chapterfour

Greening Your Home

It doesn’t take a lot of imagination or a lot of science to see how traces of the chemicals in our homes might end up in our kids. Living with a baby makes it all too clear. My children have finished off their breakfasts with a little chew on the table and eaten many things off the floor. My eldest has stuck her finger in the cleaning powder (luckily made with baking soda) and had window cleaner (vinegar in a bottle) sprayed in her face. My youngest has eaten a tube of toothpaste (thank goodness it was about as natural and fluoride-free as it gets), swallowed a bottle of pills (luckily, homeopathic), and swallowed a bit of candle (it was un-dyed beeswax) to further remind me of how important it is to keep everything in my house as green as possible. While these are obvious examples of the potential health hazards of the things we bring into our homes, the greatest culprits are usually invisible, or at least miniscule.

The Research

We know that fetuses are particularly vulnerable to air pollution. Indoor air is typically two to five times more polluted than the outside air, whether a person lives in the city or the country. Indoor air is a useful indicator for judging just how green many home products are, giving us further reason to rethink the cheap pressed-wood cupboards or the vinyl shower curtain or even using a dry cleaner, all of which can significantly and negatively affect our indoor air quality.

The pollutants that we breathe in enter our bodies and can enter our bloodstreams and affect pregnancy outcomes. The more polluted the air, the greater the risk of low birth weight, premature birth, asthma, and disturbed physical and brain development, including ADHD, anxiety, autism, depression, development delays, and lower IQ.

Green Tip: Before You Start Renovating

One of the first things to remember is that pregnancy is not a good time to partake in renovations. You will only increase your exposure to some of the worst toxins from solvents in paint removers, lead in old paint, and VOCs in just about every new finish and other new thing that goes into a home. If a renovation just can’t be avoided, leave the house for the duration of the renovation and make sure you follow all the green advice possible, particularly on finding zero-VOC finishes. There are, however, lots of ways to green your home that are safe during pregnancy and lots of little tricks to improve the quality of the indoor air in the home you have.It is possible to release extra VOCs by increasing the temperature in a room, as higher temperatures encourage products to off-gas more. Consider doing an extra “off-gassing” of all the new paints, flooring, and furniture, but beware that the VOCs might escape into the rest of the house. To do this safely, crank up the heat for a few days and securely shut the door to the room you are off-gassing. Then, open the window and use a ventilation fan to suck all those nasty chemicals out of the house — the more time to off-gas, the better.

We know a lot about some of the most troubling indoor air pollutants, such as VOCs. In one study of VOCs, the Consumer Product Safety Commission found that, while outdoor air at sample sites contained fewer than ten of these chemical toxins, indoor air at those same locations contained an average of 150. VOC concentrations can be so high inside homes and buildings that they are able to make a person perceivably and immediately sick — this is called sick building syndrome. Improving indoor air quality can have immediate benefits as well as less tangible ones. There is even research linking better in vitro fertilization (IVF) outcomes to improvements in laboratory air quality.

Five (Fixable) Sources of Indoor Air Pollution

The main indoor air polluters fall into five categories:

Outdoor pollutants can get inside on feet or through vents (think lead from our urban soils, arsenic from treated wood, or pesticides from outdoor spraying).
By-products of combustion, including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), carbon monoxide, and formaldehyde, come from vehicle exhaust, leaky furnaces, or second-hand cigarette smoke.
Mould and mildew, which can develop if drywall, paper, or wood becomes moist and doesn’t dry out within 48 hours. Mould colonies release spores that can cause allergies and respiratory problems, and some are toxic.
Building materials, furniture, and finishes are often the biggest polluters in homes, and they are the ones we have the most control over. These include paint, wallpaper, carpets, furniture, pressed wood, glues, PVC products, flame-retardant fabrics and foams, and electrical items.
Household cleaning products and other chemicals have made it such that the area around the cabinet where cleaning products are stored is substantially more polluted than the rest of the air in the home. These chemicals are also a major source of childhood poisonings. There are currently 17,000 different petrochemicals available for use in the home.

