I try not to get too wigged out about each new consumer horror story telling me about how I am poisoning my family. And though one of my other writing jobs keeps me well abreast of the latest research, I keep in mind that just living in this world — breathing the air, or doing something crazy like swimming in chlorinated public pools gives anyone a (un)healthy dose of toxins.

But little by little, change happens to me. I start to get antsy when I know that “fragrance” means a product has hidden toxins, in minuscule amounts, mind you, but possibly enough to cause human developmental problems. I think about how we can never trace certain cancers to a source, and how I don’t like the idea of Georgia’s generation being exposed to dubious cheap ingredients because of a lack of research and regulations in the mega-billion dollar beauty industry.

So I switched to a phthalate-free shampoo for Georgia, and buy organic [0] groceries whenever possible, and haven’t yet painted her room because I haven’t found the right shade of VOC-free paint. But I kind of just passed off the concerns about plastics. We have limited our plastic use anyway, so I just pushed it out of my head. Even though I stopped using (and reusing) plastic water bottles, and had reviewed Sigg [0] bottles back in 2006, and though even here among my Lime colleagues [0] I can find compelling reasons to be wary of certain plastics, I just wasn’t that worried. My family uses and reuses (and reuses and reuses) plastic bags, and have had the same two sippy cups for Georgia since she could first sip. We use plastic bottles in animal shapes that we got at the zoo. And who knows what’s in my beloved, ancient Melmac [1]?

But finally, after Su Avashti retired her Nalgene [1], and after reading two articles — one that eased my mind [2], and one that got me nervous [3] — I decided to check my plastic use. Here is a great resource for plastics info from the OCA [4], which defines plastics and their uses and dangers. So the suspect plastic Hello Kitty cup has been relegated to paintbrush use. The leaky cups with lids and the drippy (but adorable) animal sippers [5] checked out OK, but with much angst I threw away the two scratched, cloudy sippy cups (I had two thoughts: Have I poisoned Georgia, and, now what will we use for TV time?). I tossed or recycled all the deli and cream cheese containers I habitually reuse that weren’t #1, 2 or 5, and realized we were suddenly in the market for a new water bottle. And it was a true need!

Although we do use the Sigg bottle, it’s too difficult for Georgia to open it herself, so it doesn’t work for lunchbox use or if she just wants to be independent. With my mind on plastic toxins, I decided to try something I saw advertised here on LIME. I got a fancy BPA-free Camelbak water bottle [6]. Though my friend Jenny was put off by the nipple-like quality of the sipper (well, isn’t a nipple the perfect model?), Georgia, the lifetime non-nutritive sucker, finds it delightful, and super easy to use. It cleans up easily, and doesn’t make the water taste plastic-y or chemical-y either.

So even thought I’ve been plastic aware, I am now more plastic wary. Paying attention to yet another detail before I buy something, I note the recycling codes on containers and am more careful how I reuse each different plastic. It’s one more thing to worry about, but one less thing to worry about putting into Georgia’s system.