What the Kale?

How to surrender without giving up.

Welcome to a new week!

We started July here at The LIFT by talking about plastic + joining the Plastic Free July challenge. You no doubt had moments this month when it seemed hopeless. Trying to avoid single-use plastics is more challenging than we think. Still - it’s important + hopefully the exercise helped you notice just HOW important.

This brings me to today’s post…

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WHAT THE KALE?

This week, I was making a new recipe from Dan Buettner’s newest cookbook - The Blue Zones American Kitchen: 100 Recipes to Live to 100 - which I highly recommend by the way.

It was a Soba Kale Salad. A simple recipe with garlic, kale, soy sauce, soba + sunflower seeds. I had just finished chopping a bunch of fresh organic kale + was waiting for my cast iron skillet to heat up.

Perfect opportunity to catch up on social media for a few minutes. LOL.

I opened my Instagram app + was immediately greeted by a reel spotlighting a new study that found most U.S. kale samples contain ‘disturbing’ levels of ‘forever chemicals’.

Ugh! Seriously? PFAS in my beautiful, organic kale!

What the kale?!

Maybe you have had one of these moments where you think you’re doing something healthy + then someone pulls the rug out from under you with a headline like this one.

• Benzene in your sunscreen

• Arsenic in rice

• PFAS in yoga pants

It’s easy to see a headline + allow yourself to get overwhelmed + feel totally helpless.

“Ugh. We are swimming in a toxic soup. There’s nothing we can do about it. Why even try!”

That’s what a lot of people do.

But, not us.

We know better.

And, in the wise words of Maya Angelou - When you know better, you DO better.

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PFAS: aka “Forever Chemicals”

You’ve probably noticed a lot of recent headlines on the topic of PFAS - also referred to as ‘forever chemicals’.

Last year, when I went to Washington D.C. to advocate for the Safer Beauty Bill Package, one thing we noticed was that every legislator we met with that day, really stopped + listened when we mentioned PFAS.

PFAS are a hot topic on Capitol Hill due to concerns I will get to in a minute.

These ‘forever chemicals’ are added to consumer products to make them nonstick, waterproof + stain resistant. PFAS are used to make fabrics that don’t wrinkle + dental floss that easily slips between your teeth. They are also used in carpets, upholstery, food packaging + firefighting foams.

Most of the members of Congress we met with that day were surprised to learn that PFAS are also a problem in the personal care + cosmetics industry.

These chemicals are commonly found in products like lotions, cleansers, nail polish, shaving cream, foundation, lipstick, eyeliner, eyeshadow + mascara.

Turns out they are also in our water supply + soil - which is probably how they ended up in these kale samples.

The problem with these chemicals is that they are persistent, bioaccumulative + now ubiquitous in the environment.

They are in us, too. The CDC (Centers for Disease Control + Prevention) says it has found PFAS in the blood of nearly every individual it has tested for them.

Their potential for harm is not in question. PFAS have been linked to:

• obesity

• high cholesterol

• thyroid disease

• breast cancer

• early puberty

• early menopause

• kidney cancer

• testicular cancer

• liver disease

• ulcerative colitis

• difficulties during pregnancy

• suppressed immune system in children

• low birth weight

The list goes on. They are harmful to our health, persistent in our environment + we don’t have a good system in place to eliminate their use.

It’s a mess for sure.

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CLEAN UP

Sometimes you wish you didn’t know this stuff, but we do, so it’s time to do better.

Let’s go back to the kale example.

I eat kale five days a week. It’s loaded with nutrients, antioxidants + fiber. Ironically, kale is great at helping your body get rid of dangerous toxins. So, if I’m trying to support my body’s detoxification + liver function, kale + other cruciferous vegetables are super important.

Now, it’s clear PFAS might be in that kale. What do I do?

Should I stop eating kale?

Do I throw my hands up + say, “Well, what’s the point? I may as well eat a plastic-wrapped candy bar instead!”

I get it. It’s SO frustrating - all of the conflicting information we get out in the world every day. There is always a new list of things to help you live longer. And, every list contradicts something you saw on the last one.

I just wanted to share this story + this example as a reminder that there are things we CAN control + things we CAN’T. That’s why it’s important to take action where you can, so you don’t have to stress as much about the things you can’t control.

Back to the kale.

If I was someone who never eats kale, I probably wouldn’t need to stop + take note of this study, right? I mean - sure - it would be nice to be an expert on everything, but we have to be selective of where we focus our energy.

Since I DO eat kale most days, I did take a few minutes to dig into this study + see how it impacted my choices.

As a health coach, I always advise my clients to prioritize their efforts on the things they do every day - as opposed to the things they only do once in a while. For example, if you drink coffee or tea every day, make the cleanest choice you can to minimize your exposure to toxins (organic, loose leaf, fair trade).

If I had just read the headline on this kale study without any context, I wouldn’t have the full story.

