Taylor Dukes’ Tips & Swaps for a Non-Toxic Home | The Skinny Confidential

Needless to say, when Taylor Dukes was diagnosed with a brain tumor it changed her entire life. The experience caused her to audit every single thing in her life, namely her home. After doing her own research, Taylor has built an entire brand based on healthier choices for all areas of your life.

Taylor is a board-certified family nurse practitioner and the founder of Taylor Dukes Wellness, a functional medicine practice and educational platform. Taylor specializes in helping individuals overcome chronic health issues by addressing gut health, hormonal imbalances, detoxification, and overall lifestyle. Through her practice, supplement line, she empowers clients with personalized protocols and evidence-based strategies to support long-term wellness.

Ahead of moving into a new home and renovating, Taylor is sharing with us the top things she’s keeping in mind for a non-toxic home.

From cookwear to pantry staples, to bedding and totally free tips to make your home a cleaner, healthier place, Taylor’s tips are accessible to anyone. With that, let’s welcome Taylor to the blog.

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Hey y’all! I’m Taylor Dukes, a functional medicine provider, board-certified family nurse practitioner, wife, and mama with a crazy health history.

In my 20s, I was dealing with all the mystery symptoms – weight gain, bloating, fatigue, acne, brain fog, hormonal imbalances, joint pain, and more. I was an ICU nurse, yet I couldn’t figure out how to heal myself. Every conventional specialist I saw wanted to slap a Band-Aid on my issue with pharmaceuticals, diet, or invasive treatments.

Nothing worked until I gave functional medicine a shot as a last-ditch effort. It changed my life by helping me get to the root cause of my issues, which pushed me to pivot my career path.

I trained under top functional medicine doctors, opened my own private practice, built a wellness product line full of healthier pantry staples, vitamins, supplements, and more (shoutout to the TDW Shop), and created an online VIP community that has taken the confusion and stress out of navigating healthy living and functional medicine for thousands of people.

In 2022, I was delivered the shocker of a lifetime and diagnosed with a brain tumor – by the way, I had zero symptoms. I was gifted a full body preventative scan that revealed a brain tumor.  I used an integrative approach – I combined the best of functional oncology and western medicine to beat it! I did have brain surgery, but opted out of chemo and radiation. By the grace of God, I’m now cancer-free. We were able to determine that the tumor had been growing likely 8-10 years and started when I was sick years ago. Even though I was feeling well and had no symptoms, that experience made me double down on clean living – especially in the home where we spend 90% of our time.

I’m getting ready to move, so it’s the perfect time for me to share the simple home swaps and tips I’m using to create my family’s healthier home environment. Whether you’re brand new to this or have been making non-toxic changes for a while now, these are real-deal recommendations that will actually make a difference.

Taylor Dukes’ Tips & Swaps for a Non-toxic Home

Bedroom

Did you know your body enters its most powerful state of detox and repair while you sleep? Your liver, brain, hormones, lymphatic system, and digestive organs all work to flush out toxins and reset.

I cannot stress enough the importance of making sure your bedroom is a chemical-free safe haven to support your body in detoxifying and resetting. 

Mattresses & Pillows:

You’re either touching or breathing into these surfaces all night, so it’s essential they are made from materials that are clean and safe and will not offgas chemicals such as VOCs. VOCs are sadly found in everything from rugs, paints, furniture, and fire retardants to hairsprays, air fresheners, and cosmetics. I love Savvy Rest (use code TAYLORDUKES) and Avocado for all my family’s mattress and pillow needs. 

Sheets & Bedding:

Go for 100% organic cotton or pure linen. Thankfully, these are widely available at a variety of price points – Target, Pact, West Elm, Coyuchi, and Parachute all have good options.

Area Rugs:

Try to stick to natural fibers like cotton, jute, or wool to avoid chemicals.

Bathroom & Personal Care

Toilet Paper:

Most are full of dyes, chlorine, fragrance and other chemicals. Not the kind of things you want to be wiping on such delicate and absorbent areas of the body! I love TSC bamboo toilet paper.

