As I have been following the plastics ban initiative and attending Santa Barbara City Council meetings, it brought back memories of this same issue we were dealing with in Marblehead, Mass., three years ago.

There, I was involved with the Public Health Department, writing for the newspaper and doing television interviews with town officials, health-care providers and consumers. This also triggered memories of my post-graduate work in functional and integrative medicine.

This paradigm is about seeking root causes of a lack of wellness and not endpoint disease, as is the present focus in our conventional care model.

In the “functional approach” to health care, the quest is to look at complex symptoms and syndromes, halting the process toward disease altogether or at least slowing it down. Our country has excellent emergency medicine, and we are in exciting times looking at co-creating better “health” care that focuses on both prevention and emergency care.

Back to plastics. We have become a disposable society, and losing convenience is a tough habit to break. Our environment is certainly suffering the results of disposable items such as straws, to-go containers and plastic bags. Pollution affecting the oceans, land, animals, plants and humans is of great concern.

There will continue to be frustration about what to do instead, thus education is key. By creating new habits, we have to relearn and reinvent the throwaway society that we have created. And it won’t happen overnight.

This so rings true in my practice as a nutritionist, researcher and wellness consultant. Breaking old habits and creating new ones can be challenging, thus support and education is key in order to stay focused and motivated. I work diligently to establish and maintain relationships with my clients to stay focused in the behavior change process.

Chemicals found in plastics have known toxins. These include BPA, phthalates and other chemicals.

For purposes of discussion here, I will focus on BPA and phthalates. These are known endocrine disruptors, chemicals that show evidence for increasing the incidence of infertility, cancers, malformations in utero, thyroid malfunction and increasing obesity.

Phthalates, known as plasticizers, are found in cosmetics, perfumes, aerosols, paints, lotions, shampoos, nail polish … and I could go on, but you get the idea!

Our bodies are bombarded in ways that we don’t even think about. Research has shown more than 280 chemicals identified in newborn cord blood and of that, 180 cause cancer in humans or animals. Some of these statistics are from the Environmental Working Group, a wonderful resource for listing the safety of foods, personal care, cleaning products and more.

Signs and symptoms that may present in a “burdened body” include fatigue, depression, chemical sensitivity, autoimmune disease, headaches, hormonal imbalances, asthma and allergies, etc. The challenge with identifying toxic load is that there are so many diffuse symptoms that do not fit easily into the current model of one diagnosis. Thus, toxic burden is often overlooked.

What can we do in this challenging environment? First of all, recognize that change is not an overnight process. Begin by learning more about what is in your environment — from food we eat to the containers it comes in. Do an inventory of your “products,” and this includes not only personal hygiene, but cleaning products as well.

Gone are the days of pleasant smelling sprays and scrubs that used to be in the closet. Use white vinegar with a few drops of essential oils to brighten the smell as well as to contribute to powerful antibacterial properties.

Personal detoxification is also an important element of self-care. There are amazing natural detoxifiers, including cilantro, legume beans, hibiscus and chia seeds, to name a few. Scroll down for a recipe from my cookbook, Feel Great, Look Great — Balanced Eating for a Balanced Life.

Finally, use this plastic bag and straw ban as an opportunity to re-think what is in your environment and consider taking small, deliberate steps to cleaning up for us all — humans, animals, the oceans and our land.

Black Bean Cakes with Salsa Cruda

Serves 6

Salsa Cruda Ingredients:

» 1 cup tomato, chopped, seeded

» 2 tablespoons onion, minced

» 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped

» 2 tablespoons lime juice

» ½ jalapeno pepper, seeded, minced

» 1 clove garlic, minced

Bean Cake Ingredients:

» 2 15-ounce cans black beans, lower sodium, rinsed, drained

» ¼ cup all-purpose flour (or gluten-free alternative)

» ¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped

» ¼ cup grass-fed plain Greek yogurt, fat-free or Kite Hill Almond Greek Style yogurt

» 1 medium egg

» 1 tablespoon canola oil

» 1 tablespoon chili powder

» 2 cloves garlic, minced

» Cooking spray

Directions:

» To prepare salsa, combine all salsa ingredients in a small bowl and refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving.

» For cakes, place beans in a medium bowl; mash with fork or potato masher until almost smooth, leaving some beans in larger pieces.

» Stir in flour, cilantro, yogurt, egg, oil, chili powder and garlic.

» Heat a large, nonstick skillet over medium-high and coat with cooking spray.

» For each cake, drop 2 heaping tablespoonfuls of bean mixture onto skillet; flatten to form cake.

» Cook 6 to 8 minutes or until lightly browned, turning once.

— Julie Freeman, MA, RD, LD, RYT, is a licensed integrative nutritionist in Santa Barbara with advanced training in counseling and functional medicine. Her “toolbox” includes certifications in yoga, reiki, mind-body medicine, modeling and finishing for personal development, and she has written two cookbooks, Balanced Eating for a Balanced Life and Sweets n’ Treats. Click here for more information, or contact her at juliefreeman57@gmail.com. The opinions expressed are her own.