Learn How to Protect Your Baby From Toxins in New York City
Being a parent in New York City is exciting, wondrous, and let’s face it, a little frightening. Raising a green baby amidst the sprawl of the urban jungle demands creative thinking and a sense of adventure. Luckily, parents are often the most passionate zealots for eco-friendly products and services because we know that a green baby is a healthy baby. And that’s the best reason on earth to be choosy about the products and services you bring into your baby’s life.
Today, more than ever before, we have the ability to choose to be green parents and limit the exposure our babies have to toxic chemicals in the way we eat, the clothes we wear, and even the way we clean.
Clean Hands
From the first moment you hold them in your arms, you can keep your baby green. Antibacterial hand washes and sanitizers use essential oils and witch hazel to destroy harmful bacteria that are so easily picked up on the buses, trains, and taxis we use every day.
Create a Pure Environment
Bring your green baby home to a spotless apartment that’s been thoroughly scrubbed of the toxic chemical residue, which has been built up on floors, baseboards, and door handles over the years. Keep your environment clean by using only natural cleaning products, especially in areas your baby touches or crawls on.
Floors
Instigate a No Shoes policy to keep floors free of pesticides, which stick to the soles of your shoes only to be tracked through your home and onto your crawling baby. Clean floors often with a natural cleanser. A word of warning! Claims such as nontoxic, bio-based, chlorine-free, organic, phosphate-free, natural fragrance, and/or biodegradable are not carefully regulated so research a product thoroughly before you use it in your home.
Air
Indoor air is 5X more polluted than the outdoors, and your baby is inhaling more of it since young children typically take in 50% more air per pound of body weight. Make a clean environment your priority, especially as your baby’s lungs are getting stronger and more developed. Some common house plants have been shown to purify the air, and using a vacuum with a HEPA filtration system will help keep the air clear of allergens and dust.
It’s Bath Time, Naturally!
At bath time, choose bath products that are toxin-free, sustainability-focused, and made without toxins such as Diethanolamine (DEA), sulfates, dyes, numbing agents, and ingredients that can lead to allergies including synthetic fragrances, dairy, soy, peanuts and gluten.
Sweet Organic Dreams Little Ones…
Your green baby should lay their head down to sleep on an organic cotton mattress, versus a traditional mattress, which are treated with polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), chemical fire retardants that accumulate in our bodies and have been shown to affect the endocrine and nervous systems.
Snuggle your green baby with sheets made from eco-friendly bamboo or organic cotton so your little one won’t experience the irritation that’s common with most synthetic bedding. Even better, you won’t feel guilty knowing that you’ve also done something good for the environment!
Change the Diapers, Not the Environment
Everyone knows that disposable diapers are handy but destructive to the environment. Try cloth diapers and a delivery service that brings them, cleans them, and takes them away again.
Organic Baby Food, To Go Please
Raising a green baby in New York City can be stressful, but where else on earth could you find such a wonderful selection of green organic restaurants that serve up gourmet baby food with an online order option as well?
Happy Urban Green Babies!
From the birthing center to the dining table, New York City is one of the most exciting (and greenest!) cities on earth for green babies and their parents.
Are you having a baby or did you just bring home your new little one? What kinds of concerns do you have about raising a green baby in the city? We’d love to know what you’re doing to “environment-proof” your baby. Share your tips and tricks with us here or chat with us on Facebook.