The Hidden Health Risks & Habits You're Exposed To Every Day & What Everyone Should Know Ft. Clara Sieg Of Loonen

0:00Clara Sieg is the co-founder and CEO of Lunen, a company rethinking the most foundational thing we consume, which is water. There is such a story here when it comes to overall health and wellness, what we're consuming. And this episode is a perfect blend of what this show is about. It's health, it's wellness, it's entrepreneurship, it's business building, it's branding. With that, Clara, welcome to the Bostix. How did you take interest in the subject of water to begin with? So water was part of a bigger shift in our household. I now have a two-year-old, but I I had a very long path to getting pregnant.

0:31I ended up going through IVF and I like to learn a lot. And so I started doing a lot of reading about what I could do to sort of support the IVF process because it was a period of life that felt like pretty out of control. And like I had very limited agency outside of taking shots and sort of meeting those protocols. and so I looked to lifestyle changes to pair with that and I learned a lot about plastics and endocrine disruptors and they're bad for fertility and so I went through our house and you know the you can't fully eliminate them from your life it's just impossible and there are a lot of good things that come from plastics right you think about medical innovation all that sort of stuff.

1:17Great. But in terms of what you put in and on your body on a day-to-day basis and what you're breathing around your house, you can make real impacts in the way that you live your life that lets you kind of set it and forget it and do 80-20 the rest of the time. And so I started doing that in our own house, right? Like the food that we eat, for the most part, we eat organic. We don't store it in plastic. We store it in glass and we don't use nonstick. And then moved over to beauty and personal care and you know the brands that have sort of explained what phthalates and bisphenols and these things are and synthetic fragrance and given you an easy button solution um and the same goes for home cleaning like we use a lot of branch basics and vinegar at home and then i got to the water set and it was a lot of plastic and plastic lined aluminum and in the glass set very little transparency on what's actually in the water um and we were living in a rental at the time and couldn't put an under counter filtration system in i just i was doing all this countertop filtration and like remineralizing it and at some point just felt like i was living in a water production facility so for most people is it like when they're thinking about water if you can do that filtration system is that a smart thing to do for most people yeah i think um we always talk about lunin as part of the solution not the full solution right because water is something that's so foundational to life um we have reverse osmosis filtration system um under the counter where we cook from we mostly drink gluten at home obviously but um i mean even in the kitchen a lot of people think like butter or oil or salt is the main ingredient but water is the top ingredient right what you're cooking your rice and what you're cooking in your pasta pasta and etc um and so you know that whole process i ended up in water and was like oh my god and you know this when you're pregnant you're supposed to drink an insane amount of water when you're breastfeeding the same thing and your fluid levels go up by over 50 percent when you're pregnant and i just became sort of obsessed with that and then when i went back to work i transitioned my daughter from breastfeeding to bottle feeding and i was super conscientious about the formula that i chose and then the main ingredient you mix into it is water.

3:32And that for me was sort of the moment where I was like, I think I really want to do something about this. Well, I think like when it's funny, when it comes to water and I'm not going to talk about any other water companies now because I've given them enough love they've been on this table for years. But you'd think, green bottle, you would think that they, like you hear that they're premium and they're in glass and it's spring and you think you're doing the right thing. And then you read all those reports that like maybe they're not what you thought they were. And to your point, I think that there's been like a little bit of a duping from the entire industry where consumers believe they're buying a premium clean product in this category.

4:07And then you realize it's kind of just like everything else, but in prettier packaging. And I think it's like it's tougher for the average consumer who's trying to do the right thing. I think it's a really hard category, right? It's mostly owned by public companies and private equity rollups and margins are low. and glass is heavy and it breaks and water's heavy right and so that component of it is just a challenging thing to innovate on and then i think the reality is that we've learned a lot about plastics and endocrine disruptors recently right the research is finally catching up to it we've known for a long time it's bad for the environment we haven't had the same knowledge of it being increasingly known that it's bad for our health and then you add to that the fact that like the the way that usda that fda regulation works in the u.s as it relates to bottled water kind of sets up two camps of bottled water so on one side you have what purified water where you don't really get credit for the source um and so in the u.s most of that purified water is municipal tap sourced and that has stuff like disinfection byproducts forever chemicals etc that's really, really hard to fully remove from water once it's introduced.

