Danika Chevalier (00:01.166)
Hello again, welcome to episode three. I'm so excited for this episode, because we're going to dive into a story that is very close to my heart with the intention that it will educate and create some awareness around an area or a topic that I don't think gets a lot of light. And that is
when the air inside your home is making you sick. So we talk a lot or we've heard a lot about outside air pollution. I mean, I think I know my own brain goes directly to when I think of air pollution. I like imagine myself being in the long line of cars on a big freeway in California, but like that's not where a lot of us live. I personally live in a rural.
area where there's a ton of trees and forests and not a whole ton of traffic, not a lot of, you know, big industrial plants or buildings putting off a lot of smog or anything. So why is, why am I talking about indoor air pollution or air pollution in this episode? Well, because I first-handedly had an encounter with this affecting my son's health in a really, really big way. So
I wanna share this with all of you. Now, again, anything I share on this podcast, I will say is for entertainment purposes in order to cover myself. Always check with your health practitioners, always use your own discernment, always do your own checking in of your internal system to see what lands with you and what doesn't. And this is just, again,
me sharing my experience, my knowledge that I've acquired through this experience and really sharing my story with you so that it can maybe better your lives or someone you know and loves lives. And I just really want to preface that this is never a space of judgment. And again, this is my story. I'm gonna share some facts, some storytelling and
Danika Chevalier (02:24.814)
just hoping to create more awareness around this topic so that we can all do better collectively for ourselves and for our kids. And when we know better, we can do better and we can move forward in that way. So like I explained about air pollution, we often think that it is, you know, the smog, the outside air, external factors, but really truthfully, the
air that we are breathing in our homes every day is two to five times more polluted than the outside air. And I know this might come as a shock, but things like in our homes like scents, like so like from candles or soaps or lotions or perfumes, laundry detergents, cleaning sprays, pet dander, and even the way that we cook.
these things all create particulates in the air and they can silently shape our health and our immune system and actually create inflammation in our bodies, systemic inflammation in our bodies that can cause a whole bunch of health problems. So let's dive into it. My personal story here, my personal piece of this is that I have three beautiful sons. My first born, however, was born during COVID.
So right at the head of the pandemic, was two months or he was, were two months into the pandemic when he was born. And it was really a time of like the blind leading the blind back then with most things, because we were all very isolated. We were all very kind of left to our own, our own means. and yes, I'm a nurse. Yes, I have, you know, training and knowledge and skillsets in
dealing with babies, but I had never had my own and I'm an only child. So I have not experienced having siblings having their kids and stuff like that. So I, it was really all very new. we had a little bit of difficulty with his latching with breastfeeding. So he did have a tongue tie that was not released in my opinion in time again, because it was COVID and we had a really hard time getting it diagnosed.
Danika Chevalier (04:50.935)
and then getting it treated. So my oldest was topped up with formula quite a bit. And I didn't know back then what I know now about the different kinds of formula and the different...
Danika Chevalier (00:01.056)
So I'm always gonna go into a lot of detail on back info, I guess, just because in my functional medicine training, I've learned that it all compounds and it all plays a role. So how you came into this world, your immune system exposures to things like vaccines, antibiotics, especially at a young age, tongue ties, and what the primary diet.
consists of, especially in that first year, like this all matters. It all can compound and it can all kind of like, it just creates the full picture of things. So in our particular situation, my son did have a tongue tie and because it was the height of the pandemic, we were not able to get it diagnosed or treated in a really timely manner. So this caused us a lot of heartache and hardship with him swelling a lot of air during feeds.
And again, now that I know more, I think I would have opted for some different treatment methods back then. But I mean, again, when you know better, you do better. And this is the trajectory of life. We're always learning. There is always more knowledge to be had. And I choose not to beat myself up for what I knew then. And I hope you can give yourself the same grace. So.
It wasn't until he was nearly a year old that we started really noticing that he was very pukey. And we didn't know if it was, you know, the formula he was taking or what was going on. But this kid would projectile vomit like once a day for sure. And we didn't know any better. We didn't know any different. He was our first kid. We were isolated. We thought it was quote unquote normal. We didn't know.
