How to Encourage a Healthy Home for Your Family

As mamas, it feels like we are responsible for the family’s health. While we have to keep in mind that our partners are their own person and are responsible for their decisions, there are things we can do as moms to encourage a healthy home and have our children and significant others WANT to make healthy choices.

This article is here to give you some tips to create a healthy home environment so it’s easier for the entire family to make healthier choices in your day-to-day routine.

7 Tips for a Healthy Home

1. Ensure Clean Air & Water

2. Use Clean Home Products

3. Prep Food for the Week

4. Healthy Snacks on Hand, Go-to Restaurants & Take Out

5. Bedtime Routine to Prioritize Sleep

6. Movement with the Family

7. Set a Good Example

1. Ensure Clean Air & Water

Clean Regularly

One of the simplest ways to make your home healthy is by making sure the air you all breathe is the cleanest! Many people worry about air pollution outside and don’t give too much thought to their inside home air, where it can contribute to health issues, and where people nowadays spend the majority of their day (especially if you work from home).

The easiest way to freshen up the air in your home is to dust and vacuum on a weekly basis, wash your bedding, and open up the windows or doors 15 minutes a day. Also, this is your reminder to change out your vent filters! These practices can help clean up indoor air quality and reduce the harmful effects of oxidative stress, gene activation (epigenetic), cellular health, and immune response.

High-Quality Air Filter

I also recommend investing in a high-quality air purification system. I personally use the Austin Air filter in my home and love it! If you or your little ones suffer from congestion, allergies, or asthma, I highly suggest getting one of these for their bedrooms and/or main living areas.

Use a High-Quality Water Filter-Berkey or Aquasana

Clean water is also a must. Water can contain chemicals and toxins that can harm your family’s health over time. In fact, in some places of the U.S., studies have shown that people eat a credit card’s worth of plastic EVERY WEEK! 

Having a high-quality water filter is a definite must. This can help eliminate one of the main sources of everyday toxins, reducing the amount of inflammation in the body.

I suggest either the Berkey water filter (use code TAYLORDUKES at checkout), which stands on your countertop, or the Aquasana that connects underneath your sink. Both are great options, depending on your budget.

2. Use Healthy Home Products Like Branch Basics

Only keep non-toxic products in the home. I love clean brands like Branch Basics (Use code TAYLORDUKESWELLNESS for discount). If you’re cleaning your home that has hidden toxic chemicals in them and your kiddos are crawling on the floor and eating food off the ground, those toxins are getting into their system.

Having only healthy cleaning products in the home will ease your mind, knowing you are not only keeping the house clean, but also not exposing your family to harmful chemicals by accident in the meantime.

3. Prep Food for the Week

We all know how hectic life can get as parents! Your favorite take-out is on speed dial for busy days. But reducing the number of take-outs a week can do wonders for your family’s health. I suggest planning out your meals ahead of time so it’s not 3 pm and you’re just deciding on what you’re having that evening for dinner.

If meal prepping is not your favorite thing to do, Sun Basket is a LIFESAVER! It’s a meal kit delivery service that offers not only healthy ingredients but organic too! Win!

To encourage your little ones to get healthy, have them help make dinner. They can measure ingredients or pour in the pre-measured ingredients. They will be more likely to eat the dinner if they are proud that they helped prepare it!

4. Healthy Snacks on Hand, Go-to Restaurants & Take Out

One of the main changes you can make in your home is to ditch those junk food snacks. When you’re at the grocery store, don’t even pick them up. I’m talking those gummies, cookies, and processed foods. You and your kids will be most tempted to choose those snacks if they are stocked in your pantry.

Instead, have fresh and easy to eat foods available and at arms reach. This will encourage your little ones and husbands to grab a banana or apple with nut butter instead of some chips. You can even prewash all your produce after you do your weekly grocery shop to make it easier to offer the easy option during the week. Plus you’ll be less likely to waste food…yet again. I see that celery that has yet to be chopped up.

If you’re lucky and you may live in a town or city that has a couple of healthy restaurants or take-out options to choose from if you do want an easy night. Do some research of your area to see what’s available. Keep a stack of menus in your home of only the healthy restaurants, so you’re more likely to order from there. Try to make sure each meal has some brightly colored veggies!

5. Bedtime Routine to Prioritize Sleep

Bedtimes are a game-changer… even for yourself! You can plug your wifi and tv into a timer extension cord and have it turn off between 8 or 10 pm. This will be your sign to stop scrolling on Instagram and get some quality sleep!

If you have teenagers, this can be a great routine to put into place. We all know they are likely up late scrolling mindlessly (just like us). This is a healthy home habit that everyone will get used to and secretly love when everyone’s feeling well-rested in the morning!

Read my blog on Healthy Sleep Habits to get your entire family some deep and restorative sleep!

6. Daily Movement with the Family

Evening family walks or bike rides are a great activity to put into your daily routine. Before or after dinner, you can do a neighborhood stroll. It doesn’t have to be long or intense (unless you want it to be), but encouraging the entire family to get out and move even 30 minutes is great for overall wellness and lifelong habits. Not only do you get moving and get your blood flowing, but you will also get fresh air and maybe sunshine, depending on what time you eat dinner.

7. Set a Good Example

In the end, if you want a healthy home, you have to be the one to set good habits and lead by example. They will see you with loads of energy, happy, maintaining an ideal weight, sleeping well and they will want it too!

But remember that practicing patience is essential. Everyone is on their own health journey. It may take time for them (especially husbands, let’s be honest) to jump on the health wagon. But ultimately, it is up to them and we need to respect that (even though it may be really hard at times!)

Also, keep in mind that we all still need to live life and have fun. While living a healthy lifestyle is great, keep in mind that it’s all about balance as well. Once in a while, a night out with friends, with some wine, burgers, and belly laughs, is totally worth it and healthier for your mind, body, and soul than staying at home, going crazy with the kiddos! Get what I’m saying, Mamas??

Creating a healthy home environment takes time. But with planning and consistency, having a home that promotes health and wellness is totally possible and doesn’t have to be a fight.

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