It’s no secret that I’m a bit of a health nut – or at least I try my darndest to be. I attempt to apply a healthy mind, body, and spirit principle across the board in the ways that I live my life and in the ways I encourage my family to approach life as well. We eat as clean as possible as we strive to make, grow, and raise the majority of our food. We’re not perfect by any stretch of the imagination and succumb to frozen pizzas and fish sticks on a semi regular basis (especially lately as Ryan and I both have returned to working outside of the home), but we strive to maintain a healthy lifestyle to the best of our ability on a 75% or so basis. Our beliefs are not limited to what we put into our bodies by way of nutrition, but these beliefs also extend to the everyday products we use. Here is a brief rundown of a few of my favorites.
1. Coconut oil. I buy this by the tub on Amazon, specifically the Native Forest 100% organic, raw, virgin coconut oil. It’s $54.27 for 128 ounces. It’s also on my subscribe and save (I receive it every four months) so I save an additional 15%. I use this for everything. I put it in my coffee every morning. I substitute this for butter, lard, and shortening on a regular basis when I bake. I slather my face with it as a moisturizer, and it can also be used as a cleanser, lotion, toothpaste (add a little baking soda), and a mild sunscreen, and a myriad of other possibilities. I’m a huge coconut oil advocate.
2. White Vinegar – Just the cheap stuff at Walmart. I use this for all of my cleaning needs. It cleans toilet bowls (add about a cup, wait, and swish), it cleans windows (straight up vinegar with newspapers), and I make a homemade all purpose cleaner with vinegar, a little lemon juice, water, and essential oils.
3. Dry Brush. I’ve recently begun the ritual of dry brushing my skin before taking a shower. I have really noticed a difference with my skin’s appearance and softness when I follow up with coconut oil. I purchased a $10 brush on Amazon (where I purchase just about everything), and it does the job just fine.
4. Pact (www.wearpact.com) is a clothing line I’ve come to love and enjoy in the past year or so. They offer the basics: socks, camis, dresses, underware, pants, etc for the whole family, and they make it all with super soft organic cotton, no harmful anything added, and no child labor or sweatshops. Their prices are affordable to begin with, and they often offer deeper discounts through specials and coupons. I’ve purchased socks, onesies, camis, under ware, and a dress. I have been majorly impressed with the quality, the softness, and the fabric’s ability to hold up under all of the laundry stress I put it through. Great products.
5. Activated Charcoal. This is a fun, messy, good for you product. First, let me explain activated charcoal to the best of my knowledge. It is my understanding that the charcoal draws impurities out of whatever it is put in or placed upon. I use activated charcoal in a few different ways. I have the activated charcoal sticks that I throw in my water bottles with the purpose being that they draw impurities out of the water and into the charcoal. I also have activated charcoal that I use in my toothpaste (either homemade or regular kind) and my face masks. You will never experience cleaner feeling teeth or skin than you will after using this product.
6. Arrow Boost color enhancing lip balm. My husband has graciously gifted me with a birch box subscription for the past three Christmas’s. I have enjoyed the samples that arrive in my mailbox on a monthly basis and some are more useful than others, such as this lip balm. First application, I was hooked. It’s so smooth and creamy – not cakey or chalk like at all, and it brings out a natural color according to your ph balance. It’s amazing, and I’m hooked. $14.00
7. Garlic. My go to for health. I swear by garlic. We purchase the Kyolic brand (100 pills for $18.00). I usually take one a day, but if I feel like I have something coming on I’ll increase the dosage. After I first had Annabelle, I started to get a breastfeeding infection. I ate about 15 cloves of raw garlic in a day (diced it up and threw it in salsa) and the infection was totally gone in 24 hours. I don’t entirely know if the garlic had something to do with it, but I’m a believer. I’ve seen it happen time and time again in my own body, and in Ryan’s overall health as well. If you can’t take my word for it, check out this link on WebMD’s page. http://www.webmd.com/vitamins-supplements/ingredientmono-300-GARLIC.aspx?activeIngredientId=300&activeIngredientName=GARLIC.
8. Apple cider vinegar is another cheap, healthy, go to I drink on a daily basis. I throw a few Tablespoons in my morning water and guzzle it down. ACV is also known to have many of the same health benefits as garlic.
9. Witch Hazel. I have recently discovered this inexpensive, old time remedy. A few months ago my face started breaking out like I was thirteen again. This was concerning to me as a 39 year old woman. I researched some potential options and decided to try witch hazel which was touted as a perfect solution for skin care problems. It’s wonderful and only like $1.00 a bottle. You really can’t go wrong. Apparently it has numerous additional health benefits such as sunburn relief, medicinal properties, antiseptic for bug bites and stings, and a host of other uses.
10. Finally, two months ago (or so), I was introduced to a new product line called Pure Haven. This line has many every day products such as cleaning supplies, body products, baby washes, soaps, makeup, and skin care to name a few. The products are fantastic, and I love the fact that they don’t have a single bad ingredient in them. Three of my favorites have been the baby wash and shampoo which is a light wash with a nice smell (8 ounces for $12.95) the tinted moisturizer which is perfect for my days at home when I want something on my face just in case I see another human being but I don’t necessarily want it to feel caked or clogging my pores (2 ounces $15.95) and finally, I like the daily cleanser which is light, airy, and carefree. The cleanser runs 4 ounces for $17.95. All of these products are highly concentrated so you don’t need to use a bunch to benefit from their usefulness. I realize that the initial cost is a little higher than the products full of crap, but take it from me, you cannot put a price tag on your health. I’m not saying that all of the daily products we use cause health problems, but I’m not saying that they don’t either. I will say that many of them have health warnings on the labels, and if you do your research you will be shocked at how many of the ingredients in the products we use are known carcinogens or cause known health issues.
For more information on the ingredients in many of the over the counter products (and here’s my little plug) I am having a Pure Haven online party on Saturday at 3:00. Lisa, my presenter, will do a quick 5 minute live session about some of the harmful ingredients in our everyday products and inform us on how we can become more educated consumers and wiser in the choices that we make for our families. There will be fun giveaways and discounts offered on some of the products. I would love to have anyone who is interested in bettering their life and the choices they make be able to join this highly informational session; however, it is a private event. If you would like to be added to the party, please comment below with your name or send me a private message with your email address (jessplusthemess@gmail.com). Don’t feel like you have to stay invested for the whole hour. Come for a few minutes, bop in and out, we’d love to have you join however it works for you. We’ll be closing the order at midnight on Monday the 28th for anyone interested in purchasing products.
Feel free to ask me any questions that you might have although I’m not an expert by any means, I just do what works for me and our family and maybe it can benefit you and yours as well!
Happy Thanksgiving! And Just keep livin!!
