The Global Achievers Issue 3/2020 | Page 30

shown that the BPA in that thermal paper gets transferred to anything it touches. Researchers have found that 99% of receipts and 81% of other paper products contain BPA, for example magazines, flyers, boarding passes, business cards, paper towels, napkins and even toilet paper. Is your head starting to spin?

Triclosan is an antibacterial that is used in hand sanitizers but because it has been found to be an endocrine disruptor and a carcinogen as well, many brands have replaced it with alcohol. But alcohol on the skin also has its negative effects: it dries out and irritates the skin but mainly it enhances skin penetration, which means that it opens up the normally protective skin barrier on your hands, allowing toxins to be absorbed. This is no small thing.

Other ingredients in hand sanitizers include Propylene glycol (the stuff in antifreeze) and Alumina (the inorganic compound of aluminium oxide). I bet you didn’t know most of that stuff you just read.

Grandma says: The most efficient and safest way to sanitize your hands is with water and soap, which is good enough to protect you from germs in most situations. But if you need something more, it is really easy to make your own hand sanitizer. I will share a natural recipe using essential oils. Essential oils have been used for centuries all over the world. Paracelcius curing leprosy as well as mentions in the Bible are not truly essential oils as we know them today, as back then the methods for extracting essential oils from the plants had not been invented yet, but we can say they were a sort of aromatherapy. During the second world war, many injured soldiers were successfully treated with essential oils. Be mindful to use therapeutic grade oils.

Aloe Vera gel

Aloe Vera

If you have Aloe Vera plants in your garden, gather some outer leaves, rinse, cut off the spiky edges, and cut into manageable chunks. Slice off the skin on both sides, place the gel in your blender, blend until smooth and strain.

Aloe Vera gel can be used internally as well as externally. If you want to use it internally like in your smoothies, I recommend rinsing off the goowy part after you slice open the leaf It is said to help with IBS, constipation, acid reflux, and to reduce inflammation