USANA Health Centre: Alan’s Tips on a Healthy Living Environment

Do you try to stay healthy and pay a lot of attention to what you eat and what you do, but still don’t feel ‘right’? By saying that, I mean you don’t feel 100% healthy? I do, and I never figured out why. One of our USANA Associates, Alan Todhunter, pointed this out to me recently – have you checked the place where you live and work? Because lots of things can ‘go wrong’ in those places and this can have an impact on your health!

Thank you Alan! And I think it’s worthwhile to bring this up – health issues are not just caused by food and behaviour, they could be caused by something else, the environment, for instance.

Let’s welcome Alan to go through the list with us:

“In our homes our bodies are under attack from chemicals on surfaces and in the air from VOC’s (volatile organic compounds), airborne particulates, air quality, electromagnetic and microwave radiation.

Many health conditions and degenerative diseases could be directly linked to where we live and work. Conditions such as fatigue, depression, stress, sleeping disorders, asthma, allergies, immune disorders, heart conditions, memory loss plus many other modern health conditions are associated with our environment. To reduce the impact of our home environment has on our health we need to be aware of what is around us:

• Good ventilation flushes out stale air that contains excess carbon dioxide, dust, moulds, allergens, VOC’s and other airborne particulates. There is no substitute for fresh air!
• Air conditioners recycling air improves energy efficiency but can reduce air quality, so make sure the filters are clean. Be careful of carbon monoxide and other gases being emitted from fuelled indoor heating.
• We all love pets but remember their fur or feathers, saliva and any insects carry allergens.
• That odour of a new home, painted room or piece of furniture is a range of chemicals off gassing. Be aware of your choice of furnishings and building materials, make sure they are well ventilated to off gas.
• Minimise chemicals, such as cleaning compounds, if you use these make sure you open a window. Take care in the products used in your home, look at alternatives like steam cleaners, baking soda and white vinegar.
• Insecticides not only poison insects but also everyone else in a building, the dosage may be minute but it can accumulate in our bodies.
• Keep surroundings uncluttered , these are breeding areas for small insects, dust and mites. Also a cluttered home is more stressful.
• Keep all floor surfaces well dusted and mopped. Invest in a quality micro-fibre cloth.
• Vacuum carpets regularly but take care with the filter; very small particles may get through the filter and recirculate in the air.
• Do not use any plastic containers in a microwave oven; chemicals in plastics can leach into your food.
• If you have water in a reused plastic bottle you may be ingesting chemicals from the plastic.
• Reduce exposure to electromagnetic radiation. Avoid electrical appliances being too close to you, particularly near your head.
• When renovating homes built before 1970 be aware of lead paint and asbestos. Lead dust from sanding old paint is very toxic to adults and can reduce intelligence in children.
• Install a shower filter to reduce chemicals that may be found in water and steam.
• Bathrooms and kitchens need to be well ventilated to reduce mould and bacteria build up.

About Alan Todhunter, Scientist, B.Sc.(Hon), M.Sc.

Alan is passionate about the wellness industry and healthy environments and is also a martial artist. He currently lectures in Materials Science, Building Science and Environmental Building at three Universities in New South Wales.