College Detox Cheat Sheet

I'm a toxic waste dump?!

It is not uncommon for us to feel disheartened and depressed to learn that many things we do on a daily basis are turning our bodies into walking toxic waste dumps. Yet it can be equally disheartening/depressing to be bombarded by lofty alternatives, and pricy solutions that seem impossible to adopt.

What are my options?!

It's as though we have to chose between consuming toxic chemicals on a daily basis or living off the grid as an organic farmer/hunter-gatherer, making our own deodorant, and weaving our own cloths from native wild grasses. ( not so comfortable, sustainable, or feasible for the typical college student) 

But I'm broke, stressed, and would like to pass my classes...

As college students we are lucky if we have time to stuff our face with easy mac or a pop tart as we hustle to and from home, classes, labs, group meetings, practices, work...etc. let alone grow and construct our own organic salads between classes... 

Easy Fix 

Us college students can reduce our consumption and exposure to toxins by making small changes to our daily routines that can actually save us time and money. The list below provides advanced toxin avoidance tips and workarounds to those tips or "cheats" for us broke, short-on-time individuals to implement so we can reduce our toxin intake without dropping out of school. 

Thus the College Detox Cheat Sheet:

(Click the image for a PDF of the Cheat Sheet)

Advanced Tip: Harvest natural materials to construct your own clay

oven for preparing food.

Cheat Tip: Microwave your food in glass or ceramic containers instead

 of plastic.  Even plastics labeled “microwave safe” can leach harmful

toxins into your food.

Advanced Tip: Convert your human waste into organic usable soil, by

building and using an outdoor compostable toilet. 

Cheat Tip: Choose bathroom cleaners like regular old baking soda

(super cheap!) or cleaners with A ratings from the Environmental

Working Group over cleaners that contain chemicals hazardous to

your health.

Advanced Tip: Use a hollowed organic gourd to collect your drinking

water from a naturally occurring spring; before consumption test it

for bacterial or chemical contaminants. 

Cheat Tip: Use refillable water bottles made from glass or stainless

steel instead of disposable plastics. By doing so you’ll avoid potential

exposure to harmful chemicals/bacteria and prevent plastic waste.

Advanced Tip: Live off the grid and survive by hunting wild game and

gathering noninvasive plants for sustenance. 

Cheat Tip: When purchasing foods at the grocery store bring your

own reusable shopping bag, instead of using the lightweight plastic

bags at the store. It is common to see these plastic bags in  rivers and

gutters. When they sit it water,toxic chemicals seep out of them and

into our groundwater.