Katie Wells - The Wellness Mama 5-Step Lifestyle Detox: The Essential DIY Guide to a Healthier, Cleaner, All-Natural Life

As a mom to six kids and as a wife, my number-one priority is taking care of my family. I place a lot of importance on spending quality time with them and encouraging healthful lifestyles to keep us strongemotionally and physicallyand I want them to have everything they need to be safe, healthy, and happy.

But every time I turn around, the news is full of stories that scare me. One in five school-aged children (ages six to nineteen) has obesity, diabetes is on the rise in kids under age twenty, and toxins all around us can lead to autism, ADD, ADHD, asthma, cancer, and worse.

I remember reading an article ten years ago, after my first child was born, that this generation would be the first in centuries to have a shorter life expectancy than their parents. I was shocked by that statistic. I wanted better for my children and future generations!

Its sometimes confusing to know what to do. For one thing, theres all this crazy, conflicting advice about food. Not a week goes by without some miracle food or supplement being touted as the cure for everything from acne to cancer. The companies shilling these products have all kinds of flimsy studies to back up their claims and testimonials from people who insist they are cured.

At the same time, we continue to be sold fake food filled with chemicals, which takes the place of real food. The list of ingredients on many food labels often reads like something youd see on a paint can.

The beauty and health industry is the same. The products are so chemical laden that I wonder if these are skin creams or something to kill bugs with. What are we exposing our bodies to day after day? The chemicals in our household products just add to the overload. And each time we step out the door we are exposing our bodies to environmental toxins and pollution.

Stress is toxic too. Life today sometimes seems like were on a runaway train. Our busy, techno-driven culture takes a lot of our attention. Were glued to our smartphones, laptops, computers, and tablets, fulfilling our perpetual need to keep up with the constant flow of information while ignoring our already dwindling family life.

Its no wonder we struggle to adequately do the most important yet most difficult job we have: directing, managing, and being responsible for the outcome of our family.

Thats too bad, because we, as parents, have tremendous power. We often forget it among the dirty dishes and the sleepless nights, but we are perhaps the strongest potential force for good in this world.

Day in and day out, we are raising the next generation. The world changers. The thought leaders of tomorrow. The people who will hopefully fix all the problems that past generations have caused. It is both a tremendous responsibility and an incredible gift.

We also control the majority of the purchasing power in our country and have the ability to shift the supply and demand of the food supply. When we vote with our dollars and our time, big companies take notice and make changes.

Look at the past decades billion-dollar markets in natural products. Were demanding healthier options for our families, and some companies are listening. At the same time, were racing the clock on fixing health problems and environmental problems that threaten to change life as we know it.

This is serious business, and it can create a lot of anxiety and illness. I know because I used to have serious health problems. I felt sick and draggy all the time, raising my many small children and dealing with a whole lot of stress. It took seven years and eight doctors to figure out what was wrong with me: Hashimotos thyroiditisan autoimmune disease that affects my thyroid. I knew I had to make changes, but there were so many conflicting opinions on how to go about it. It took me a long time to fully recover, but thanks to living more naturally, I am no longer sick. I know all too well what autoimmune disease feels like, and I dont want it for my children or for any other child.

Looking back, though, Im forever grateful for this health struggle. Without it, I would never have learned about natural living or how to raise my children to have a healthier future.

You see, Im a Type A, solution-side person who takes things in her own hands, goes on the offensive, and gets control over the seemingly uncontrollable. And so I became a mom on a mission: to make sure my family stayed healthy and happyand with as little exposure to toxins and chemicals as possiblethrough natural living.

There was a lot of trial and error involved in creating a healthful natural lifestyle for my family. But finally, with my increasing concern about the toxicity of modern life, I was reborn as the Wellness Mamaa blogger, author, mom, and wifedetermined to make natural living and real food doable, even with a big family and lots of distractions.

For starters, I committed to serving real food to my familyfood that comes out of the ground and not out of some enticing box or package. I also decided to switch from using commercial household and personal products to ones I made myself. There are far too many chemicals in commercial products; they just werent for me. Using basic, everyday ingredients, you can make effective, nontoxic cleaning products whenever you need them. All you need are a few simple on-hand items, such as baking soda, vinegar, lemon, and soap. This helps save money, time, and unnecessary packaging and offers a nice alternative to the harsh chemicals many cleaning products include.

Then I took on cosmetics. Like every other woman, I loved cosmetics, and I liked to slather creams on my face and body Eventually, I wised up to all the potentially toxic chemicals in this stuff. So I tried making my own cosmetics. The more I experimented, the more I became convinced that the most nourishing things you can put on your skin can be the same as those you put in your mouth. I started off using fruitbananas, strawberries, whatever I had. Id just get the blender out, throw them in, and rub them on. Soon, my skin and body were feeling and looking healthier than ever. My hair shined again. My face got radiant. Best of all, this cost almost nothing.