5:24So even if it's purified, you could still potentially get traces of those things because it's not fully possible to get it all out. I want to just be careful saying that because obviously I want people to have water, but you're saying that there's potential that not all of those things are removed from municipal tap water, even if it is purified. Correct. And then it's often packed in plastic. And we talked about how long it can't sit on shelf and the things that can lead to plastic leaching. And then you have the other side of water, which you just talked about, spring, mineral, etc. That's not allowed to be filtered if you want to market it as spring water, mineral water, one of those FDA-defined terms.

6:10And so you have sources that are part of a globally connected water system. And they're certainly much better sources than others, but every source changes season to season, year to year with surrounding land use and different weather patterns. And also when you're single sourcing a water and then you become a very popular water, that changes the way that that source works, right? Because in many cases you begin over extracting and that changes the quality of the water. And so we sort of stepped back from that after spending about six months going all over the U.S., testing different sources and looking through historical test results and said, how can we make a product that's consistently pure and reliable and not overtapping resources in that same way?

7:02And that's how we got to what we do at Lunan now, which is really borrowing from World Health Organization guidance in the way that we approach sourcing and filtration, right? So we're not just doing purification. We're not just doing high quality source. We're combining the best of both. I have heard from other people who have come on the podcast that even the water that we're bathing with has all kinds of crazy things like birth control in it. When you were looking at water did you see crazy things like that that blew your mind we were only really focused on really high quality spring sources um and testing those and and the the footnotes that typically show up there are things like nitrates and arsenic and radium things that kind of exist in the ground and then you know any spring source will pull from groundwater and um and so that can show up there.

8:00I think our municipal system can have those things introduced. I think chlorine is probably the biggest problem from a showering perspective. I think it's great to have a shower filter, especially if you have young kids, because that can just be inflammatory for their skin. I want to go back to what you were saying about how there's now evidence catching up with what we've kind of always known. Because in a weird way, when you do a show like this, you say things and you hear things and you're talking about what people are experiencing, whether it's with infertility or skin issues or health issues.

8:32And then you kind of like shed light on it, but then you get labeled as these things because it's almost like the science hasn't caught up with, or the, what am I trying to say here? The explanations haven't caught up with what's actually being said, right? Like the studies, right? But now I think everybody's aware like microplastics are bad. Endocrine disruptors are real. Artificial fragrances can cause problems like cleaning supplies have hormone destruction. These are now, if you say you're not - They're studied. It's studied, yeah. It takes a long time for the research to catch up with it, right?

9:03And some of the things that might be woo-woo, maybe the research doesn't support them, but in this category, there's a lot of research around it, particularly around endocrine-disrupting chemicals and how they impact your hormone system. And your hormone system is definitely wed to fertility. So what are the things that you got switched on to from the studies that you're like, oh, I got to figure this out? That was really the swaps we made at home. I think I've always looked in my life to pair whatever I'm doing on the medical side with lifestyle interventions and changes on that regard. I was raised in the 80s and 90s in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, which is not really like the bastion of health.

9:48and my mom had breast cancer most of the time I was growing up and she had really serious chemo and radiation that saved her life but she never missed a treatment even though it was really intensive and she credits a lot of that to the lifestyle changes she made which was basically eating organic before there was organic food movement right we shopped at a local food co-op She called every dairy farmer in the Pittsburgh area and asked if they used bovine growth hormone or not. And then we only shopped from the one that said they didn't. She went into our school lunch cafeteria and asked them to stop using industrial cleaners on the tables because, you know, kids open their lunch and eat there.