If it would have been our second kid, I think we would have clued in a little bit sooner, but I mean, you don't know what you don't know, right? So we had taken him to the dentist. We had tried different formulas. We thought, you know, maybe he's locked with some tolerant. It seemed to be a little bit better when he was on a different formula. We kind of, you know, played around with that, but that was kind of the extent of it. And we took him to the dentist when he was about two years old for, you know, just starting to get him,
Danika Chevalier (02:21.358)
to that whole process. And it was the dentist that put it on our radar of the underdevelopment, I mean, stature of his jaw and how swollen he was kind of around his nose area. So in your face, you have the adenoids, which are just kind of located behind the nose. And you have the tonsils that are in the back of the throat.
So these are two of your main first defense mechanisms from your immune system standpoint when pathogens or bacterias or dust or anything comes through the body. those adenoids and tonsils are the first line of defense in your immune system, okay? So they have to get filtered through those and then they get to kind of, if they pass the green light through those, then they go on through the rest of your body type of thing.
And his adenoids were very swollen to the point where he could call that out from just meeting him. And so after we left the dentist's office, we, my husband and I were both like, what the heck? Like, that's incredible that he picked that out. And he asked, like, does he have any allergies? And we were like, well, no, we have a dog at home. She's hypoallergenic. Like she's a labradoodle. And you know,
we were kind of miffed because we even ourselves thought, well, he doesn't have like itchy watery eyes. He doesn't have hives anywhere. Like I'm allergic to certain dogs. And I know when I get around them, like my throat kind of starts to close up. Like I get high V, I get sneezy and he didn't really have any of those symptoms. So we were just kind of like, huh. So we sat on it and we went home and kind of did some research and then it kind of started. We kind of started piecing the, the, pieces of the puzzle together.
why he was so pukey is because everything was so inflamed and enlarged and in kids, especially in young kids, their tonsils are like too big for their body. Essentially, they kind of need to grow into them. So they are fighting an uphill battle there in a respect where it is a little bit more crowded in the back of their throat until they grow into those, those parts of themselves with a little bit more age and, and maturity and you
Danika Chevalier (04:46.05)
physical growth of their body and adapting to those parts. But then we also started cluing into the fact that he was sleeping so much, like 12 hour nights of sleep and a minimum three hour a day nap, like minimum. Sometimes it was three and a half hours. And I think I was pregnant with my second son at this point and I just thought these naps were just the best thing ever. I was just, I felt I was fortunate.
because we had such a good sleeper and he started sleeping the nights early. And again, we just thought it was like, okay, cause we had to top him up with the bottle. So maybe he's just like more satiated. No, we concurred that our poor kid was so oxygen deprived his brain that he was like having sleep apnea essentially. And that that's why he needed to sleep so much was because he was so oxygen deprived because he was so sick and so allergic and just in this constant state of
inflammation in his body. it was a really hard pill to swallow. It was a really hard few days after that dentist appointment because then I was faced with this new information and I had to do something with it. And let me preface this also with, okay, so before I had kids, I had two dogs, a Yorkie poo and a Labradoodle and these dogs.
were my kids and at some point in my life, I didn't know that I would be having kids. So like these dogs were really it for me. And I had to rehome, I had to make the really hard choice to rehome my little Yorkie poo probably a year prior to this because he was very aggressive towards my first born. And it was really becoming a really unsafe situation and it was really unfair. It was unfair to all parties because
My dog was so anxious all the time and so territorial and he was just crawling out of his skin all the time. And it was really not fun for my kid because I was just waiting for the time where he would get bit and like then what, right? So it was just, were, it was a really stressful time. Thankfully we found a wonderful woman for my dog to go live with. So like very happy story, very happy ending. But here I am faced with
Danika Chevalier (07:08.766)
well if it's allergies then I have to rehome this other dog, my other dog. Like what do you mean I have to rehome my second baby, like my second dog? And I had to sit with it for a while and I'm gonna be really, I'm gonna say the things that as a mom you're not really supposed to think or say and I was really resentful of my kid for a little bit. That's hard to say out loud. But I was, I was really resentful of him for putting me in this position. Like again.
he's one or two, like he didn't intentionally put me in this position, but you know, as an irrational adult sometimes you can't help but have these feelings, right? And so I had to really let myself sit with these feelings and kind of process them and not shame myself through them. But then also I had to ultimately make the choice, make the hard choice, put my big girl pants on and make the choice for my kids' health and...