In one small but fabulously specific study, the researchers correlated exposure to VOCs prenatally and in infancy from typical home renovations to an increased risk of upper respiratory disease, in particular wheezing. The strongest association was found with floor coverings of wall-to-wall carpet, PVC material, and laminate flooring and prenatal exposure. A similar study showed that children whose mothers had higher chemical burdens from household chemical products had a greater chance of developing asthma and were twice as likely to wheeze persistently throughout childhood. Yet another study specifically looking at formaldehyde exposure and its relationship to low birth weight showed the greatest correlation when exposure took place during the first trimester. Chemical flame retardants enter the air and dust of a home from couches, beds, curtains, baby car seats, and other cushioned or fabric items. Exposures to one of these chemicals, PBDEs (a chemical flame retardant), in vitro and during infancy were correlated to a 4.5-point drop in IQ and greater hyperactivity in five-year-olds.

The Sixth Fixable Polluter: Electromagnetic Fields

I can relate to really not wanting to believe that something as pervasive, and invisible, as electromagnetic fields (EMFs) can cause harm. Natural EMFs have been with us for thousands of years in the form of earthly and cosmic electricity and magnetism. It is only in the past one hundred years that we have seen the invention and emergence of man-made EMFs from radio frequencies, electric power lines, and x-rays. Although health issues were studied and noted, it was really after 1998, and especially after 2005, that EMFs started to become a common health concern and the term “electro-hypersensitivity” came into the vernacular.

What promoted this change? It was the incorporation of digital (computer) technologies with radio frequency technologies. In a few short years we saw the rapid emergence of digital cellphone technologies, Wi-Fi, DECT cordless phones, wireless baby monitors, the smart phone, smart meters, and devices that interfere with the electrical grid, such as dimmer light switches and compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs).

Though generally thought to be safe, there are some studies that link EMFs to possible health effects such as ADHD, brain tumours, insomnia, implantation issues in women, increased heart rate, infertility in men, leukemia, miscarriage, reduced brain function, and issues in offspring, including asthma and neurological disturbances. EMFs have been listed as a potential carcinogenic by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). Many countries in the EU have issued warnings about the effects of EMFs on children, infants, and pregnant women. Indeed, a number of the doctors that I spoke with for this book said that the rise in background levels of EMF radiation more closely matches the rise in neurological changes in children than any other curve of known neurotoxins. In the last ten years, the levels of EMF from Wi-Fi and cellphone sources have risen from negligible to exceeding precautionary levels as recommended by The Bio-Initiative Report 2012 and the International Institute for Building-Biology & Ecology.

There have been a number of recent studies looking at the relationship of prenatal exposure and health outcomes. These studies each give us a little bit of the whole picture. They suggest that when laptops are used on the laps of pregnant women, they create electric currents in the fetus above levels known to be able to cause adverse health effects, including tumours. Animal studies show a relationship between in vitro EMF exposure and effects in the brain and kidneys. A particularly long and compelling study found that children born to women with higher EMF exposures were more than three times as likely to develop asthma. For this study they followed more than 800 Californian women and their offspring for 13 years. The research also suggests that children may absorb more EMFs than adults, just like children absorb more of the most tangible toxins — such as lead — than adults do. There are a number of ways to protect you and your children from the possible effects of EMFs. The measurement I keep in my head is that, for most sources, the effect is minimal after a three or four feet distance. Keep reading for more tangible action steps.

The Good News

There is good news in the answer to the question of what is polluting our indoor air. That’s because most of the big polluters are things we can do something about. This pollution most often comes from things we bring into the house ourselves, such as furniture, stinky cleaning supplies, paints, and new baby items. Pollution also gets tracked in on our shoes, is sucked in the door from an attached garage, or wafts in through an air intake, which is particularly problematic if that air intake is near a busy road or somewhere that smokers hang out. Energy-efficient buildings are great in many ways, but they can keep fresh air from flowing in and through a house.

How to Green the Environment of Your Home

Here are a series of action steps to green your indoor environment. These are listed a bit differently from the other “How To” sections because they are broken into type of impact, but as best as possible they are also listed from ♥♥♥ (biggest impact, and possibly more work) to ♥︎ (quick and easy) to help you green your home and improve your indoor air quality.