10:32It's like Lauren. And they swapped to vinegar and water and they save money. Lauren does that in the classroom. She goes and switches everything in. I'm going to do a woo-woo rant. When I am eating my food and I look over and someone is spraying Windex next to me on the table. It's not good. Why? And also the kids. Well, they think it's cleaning, but it's. I know, but the kids, they're eating their lunch boxes and they're taking their little lunch boxes and they're opening it. And they all are so little and they accidentally drop their sandwich on the table where the Windex has been. And it's just such an easy swap.

11:09And it's actually more affordable to switch to a branch basic or vinegar. So I think what I've realized is people get an emotional attachment to the cleaning supplies that they grew up on. And there's a nostalgia that's affiliated with it where it's almost like it's become so ritualistic that they can't give it up. And they associate like a Lysol or a Tide with being clean when it's just bombing us with chemicals. and listen, I'm happy to talk out on my platform and talk about how easy it is to make a swap because it is more affordable, and it's so seamless and easy if you just do it, and once you make the swap, you can't smell that stuff anymore.

11:49You can't go back. I know. Michael's hairspray, we're working on that one. I don't have hairspray. I was thinking when you - What is in it then? There's a literal hair. I think there's something in there. There's something in there. Michael, I want to tell you. No, I use an all-natural one. I keep telling you that. Which is brand? I swear to God it's all natural. And then what's it called? Organic Bunny gave me that Jack Henry stuff. What about the Obey hairspray? Orybeth. But I only use that for very special occasions. But listen, here's the thing. It's not special occasion because I can smell it.

12:20But it's 80-20. I do not want to suck it when you're wearing that hairspray. So if you want me to be into it, you better take that hairspray and throw it away. Here's where I agree. This is like the 80-20. but I've also seen Lauren go into one of those like spray tan paint booths and spray her whole body. So I'm like, listen, a little hairspray compared to that. No. Also you're in full hair and makeup right now. Yeah. I have to make, I make my concessions, but I really wish you would. But mine is like a little like hers is like, we got, we'll see you in an hour when the hair and makeup. Have you ever seen the Cheeto guy that sprays and his face goes back?

12:51That's how he sprays hair. No, I know. I actually have no hairspray. But I think that's go back to the story of your mother, because I think that's so ahead of her time to be noticing that they are spraying that on the tables where kids are going to school. It also sounds like she was forced with like a real life decision she had to make. So it became important. She's, I mean, I was raised by her, right? So I borrow a lot of the things that I do in my life now from her, but she's amazing. And she researched a lot. And this was before the internet, right? She went to the library, she read all these different books and learned a lot and then implemented those changes.

13:23And I I like to remind people of that because it's not that hard. It doesn't have to be that expensive. And some of these things can feel really overwhelming when you start thinking about them and identifying every little piece in your life. And that's why I think it is important to embrace the sort of 80-20 approach, set it and forget it. And that's the amazing thing about trying to sort of slowly minimize the plastics and endocrine disruptors that are in your home is when something runs out, replace it with something that's a little bit better. When a pan needs replacing, get cast iron or stainless steel and they're not that much more expensive.

14:05Sometimes they're less expensive and you can just chip away at it. And then in your home where you spend most of your time, where you eat most of your food, where you drink most of your water, you're setting a pretty great foundation. And then when you go out, you live your life. It's really weird because, so I grew up, you know we're all relatively same age so you grew up in a time with all of these products these mass market products our parents didn't know better i don't think it's just like they're also a byproduct of marketing and shelf spaces before the internet right um but when you remove all of these things from your life to your point like i remember like my college dorm room had like glade plugins everywhere if i walked into a room like that's why i wasn't there we were the febreze generator of course we used the breeze on the bed all that yeah if i even i could smell that from a mile away now.