This particular report on kale is important because it shows us that PFAS are showing up in places we wouldn’t expect. The likely source of PFAS in these samples is the water used (perhaps in irrigation or even in the display cases at the grocery store). It might also be from the use of biosolids, which are used as fertilizer or were used in the past + remain in the soil.

Once you know this, you can see that it’s very likely that PFAS are present in other crops as well. We already have studies finding PFAS in orange juice, milk + protein powder. The more we look for it, the more we find it.

So, do we just stop eating food? Clearly - that is not the solution.

The real point in a study like this one is not to stop eating kale. The point of this study is to shine a spotlight on the bigger issue + hopefully inspire more action to eliminate the use of PFAS globally.

This is why we need to educate ourselves, so we know how to effectively respond to headlines + new studies without compromising our efforts to be healthy.

I’m very fortunate because I have had a lot of education the last few years on chemicals like these + how they find their way into our daily lives. It helps me take information like this, contextualize it + decide how it impacts my life so I can take action, if needed.

When it comes to environmental health, you have to acknowledge this stuff is happening. You can’t simply ignore it. We have to accept this mess we have created for what it is without giving up on ourselves.

This is what I call ‘how to surrender without giving up’.

While we can’t control what’s in our air + water, we CAN take steps to improve our air + water. We do that by becoming aware of these issues + choosing to control the things we can in our own daily lives (which adds up + affects the bigger issue). We can also get engaged + advocate on the bigger issue.

Reading this study about kale doesn’t make me throw my hands up in despair. Instead, it makes me even more committed to eating my kale - along with all of my other cruciferous vegetables like cabbage, kale, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, bok choy, collard greens + broccoli - so I can support my body + its continued health.

It also makes me more committed to vocalizing the importance of removing PFAS from our environment - which brings me to today’s post. Helping spread the word where I can.

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START NOW

If you are just beginning to learn about chemicals of concern + are feeling a bit overwhelmed with how to make meaningful changes to reduce your exposures, here are a few ways to get started:

#1 - Reduce exposures where you can.

Because we can’t completely avoid these chemicals, it’s important to reduce our exposures where we can. Here are some easy places to start your clean-up efforts.

• Avoid plastic + nonstick pans

• Choose cookware made of cast iron, stainless steel, glass or enamel

• Filter your drinking water

• Eat more fresh foods to avoid take-out containers + other food packaging

• Avoid microwave popcorn + greasy foods wrapped in plastic

• Look for nylon or silk dental floss that is uncoated or coated in natural wax

• Avoid stain-resistant carpets + upholstery

• Opt for safer skincare + makeup without phthalates + parabens

#2 - Support your body’s detoxification pathways.

Our bodies are pretty amazing. We have our own built-in detoxification system. We can support our body’s detoxification pathways by eating well, hydrating + movement.

• Get lots of fiber in your diet from fresh fruits + vegetables. (Frozen is great, too!)

• Choose organic where you can (use the Dirty Dozen list to prioritize)

• Drink plenty of water. (Filter at home if you can versus buying in plastic containers.)

• Sweat daily. Exercise + sauna therapy are great options.

#3 - Use your voice for change

The other way we can support efforts to reduce PFAS is to get involved in our communities to support legislation + efforts to remove the use of these chemicals.

• Tell retailers + manufacturers you want products made without PFAS. Also, vote with your dollar by shopping with those who are doing their best to avoid them.

• Learn what your local water utility is doing to test for PFAS.

• Encourage your state to follow the lead of other states in creating more health protective drinking water limits.

• Ask your elected officials to support restrictions on PFAS in consumer products + remediation of contaminated sites.

As you can see, there are LOTS of ways we can take action + have an impact. The best part is that with each improvement you make, the less you have to worry about the things you can’t control.

This helps us live with less stress + we tend to make better choices when we are not buried in overwhelm.

Surrender without giving up.

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YOUR MISSION:

This week, I encourage you to do one thing to reduce your exposure to PFAS. One swap. One step. One action. Which one will you choose?

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RESOURCES:

• READ: New report finds most U.S. kale samples contain ‘disturbing’ levels of ‘forever chemicals | The Guardian

• READ: PFAS in Kale - A Pilot Study

• READ: Study finds PFAS exposure may cause early menopause in women | Endocrine Society

• READ: Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances and Hormone Levels During the Menopausal Transition | PubMed

• WATCH: PFAS and Protecting your Health | CDC

• Find out about local groups working to protect water quality by visiting:

  www.silentspring.org/PFAS

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IN SUMMARY:

If you are interested in learning more about how to reduce your toxic burden to support your health, stay tuned. I’m working on something to help you tackle it all in a very confident + sustainable way. Will have more details for you soon!

See you next week?

Meanwhile - you can read thru the archives here. And, please reach out to me anytime!

You can learn more on my website or follow along with me on Instagram @itMayBeMenopause

Email: karen@itmaybemenopause.com
Instagram: @itmaybemenopause

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