♥♥♥ Green your big-ticket items. When most people think of green or eco buildings, they think about the big-ticket items like solar panels, electric vehicle charging stations, and energy-efficient appliances, such as front-loading washing machines. Many of these items are investments that will pay for themselves in energy savings no matter what kind of home you have, and they will help you reduce your carbon footprint. Using energy is not just expensive in the short term; it’s linked with many of the worst environmental issues, from climate change to air pollution. Adding insulation, solar hot water, or programmable thermostats, or swapping out old appliances for new front-loading machines or new energy-efficient refrigerators, are among the first items to consider for green investments that can have fast returns. When you have a baby on the way, many of these green investments will pay off even faster. (I remember how I longed for a front-load washer as I did loads of cloth diapers with my first baby.)
There are often government incentives to help with investments such as solar panels, and this technology has come a long way fast in affordability and efficacy. While these big-ticket items will give you the most bang for the buck, I would encourage you to go beyond thinking about only energy efficiency and also consider indoor air quality.
♥♥ Green the shelves, bookcases, and cabinets. Furniture is the most significant source of formaldehyde exposure in most homes. In your living room, that means you should eye with suspicion the bookcases, cabinets, side tables, desks, and even your couch. In your bedroom, bedside tables, chests of drawers, and the bed may be off-gassing VOCs, and in a child’s room cribs and change tables are the big culprits. One crib is enough to raise the VOC levels in the entire home to the point where it can significantly increase a child’s chance of developing asthma. The problematic chemicals, especially VOCs, may be hiding out in the material itself (particularly in composite materials such as pressed wood or particle board), in the glues that hold it together, and in the finishes.
Neither the Canadian nor the U.S. government regulates your household furnishings for VOCs despite increasing scientific data about their long-term health effects, including formaldehyde’s known link to human cancers and many of the VOCs links to asthma. The good news about formaldehyde, as with many of the VOCs, is that while they are bad for human health, they do decrease over time. That’s the nature of VOCs, which are, umm, extremely volatile. So if you buy a ten-year-old fake wood bookcase from the thrift store, you will be saving yourself both money and toxic exposure.

Inspiring Mamas: Organic Sleep

Jem Terra is a single mother to three and an accidental entrepreneur. She is the owner of inBed Organics, Canada’s premier natural mattress company. She makes and distributes her truly natural (and the most affordable in the class) mattresses, pillows, and bedding from Vancouver, B.C., and at www.inBedOrganics.com.

Terra found herself in the mattress business by accident. When her son was young, he had severe allergies to dust mites and mould. She tried everything, and still the dark circles under his eyes and the fatigue and other symptoms remained. “So I took apart the futon we slept on and I found mould in it. That’s when all the research started.”

She was startled to discover how many babies died in their beds in First World nations. She found SIDS research that showed it was higher in third and fourth children, not first-borns. “Then I found this research done in New Zealand about toxic gases that release from the chemicals in mattresses and mix with fluids — sweat, drool, pee — and bacteria from the baby. The resulting gas was heavy and slowed down their nervous systems, and the toxic gases got worse over time with every subsequent baby.” She emphasizes that moms need good beds, too: for themselves and because the “chemicals in the beds enter their bodies and then the fetus and the breast milk.”

Terra remembered this hole in the market later when she ended up divorced and needing a job. She laughs: “I didn’t want to put my kids into daycare, and so the only option was to start a business.” The mattresses she makes are entirely natural and meet flame-retardancy standards. The latex she uses is certified organic, the wool is natural and processed without added chemicals, and the covers are made of either natural (naturally mould-resistant) hemp or certified organic cotton. “I find that when I lie down on a good mattress, when I wake up, I am replenished.” She tries to give that experience to everyone she can.

Buy furniture that is made with real wood and finished with water-based, preferably edible finishes, such as those made from hemp or beeswax. Be particularly careful to avoid pressed wood (aka particle board) or other composite wood products, since they are one of the biggest polluters of VOCs. Similarly, be wary of VOC-emitting glues and finishes. Look for a third-party certifying body to help you know what you are buying. FSC certifies sustainably harvested wood, and Greenguard ensures safer levels of VOCs.

But what if your budget isn’t equal to the purchase of high-quality new items? Never fear. Used is usually safer in this regard: even pressed wood releases most of its VOCs after about seven years.
♥♥ Green your mattress, baby’s bed, and couch. You can avoid excess chemicals by buying a truly natural mattress made from natural rubber, organic cotton, or wool. What you want is a mattress that is naturally flame retardant because it is made entirely from noncombustible natural materials. Since all polyurethane foam is made of petroleum and is highly flammable by nature, requiring chemical flame retardants, it’s better to forego that material. It’s important to note that “organic” isn’t a meaningful label when applied to mattresses, so beware of claims like “made with soy foam” or “made with natural latex” or even sales reps calling a mattress “organic.” Instead, make sure that you ask how the company is meeting flame-retardancy standards and ask to see the Material Safety Data Sheets. You will probably pay about twice as much for a natural mattress as you would for a conventional one, but the price difference can be far less for a baby’s.