14:49And I think what's crazy is when you remove, because we've done all this too, when you remove all these things from your life, you can taste the plastic in the water. You can smell the Febreze. You can smell the cleaning supply. When someone walks in with perfume or too much cologne, I'm like, and once you realize that you are so desensitized to it, I don't think you can realize that until you remove it. But once you realize how desensitized you were to it, it's really alarming actually. Most people have no idea. You get in and you're around a bunch of offensive cologne or fragrances or artificial smells or like, you know, things that you shouldn't be eating off of.

15:20And you don't even notice that that's in your system. I constantly like to edit my life in every area. I like to take inventory. And I think to your point, like you don't have to do it all at once. You can go slow. When you run out, you can replace with different things that are better options. The crazy thing is though, what I'm saying is when you do get rid of them, like you can never go back because then you, now you realize like the toxic soup that you're in. Sometimes I dream about what it would be like is if we got a divorce and you dated someone that was like, no, I literally think about this.

15:49Like if the person was just someone who used Windex and had Glade plugins in every wall and wore perfume, you'd have to, you'd have to like start over at scratch. You couldn't do it. I just wouldn't do it. No. No, but you like, what do you mean? There'd be a bunch of girls that are in line for you. The problem is, we wouldn't even get to that part. because I don't even know how I would strike up a conversation at this point. Not that I don't know how to have a conversation, I don't have the time to put in to get to know you again. I've been doing it for too long. I can't start over. It's too late.

16:21Three kids, married. I'm not doing it. I don't want to know who you are. Taking to Anjan, what was that like for you as a little girl growing up and seeing your mother struggle with breast cancer? I'm sure you didn't know anything different but that's intense yeah I didn't know anything different um we I mentioned we grew up in Pittsburgh we grew up in a relatively small suburb and um community was a really important part of it right there was there were like meal trains there were different people in and out of the door we had our family in and out all the time and so I was young I would I mean, she got diagnosed when I was six.

17:00My sister was 10. So I think my sister has more sort of like foundational, knew what was going on at the time. Yeah, it was a part of our life that was not awesome. Could you tell your mom was stressed or did she do a good job kind of shielding you guys? No, my parents were pretty, she had a pretty bad prognosis when she was diagnosed. And so they were pretty transparent with us as kids. I think I have this one vivid memory of going downstairs and my grandma was visiting and my parents had explained to us what it was and my mom was sick and everything and they'd put me to bed and my bear was downstairs and I went downstairs and the three of them were sitting on the couch crying and they never showed that sort of emotion and that was I have that moment in my brain of like okay that was sort of when I knew it was serious but yeah it was just sort of like step by step getting through it.

17:54It's interesting because if you look back on your life with what you've been through on your own journey and as a little girl it seems like this has all set you up for what you're doing now. In many ways yeah I mean I think back to that time period and people forget that USDA organic certification didn't happen until 2002 so when my mom was going through that and making all those changes and i remember being at a lunch table and i had the lamest food in my lunchbox right everybody else had gushers and ho-hos and they're like trading at lunch and i'm like does anybody want this dried fruit like somebody take it yeah it's good though it's good for you yeah and and so i think now we're at a point where that sort of community shift and people changing in their homes and making these little adjustments is very similar to food in the organic movement as it relates to plastics and endocrine disruptors and stuff and trying to minimize them in your home right like when we go out to eat I don't know if I'm eating 100 % organic or what it's cooked in you know you don't have to care that much because you have a good foundation at home and I think if you can make those small changes at home and be thoughtful about it it sets you up really well before regulation and that sort of stuff can kind of catch up with what we're learning about.

19:22Quick break to talk about Just Thrive. You can dial in your sleep, your workouts, your supplements, your morning routine. I mean, you've heard us talk all about this on the show, but here's the thing. None of it sticks if your gut isn't functioning right. And that's because your gut is running the show behind the scenes. It's talking to your brain, your immune system, your mood, all of it. So let's focus in on one thing that makes everything else you do actually pay off. And that's the probiotic you're taking. The problem is the probiotic you're taking is probably dead before it ever reaches your gut because most brands on the market can't survive your stomach acid.

