I have been debating this idea of getting rid of all the plastic food containers in our kitchen for awhile now. I have been going back and forth and how feasible this would be and if it is really necessary. Some of the containers that we have are from 2012. We got them when we got married and now it is 2018. That seems like WAY too long to keep plastic containers that are storing food items. I wash them, but they are looking a little rough. With that in mind, I was reading Real Food for Pregnancy and there is an entire chapter devoted to toxins. That was the chapter that really made me stop and decide to order more glassware. I am going to write up a whole review on this book, once I am finished reading it. I am almost done and I have to say it is such a great book for anyone who is expecting, planning on having children or counseling pregnant women. It is a must read! There is a blog post that Lily wrote up on this topic as well that I thought I would share. The big take away so questioning storing foods in plastic and reusing them over time. That is practice has not been shown to be healthy for pregnant women, but also can affect just healthy individuals as well.
I think this information applies to pregnant women obviously, but also all people. Those toxins are in these products and will have an affect on us whether we are pregnancy or not. I started to also think about all the times I am using plastic throughout the day. The cream cheese I got is in a plastic container, the bagel is stored in a plastic bag, my reusable water bottle is plastic, and then I am putting all of our left-over food in plastic containers in the refrigerator. I work hard to limit our consumption of certain products and we recycle the plastic that we do use. But I think there are always ways that we can do more. How many times are you coming in contact with plastic throughout the day?
I took all the plastic containers out of the cabinets and started to put them out on the counter. It was amazing how many containers I had accumulated over the years. Some of these containers are older than others and I don't feel like they are suppose to last as long as they do. I have had some of this Rubbermaid since 2012 or before. That is over 6 years and I feel like heating and cooling plastic for that long and eating food out of it isn’t the best of ideas. I decided to go with glassware instead. Glassware can last for 6 years and hopefully more and you don’t have those same concerns as with plastic. I purchased a set of Pyrex glassware with plastic lids. The lids are replaceable and you can get new ones if needed. I ordered this set off of Amazon and then got some small 1 cup containers as well for packing lunches for work. I don’t have all the plastic and glassware in the picture below, but it is the majority of what we have. I have been slowly getting rid of the plastic and replacing containers with glass instead.
I encourage you to take a look at all the plastic that you encounter throughout the day. Are there ways that you can reduce your plastic consumption? Can you reuse or recycle some of those items? Do you have to use plastic as all? What if you looked to get rid of that plastic and replace it with another product like stainless steel or glass? This isn’t suppose to a post to scare you, but instead make you think and find ways to be healthier and help our environment along the way!