When Money Matters More

You don’t need to have money to have a healthy home. It helps, yet as the daughter of a single mother of three children who rented places using subsidies, I know there are some things that can be done without money. Open your windows, for instance. Unfortunately, at lot of affordable housing uses cheap building supplies, so you’ll want to off-gas those chemicals. If nothing is anywhere close to new, then you need to be careful about mould. Don’t use humidifiers in your indoor space. For short-term humidifying, use a vaporizer, because they are less likely to spread mould. (There is such a thing as humidifier fever, which is like a cold that doesn’t go away.)

When buying a new sofa or soft chair, ideally you should look for products made from natural materials rather than polyurethane foam. Skip buying items made before 2004 or labelled “TB 117 compliant,” as these are both signs that they contain chemical flame retardants. When buying new, skip the stain-guard feature, too, as it releases potentially toxic and extremely persistent perflourinated compounds. Instead, apply your own green cleaning at home or opt for steam cleaning without the use of solvents after the red wine has splashed on the white couch. If a new sofa isn’t in the mix, you can sometimes do quite well with antiques that were made before the advent of polyurethane foam and chemical flame retardants. When making do with what you have, ensure that there are no cracks or tears exposing the foam innards of any of your furnishings. Mend or cover up any such fissures: duct tape to the rescue! As well, minimize time spent napping or eating on that old sofa.
♥♥ Green the carpets, flooring, window coverings, and textiles. Flooring is one of the primary culprits for VOC exposure in vitro, with wall-to-wall carpets being one of the worst, as they can off-gas VOCs from the material themselves and from the toxic glues used to hold them in place. And carpets, like couches and beds, collect allergens such as dust mites, mildew, and mould over time. They can also be a repository for PBDEs, bacteria, and heavy metals tracked from outside on shoes, stroller wheels, or feet. Vinyl flooring and laminate flooring were the next biggest indoor air polluters related to renovations. Both of these flooring types are made from materials that are known to release VOCs in and of themselves, as well as relying on often toxic formaldehyde and VOC-releasing glues to hold them in place.

Healthier, greener flooring options include refinishing the wood floors that you already have (if you have them). Make sure you finish them with a low-VOC, formaldehyde-free, water-based option. New green flooring options include floors made from wood, bamboo, cork, Marmoleum, tile, and carpet tiles. If you want rugs, go with throw rugs that can be washed (by someone, at least, even if not in your home washing machine). If you do decide to go for wall-to-wall carpet, then take extra precautions to ensure it isn’t placed with typical VOC-laden glues and that it is made of natural materials and pre-off-gassed in the factory.

Textiles such as permanent-press curtains are another significant source of formaldehyde in the average home. Curtains are also commonly treated with those nasty flame retardants. Window coverings such as blinds may be made with PVC that can break down over its lifetime and release phthalates into the dust and air of a home. There are a number of greener options. Curtains and other textiles made from natural materials will have far fewer VOCs, as will curtains that have been washed. Non-PVC blinds, such as those made from fabric, paper, or wood, are also a greener option.

When Money Matters More

If you are stuck with old wall-to-wall carpet that you aren’t allowed to remove, consider getting throw rugs that are easier to clean to put over them. If you are going to splurge on anything, get a truly natural mattress and pillows. I haven’t seen research on it (there probably isn’t any), but if you can even start with a natural mattress topper over your existing futon or conventional mattress, it would mean that at least the part closest to your mouth and skin is safer. We did this to slowly build my eldest a natural mattress starting with camping mats and cotton blankets, and then graduating to an all-cotton futon, until finally we could afford a truly natural mattress.
♥♥ Green the finishes, paints, and wallpaper. The EPA says that paints and finishes are one of the top culprits in polluting our indoor air and can continue to off-gas VOCs for years after application. It is definitely ideal to forego painting while pregnant. If you can’t help yourself, you’ll be happy to know there are zero- and low-VOC paints available. These paints aren’t without VOCs, but they have far less than typical paint: low VOC paints must have fewer than 250 g/L and zero-VOC paints fewer than 5 g/L. This means they smell better and are better for your health. You can also get paints that are so natural they are nearly edible; these include milk paint and mineral paints. I’ve used many of these paints in my home, and most zero-VOC paints are every bit as easy to use as typical paints. The truly VOC-free paints, such as those made from milk and minerals, are very different to work with, and the result is rich, beautiful, and more varied than typical paint. These natural paint alternatives can work great for painting wood, as well.
Similarly, typical wallpaper is a health mess made of vinyl, adhered with VOC-laden glues, and prone to growing mould and mildew. Luckily, there are some new options that use recycled paper instead of vinyl as their base, are painted or printed with no-VOC paints, and applied with no-VOC glues. I have also used these, and since I had no previous experience with vinyl wallpaper, I found them a fun alternative, particularly if they are used just as an accent for a wall or two.
♥♥ Green cleaning and supplies. When thinking about the worst offenders for cleaning products, you might be surprised at what can harm your health. The chemicals in dishwashing detergent, for instance, can be particularly harmful because the hot air vaporizes the chemicals and releases them into your home. The EPA also warns against many air fresheners that can continuously release pollutants (for example, neurotoxins and allergens) into your air. Multipurpose cleaners with added disinfectants often contain warnings about wiping down surfaces with water after the cleaner has been applied, especially if you use them on counters, cutting boards, or tables. If you are doing this, you are increasing your chances of absorbing these chemicals through your skin or along with your food.

