7 of My Favorite Product categories to SWAP out for Cleaner Alternatives during pregnancy to Reduce Toxic Exposure

1. Cleaning Products

Every modern-day mama, knows that cleaning products are to be considered both during pregnancy and with young children in the home. "Dirty" cleaning products wreak havoc on your endocrine system, and are a known contributor to cancer, autoimmune responses and other ailments.  Especially during pregnancy, the first thing I would switch out is my cleaning products! But we all know that is easier said then done, especially when our nesting response kicks in. So, how do you stay away from cleaning products during pregnancy?
First, give yourself an excuse to clean less. I said it. Rather than wiping down the counter with disinfectant nightly, try wiping it down with water or consider using Norwex cloths, which are chemical-free, microfiber cloths that incorporate natural antibacterial properties to clean by adding water. If you just can't stand it and need the chemical clean (which I am guilty of), consider using a safer alternative, such as The Honest Company or Mrs. Meyers products. Or, take it one step further and hire a housekeeper every so often. This will keep you away from harsh chemicals, while also keeping your house in tip-top shape. Whether you or a housekeeper are using the products, I always opt for cleaner options. Here are a few of my favorite brands:

• Seventh Generation
• The Honest Company
• Ecos (laundry detergent)

2. Facial Skincare Products

The next thing I would consider switching up is your skincare routine. Personally, I don't take chances with skincare products, which is why I use (and sell) Beautycounter. Beautycounter is, yes, a multi-level marketing company that sells skincare and cosmetics products that are safe to use during pregnancy and breastfeeding. That isn't the company's only bottom line though, it was founded with the intent of getting safer skincare into the hands of everyone, not just us pregnant women. This is why Beautycounter ensures their products are not only safe, but that they are also effective. The line isn't 100% organic because Beautycounter argues that not all synthetic chemicals and ingredients are harmful. Similarly, Beautycounter argues that not all organic ingredients are beneficial. The key is to include the right ingredients that are safe for your body, that will also leave your skin glowing and radiant. 
I still like to look beautiful and glowing during pregnancy, which is why I have invested BIG TIME in Beautycounter and their respective products. Here are a list of my favorite products:

• Beautycounter Overnight Resurfacing Peel ($58): includes hyaluronic acid and glycolic acid. Replace your retinol or any other peels for this. Use nightly or 3-4 nights per week.
• Beautycounter Countersun Mineral Sunscreen Lotion SPF 30 ($39): your skin is extra sensitive during pregnancy, which is why I am so obsessed with this sunscreen. It is not only clean, but is also has 19% zinc. Whoa.
• Beautycounter No. 1 Brightening Facial Oil ($69): I use this morning and night for dewey skin. My skin drinks it up. It includes tons of essential oil, and was also named an Allure favorite in 2017.
• Beautycounter Countercontrol Clean Pore Cleanser ($26): my skin gets slightly more oily during pregnancy and is prone to breakouts. If you do too, this is a go-to with clean ingredients.

If you vehemently despise MLM companies, check out the Drunk Elephant. 

3. Makeup

As a daily makeup wearer, I failed to change up my makeup routine with my first two pregnancies... and I regret it, majorly. Yes, my two little boys are perfectly healthy, but there is something about makeup (heavy metals, lead, etc.) that sets off a flashing red siren when it comes to things I am cognizant of during this third pregnancy. Because I wear makeup everyday, I need to be even more scrutinous of things like foundation, which goes all over my skin! Again, this is why I have invested in selling Beautycounter. In addition to their skincare/bodycare line, they also have a makeup line. The products are 100% safe during pregnancy and breastfeeding, and are also made to enrich your skin. So when you wear your makeup, you are not only doing your body (and your baby) a favor, you are doing your skin a favor, as well. Hello, anti-aging makeup during pregnancy!
When it comes to makeup, be smart with what you choose to invest in and don't break the bank on things that may make a minor difference. For instance, I feel that foundation is extremely important to switch out because I wear it daily and I put it on all over my face. Alternatively, mascara goes on the ends of my lashes, so if I had to pick and choose, I would choose to switch out foundation over mascara. However, it all adds up, again which is why I have totally reinvented my makeup routine with Beautycounter (at least for the time being).
Also - a heads up if you are a heavy makeup wearer like myself, Beautycounter is a lighter finish and a lighter look. While at first, I wasn't sure I could get used to the look and feel of the makeup, I have grown to love it. I can no longer put my old products on my face. One, they totally destroy my skin with how much progress I have made since switching over to Beautycounter. Two, they feel so heavy now that I am used to the lighter, more natural feel of Beautycounter.
​Here are a few of my favorites that are part of my daily routine:

