We’re focused on Clean Lifestyles this month and we want to help you embrace making small changes to live a cleaner and greener life. It’s true that living cleaner will affect some of the smallest decisions you make on a daily basis, but it doesn’t have to be a chore. In fact, the result is that you are left feeling lighter, more fulfilled and conscious. All good news in this crazy world!
- Go Veggie or Vegan 3-times a week!
We get it. It’s tough when you first consider the idea of giving up meat and fish. We’ve been there. I gave up meat for good around 2 years ago and Nick has been meat-free for over 10 years. Thriving on plants alone seems impossible until you try it. But give it a go in small steps and you’ll start to feel the benefits inside and out.
If you aren’t already fully vegetarian or vegan, opting for plant-based meals 30times a week at first. Plant-based food is nutrient rich, providing all the necessary vitamins and minerals that will help your body to function at its best for longer. You also reduce the negative impact of consuming meat, such as increased cholesterol, cancers and heart disease. If you need more than this to convince you, the agriculture of meat for consumption is now considered to be the single most significant contributor to global warming and environmental depletion. But don’t just take my word for it:
“A vegan diet is probably the single biggest way to reduce your impact on planet Earth, not just greenhouse gases, but global acidification, eutrophication, land use and water use,” Joseph Poore, at the University of Oxford
- Turn the bottle, jar, tin, packet around!
We regularly encourage you to turn the bottle around and avoid the top 10 most toxic ingredients in your self-care products. But this also applies to food and household products. Many products contain a host of extras that can have hugely negative effects upon your health and well-being. Avoid dyes, additives, sugar (of all variants), sodium, fragrances. To truly live clean, you would do best to avoid all processed foods and synthetic home cleaning products. There are loads of ‘clean’ home products now available. I love the Method brand as they are conscious about their packaging also and provide refills for the highest frequency products. As for our diet, we eat organic fruit and vegetables and only have processed foods as a treat now and then.
- What are you cooking on?
The ease of non-stick pans come at a serious cost to your health. The chemicals used to create the non-stick performance can actually become toxic when they are heated, i.e., you cook with them! This poses a serious risk of leeching into your food. There are some great brands out there, which offer harmless alternatives.
- Go at a slower pace…
Living in a lockdown has actually helped us all to embrace a slower pace of life and have given us the opportunity to make much healthier choices to how we move about. Do you have an opportunity to ride a bike or walk to work, school or the shops? Even if it is just a few times a week, this allows you to get some fresh air in your lungs, gets you closer to nature and the world around you and lowers your carbon footprint!
Watch these and never look back…
Here is a list of the documentaries that changed my perception of how I live my life and the impact it has on the beautiful world around me…enjoy:
- Cowspiracy
- Down to Earth – with Zac Efron and Darin Olien
- Black Fish
- Seaspiracy
- Gamechangers
- A Plastic Ocean
- Chasing Coral
- Sustainable
- Poisoned Water
I’m always happy to hear your thoughts and suggestions on the issues we raise. Email me at: hello@sakrid.com
We make good products, using good ingredients, that are good for you and good for our planet. All good things - We are Sakrid.