When Money Matters More

If your home or furniture is old or antique, then you may have lead paint. Before 1978 in the U.S. and 1980 in Canada, lead was routinely added to paint. This is only really a problem to your pregnancy if the paint is flaking, which it very well could be after almost 40 years. So get somebody (not you — you’re pregnant!) to paint over it with a zero-VOC product. Yes, this is a bit more expensive, but not that much more. Quick tip: You can go into just about any hardware store and ask for their off-colour (didn’t quite match the colour swatch) low-VOC paints and get them cheaper or even free.

“Bad” cleaning products are ones that pollute your indoor air quality or, even worse, are so poisonous that they are sold with skull and crossbones symbols and must be locked away for fear that a precocious child will get hold of them. You may have wondered, “How safe is it really to dump something with ‘WARNING! Poison’ on the label down the drain or onto the floor?” Indeed, traces of these very chemicals can end up surviving multiple water treatments and cause harm both to aquatic life and, ultimately, human life when they show up downstream in someone’s water glass. Even if these chemicals make it no further than the kitchen floor, they can release toxic fumes into the air inside our homes. Besides being poisonous in concentration, they can also make us sick in dilution.

Microbes are everywhere: they make up our guts and our skin, and they surround us. We don’t need to fear microbes. They aren’t all bad, and microbes, such as most viruses and bacteria, can’t live on dry surfaces. These microbes do like food particles, mucus, and moisture, though, so watch out for your kitchen sponge. It can be rid of most microbes by microwaving it for three minutes or boiling it in a pot of water. The hot water from your tap is not hot enough to sterilize.

Cleaning is the first defence against the spread of germs. In today’s culture, we often overlook the importance of this step in our rush to go straight for the “big guns” of sanitizing or disinfecting. If a surface isn’t clean, it can’t effectively be sanitized. Good cleaning involves a little elbow grease and some basic ingredients like soap, water, vinegar, baking soda, microfibre cloths, and maybe an EcoLogo-certified multi-purpose cleaner. There is no proven benefit to disinfecting every surface in your home.

If you are really worried about disinfecting your home, for instance after a flu, you still must start with cleaning first. Disinfectants kill germs on a surface, and they only work if you’ve already removed the germ habitat. Once this is done, use the safest, least toxic, most appropriate product. White vinegar or 3 percent hydrogen peroxide applied after cleaning and left to sit for 10 minutes will kill flu viruses and salmonella. To disinfect against E. coli and listeria, heat either vinegar or hydrogen peroxide to 55°C (130°F) and leave on for a minute. Both tea tree oil and oregano oil have been found to contain antimicrobial properties. The sun also disinfects, so hang clothes to dry, open windows, and pull out those pillows for a little sun magic.

If you decide to buy a commercial cleaning product or disinfectant, read the label closely. Make sure the product lists all of its ingredients, has a meaningful third-party certification such as EcoLogo or Green Seal, and is biodegradable. Do a quick scan to verify it’s free of the most harmful ingredients, such as ammonia, APEs, chlorine bleach, coal tar dyes, DEA, fragrances, sodium hydroxide, or triclosan. Companies don’t have to restrict or reveal all the ingredients in cleaning products sold in North America, so extra caution should be taken. Use the sniff test: if it smells strongly of artificial fragrance or makes you sneeze or your eyes water, this is often a sign that it contains artificial fragrance to “mask” the smell of other noxious chemicals.

