I believe in empowering people to advocate for themselves and live their best life.
In October 2022 I found myself four months into a kitchen remodel that began after the floorboards in my kitchen started to warp due to a leak. We notified our insurance company and they recommended a remediation team to come out and do the job. The next thing I knew the entire kitchen was ripped out, treated for mold, and then tested. Dealing with insurance prolonged the process as we were negotiating the expenses with them. It’s more complicated than that, but I’ll spare you the additional details. The main point is that me, my husband, and son were eating takeout for every meal. Our lives were filled with chemicals, dust, and plastic. I didn’t know how long it would take to complete the job. It was incredibly frustrating and stressful.
The following month, I received a positive pregnancy test. It was amazing news since we were having a harder time getting pregnant with our second child than my first. I was very nervous about the chemicals being used in my kitchen, but the contractors assured me that we were fine as long as we stayed out of the contaminated area (i.e. my kitchen) and that the construction sheeting would keep the rest of the house safe. We no longer had filtered water, so we were buying 1-gallon plastic water jugs. When I found out I was pregnant I started paying more for glass bottled water.
But I didn’t know that all the food containers and receipts that I was collecting for my insurance company were exposing me to high levels of BPA.
At 12 weeks pregnant I went in for an ultrasound and found out that my baby had excess fluid behind their neck, meaning that the baby was at a higher risk for birth defects. I scheduled a CVS procedure and then waited for the devastating news, my child had a chromosomal abnormality. I was told that at my age there is a 1% chance of this happening. Was I just unlucky, or did the toxins in my home environment change my fate?
During that time I was also told that my chances of miscarriage were higher and I did have a miscarriage during my 2nd trimester. I went on to grieve the loss of my pregnancy and researched different infertility issues. It looked like my issue was related to egg quality since I was able to get pregnant twice on my own and had not experienced any other miscarriages. I went on different social media threads focused on infertility to see what people’s IVF clinics recommended for improving egg quality. I also purchased the book ‘It Starts With The Egg’ and started putting together the pieces that my egg quality issue could have been caused by the amount of BPA that I was exposed to.
I read the findings of Dr. Patricia Hunt, a researcher who has studied the effects of bisphenol A (BPA) on human health, in ‘It Starts With The Egg’. One of Dr. Hunt's most notable findings was that exposure to BPA can cause genetic damage to eggs, leading to chromosomal abnormalities and an increased risk of miscarriage. She conducted a series of experiments in which she exposed female mice to low doses of BPA, similar to the levels that humans are exposed to on a daily basis. She found that even these low levels of exposure were enough to cause genetic damage in the eggs.
That statement doesn’t even do the findings justice, because the change in egg quality is severe. Normally, only 1-2% of eggs in mice have chromosomal abnormalities, but after exposure to BPA, the percentage jumped to 40%.
I think that we get confusing messages about our health and the products in our lives that impact it. We’re told that countless chemicals in our lives cause cancer, birth defects, and reproductive harm. But if we take the steps to avoid some of these chemicals we’re told that “everything causes cancer” by others as a way to shut us down. We’re told that it’s important to take care of yourself and your health, but if you go to the extent that others feel is unnecessary you risk being called “crazy”. The reality is that these are defensive reactions in response to painful realities that person would rather avoid.
After I lost my 2nd pregnancy I stopped doubting the impact that harmful chemicals are having on our health and caring about the input of others. I read a lot more scientific studies and used them to make positive changes to my environment and life. When other people commented on the things I was doing I turned it into a joke. “You know me, I’m all about living The Clean Life.”
That’s why I started my company and called it The Clean Life. I want to normalize clean living and empower other people to make changes that will positively impact their lives. I want to give you permission to stop defending yourself to others. You don’t need to give them details about your fertility journey, auto-immune disorder, or any other health issue that may be exacerbated by harmful chemicals unless you want to. I address very serious issues on this website but also do my best to make them easy to understand and fun to learn about. We can even joke about it if you’d like. About how you’re on your way to being all about The Clean Life, too.
