Aquasana for under the sink or whole home. We’ve purchased both.

So, I know many of you may be thinking that this sounds expensive, hard, or just plain not fun. In my opinion, what is hard, expensive, and not fun would be having triple bypass surgery, being diagnosed with cancer, put on a respirator, or leaving a void in my family. You have to value your health and life first and then the rest is easy. Your body truly is a temple so please treat it as one. YOU are worth it. As always, reach out as we can walk you through each step one at a time.

A Simple Weight Loss Strategy

December 6, 2020/in Health Issues

How to Use a Healy

November 28, 2020/in Healthy Products

How to Use a Healy device or specifically the Healy Resonance Edition. I’ve been using the Healy microcurrent and frequency device daily for almost six months and have loved the results. It has greatly enhanced our family’s health and well-being.

Healy is a new microcurrent medical device cleared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration only for local relief of acute, chronic, and arthritis pain and muscle soreness due to overexertion. Healy also has non-medical applications that use Individualized Microcurrent Frequencies (IMF) to harmonize your Bioenergetic Field. It can help balance your mind, and body and relieve stress. I’ve experienced these benefits and so much more.

I pulled a muscle in my back recently and was able to obtain relief from extreme pain in less than 48 hours. I had pulled a muscle the month before (pre-Healy) and it took me almost two weeks to obtain relief and be fully functional again.

I’ve also received benefits from the Healy with mental focus and concentration when working on big projects. And if I need to relax or sleep deeper, it has programs to help support in that as well. One area of improvement in my sleep is that I now remember my dreams whereas previously that rarely happened.

Healy Resonance Edition

The Resonance is the top of the line model that provides a feature to analyze frequencies in the Information field to recognize the best resonance for the user at the moment. The results of the scan can provide guidance to assist with all your wellness goals both emotional and physical. The scan takes only a few minutes and once you identify the imbalances, you can run the associated program(s).

I typically analyze 3-4 programs per day to assist with my emotional, mental, and physical wellness goals. One of the features of it being a wearable device is that I can continue on with my life whether that’s working at my desk, making dinner, or going for walk.

Healy is giving people a competitive edge especially as they are aging. And speaking of aging, Healy is launching a new application called Bioenergetic Revitalization to improve vitality and energy at any age in every phase of life!

Healy Bioenergetic Revitalization
Healy Bioenergetic Revitalization is an app for the Healy that supports revitalization – as a counterbalance to an unhealthy lifestyle that can accelerate the premature deterioration of mind and spirit.

Healy Bioenergetic Revitalization provides:

Research-based individual revitalization tips with a 3 to a 6-month plan
Selected Individualized Micro Current Frequency (IMF) programs for harmonizing the bio-energetic field
Sustainable promotion of revitalization effects
Tracking healthy lifestyle elements

Current research has investigated the resonance effects of certain frequencies or frequency bands with stem cells and various types of body tissues.

Research has studied the resonance effects of certain frequencies or frequency bands with different types of body tissues.

Each Healy Bioenergetic Revitalization includes:

A combination of revitalization tips from different health areas
12 specially designed Healy IMF (individualized microcurrent frequency) programs in the program group “Bioenergetic Revitalization” for many areas of your life and health, for vitality, youthful energy, and holistic support!
An easy-to-understand HealAdvisor Assistant, with which you will always find a suitable recommendation for an IMF Healy program

Go directly to my website for Healy product pricing or contact us if you would like to learn more about this new application.

Watch a video on the Healy device here.

If you would like to talk more and have your questions answered, click here.

How Adrenal Fatigue Can Develop

May 4, 2020/in Health Issues

My Journey on How Adrenal Fatigue Can Develop

Here’s How Adrenal Fatigue Can Develop. I am sharing my own personal experience with Adrenal Fatigue, not just as a healthcare provider. There are many health conditions that cannot truly be understood until you experience them, and adrenal fatigue is one of those. So, I say God blessed me with Adrenal Fatigue so that I could help others.

Stress was the underlying cause

Stress, whether it be emotional, physical or nutritional is truly at the root of all chronic disease. Regarding adrenal issues, you will hear different labels including adrenal insufficiency, a medical diagnosis, or adrenal fatigue or even burnout. Whatever you call it, it is stress and it impacts the body and mind.

In 2013, a client came to me sharing that she had been diagnosed with adrenal fatigue. I had worked with clients that had various health challenges, but this was a new one. She was already eating clean and working with an Integrative MD, so this was going to be a challenge. The only unique factor was that her stress level was extremely high, as she was experiencing extreme burnout in her career.

To be honest, her symptoms were puzzling. I kept trying to figure out exactly what it was she was feeling and why, but I just couldn’t connect. Usually clean eating, resting and supporting the digestive process was the answer but, in this case, it wasn’t enough and I left it to “I can’t help everyone.”

Approximately one year later, I started to experience signs of extreme fatigue and emotional sensitivity. I remember the thought of performing simple household chores like changing the linens on our bed was equivalent to running a 5K. Some days I couldn’t even perform these simple tasks. When and if I did, I had to lie down and rest even with 7-9 hours of sleep.

