The Plastic Detox
The Plastic Detox is a chilling and necessary look at the ways in which humanity poisons itself on a daily basis. The overarching message of the documentary is that our exposure to the toxic chemicals in plastics including phthalates, BPA, and parabens, disrupt our endocrine system, leading to disease, obesity, reduced fertility, and ultimately threaten our survival as a species.
PhD Shanna Swan works with six couples experiencing unexplained infertility and challenges them to detox their homes from plastic in order to reduce their exposure to EDCs (endocrine disrupting chemicals). In the kitchen they swap plastic cooking utensils for wood or metal. They replace plastic cutting boards with wood, plastic tupperwares with glass. At the grocery store they try to avoid buying foods in plastic whenever possible and reduce getting takeout where hot food comes served in plastic.
In the bathroom, their personal care items get a complete overhaul. Phthalates are a group of chemicals used for a couple of reasons. They are known as plasticizers added to give flexibility to hard plastics and used in bath and body products as a way to help fragrances last longer. In the United States manufacturers can hide dozens to hundreds of toxic chemicals including phthalates under the catchall terms fragrance or parfum. Known as the fragrance loophole, you can usually assume that your products contain phthalates unless specifically labeled phthalate free. Phthalates are used in almost all personal care products including perfumes, colognes, deodorants, shampoos, conditioners, soaps, scented candles, air purifiers, laundry detergents, and cleaning products. These chemicals are absorbed through the skin, but can also enter the bloodstream through inhalation alone.
Phthalates are endocrine disruptors meaning they interfere with hormone signaling in the body. Not only can this affect fertility, but these chemicals are also known as obesogens which can disrupt metabolic function, affecting the way the body stores and uses fat, leading to weight gain. Not only do most personal care products already contain these chemicals, but they can also leach out from the plastic bottle into the product, which is why choosing products in glass, metal, or paper is a better option when trying to limit exposure to these chemicals.
Because of the pervasiveness of EDCs in most products, the best way to limit exposure is to reduce the number of products used in your daily routine for a small number of non-toxic products. Simplify your household cleaning products by switching to non-toxic products like baking soda and vinegar. In the Plastic Detox, the six couples drastically reduced their plastic exposure and not surprisingly saw a decrease in plasticizers such as phthalates and BPA in their urine. By the end of the 12 week experiment, three out of the six couples had gotten pregnant, with another couple getting pregnant shortly thereafter.
Some ways you can limit exposure to harmful chemicals:
-Switch to wood, stainless steel, and glass kitchen tools.
-Avoid nonstick pans
-Avoid heating food in plastic containers
-Choose bath and body products that are phthalate, paraben, and BPA free (look for fragrance-free vs. unscented)
-Choose simple, fragrance-free cleaning products
-Avoid scented plug-ins and scented candles
-Use stainless steel or glass water bottles
For a more in depth look at the Plastic Detox and more suggestions on how to limit exposure to toxic chemicals visit https://opsociety.org/theplasticdetox/the-film/.
