Let's find out why these products are so bad for you and what natural alternatives may save you a lot in medical bills sometime in the future.

Most raw food enthusiasts eat raw foods because they want to stay healthy; they want to look and feel their best. Some fail to consider however the hidden toxins that may be present in other everyday products they use.

If you adopt a raw diet because you want to eliminate some of the poisons from your life, then it's time you learned about other potential hazardous products on the market today. Here's a short list to help you out.

• Toothpaste – Ordinary toothpaste often contains fluoride, and this is poisonous. If you have ordinary toothpaste in the house and young children, watch out. Most young children end up swallowing toothpaste at least a few times during their life, and this can cause cancer!! The best step you can take is buying natural toothpaste and if that makes you cringe at least get toothpaste minus the fluoride.
• Nail Polish – Many nail polishes contain ingredients that can cause respiratory problems in adults and possibly birth defects in unborn children. Pregnant women are often advised to use with care. Some of the ingredients can be absorbed into the nail, especially if the color is worn continuously. There are some healthier varieties of nail polish currently on the market that contain safer ingredients but you will have to look for them. Regardless you should leave your nails free every now and again so they have a chance to breathe.
• Deodorant – When is deodorant not deodorant? Well, first when it is antiperspirant, which contains aluminum, and other ingredients that are supposed to stop you from perspiring. Unfortunately this can cause cancer in many people or Alzheimer's disease, a syndrome where you can't remember things or people as you get older. So, try to buy natural forms of deodorant. There are many crystal rocks that have natural deodorizing ability. Some people prefer to wear their natural scent. If your body is clean and you don't harbor a bunch of bacteria, usually you will find you have a distinct “odor” but that you are not unpleasantly smelly. (Unless you are sick, in which case you may just smell a little). Humankind has sweat for centuries. Some people just bathe once or twice each day and that seems to take away any lingering effects of sweat. Try it and see what you think. An alternative to deodorant may be powder.
• Sunscreen – Sunscreen is usually loaded with chemicals and contain animal products, especially if you start buying versions that tan and provide sunscreen, or those that are water proof and sand proof and have lots of smell good perfume and the like. If you want to have sunscreen that is safe and you probably do if you take care of your body, then the odds are you want a product with titanium oxide in it, which goes on the skin to form a barrier between you and the sun. It doesn't go in the skin so you are protected from any ill effects.
• Cleaning Products – Nearly all household cleaning products are extremely bad for your health. They all contain chemicals; it is these chemicals that make your house “smell” good if that is the kind of smell you enjoy. These chemicals can cause cancer and have been found to cause cancer and even infertility or birth defects in women. If you do not use them in a well-ventilated area or use them without gloves to protect your hands, you could be in serious trouble later in life. Keep this in mind. What can you do instead? Buy natural products which usually incorporate some essential oils. This will usually do the trick. Many have antiseptic properties although soap and water is really anything anyone needs to clean anything.
• Perfume – Perfumes may smell very good but some cheaper varieties are loaded with chemicals. The stronger odors are likely to cause headaches and even migraines in susceptible individuals. What can you do? Try using pure essential oils. You can delete them so the odor is not quite as strong. You can also find fragrances that are natural and musky, flowery or elegant. There is almost no essential oil that could not replace a similar perfume, and the scent tends to last longer.
• Moisturizers – Amazingly there are dozens of various moisturizers on the market. Yet few of them contain natural ingredients. When you do find a moisturizer with only one or two ingredients it is buried behind a half dozen varieties with all kinds of chemicals in them. Remember your skin is an organ and acts like one. Anything you put on your skin is absorbed into your body. So if you put chemicals on your skin that are not good for you your body will absorb them. Over time the amount of chemicals in your body multiplies. The ill effects of these chemicals will also multiply. This can lead to autoimmune diseases, allergies and like many other toxins mentioned today, cancer.

You know the old saying “You are what you eat!”? It is true… you are what you wear too and smell and use. Your skin literally will take in anything you put on it. So if you use a harmful cleaner and it gets on you and you leave it there for some time, your skin is going to absorb some. As a raw foodist this should be very alarming to you. No amount of good food can cancel out the harmful exposure to daily toxins as these.

Make sure you take time to clean your home of toxins, not just your body!

By TTS Cofounder Botanical Chef Omid Jaffari