The top four dangers in your kitchen!

For lots of us, the kitchen is our safe space; we tell you how to make it safer by pointing out the top four dangers in your kitchen!

We’re in charge of what goes into the kitchen, how it’s stored, how it’s prepared and how much of it there is. We make sure to disinfect (use organic and natural based solutions!) our pots, pans and cooking surfaces, make sure they’re clean and make sure that we have the best appliances and utensils so that cooking delicious and healthy food is easy and fun.

However, there are some dangers lurking among the most innocuous kitchen items and Nature Remedies consultant Junell Starr is here to point out the top four dangers in your kitchen that you need to look out for!

Microwaves

Do you think microwaves are safe to have in your home and to heat your food in plastic containers? Try this experiment: Take a glass of water and heat it up in your microwave, and after it cools down, water your plants with the water. Right around nine days later, your plant will be dead.

I do not have a microwave in my house because it kills the nutrition in your food and emits radiation not to mention the EMFs it emits.

So what’s the solution to a microwave? Simply use a toaster oven to warm up your food! I love mine, and it isn’t only a toaster oven but it also bakes, dehydrates and is an air fryer made by Breville.

Plastic

I personally boycott plastic whenever possible, including all sizes of plastic bags, straws, containers, water bottles etc.

Plastic and plastic containers are made out of petroleum, a chemical that is an endocrine disruptor. When food in plastic containers is heated in the microwave it accelerates the transfer of these toxic chemicals into the food. A study from the Environ Health Perspect found that microwaving in plastic tested positive for estrogenic, hormone disrupting activity.

Water in plastic water bottles has many harmful toxins like that leach into the water from the plastic bottle. Even more, toxic chemicals leach into the water if the bottle gets hot or if it is left in the freezer. Some researchers say there is no such thing as a safe plastic and that the toxic chemicals in plastic can cause negative effects on immunity and hormone regulation, both of which directly affect fertility.

So what’s the solution to plastic? Eliminate as much of it as possible, which also saves our ocean. Bring canvas bags when grocery shopping, carry a reusable straw and request no straw when you go out.

Most quality foods come in glass containers, so look to buy those instead of plastic. Carry your own reusable water bottles, and I filter my own water. If you have to buy water when you travel, buy it in glass bottles or use cleaning drops.

Teflon Pans

Teflon non-stick pans came out as a solution for easy clean up as they did not require a lot of oil to grease their surface during the non-fat, fat-free days. Now we know that these pans are toxic because the PFAS (poly-and perfluoroalkyl substances) that release a carcinogenic chemical, PFOA (perofluoroocanic acid), when heated. Furthermore, these chemicals are found in stain-resistant carpets that your babies crawl on in addition the fabrics your family wears which are water-repellent or stain-resistant.

Aluminum Pans and aluminum foil

Aluminum is used in many cooking techniques to save time with clean up. This can be wrapping your fish in aluminum foil as shown in television commercials, to covering your turkey at Thanksgiving, to putting the foil on the grill to avoid messy grilling. Many cheaper pans and/or very large pans are also made out of aluminum.

When cooking with aluminum the danger is associated with the leaching of aluminum into our food. Research into the dangers of cooking with aluminum has found that the toxic metal can contaminate edibles, especially when foil is used to cook or food is cooked on an aluminum pan.

What can be done? Start with better choices for cooking pans, such as cast-iron, stainless steel and ceramic. Here are some brands I suggest:

Beka Eco-Logic – A great line of eco-friendly and safe cookware is Beka Eco-Logic. The company offers a broad range of non-toxic, environmentally-friendly cookware, including skillets, frying pans, woks, ladles, skimmers, spatulas, and colanders. They are made of bamboo powder and other natural, biodegradable materials.

Ozeri Green Earth – For its lime green Green Earth pans, Ozeri uses a German nonstick, PFOA- and PTFE-free ceramic coating called Greblon. Its innovative honeycomb-textured cooking surface is scratch and heat resistant, and entirely safe to use on gas, electric, or induction stoves.

Ecopan – These durable, stainless steel pans will not dent or warp and are free of PTFEs and PFOAs. Furthermore, their nonstick ceramic coating is extremely heat resistant to prevent blistering and toxic fumes.

In addition, never use aluminum pans. Instead of tin foil use unbleached chlorine-free parchment baking paper. I use the brand “If You Care”. Store your leftover food in glass containers or wrap them in unbleached chlorine-free all natural waxed paper, such as “If You Care”.

Just make sure to avoid these top four dangers in your kitchen and happy healthy cooking for your whole family!!