So it started as I reached out to her really dear friend who had watched my dogs in the past and who was very, she was my dog's second mom, let's be honest. And so I reached out to her to see if she'd be able and willing to take in my dog for, you know, a four to six week period, trial period to see if this is really, if we're like onto something here, if this is really gonna be the turning point. So she graciously accepted and.
was such a big help and such a godsend in that respect. And so we moved the dog out. We got our furnace cleaned, our vents cleaned, changed the furnace filter. We shampooed and washed the couches. We washed all of the bedding. We got rid of the area rugs. We don't have any carpet in our house, thankfully. So that was a pretty easy fix there. So we just took all the area rugs out of the home.
And we kind of waited to see what was going on and his status improved like overnight. Like honestly, he stopped puking, his naps started getting a bit shorter. And so after like the four to six weeks, it was really obvious what we needed to do long term. So we rehomed her permanently with
Danika Chevalier (09:33.069)
my friend and I mean, I just wanna also take a moment to say like, this is a really happy ending at the end of this because both my dogs, while it was really gut wrenching and I mean, I still feel like I grieve their loss sometimes even though they're not dead. It was really hard to make that conscious decision of rehoming them but really in the end, it was for the best for everyone involved because my dogs are living out their best lives.
I wouldn't be able to give them the lives that they have in the capacity that I have with three kids in a smaller home now, it with running the businesses and stuff before. Like it really was all for the greatest good of all, which I'm very thankful for and grateful for. But it was really hard. And if you're listening to this right now and things are kind of maybe like the flags are going off and you're thinking like, my God, maybe this is something that I'm dealing with.
I could never give away my dog. Like just, I hear you, I see you. I see you so deeply. So just keep listening and know that you don't need to make a decision either way about anything right this minute and just let yourself take in the information, okay? And I feel you. So his status really improved over the summertime and then come fall, know, cold and flu season.
We're back into our indoor pollution more often than not because we're inside more because it's cold. So he started kind of dipping a little bit, needing to be on antibiotics, I think once. And then maybe by the second time we needed to be on the antibiotics in like October or November, I clued in that we should get an air purifier in our space. And it was Black Friday. I actually remember I was sitting in one of the emerge rooms and I was ordering this.
Air doctor on a Black Friday sale because I was like, this is crazy. This is the second time we're not Yeah, it was the second time we're antibiotics this fall. Like there's gotta be more we can do To clean up the air quality in our home So ordered the air doctor and again like another huge improvement in his health after that So within three months after the air doctor came in we had to change the filters out So these filters are supposed to last like a year. You should only be replacing them like
Danika Chevalier (11:58.851)
maybe twice a year and we had to replace them after three months. So I did a really good job of doing an overhaul of cleaning our space. And the one that I got was, you know, to cover the surface area of our main living space upstairs. So like our common, like our living room kitchen area and man, did it deliver. And from then it's just been a steady increase in his health and his wellness.
we did get referred to a specialist after that second time he was on antibiotics as well in the fall, just to explore all the avenues. I really didn't want to do surgery for him because obviously when their tonsils are so inflamed, adenoids are so inflamed like that, like the common practice is to just get them removed because you can live without them. your immune system can still function without them, but I mean, you're just
working at a lesser advantage, right? Because you're getting rid of that first line of defense of like that first barrier of protection from things coming into your body. So I really, really within myself didn't sit well to think about going and having surgery. So we did the referral to the specialist just to see what the specialist had to say. And he suggested that we can, well, we were on a, we, he.
not we, my son was on a longer acting antihistamine at this point daily and a steroid nose spray just to help tame the inflammation that was like so chronic from so many months and almost years of this inflammation. So he suggested that we continue to do that and then reevaluate in three months. So we saw him again three months later. So now by the time we saw him the second time, it had been about a year since we...
move the dog out and started making some pretty big changes in our environment. And by that appointment, he said, yeah, you guys are good to go if you don't need surgery. And if you keep up the steroid spray and the antihistamines in times of need, because he's a little bit compromised now, a little bit longer term as he still is growing into his tonsils and his anatomy and stuff. So now we are at the point of
Danika Chevalier (14:21.166)
It's been over a year since we saw that specialist the last time and we'll, you know, do the nose spray and the reactant for a couple of weeks. when it's hay season, like right now it was just like hay season and like the allergies were crazy. And so he was starting to, to flare up again a little bit. and so, yeah, but now it's just, again, like it's just a tool in our back pocket that we know that we can just implement for short periods of time to get them through that kind of like hump, that crisis period.