Testing for Adrenal Stress

Ironically, at about that same time I decided to add saliva hormone and neurotransmitter testing to my menu of services, and the first thing I do with a new service is put myself through the test. My results revealed that I was in Phase 3 Adrenal Fatigue. I was devastated and scared. It was at that point I started reading and researching everything I could find on the condition. I learned that Adrenal Fatigue is categorized as Phase 1 (Alarm), 2 (Resistance) Phase 3 (Exhaustion).

I connected to a private Facebook group for those with Adrenal Fatigue. I did learn quite a bit from the group, but the negativity was so overwhelming that I decided to stop following. Most of the group seemed to be strong Type A, perfectionists, overachievers and/or controllers, which makes sense why many end up here! I embodied many of these traits which contributed to my outcome.

The adrenal fatigue research scared me. Stats, such as, it takes up to five years to recover or some cases lead to adrenal cancer as well as Addison’s disease. Addison’s is where the adrenals have been damaged and one symptom is a golden bronze skin pigment. Now I understood why people were asking me if I had been to Florida recently or why my skin was so bronze in the middle of winter, in the Midwest! All of the pieces were coming together. It was a wake-up call for me.

What is Adrenal Fatigue

Unfortunately, it is not recognized by conventional medical community. It is not a proven medical condition but a “syndrome” where fatigue and other symptoms are caused by a poorly working adrenal gland in people who are under chronic mental, emotional, or physical stress. They do recognize “adrenal insufficiency” which states that only drugs/steroids can be used to treat it and that supplements could be harmful. So, I asked myself, are my adrenals in need of more toxins to “treat” it or should I use whole clean food and pure sources of supplementation along with retraining my thought processes to balance my body? As a Naturopath, you can guess the answer.

So how did I end up here? Two reasons, one was opening a brick and mortar (physical location) business, which we were renovating. The second was that our adult son was struggling with serious health and financial issues. In my quest to “take care” of him and my business/clients, I failed to take care of myself and ended up in severe adrenal fatigue or Phase 3.

I remember sitting at the table crying and saying, “I don’t think I can do this anymore.” “This” meaning taking care of everything and everyone else. I couldn’t function. My dream of opening a wellness center and serving others started to feel like a nightmare. My temper was short and breakdowns, behind the scenes, were not uncommon. So, instead of taking a “why did this happen to me” approach, I saw it as a way to serve others with the same challenges. God again blessed me with another health challenge, so that I can share and serve others.

The light at the end of the tunnel is that it isn’t going to take me 5 years to recover because I had access to the best holistic health mentors/experts in the world and access to the best whole food products. Read more here on the next steps of my journey.

If you’re struggling to, I would love to help. Book a Wellness Strategy and let’s chat!

Personal Care Products that could be Harming Your Family

January 14, 2019/in Bonnie's Healthy Life Blog, Healthy Products

As I was cleaning out cabinets, I decided to glance over the ingredient list of some hair care products that I used to use. To be honest, it scared me. I used to put these on my body and didn’t think about the impact to my skin, lungs or other vital organs!

Think about the personal care products that you and your family use on a daily basis…lotions, shampoo, conditioner, soap, sanitizer, nail polish, baby soaps, make up, perfumes/colognes, deodorant, toothpaste, laundry detergent. EWG.org (Environmental Working Group) concluded in a study that on average people use 9 personal care products daily and applied an average of 126 unique ingredients on their skin daily. That’s a lot of chemicals!

Do you feel safe knowing that the government does not require long term safety studies or pre-market testing for most ingredients in personal care products? According to the FDA’s Office of Cosmetics and Colors, “a cosmetic manufacturer may use almost any raw material as a cosmetic ingredient and market the product without an approval from the FDA.” The cosmetic industry is authorized to police it’s own ingredient safety and many of these ingredients have the potential to harm humans and animals. The FDA panel has only banned 11 ingredients while the European Union has taken action on hundreds of toxic chemicals in cosmetics.

Your skin is your largest organ and is porous, so whatever you put on it will be absorbed within moments of application. And what about your lungs? You are inhaling the chemicals as well, even if you aren’t applying them to your skin. If the products you use contain harmful ingredients such as harsh, toxic chemicals, colors, and fragrances, those ingredients make their way into your body, your blood and lymphatic system. The majority of mainstream personal care products contain carcinogenic chemicals, allergens, endocrine disruptors or xenoestrogens, irritants and can cause harm to your reproductive system. It is easy to see why it is so important to be diligent to watch what is in the products that you are using.

So what ingredients should you avoid? There are countless toxic ingredients in the products that we use on a daily basis and so it is important to do your research and always look at the ingredient list in everything that you buy. A few ingredients to avoid are fragrance, perfume, substances that generate formaldehyde (nearly 1 in 5 cosmetic products contains a substance that generates cancer causing formaldehyde–see list below), mineral oil and petroleum, parabens, ethanolmines (DEA, MEA, TEA), benzones, triclosan, heavy metals such as cadmium, aluminum, mercury, lead, and arsenic, phthalates, and styrene. This list unfortunately is not all-inclusive. Plus these chemicals are xenoestrogens which can disrupt our hormone balance and health.