Making your own green cleaning products is a great option, and it can be affordable, effective, and as easy as having baking soda, vinegar, hydrogen peroxide (or another oxygen-based cleaner), microfibre cloths, and maybe a bit of lemon or tea tree oil on hand.
♥♥ Reduce your EMF exposure. There are plenty of practical ways to reduce you and your baby-to-be’s EMF exposure.
- Ditch the big emitters that you can live without. DECT cordless phones can usually go because they can emit even more EMFs than your cellphone. I’ve been really enjoying my mock 1950s payphone. ECO DECT phones that do not radiate when not in use are available in Europe, but sadly not in North America.
- If the source of EMFs is from outside the home, consider shielding, which involves using metallic cloth, paint, or other material to block the EMFs from entering.
- For internet, disconnect and disable the Wi-Fi from the router and the laptop. Instead, wire the devices to the router using ethernet cables.
- Get your laptop and tablets off your lap and away from your body. There is research to suggest that radiation levels this close can harm you and your developing baby. It is also beneficial to keep off your laptops and tablets at night, when they are most likely to disrupt sleep.
- While you may not be ready to toss the cellphone, you can use it in a safer way, and that includes not carrying it on your person. Also know that when the cellphone is struggling to find reception or dialing, it produces more radiation. Some cellphones emit less radiation than others, and it is possible to buy low-EMF phones.
- Minimize time and distance to all electric appliances: while it’s impossible to hold your electric toothbrush three feet away, you can use your electric blanket to heat up the bed and then turn it off. Considering ditching the baby monitor, microwave, and induction stove.
- Switch to LED light bulbs. They are lower-EMF and more efficient than CFLs.
- Plug your electrical appliances into a power cord and turn everything off at night, including, and most especially, your Wi-Fi router. It will save you from “phantom” electrical costs and reduce your EMF exposure at night, which is when some doctors say you are most vulnerable to its negative effects.
- Advocate keeping Wi-Fi out of your children’s school.
- Consider hiring a qualified technician to do an EMF survey or help with shielding. This can give a more “tangible” picture of the strength and distribution of the “invisible” EMFs in the environment and locate sources that might otherwise be missed. Visit the International Institute for Building-Biology & Ecology at www.hbelc.org to find a qualified technician near you.
♥ Green your lifestyle habits. Many small lifestyle habits that can help improve your indoor air quality are effective and cost almost nothing.
- Properly dispose of all toxic household items, including old appliances, batteries, paints, and toxic cleaning supplies, at an appropriate household hazardous waste facility. Often your local hardware store will take small appliances and light bulbs. Some provinces are beginning to enact extended producer responsibility programs that require companies to take back and recycle old products, so they (instead of you) are saddled with figuring out what to do with that old baby monitor, car seat, or plastic packaging. B.C., for example, has begun to do this with all electronics and packaging.
- Do not smoke inside your home and don’t let others do it either. Even secondhand smoke on clothing can cause harm to a developing fetus. If you or another caregiver smokes, do it outside the home and change clothes frequently. If secondhand smoke is entering your home, consider investing in a high-quality HEPA air filter, which has minimal negative effects and can trap smoke, pollen, and dust. Beware, though, that even the best air filters won’t fully clean the air. Also, many air filters create ozone, which at ground level is an irritant that can react with other household air pollutants to create toxins.
- Dump the air freshener and odour eliminators. Many air fresheners contain chemicals known to cause allergies and affect hormones and reproductive development, particularly in babies and mamas-to-be. The only way to really clean the air is by introducing fresh air, so open the window. It can also help to use small bowls or packages of baking soda in the closet with the hockey gear or to sprinkle it on the carpets and vacuum it up. Essential oils are a wonderful way to introduce good smells that can also elevate mood. A diffuser is the most effective way to introduce bits of essential oils to the house, but you can also put some water and a few drops of essential oils in a spray bottle and spritz as wanted, add a few drops to your bowls of baking soda, or put some in water and heat it on your stove top.
- Get a carbon monoxide detector if you have an attached garage, gas or oil-fired furnace, or fireplace. Consider a radon test, especially if you have sunken rooms or a basement; a short-term radon detector kit is just $10 to $20.
- Wet wipe your floors and surfaces whenever possible to help remove dust and the corresponding toxins.
- Get a few house plants, as they can improve indoor air quality. Some of the best include aloe vera, bamboo palm, spider plants, chrysanthemums, red-edged or Warneckei dracaena, and weeping figs. There are houseplants that can be poisonous to children or pets if consumed, so buy safer options or ensure the plants are out of reach. Plant them in terracotta instead of plastic to prevent mould growth in the soil.
- Open your windows whenever possible. The outdoor air will greatly improve your indoor air quality. This is especially useful when running the dishwasher (which vaporizes the chemicals in the detergent and the water), while vacuuming, and when cooking.
- Remove your shoes at the door. They can track heavy metals, bacteria, and other pollutants into your home.