Last winter, I don't think we did antibiotics. Like just the amount of times he's had strep since we've made these changes has decreased like 90%. The times he's sick now, way less. And when he's sick, again, it's for a way less duration and it's way less severe. He is way less mucusy. Like this kid used to have so much mucus all the time and
Anything made him puke. like once we kind of got over the hump of like When he started eating solids and stuff He still had such a wild gag reflex because his tonsils were so enlarged And he always had so much phlegm in the back of his throat that like the poor kid didn't stand a chance No wonder he smelled something weird or something hit his tonsil weird and his gag reflex weird like no wonder he was puking all the time so his quality of life greatly improved and
our eyes just got opened so much, right? We were able to really look back in hindsight 2020 always, right? But it was compounding for him. So it was, yeah, it was the dog in our home, but he was also at a day home back then with a big dog and a cat. And we never clued in because again, he didn't have those quote unquote typical allergy symptoms. Well, no, he wouldn't because it was a chronic longstanding inflammation and inflammatory response. It wasn't an acute
in like allergy response. was a long term chronic one where his body was like long term trying to make up for and compensate. So that is kind of what led me down the rabbit hole. So I do want to create a space for providing a little bit more information if you're like, okay, but how, okay, yeah, the dog, but like, how does this really all play in together?
Danika Chevalier (16:47.104)
So what the dentist recognized in my son was that his adenoid, that like the around his nose area was like swollen and his jaw was smaller. So his mouth and his jaw were underdeveloped because he was mouth breathing all the time. So when you mouth breathe, your tongue doesn't sit on the palate in your mouth. It kind of drops open and the air that's coming in is bypassing
the nose. So the respiratory system is composed of the nose and the lungs. So the lungs have, if you want to call them like the tree branches and on the end of the branches, they have these like balloons called alveoli. So these balloons on the end of the tree branches in your lungs are where the oxygen comes in and the carbon dioxide goes out. So these balloons are really nice and like rubbery. Think of a rubber band or like a balloon.
And think of a rubber band when it gets really old and stale and how it gets kind of hardened. So that's what happens to the alveoli when there's chronic pollution in the air. People smoke for a long time. You may have heard of the term emphysema. Emphysema is when those little balloons, those alveoli stop being so elastic and stop having that nice give and take to them and they get hardened and almost calcified. So that's, mean,
long term down the road what could have happened but the oxygen exchange happens in this area okay so keep keep listening keep following with me so when you're mouth breathing you are just sending all of the particles in the air dander pollen smoke mold whatever like directly to
those sensitive alveoli, those balloons at the bottom, like at the bases of your branches and your lungs. When you breathe through your nose, your body is so smart, has all of these systems in place to help protect and be the first line of defense against all of these things just coming in, raw dogging it into your body. So when you breathe through your nose, you actually have to, like they have to bypass the little hairs in the nose.
Danika Chevalier (19:08.258)
They have to bypass the mucus in the nose. They have to bypass the space and the nose creates warmer and humid air so that the air that passes through the nose down to the lungs to get exchanged into the alveoli. It's a, it's a much more available, like the oxygen availability is way higher because it's warmer and it's hydrated so it can pass through the alveoli much
much easier and give you a better absorption rate of the oxygen. Okay. So when you have better oxygen absorption rate, your red blood cells have more oxygen to them, giving you more energy, giving your brain more energy, giving everything a little bit more vitality in your entire existence. Right. So the nose actually also creates a gas. So when you breathe through the nose, your body automatically produces nitric oxide and
This is wild. So when your body produces nitric oxide, it actually helps to dilate the blood vessels. So expand the blood vessels, giving you better circulation and again, circulation oxygenation, right? That's like life vitality. It also kills bacterias and viruses. So when you breathe through the nose, not only are you getting that first line of defense with like the hair and the mucus, but you're also creating this gas in your body that is like going out and.
and targeting bacteria and viruses. And it also helps to improve your oxygen absorption just by this nitric oxide. Literally you just become more oxygenated by breathing through your nose than through your mouth. So when you are breathing through your mouth, you're absorbing less oxygen.