• Beautycounter Tint Skin Hydrating Foundation ($42): Literally can't live without this lightweight foundation. My skin feels fresh and clean, and kissable while wearing it. Not to mention, it helps improve your skin with the inclusion of hyaluronic acid. I wear Linen.
• Beautycounter Matte Bronzer ($40): I apply this over my foundation then blend it all together with a mineral powder. My sister even likes this bronzer and she isn't necessarily all about "clean" stuff. Important to use clean bronzer because colorants are known to have heavy metals.
• Beautycounter Dew Skin Moisturizing Coverage ($45): so usually I mix this with the tint skin to get the perfect color on a daily basis. Mixing the two is quite optimal. Otherwise, if I am running out for a workout or to drop the kids off, I throw on the dew skin.
• Touchup Skin Concealer Pen ($33): can't live without this. This was on of the products that I had to get used to at first, but now that I use it regularly and my undereye circles and wrinkles have improved, I can't go a day without it.
• Beautycounter Powder Blush Duo in Bloom/Tulip ($42): Love this color and again, ensures I am not putting heavy metals into my system with unhealthy colorants.
• Beautycounter Eyeshadow Duo in Peach/Bronze ($35): I am all about the bronzes and this color looks amazing with my green eyes. 
• Beautycounter Volumizing Mascara ($29): another thing that I wasn't sure I loved, but then have grown to love is the mascara. It provides a full finish, yet a natural look. I feel like I look prettier because I look more natural with this mascara as opposed to my MAC. Mascara is actually more important that you think because regular mascara usually includes things like paragons, aluminum powder, ethanolamines and specifically TEA. These ingredients either disrupt hormones, contribute to neurotoxicity, adjust pH levels or cause inhibited fetal brain development. No thank you.
• Beautycounter Lip Glosses ($29): BC lipglosses are my absolute favorite. Once again, wasn't sure I liked at first but have grown to LOVE and cannot live without. They are light and kissable but the colors are incredible. BC used to have a Nude Trio set that was my absolutely favorite. I think they sold out, but colors such as Bare Shimmer and Bellini are amazing. 

4. Bath and Body

Another category that is super important, seeing that your skin is the largest organ, is products that come in contact with your body, aka what you keep in the shower. Truth be told, I never switched out my shampoo and conditioner for a safer alternative because I could never find one that worked equal to or greater than my current routine. Enter Beautycounter. The Beautycounter Daily Shampoo is actually what sold me on the company. I rationed that if they could figure out something as complex as shampoo and make it effective, their line must be something to consider, and I was right. Lo and behold the rest of the bath and body products are nothing short of incredible. In fact, a lot of people consider this to be a highlight of the Beautycounter line, including people like Gwyneth Paltrow. Here are a few of my favorites...

• Beautycounter Daily Shampoo ($23): this got 5/5 stars and is a great price point. Makes my hair super soft. Sul-fate free and includes things like coconut oil.
• Beautycounter Daily Conditioner ($23): free of preservatives; I only put this on the tips of my hair, otherwise my hair gets too greasy. Just a heads up!
• Beautycounter Body Wash in Citrus Mimosa ($25): sulfate-free; made from pure plant botanicals and essential oils. An easy switch for $25; great smelling and great feeling. It almost looks like conditioner when you squeeze it out of the bottle, but lathers so nicely.
• Charcoal Cleansing Bar ($25): one of my all-around favorites for cleansing under arms and such. Not to mention, because it is black, I can get my husband to buy in and wash his body and face with it! Paraben and fragrance free; made with coconut oil and organic greens tea, and of course Japanese binchotan charcoal.
• Countermarch Adaptive Body Moisturizer ($39): most amazing body lotion.
• Beautycounter Body Oil in Citrus Rosemary ($75): something I felt like I could live without until I started using it. I mix one pump with the above moisturizer for the ultimate skin rejuvenation. This is also great for pregnancy and stretch marks, keeping your skin super moisturized is key to preventing them. I will be using this on my belly and hips for the entirety of my pregnancy! Plus super clean with a blend of 13 botanical oils.