The Green Baby Shower Handbook

There are few times as celebratory as the birth of a baby. It is the beginning of a new life and a new family configuration. Indeed, overnight, everything is about to be entirely different. It’s a time to celebrate. It is also time to practise being the kind of parent you want to be. Throwing a baby shower that reflects your new family’s values and interests is a great way to start.

Baby showers are, no surprise, a relatively new tradition brought to us via post–Second World War America. The culture of stuff, especially of stuff for children, was born at that time, and it wasn’t born into a vacuum. Throughout time and across cultures, births have been celebrated. What most of these traditions have in common — which often gets omitted from today’s baby shower — is the “mothering the mother” aspect. Nurtured mamas nurture healthy babies. This nurturing (both physical and psychological) is crucial in a mother’s breastfeeding success, in helping prevent postpartum depression, and in how thoroughly she heals. In many cultures, in many times, this nurturing was particularly focused on the six weeks after giving birth. Women were encouraged to rest, to eat nutrient-rich foods, and to avoid stimulation. In these cultures, the celebrations often focused on helping the expectant mother prepare psychologically either for birth or for this postpartum period.

One of my friends who grew up in India had a baby shower to which everyone brought delicious homemade Indian treats for the expectant parents and bangles for the mother-to-be. These bangles were meant to be taken off, one by one, during the long hours of the birth. Another friend who had lived in the Middle East for many years chose to have a belly dancer at her baby shower. The women in attendance practised their “birthing” moves and then soaked the expectant mother’s feet and massaged her hands. In some Afghani families and in some Jewish households, the celebration of birth happens after the baby arrives, and it usually involves bringing food for the entire family. The gifting of food is common among many of these traditions, and today many women continue this practice by asking guests to bring a frozen meal to their baby shower in preparation for the weeks to come.

A number of today’s expectant moms are turning to something called a Blessing Way, which is supposedly derived from a Navajo tradition. It focuses on nurturing the woman in preparation for the birth, providing support from her community, and using some small “blessing” rituals. For instance, the women attending might share a few words of strength and encouragement for the mom-to-be and then tie their wrists together with a beautiful “cord.”

Each woman will wear a bit of the cord as a bracelet, and when they are told that the expectant mother is in labour, they each cut their bracelet. The mom can wear the bracelet as a reminder of all those women cheering her on during this time. Or, something similar can be done with beeswax candles, which the woman burns during her labour and her friends and family burn in her honour as a way to share connection. Some women today use their blessing way to make a plaster cast of their pregnant belly, which can be a fun keepsake. Others simply ask their friends to bring a particularly meaningful note, prayer, or poem to share. These can be compiled into a beautiful book.

At my baby shower I incorporated a women-only part in which we painted my belly and shared positive birth experiences, and then had a larger celebration that included my husband and our many long-distance friends and family. We had everyone decorate small, triangular flags for the baby, and I strung them together to make a garland that still hangs in her room. For gifts, I asked people to bring one hand-me-down (a book or item) that had been really helpful or beloved in their own parenting or green life.

Whatever you choose to do, have a baby shower or blessing way or other celebration of some sort. Just because you’re green, conscious, or into simpler living doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have fun and be supported. If we don’t celebrate the big things, then how will we learn to honour the little things — the first step, the first tooth, the first time everybody sleeps through the night? Let the baby shower truly be a celebration of your intentions for parenting. Make it every bit as fun, green, and thoughtful as you want it to be. It’ll be good practice for everything that comes after!

Getting support in the form of gifts of food, services, or a few truly needed items will let your community participate in supporting you during this time, without bogging you down with a bunch of stuff you don’t really want or need. If you talk to experienced parents, they always have a list of the stuff they were tricked into buying or were given as a gift that they really didn’t need. These things aren’t just unnecessary and hard on the planet; they come to be annoying when you trip over them on the way to the bathroom in the middle of the night. There are also a few items that experienced parents will say they loved and never want to be without. Remember, having a baby is an exciting time, and people will want to give gifts to you. You just want to be very careful to direct your loving, well-intentioned family and friends away from the plastic baby-wipe warmer and toward that thing you really need. For ideas, see What You Don’t Need and Things New Parents Really Do Need on the following pages.