You're lowering your immunity because you're allowing all those pathogens to just come again, like right through the back door into your lungs and into your system. So no wonder my poor kid was so tired and sick all the time. like, just, it's so simple, right? It's so simple, but man, I had no idea. Oxygen is our body's like number one source of fuel. Your brain can't function when it's not.
Danika Chevalier (21:26.796)
doesn't have enough oxygen. Nothing can function when you don't have enough oxygen. So obviously the way in which you breathe affects all of the things. So it was a really eye-opening experience for me, really hard, like really hard. Still, some days I cry, I still miss my pups. And I mean, I try not to think about the day of never having a dog again. I, in my brain would like to have a little...
very hypoallergenic, like we tested out kind of puppy at some point in my life because I just can't imagine not. But yeah, it's just, it's, it's a hard thing. It's so hard. And if anything, it's really taught me a lot more compassion and empathy for myself and having to make this this decision and I would do it again in a heartbeat. Having seen the
180 that it did for him and his quality of life and for his growth and development And his sleep quality. I mean don't get me wrong It was a little bit of a rude awakening when my three hour a day napping kid was down to like one hour and then none really quickly But then I was like, okay, it's fine. It means it's working means you did you did the right thing. It's fine Just drink another cup of coffee. We'll get through this
But I mean, I hate to think what could have transpired long-term had I had this dentist not put this on my radar, you know? He would have gone in with chronic inflammation, systemic inflammation, and what would he be that kid that's falling asleep at his desk at school? Like, I don't know what this would have meant for him long-term. Could he have contracted something like really detrimental to his health because he was already so...
compromised, his immune system was already so overloaded, like I don't know what it would have meant long term. But I'm just really thankful that we caught it when we did and we made the changes that we did and it worked. And my husband now actually cleans furnaces for a living. And I mean, I think this experience hits really close to home for him too. And when he goes into people's homes now, and they all have big dogs and
Danika Chevalier (23:43.213)
He see like he literally sees the stuff in the vents in the furnaces that are people are ingesting and it's just it's insane. So if I can give you any kind of actionable tips through this episode or in in this process in this conversation, it would be to make a few changes and upgrades in your home to support
better air quality inside your home because we spend so much time inside our homes, especially in the Northern climate, especially as we're entering into colder months here. So things that you can do that are really simple and cost effective, open your windows. I know this is like, duh, but actually like daily, open your windows daily, change out, circulate the air in your home daily. This is something I've started doing
more religiously, definitely since our experience with my son. But even again, I'm always learning. just have learned in the last little bit that you should actually have your comforters and stuff like open, then open your windows so that the cold air and the air can actually kill the dust mites and help to circulate any pathogens or any mites or anything like that, that may be in your bedding.
So that's an easy way to, you know, just strip back the covers, open the windows, do a little, a little vacuum or something, and then close them back up. It doesn't need to be for a super long time. Five, 10 minutes is lots. investing in an air doctor or a high grade HEPA, filtered air purifying system is a must, especially if you have pets. houseplants are another really great.
great way to clean and purify the air. Snake plants are really good at doing that. So incorporating more plants if possible in your in-home spaces. And then also moving to more natural products. So fragrances are another major culprit of indoor pollution. Candles, laundry detergents, cleaning products, soaps, deodorants, perfumes.
Danika Chevalier (26:09.459)
all of it, I've made a really conscious effort to move away from scented products. And now when I'm around them, I even like, whew, it hits me in a different way than it ever used to because I was so kind of like numb and used to them, right? And now my husband puts cologne on them, like, can you not? Like I'm choking over here and it makes me sneeze and it makes my eyes water and like.
