A few weeks ago I made a new friend. In searching for and reading numerous articles and blogs in the natural product world, I came across Tonya’s blog about transitioning her family to natural products. I made the mistake of logging in to comment on her blog on CafeMom. Little did I know that men were not allowed to do so. Sorry CafeMom! In any event, Tonya saw my post before it was deleted, she contacted me, and we’ve become buddies. She’s in the midst of leading her family on an exciting journey to the world of natural products. We’re doing what we can to help her get there, and she’s doing what she can to educate us on issues of importance to concerned moms like her. We’re excited to have a guest blog post from Tonya. If any of you are interested in writing a guest post, just let us know.

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Hi there!  I’m new!  New to Abe’s Market and new to natural products.  While my transition to natural products is only two months old, my story starts much earlier than that.  It was almost two years ago that I developed persistent hives that I still haven’t been able to rid myself of entirely.  My dermatologist explained hives are pretty common and most likely they are due to some personal or home care product I am using.  If I could find the offending product, I could rid myself of the hives.

The hard part was figuring out what the offending chemical was.  I started reading labels and trying to figure out what it could be.  I tried to cut out certain components but it was really hard to do because every product I had was full of chemicals!  I made a few half-hearted attempts at replacing “cheaper” products with name-brand “quality” products, but mostly I was resigning myself to living with hives.

Once winter hit here in the northeast, and my daughter’s eczema returned, my concern peaked.  I was finally aware that the products I buy for my family are having more effects on us than I was giving them credit for.  The baby’s red butt, my hives, Abby’s eczema, my dry skin and hair – where will it end?  I realize many of the chemicals in use on personal care products are GRAS (generally recognized as safe), but could cause reactions in “sensitive” people.  However, I don’t think these guidelines take into consideration the number of products people are using with multiple chemicals in them.  I don’t blame my hives on any one product, but rather the collective use of dozens of products containing hundreds of chemicals.

With this in mind, my only option was a bold move.  I declared my family would be switching to natural products, a process I call our “natural transition”.  It is definitely a transition that will take place over this whole year.  I plan to continue using the products we are used to, but as each item runs out, I am making more educated decisions about what products to purchase in their place.  This slow transition has dual purpose: to minimize the effects on my budget, and give me time to research every product area in my life.  As a scientist, my research into new products may be more detailed than most consumers.  Until I see dramatic results in the quality of my skin and hair, I don’t have the luxury of cutting corners on anything “not quite natural”.

I’ve identified seven product areas included in our natural transition: food, water, air, cleaners, personal care products, disposable packaging and toys.  My commitment to these seven areas is a true lifestyle change my whole family has been happy to pursue.  I am really happy to have found Abe’s Market and explore the many natural products offered here.  Abe’s has natural products for most of these areas of my life, and I look forward to trying the many products that would make fine replacements for what I currently use.

Tonya