The best way to get what you need is to ask for it. Registries can be a great help. Don’t register at places like Babies “R” Us unless you are prepared for all the other stuff Great Aunt Matilda is going to grab for little Johnny when she goes there to get the one organic toy you wanted. Instead, register at your cool, local, green baby store. This way you can go there, see for yourself what you love, take a cloth diapering class, and then register for what you want online so that local friends can go to the store and out-of-town friends can just go online. Also, if something goes wrong and you want to return something, you already know you like lots of other items in the store.

If you want to compile a registry of a variety of specific green things, including a cloth diaper service, an organic mattress, and maybe even a homemade baby bed from Etsy, you can do this at www.babylist.com or at the nonprofit www.sokindregistry.org, where you can register for a donation (say, to a cause like supporting midwives in remote locations), for that organic mattress you’ve been wanting (but want a number of people to pitch in to help buy), or for time (getting someone to come Tuesday to do laundry, Wednesday to make dinner, and Thursday to hold the baby so you can take a shower). Canada also has a number of websites full of great green items, such as www.lifewithoutplastic.com, www.matraea.com, and www.well.ca. Even better, find a little green boutique near you that also has an online registry or website so that you can exchange in person those things you inevitably get but don’t want.

What You Don’t Need

Big and plastic, ugly and impossible to dispose of properly, or just designed to be useless after a year, these are among the many things you don’t need to receive at a baby shower:

The Diaper Genie. This is a plastic garbage can just for diapers. By some unknown magic, it twists the diapers into tight little sausages that are supposed to stink less, but it requires lots of plastic and specially designed bags to do it. As if you need another thing to run out to buy at midnight.
A plastic wash tub. That’s what sinks are for.
A changing table. They are one of the top polluters in a home, and six months later they serve no purpose.
A baby wipe warmer. They spread the chemicals from baby wipes all around the house.
Polyester baby pajamas. They are oh so cute, but they often contain chemical flame retardants.
Plastic toys.
Also, wait and see before you buy strollers, baby monitors, and baby clothes. What you think you want and what you end up using can be very different. I know that the impulse to buy that beautiful, expensive (it’s got a matching cup holder!) baby stroller is nearly overwhelming. However, for the first few months you will likely just use the stroller that your car seat clicks into or you will keep your baby close in the sling. Then, you may just find you don’t need to buy a stroller at all because someone gave you a simple umbrella stroller and you love it.

Things New Parents Really Do Need

You will be given lots and lots of things, including a million baby clothes, so ask for those things that you aren’t likely to be given and are really sure you want. There are a few things that will make life so much easier, and you will love having them in your life.

Services such as a postpartum doula, food delivery, or just someone to wash the clothes and fold the laundry (no one has ever regretted a little extra help).
A really natural place for baby to sleep: a crib with a natural mattress, an all-wood co-sleeper or bassinet with the same kind of mattress but smaller, or just an organic wool puddle pad to put under the baby as she sleeps in your bed.
Cloth diapers. I suggest paying for a service for the first three months, when you will be changing the baby all the time. The service washes the diapers for you and takes them back when you are ready for bigger or different diapers. There are dozens of sites in Canada where you can register for cloth diapers and for “trial packs,” where you try different types of cloth diapers before you commit to one. Every major city has a store selling cloth diapers, and online stores include (among many) www.bumbini.ca, www.calgaryclothdiaperdepot.com, www.ottawaclothdiapers.com, www.theclothdiapersource.ca, www.jilliansdrawers.com, www.newandgreen.com, and www.littlemonkeystore.com.
Baby slings and carriers. A basic sling and a soft-sided carrier such as an Ergo- or Mei Tai–style are extremely useful tools for the modern parent.
Sleep sack or swaddle. There are all-cotton, organic swaddles with Velcro. They are the best thing ever for swaddling, and swaddling is the best thing ever to get your new baby to sleep.
Healthy and organic teas, salves, and sitz bath ingredients to help you to heal and your baby to get the most natural start.
Baby socks. Seriously, at least six million pairs, in a variety of sizes, but ones that actually stay on.
A few good books. I highly recommend Green Mama: Giving Your Child a Healthy Start and a Greener Future (shameless self-promotion!). Or, see the end of this book for more great books on topics such as nutrition, vaccinations, sleep, parenting, and more. And visit me online at www.thegreenmama.com for more book recommendations and resources.