We were in the car a couple of weeks ago. We were going to an event and he put on cologne right before we got in the car. And I was like, can you not do this before we get in a confined space? Like I am dying. And burning candles was a really big one for me. I used to always burn like they're really, especially like we're getting into that fall season. Like there's nothing better than a warm spicy candle. So that, that was another change I had to make. So now I mean,
I still will indulge in a candle once in a while with intention. After the kids go to bed, I'll burn it in my living room where my air purifier is, and I will only burn it for an hour or two. And sometimes I will sneeze when I light it and stuff. So it's just moderation, and I pick, I choose my battles. I mean, I still gotta have my guilty pleasure sometimes, okay? Don't come at me.
But yeah, these these easy swaps can can make a world of a difference. Mouth taping has made a really big, I don't know, movement lately, I guess. I haven't gone there yet because I'm very claustrophobic and the idea of having a piece of tape over my mouth all night kind of gives me anxiety. So I haven't ventured that way yet, but I do know that folks who
mouth tape or have even gone for a sleep assessment and gotten a sleep apnea machine. Like there is a couple of people in my close circles that have since this, you know, had gone for sleep apnea tests and their lives have changed too because their brain fog is gone and their fatigue is gone because their brains are and their systems are properly getting oxygenated now and they're not stopping breathing in the night. And so it's just allowing their body to like rest.
Danika Chevalier (28:29.602)
like it was designed to you and then optimally work during the day like it was designed to you. So another, another, you know, thing to look at is, is your pet. Do you have a pet that sheds a lot? Do you have a pet? So again, what I learned about my dog after rehoming and talking to her groomers and stuff, they even said, you know, she was a dog that had a lot of dander under her coat, like when they would, when they would groom her. And again, this was
brand new information to me. didn't know. I thought I had a hypoallergenic dog and I was, you know, check mark green light. Um, but she still produced a lot of dander and I didn't learn until after the fact, but you can actually buy pet shampoos that help minimize the amount of dander. So, I mean, if you do have a dog and if you're like, Nope, can't even go there. I can't even think about the option of, you know, the alternative, maybe just, um, getting a little bit more diligent.
in maybe weekly baths or every few days, bathing your dog with a anti-dander shampoo or maybe brushing them out outside again, just to help mitigate the amount of off-lay that they have with their dander and with their hair in your home again, so that you're not constantly breathing that in. Every little bit helps. Every little intentional action can create and can cascade into a change, right? So don't, don't over
gloss it over. Every little bit that you can do can definitely make a bigger change and a bigger impact. And like in our story, our actions were pretty extreme, but they needed to be for his status. And I can happily report that since we've made all these changes and he's since been to the dentist again, and we now look back at pictures, holy moly, what a difference. His whole
Anatomy looks completely different now because he isn't snoring and mouth breathing and he is is thriving the way that a kid should be thriving so I hope that this story taught you something Open your eyes to something. Maybe he's gonna spark some conversations within you or within your home again if you are on any
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part, if you resonate any part of this journey, or if your kid has had the surgery and you're like, man, their health isn't that much better. There are still many things that you can do. And I mean, it still might be worth exploring any of these suggestions in this podcast, even if they don't have their adenoids or their tonsils still, right? They could still be, their systems are even more compromised now that they don't have that first line of defense for their immune system. So it's even more imperative that we, treat their
their immune systems as sacred and do everything in our power to help, you know, give them the best, most resilient immune system that they can have. So I want to thank you for, for listening to my story. I mean, yeah, it was not, not how I saw my motherhood journey going in the first few years with my first kid. I did not think that, it was going to lead to what it has, but I'm so grateful that, I was
able to take it in my own hands. I mean, I'm thankful that it was in my control and in my realm of being able to take actions to save his health. And yeah, it was really hard. And yeah, it was really gut wrenching. But in the end of the day, that's my job as a mom is to set him up for the most success and do right by him because that's
That's what I'm here to do. yeah, so I want to invite you to just have a look and reflect on, are there areas in your home where you might be able to mitigate or lessen the fragrance, the air pollution, toxic load that you might be ingesting? And I'm curious to see how it ripples into better health or maybe changes in some symptoms for you.
And I want to encourage you to share this episode with any other parent or anyone else in your life that you love that may benefit from the info in here. until next time, I wish you a fantastic rest of your day. And I love you so much.
