Thank goodness for old friends! If you’re like me, this year has really highlighted just how important and special moments of connection with friends can be.
My dear friend and fellow non-toxic living pioneer Loni Brown has a vision for the world that never fails to inspire me to learn, grow, and become a better version of myself. She’s warm, kind, intelligent, and incredibly fierce; truthfully, my favorite kind of human.
As a mom, eco-home and lifestyle coach, non-toxic nursery educator, aspiring building biologist, and co-founder of EntirelyEco.com, Loni is a woman who knows about clean, non-toxic living.
We finally had a chance to catch up recently over Zoom to chat through where we’ve been, and where we’re so passionately headed as we push on into the future with optimistic fortitude and a focus on sustainability. As a bit of backstory, our friendship started nearly 15 years ago when we were roommates in California. During that time, we were both learning about the chemicals and additives hidden in our food, the reality of the human microbiome, and how our modern lifestyles were unwittingly decimating not only our personal beneficial bacteria (which keeps you healthy), but our planetary microbiome and those of our future children as well.
As we exchanged memories, Loni recounted her personal awakening to health consciousness starting with the food we eat and trickling through to every aspect of our daily lives, evolving from a focus solely on what goes in our bodies to include what goes on and around them as well. It would be a calling that would spark years of studying and compiling the available data on the presence of toxic chemicals in our everyday lives and their connections to cancer-related illnesses to show how the common toxins in our homes are indeed impacting our immune systems.
The more she learned about the importance of microbial health (particularly during pregnancy and early childhood), the more she gained the clarity and courage to question the standard and help others take wellbeing back into their own hands.
Loni spent tireless nights and weekends contacting companies to grill them about hidden chemical adhesives—demanding their material data sheets, and asking pointed questions about the use of formaldehyde in products that would potentially contact the skin (even companies who claimed they didn’t use such ingredients). With a fire in her belly and an invigorating sense of hope, she launched her shop and incredible educational content at EntirelyEco.com with the goal of helping every person live a beautiful, healthy, non-toxic life.
Even when it seemed daunting to consider all of the ways that toxins potentially impede our wellness and safety, something Loni said really struck me, because I believe it with my whole heart too: “We have more control than we think.”
How right she is. We can accept the challenge to ourselves to learn more about the materials in our homes and how they might be affecting us. We can feel good about doing what we can, where we can.
Achieving a healthy, sustainable lifestyle is not a sprint, but rather a journey made easier with love, friendship, a shared sense of purpose—and of course, access to clean alternatives. It’s all about taking the next right step, over and over again, as often as you can, and voting with your choices to create the future you want to see. No one inspires me more in this area of my life than Loni.
If you’re thinking about how to make more health-forward choices as you create your home life and family culture, you’ll love hearing Loni speak from her soul about sustainability and non-toxic living in this interview. I’m so happy to share it with you!
You can listen to the full interview below to learn:
- How Loni and I met
- The importance of the infant microbiome and the immune system
- How buildings have their own distinct microbiomes
- Why access to air and diverse microbiota is imperative for health
- How to make small shifts in each area of your life in favor of clean alternatives
- Building a new home with non-toxic materials
- How toxic materials continue to pose harm for many years
- What to consider when it comes to non-toxic living at home
- The importance of essential oils for non-toxic living
- Loni’s must-have certifications and considerations for clean fabric
- Understanding greenwashing and how to choose trustworthy brands
- The future of non-toxic living
- How to stay positive and hopeful as you create your own culture and standard of living
- Pregnancy and new parent tips for non-toxic living
- How the Black Lives Matter movement has influenced Loni’s family and business
Ready to hear what it feels like to live and lead a non-toxic lifestyle? Check out our full interview below. You can also listen to an audio version of our interview here.
P.S. If you loved this article, you might also love Loni’s five simple tips for creating a non-toxic nursery space for little ones.