19:51And if a probiotic can't arrive in your gut alive, it can't do much good. With Just Thrive probiotics, it's different and it has been a non-negotiable in our routine for years now. It uses four spore-based strains that actually survive digestion and arrive 100 % alive, including one clinically studied strain that produces antioxidants directly to your gut. That means better nutrient absorption, less bloating, stronger immunity, all with one capsule that delivers real results. So check them out right now. We have a special offer for you. When you start your first 90-day Just Thrive probiotic subscription, you'll get a free 90-day supply of their new digestive bitters.

20:21That's a$90 value. And the last time we had the Just Thrive founders on this podcast, we learned that bitter herbs have been used across cultures for centuries because they work. When taken before a meal, they signal your body to produce the stomach acid, bile, and enzymes it needs so food actually gets broken down instead of sitting undigested in your gut. This can also support natural GLP-1 production, which everyone's talking about these days. The combination of these two is foundational gut support and Just Thrive backs every purchase with their bottom of the bottle 100 % money back guarantee.

20:46If you don't absolutely love the results, you get the full product refund even if the bottle is empty. No questions asked. All you have to do is tap the link in the show notes or go to justthrivehealth.com slash skinny and start your gut health journey today. Again, that's justthrivehealth.com slash skinny. I don't mean to brag, but I have really subtly manipulated my husband into doing a fabulous skincare routine. He is looking glowy, let me tell you. And I found a brand that I really like because it's not full of chemicals and it's called Caldera Lab. So they have like a whole simple step situation set up for your man, for your husband, for your boyfriend, for your brother.

21:23And everything is designed to support skin recovery. So if you're looking for something that's rich in antioxidants, that really just supports the skin barrier and reduces fine lines and wrinkles and also evens out skin tone. you have to check out Caldera Lab. The men are going to be glowier than us. Personally, what I love about Caldera Lab so much is that it makes everything easy and simple to follow. There are so many overwhelming pieces of advice when it comes to skincare, especially for men that are unfamiliar with taking care of their skin. Personally, I get the benefit of doing this show and talking to so many skin experts.

21:56So for me, it was a no-brainer to start taking care of my skin. But again, it was overwhelming to figure out which products, what steps, how to use. So whenever I'm talking about skincare for men, I love talking about Caldera Lab because it makes everything simple and easy to follow. It's not overwhelming. And you get results that actually show. So for me, when I'm thinking about simple, easy skincare that works, Caldera Lab is what I recommend. It's what I share with my friends. It's what I share with my family. It's what I use myself. All you have to do to try it is go to calderalab.com slash skinny and use code skinny for 20 % off your first order.

22:25Again, that's calderalab.com slash skinny, code skinny. We do chocolate bone broth protein at our house and I call it chocolate water. I've told you guys about this before. my kids love their chocolate water. And what's great about chocolate water is there's 20 grams of protein in it. I make one for myself all the time after I lift weights. I like Paleo Valley's chocolate bone broth. Their powder is so good because it's real ingredients. It's quality sourcing and there's no junk or filler. It's very simple ingredients. I like to be able to get 20 grams of protein. I feel like it's a great way to just sneak it in for my kids.

23:01Sometimes we make brownies with it. You could heat it up and drink it like a bone broth. I personally am like usually running out the door when I drink it. So I'll just do like a heaping scoop and a little bit of raw milk or water and I'll froth it up and add ice. And it's absolutely delicious. You could even bake with it. You could put it in muffins. You can get really creative with it. And it's just an extra protein oomph, if you know what I mean. I like this brand so much that when I'm on vacation, I will order the brand to whatever hotel I'm staying at. So that should tell you everything that you need to know.

23:35I also want to note that if you're looking for more protein in general, they have bee sticks and organ complex. A lot of you guys have been scared to eat organs, and this is a great way to get all the benefits from organs. Head to paleovalley.com slash skinny or use code skinny at checkout for 20 % off your first purchase. That's paleovalley.com slash skinny, or you can use code skinny at checkout, paleovalley.com slash skinny. This episode of The Boss 6 is brought to you by NeuroGum, the makers of the world's smartest gum. I love products like this. I love things that give me an edge. I love things that make me feel like I'm on point, and NeuroGum definitely makes me feel that way.