You can easily switch over to safe products by accessing easy to use Apps and websites like ThinkDirty, EWG’s Skin Deep, and the Good Guide which will rate your personal care products for safety and toxicity. Always read the ingredient label and do not be fooled by labels such as natural and even partial organic products can contain harmful ingredients. I especially avoid parfum or fragrances as I will have an immediate reaction to these. Use products with the MADE SAFE® seal. Also, support hair and nail salons that offer safer and more natural products. I ask lots of questions before making an appointment and conduct my own research on their product lines. Knowing which companies test on animals is a top priority as well. Check out the company’s testing practices on sites such a PETA.org to find which do and do not test.

Avoid these ingredients/chemicals as they contains a formaldehyde-releasing chemical:

DMDM hydantoin
Imidazolidinyl urea
Diazolidinyl urea
Quaternium-15
Bronopol (2–bromo–2–nitropropane–1,3-diol )
5-Bromo-5-nitro-1,3-dioxane
Hydroxymethylglycinate

For your safety, schedule time to review and clean out the harmful products that you are using and replace them with safe nontoxic options! I’d love to chat more about healthier options, set up your call here!

Liquid Soap, Harmless or Hazardous?

August 10, 2017/in Healthy Products

Not too long ago while visiting a relative’s house, I began to wash my hands with the liquid soap provided in the attractive dispenser. After being taken a back by the strong perfume smell, and I tried to re-wash to remove the overpowering smell to no avail. Finally with the use of some vinegar, I was able to eliminate the strong perfume smell. Next, I found the actual container to determine the ingredient list and was horrified!

Consider how many times per day you are using this to “clean” you hands but in fact you could be adding more toxins to your body and environment. This moment reinforced the need to be vigilant no matter where I am, to read labels and know what I am putting on or in my body. The number of toxic ingredients that are added to something so innocent as a soap product is killing our fish & wildlife and adding hazardous toxins into our body. Below is a list of just a few of the ingredients in this brand of liquid soap along with the toxicity concern courtesy of the Environmental Working Group (ewg.org).

HIGH CONCERN – Can include, but is not limited to: Developmental/reproductive toxicity, Biochemical or cellular level changes, Cancer, Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive) acute aquatic toxicity, skin irritation/allergies/damage, damage to DNA.

Methylchloroisothiazolinone (5-chloro-2-methyl-4-isothiazolin-3-one), also referred to as MCI, is a preservative with antibacterial and anti-fungal effects within the group of isothiazolinones. It is effective against gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria, yeast, and fungi.
Methylisothiazolinone, MIT, or MI, (sometimes erroneously called methylisothiazoline), is a powerful synthetic biocide and preservative within the group of isothiazolinones, which is used in numerous personal care products and a wide range of industrial applications.
DMDM Hydantoin is an antimicrobial formaldehyde releaser preservative with the trade name Glydant. DMDM hydantoin is an organic compound belonging to a class of compounds known as hydantoins.
Sodium Hydroxide is a strongly alkaline white deliquescent compound used in many industrial processes, e.g., the manufacture of soap and paper.

MODERATE CONCERN – Some potential for hazards to health or the environment. Can include, but not limited to: Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs), Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive), Use restrictions, Contamination concerns.

Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (commonly known as SLS) is a widely used and inexpensive chemical found in many mainstream personal hygiene products such as shampoos, toothpastes, mouthwashes, bodywash, soaps, detergents and body wash , along with Sodium Laureth Sulfate (SLES) and Ammonium Laurel Sulfate (ALS).
Cocamidopropyl Betaine (CAPB) Is a mixture of closely related organic compounds derived from coconut oil and dimethylaminopropylamine. CAPB is available as a viscous pale yellow solution and it is used as a surfactant in personal care products.
Polyquaternium-7 is a synthetic polymer based on quaternary ammonium compounds.
Tetrasodium EDTA is a water-soluble ingredient used as a chelating agent in cosmetics and personal care products because of its ability to sequester metal ions and allow them to remain in formulas but lose their ability to react with other ingredients.
PEG 120 Methyl Glucose Dioleate is the polyethylene glycol ether of the diester of natural Methylglucoseand Oleic Acid. It is used in beauty products and cosmetics as a surfactant and emulsifier. It is used as a thickener in hair and skin care products.
Poloxamer 124 (P1168) is a surfactant and emulsifying agent… In cosmetic and personal care product formulations, it functions as a surfactant – emulsifying agent and surfactant – solubilizing agent. It can be used in soaps and cleansers. It is soluble in water.
Benzophenone-4 is a white sweet-smelling crystalline solid used mainly in the manufacture of organic compounds and in perfume.

SOME CONCERN – Can include, but not limited to: skin irritation/allergies/damage, acute aquatic toxicity, nervous system effects, respiratory effects, biodegradation.

Fragrance (Parfum) a substance, extract, or preparation for diffusing or imparting an agreeable or attractive smell.

This is just one example of a typical household product. Despite the known dangers associated with many of the ingredients in personal care products and cleaning products, some manufacturers continue to use them. Many household products carry health risks for not only you, but also your children, pets, wildlife or the environment. Reading labels can go a long way in helping protect your family.