5. Supplements

Supplements are a category that I see as super important for prenatal (and also postnatal) health. Generic prenatal vitamins include unhealthy fillers, don't absorb as well and can actually contribute to a toxic buildup in your body if they don't include the correct form of supplementation. For instance, if you have the MTHFR gene mutation and take a vitamin that includes folic acid rather than folate, the folic acid can buildup in your system causing toxicity. Not only that, your body is unable to absorb and breakdown the folic acid, which in turn means your baby isn't getting the benefit that is so important for development. Instead, physician grade supplements ensure that you are getting all of the right and up-to-date nutrients when it comes to your prenatal vitamin.
If you are interested in taking our prenatal vitamins, which are all physician grade, you can check them out here. We require that you fill out a health questionnaire, which you can find here. This is because our supplements are physician grade! Not everyone is able to get their hands on them and it is technically a practitioner/patient basis that we sell them based on.
Here are the vitamins that I take:

• Designs For Health Prenatal Pro Essentials Packets
  • includes a prenatal vitamin, omegas and osteoforce supplement
• Designs For Health: Hi-Po Emulsi D3
• CALM: I would recommend this supplement to everyone if I could! Magnesium has really changed my life, especially when I was going through postpartum depression and anxiety. Magnesium is known as the calming mineral and that is exactly what it does. I take this before bed every night. I sleep like a pup and it keeps me regular, if you know what I mean ;)

6. Diet

I recommend downloading our Postpartum Slimdown Guide, even if you aren't pregnant. You won't be able to partake in the detox/product portion of the program, but there are some helpful tidbits about diet in the 21-Day Maintenance portion of the program. This includes a long list of foods to avoid and why. I won't go into why, but here is the list. If you are interested in reading, please checkout our guide!! Foods to avoid:
​

• Artificial Ingredients
• Trans Fat + Saturated Fat
• Sugar, white and refined carbohydrates
• Dairy
• Gluten and Cross Reactive Grains
• Alcohol (duh)
• Caffeine

While dairy and gluten may not necessarily be things you must avoid during pregnancy, I've felt it important to at least so how my body reacts to both of those food groups. Personally, I do best while not consuming dairy or gluten. That said, dairy can be very beneficial during pregnancy. Gluten, eh, probably not so much. I say just trust your body and don't try to cut out too many food groups if you aren't used to it! If you are used to cutting out things like gluten and dairy, I'd say give it a try during pregnancy and at least try to consume these food groups in moderation.

7. Water Filtration System

Okay, these may seem like a big jump and I may lose some people on this one. Not to mention, whole home water filtration systems cost around $3,800. So why is it so important to get a whole home water filtration system and at the very least a reverse osmosis water system for drinking water? Well, Hayley Cate has a whole post on why tap water is bad during pregnancy; you can read it here.
Basically, bacteria and nitrates can make their way into our water and potentially the following harmful elements:
​

• Mercury
• Lead
• Chlorine
• Fluoride
• Synthetic Estrogen
• Antiobiotics

These are obviously bad for your body and your baby. Mercury and lead are classified as heavy metals, which are a big no-no during pregnancy. Why? Toxic levels of heavy metals can displace essential minerals and may affect the development of your baby during pregnancy. High chlorine consumption has been found to be linked to a variety of ailments including various cancers, reproductive problems, problems with the immune system and heart attacks. Antibiotics, on the other hand, wreak havoc on your body's microbiome, killing both good and bad bacteria. Good bacteria in your body during pregnancy is necessary and also shapes your baby's development of his or her microbiome.  And synthetic estrogen? Dare I go further.

Now that we know that tap water or unfiltered water is problematic, especially during pregnancy. What can you do to help it? Opt for filtered water if feasible.

Two Most Common Water Filter Technologies:

• Carbon filters (pitcher, tap-mounted or large dispenser) are affordable and can reduce many common water contaminants, like lead and byproducts of treatment processes.
  • Order online for around $100.
  • On a scale of 1-10 (10 being the least contaminated) this rates at about a 6.
• Reverse osmosis filters remove contaminants that carbon filters can't eliminate, like arsenic and perchlorate (rocket fuel), but can be costly- around $1000. Yikes!
  • Perchlorates can be harmful to your thyroid. Mamas who are pregnant or who are wanting to get pregnant- an underactive thyroid can affect conception.
    • On a scale of 1-10 (10 being the least contaminated) this rates at about a 9​

Alrighty, ladies... that's it for now! Hopefully I didn't scare you away, but if you're into this stuff (like I am), it is interesting and worthwhile to invest in you and your baby's health. And it starts at pregnancy. Do what you can to start your little one ahead of the curve. Health is their birth right!

xx,

​Brooke Ila