Feminine Products:

Look for 100% certified organic cotton that does not include perfumes, dyes, colors, or added chemicals you can’t pronounce. Just plain cotton! Alternatively, you can go with a medical grade silicone cup. Some favorite brands for both organic cotton feminine products as well as cups include: Rael, Viv, Natracare, Cora, Organyc, Saalt, and Flex.

Razors:

Think about it – most conventional razors have safety strips that contain all sorts of chemicals. And you’re swiping these chemicals (even nicking yourself!) across areas that are loaded with lymph nodes (underarms, groin, etc.). For the body, I love something super simple like Leaf or Zomchi.

Towels and Washcloths:

Wrap your body in 100% pure organic cotton washcloths and towels. Target, West Elm, Coyuchi, and Pact have solid options.

Tools: Body brushing, natural sculpting, and non-toxic anti aging tools are where it’s at. No judgement ever, but I will always choose a natural method such as those mentioned above over invasive treatments or chemical-laden Botox and fillers. Some of my favorites include TSC’s Ice Roller (when I’m not at home, the Mint Roller travels with me everywhere) and the Butter Brush. 

Cleaning & Laundering

Indoor air can be 2-5x more polluted than outdoor air – in some cases up to 100x higher (source)! Indoor environments are filled with all sorts of synthetic chemicals and other indoor air contaminants from conventional cleaning or laundering products.

Candles:

Swap out conventional candles with endocrine-disrupting chemicals and synthetic fragrances, for cleaner options like The Skinny Confidential one. I love that Lauryn formulated the TSC candle with natural soy wax and pure essential oils.

Air Freshening:

Toss the plug-ins and air fresheners that are laden with endocrine-disrupting chemicals for a diffuser and pure essential oils such as Pranarom essential oils. 

Cleaning Solutions & Sprays:

DIY with vinegar, baking soda, and water for nearly any cleaning need. Or use Branch Basics like me for literally all aspects of house cleaning, from toilets to tubs to kitchens to floors. 

Laundry Detergent:

Go for non-toxic alternatives – Molly’s Suds detergent or Branch Basics powdered laundry detergent are great options. 

Fabric Softener:

Did you know you can use distilled vinegar as non-toxic fabric softener?

Dryer Sheets:

Wool dryer balls are the perfect dryer sheet alternative. Add a couple drops of essential oils to each laundry ball if you’re looking for that “clean scent” effect. 

Kitchen

As a big-time label reader and mom, I was so disappointed with the lack of clean food and beverage options out there, which led me to create my own healthy versions of everyday nutritional products. I can’t tell you what a relief it is to no longer have to worry about finding a clean option for protein powder, sports drinks/electrolytes, coffee, and more. All of our products are made with organic and/or real food ingredients. You can use code SKINNY for a 10% discount on any TDW Shop order (excluding subscriptions).

Not only is your food important, but so is your cookware, your storage — it all adds up. Here’s what I keep in my low-tox kitchen.

Pantry/Fridge:

Stock your home with organic, whole foods. This means avoiding highly processed foods, refined sugars, and unhealthy fats. Always read labels! If the ingredient list is a mile long – or if you can’t pronounce/don’t know some of the ingredients – toss it! 

Lauryn and I are one in the same in our belief that we should all consume high-quality protein at every meal for lean muscles, balanced hormones, glowing skin, and fewer cravings. Whether it’s grass-fed beef, pastured chicken, wild-caught seafood, or a clean protein powder like Taylor Dukes Wellness Bone Broth Protein.

Some other staples in addition to the clean proteins mentioned above include:

Healthy fats: ghee, grass-fed butter, extra virgin olive oil, tallow, avocados, macadamia nuts.

Organic produce: A variety! I go for antioxidant-rich berries, all the leafy greens, and cruciferous veggies like broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, and brussels sprouts. 

Cleaner swaps for conventional products: This is where I go for things like my clean and convenient mixes for Protein Pancakes, Electrolytes, Hot Chocolate, and Lemonade. I also love Siete tortillas, Masa chips, Chomps or Paleovalley jerky, and Solely fruit to name a few.

