Eco Friendly LivingEco friendly living is a great way to help your own health as well as the health of the planet and everyone else. Cutting back on your use of chemicals and energy consumption saves you money and resources.When you cut back on using chemicals and energy you save money and resources. It helps keep your air, water and land healthy. Not only does this make our environment more enjoyable, but it cuts your risk of getting sick. Toxins from pollution are a major source of many health problems because what's in the air, water and food supply eventually ends up inside you. Toxins get stored in your body and interfere with proper functioning of your cells. They make you more susceptible to diseases like asthma and cancer. 10 Eco Friendly Living TipsThese green living tips are easy to implement. Many will save you money. Living green protects your health. Eco friendly living protects the environment as a whole and it protects you directly as you limit the toxins you put in and on your body.1- Bring reusable canvas or cloth bags with you on shopping trips. These are very inexpensive to buy. If you use plastic, return them to the store for recycling or reuse them on your next visit. Plastic bags are made from petroleum. It takes 1,000 years to degrade. Hundreds of millions are thrown out every year. Making plastic uses a lot of natural resources and is polluting. 2- Carry your own water bottle. Keep a pitcher or jug of filtered water at your desk. The U.S. alone has dumped enough plastic water bottles to circle the earth several times. Not only that, but they are made from a plastic that leaches hormone-disrupting chemicals into your water. When you taste plastic, you are drinking plastic. 3- Limit disposable items. Use real dishes and silverware. Drink from a mug, not styrofoam. Styrofoam takes 500 years to degrade and leaves chemicals behind. It's made from coal, petroleum and ethylene which pollutes air and water when made. It can cause lung cancer and neurological problems. 25% of landfill waste is styrofoam. Need a doggy bag? Bring your own container. 
4-Use compact fluorescent bulbs. They use four times less energy than regular bulbs and last fifteen times longer. They save you money in the long run. If every American household changes out ten lights it would be like taking 16 million cars off the road for a year. That's a lot of saved energy and pollution.5-Use your clothes dryer efficiently. Do a few loads. A warmed up dryer saves drying time. Remove lint after every load. This saves energy by cutting drying time. Too much lint is also a fire hazard. 6-Turn off your lights, TV and appliances when you're not using them. Phantom power use wastes energy and is responsible for tons of emissions. Leaving lights and all on when no one is in the room for more than 10-15 minutes costs you lots of extra money over time. When you add everyone's unnecessary waste together it adds up to a lot of air and water pollution. 7-Buy it local. Transportation requires a lot of fuel. Support local small farmers. Much of the local produce at farmers markets is organic or pretty close to it. Feel free to ask. Likewise, ordering items that can be bought locally requires extra shipping. 8-Think green living when redecorating. Use low VOC paints, buy carpets and countertops made with recycled materials, choose natural, sustainably grown products over synthetics. This practice will cut back greatly on unhealthy indoor air pollution. 9-Choose non-toxic cleaning products to protect your family and the environment from chemical toxins that can make you sick. Protect you hands and lungs when you do have to work with chemicals. 10-Be very conscious about what you put on your skin and in your body. Choose organic or more natural products whenever possible. This applies to many items. Here are some examples.
These are small changes you can easily make. Once you make some changes and establish new habits it will be second nature. Eco friendly living will make your home and our planet a healthier place for all of us to live. By yourself the effects of living green on the planet may be small. When lots of people pitch in, the benefits of eco friendly living are enormous for all of us. The health of all of us is at stake. Please do your part.
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