So if you’re reading this feeling overwhelmed by the idea of “clean” or “crunchy” living, trust me… I get it more than you know!

But everything changed when my health (and especially my children’s health) forced me to look deeper. Functional medicine appointments, long testing panels, weird symptoms we couldn’t explain… all of it pushed us toward a cleaner lifestyle one tiny step at a time.

And that’s the key:

One tiny step at a time.

The biggest mistake people make when trying to live a cleaner, low-tox, or crunchy lifestyle is thinking they need to change everything all at once.

Today, I want to share the first five changes I would make if I were starting this journey again. 

These changes made the biggest difference for our family’s health, reduced chemical exposure, and helped us build rhythms that actually stick.

1. Start With a Mindset Shift (The Foundation of Crunchy Living)

Before making a single swap, you need to change how you think about this lifestyle.

When we first visited a functional doctor, the list of things we “needed” to change felt impossible. I literally cried in the office and said:

“I can’t mill my own wheat! This is too much!”

And my doctor said something that completely changed everything:

“What you change today makes today healthier than yesterday.
Master one thing at a time.”

That sentence carried me through the overwhelm.

You don’t need to fix your whole lifestyle overnight.

You simply need to commit to mastering one change at a time.

When it feels like second nature, move on to the next.

2. Learn About Glyphosate (and Why It Matters for Your Family)

One of the biggest wake-up calls for us came when our son’s lab results came back showing:

• 14x higher glyphosate (Roundup) levels than average
• High BPA (microplastics)
• Heavy metals
• Signs that his body couldn’t detox properly

I used to believe glyphosate exposure came mainly from spraying your yard. Nope. The biggest exposure for most people (especially kids) is food.

Foods we changed immediately after learning this:

• Store-bought bread → we now make our own with our bread machine!
• High-spray fruits → we prioritize organic grapes, apples, and strawberries
• Yard maintenance → switched landscapers to a vinegar + orange oil + soap weed spray

This wasn’t an overnight shift. But removing glyphosate-heavy foods made a massive difference in our kids’ health and behavior!

If you want to start crunchy living in the simplest, most impactful way, begin by learning about glyphosate and choosing organic where it matters most.

3. Remove Artificial Dyes From Your Home (The Easiest Big Win)

The day a friend pointed out how my kids’ behavior spiked and crashed after eating dyed snacks… everything clicked.

After a little research, the evidence was undeniable:

Artificial dyes contribute to hyperactivity, mood swings, and inflammation in many children.

And the best part?

Removing dyes is the easiest crunchy living change you can make.

Within days, our home felt calmer. 

Our kids regulated better. 

And honestly, switching to dye-free alternatives at stores like Costco, Thrive Market, or Trader Joe’s was simple!! (Thank goodness!)

4. Replace Seed Oils With Healthier Cooking Oils

This is another simple swap that has a big long-term payoff.

We removed seed oils like:

• Canola oil
• Vegetable oil
• Soybean oil
• Sunflower oil (in most processed foods)

And we replaced them with:

• Extra virgin olive oil
• Avocado oil
• Butter or ghee
• Tallow

These oils are more stable, more natural, and less inflammatory. If you want a fast crunchy win that doesn’t overwhelm your grocery budget, start with your oils!!

We LOVE Thrive Market for these products, and couldn’t recommend them more!!

5. Say Goodbye to Plastic Dishware (Especially for Kids)

When BPA showed up in our son’s results, we realized the problem wasn’t just food, it was what we were eating from!

We used to have Paw Patrol cups and plastic straws that were literally chewed down on the edges. Microplastics everywhere.

Now we use:

• Stainless steel cups
• Stainless steel straws
  
• Mini mason jars with protective silicone sleeves
• Stainless steel or cast iron cookware (instead of Teflon)

These swaps last longer, look better, and massively cut down on chemical exposure.

6. Clean Up the Kids’ Snack Cabinet (The Hardest But Most Impactful Change)

This deserves a blog post of its own, because it’s where most families get overwhelmed.

Snacks are where kids get the biggest influx of:

• Seed oils
• High fructose corn syrup
• Artificial dyes
• Preservatives
• Glyphosate-contaminated ingredients

We didn’t eliminate snacks… that’s not sustainable for us!

We simply cleaned them up.

Snacks that work for our family:

• Homemade Powerballs (we keep the whole batch in a Pyrex and scoop instead of rolling)
• Boulder or Good Company chips (avocado oil)
• Zero-sugar organic yogurt pouches
• Simple fruit strips (3 ingredients)
• Fresh fruit and cheese sticks

Kids resist change at first, but they adapt way faster than you think, especially if you explain why you’re making the switch and teach them to read labels themselves!

Final Thoughts: Start With One Change Today

If you feel overwhelmed reading this, that’s normal.

But feel free to steal this phrase my functional doctor told me…

“One change today makes today healthier than yesterday.”

You don’t need to live on a farm, mill wheat, or overhaul your pantry in one weekend. 

You just need to make one intentional shift!

A mindset change.

A new oil.

A box of snacks without dyes.

A switch from plastic to stainless steel.

A deeper look at glyphosate.

If you start with one, it will naturally lead to the next!!

And before you know it, you’ll look back (just like we have) and realize how far you’ve come!!