Food Storage/Water Bottles:

Trash your plastic, especially those with “forever chemicals” like PFAS that can leach into your food. Opt for glass or stainless steel instead. Silicone bags such as Stasher are good for snacking and storing food, just so long as it’s not hot!

Cookware:

I encourage you to do an overhaul and get rid of anything Teflon/nonstick. Here are the surfaces I like: cast iron, stainless steel (like All Clad), enameled cast iron (like Le Creuset), and non-toxic ceramic. I love my Caraway set.

Wrap/Baking Sheets:

Instead of aluminum foil or plastic wrap, which can contaminate your food with heavy metals and/or PFAS, choose non-toxic options like Bee’s Wrap or unbleached parchment paper. 

Dish Soap/Detergent:

The residue from whatever you use will most certainly remain on your dishware. I love ATTITUDE unscented dish soap or using my Branch Basics all purpose spray, plus I also love their dishwasher tablets. 

One of the biggest objections I hear from others against transitioning to a healthier lifestyle is the cost. But transitioning to a healthier lifestyle is possible, even on a budget. No change is too small that it doesn’t make an impact. 

Below are affordable changes you can make without a total home renovation required:

Open windows daily to improve ventilation and air quality.

Wet dust and vacuum (with a HEPA filter vacuum) regularly to rid your home of VOCs, which travel on dust. 

Invest in an air purifier (first, for the bedroom, and next, for common living spaces). If a high-end air purifier isn’t your budget, you can DIY an air purifier with a box fan and a filter for super cheap. I outline the process in this article. 

Use the bathroom exhaust fan before, during, after bathing and showering to reduce the likelihood of mold. 

Track humidity (optimal goal is under 45%) – you can find humidity monitors for under $10 on Amazon! If necessary, purchase a portable dehumidifier.

Take your shoes off indoors. Keep a shoe tray and/or shoe rack by the front door as a gentle reminder for all who visit. 

Invest in a water filter to remove contaminants from your drinking water. This can range from a relatively inexpensive gravity filter to an under-sink RO system to a whole house system. We use Aquasana filters at my home (use code AQTDW50).

Always choose solid wood whenever possible over particle board, mdf, or synthetic wood materials. This includes everything from cabinets to floors to furniture.

Consider the materials you’re using in your home. Go with natural fibers like cotton, jute, or wool whenever possible. Go with real hardwood. Choose OEKO-tex, Made Safe, and GOTS certified organic materials whenever possible.

I’m still in the process of packing and planning for my move, but I’m excited to incorporate all the aforementioned non-toxic things into my new home. Here’s a few other top-of-mind things:

Floors and paints are big ones to me to not have offgassing of chemicals. We are sanding and re-finishing all of our new home’s floors and repainting. We’re doing all ECOS paint, which is water-based, non-toxic and has zero VOC.

We’re mitigating EMF exposure when possible by hardwiring Internet-installed ethernet cords. While you might not be able to hardwire your entire home, turning your Wi-Fi off at night is a great start. 

We are on well water, so a whole-house water filtration system is a non-negotiable for me. This is the brand we’re using. They also have just under the sink filters with reverse osmosis and remineralization and shower head filters. 

Stay tuned for all the healthy home remodel content coming to my IG soon – I will be sharing exclusive content with my insider list, too.

I hope these tips and product recommendations inspire you to create a home that promotes true restoration and health for you and your family. Remember, small changes make a big difference!

If you want more personalized guidance on your wellness journey, I’d love to invite you to join my VIP online community for exclusive support, resources, and regular live calls with me. It’s also so fun to connect with like-minded people.

You can also find me on IG and my blog for tons of free resources, recipes, and swap suggestions. And don’t forget you can save 10% off my healthy living products – collagen protein powder, electrolytes, detox baths, supplements, and more – with code SKINNY.

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There you go. Tons of tips to gradually and slowly make your home a healthier one. It’s easy to get overwhelmed with all the non-toxic swaps available to you so start small, and focus on the things that are most applicable to you.

We hope you loved this post, and stay tuned for more coming soon from Taylor.

x, The Skinny Confidential team.

+ Lauryn’s non-toxic pregnancy essentials.

++ Healthier bodycare swaps with The Organic Bunny.