24:11What makes NeuroEnergy and Focus so smart as a gum is it's powered by natural caffeine, L-theanine for calm and focus, and vitamin B12 and B6. It's going to enhance your cognition. It's going to give you that little bit of energy. I personally am a big coffee drinker. I have a lot of caffeine, but throughout the day, I've been trying to limit myself. But if I need that little extra pick me up in the middle of the workday, or if I want to get that extra edge, NeuroGum is an incredible tool to help you get there. Because here's the thing, when you're chewing other gum, you're just chewing with Neuro, you're chewing for clean, sustained energy, sharper focus, and it just makes you feel good.

24:41You're calmer, you're less on edge, and it helps you make it through the day with more clarity. Also, we've talked all about jaw development on this show. People are chewing less. This is not good for our jaw development, it's not good for our jawline. So with NeuroGum, not only do you get the benefits of cognition and energy, you also get to use your jaw muscles a little bit more, which is so important these days. So if you're a gum chewer and you want that extra pick-me-up, but you also want to benefit, it's time to leave the dumb gum behind and make the switch to SmartGum. The one that I choose is NeuroGum.

25:07Of course, there's no sugar, no asperitame, and no crash. Every chew reminds me I'm making a smart choice for my body. Neuro also offers caffeine-free options for all-day wellness support for those that don't want the caffeine or that are sensitive to it. I personally like the caffeine. And of course, we have an incredible offer for our listeners and viewers. For a limited time, you can get 20 % off your first order at NeuroGum.com by using code SKINNY. That's NeuroGum.com and use code SKINNY for 20 % off your first order. You can also find Neuro at CVS, Walmart, and Amazon. There's this book called I Can See Clearly Now by Wayne Dyer that you have to read because it's one of his last books and he looks back on his whole life and he can see why he went through the things he went through to be who he was today which he's past now but it's really interesting because it reminds me of of your journey and now you're here and you're doing something that's so important and something we're doing every single day that does make a really big difference you have to read that book it reminds me of like your your line well i want to say and excuse my language but it's like it's a mindfuck that's been basically put on all of society where these labels like organic or you know bpa free or you know like things like raw milk like the the mindfuck is that actually the labels are showing the ordinary products that are provided by nature the unlabeled products are the things that have chemical artificial alterations that we've accepted to be the norm does that make Yeah, it does make sense.

26:38So like whenever I, like it sounds strange when people say, oh, you're cleaning with branch basics with a plant-based mineral or vinegar, or you're drinking a raw milk, which is not pasteurized, or you're having this kind of whatever organic food. But like, that's how we evolved. It's not until modern times that we've used these processes and these new artificial ingredients that we really don't have a lot of time with that we haven't evolved with. It's not that there's a ton of innovation needed. It's there's a little bit of inconvenience needed. yeah like i mean my dad's older now he's 82 and when he grew up on a farm in illinois and and he's like when you talk about raw milk he's like we talk he's like yeah he's like that like you mean milk the milk he's like like they don't they it's these terms now and i think the the problem is is like you have mass industrialization and you have private equity companies you have interest groups and they've tricked the public largely not in a i'm not saying the public's dumb but people are now accepting things that are not natural as natural and things that are natural as dangerous does that make sense yeah and it creates this situation where like the people that are moving more into organic or raw foods or to you know natural cleaning supplies like you get those people kind of get labeled as strange like they're kind of like the non-normal people in society right so it's a weird way to think about it i think about it a lot what do you think that every water brand should be willing to publish?

27:59So we do really comprehensive testing on our water and we publish it on our site every time we do a production run and that's an important note. There's a standard water quality test that you have to run as a water company annually. You don't have to publish it but you have to do it for FDA regulation from a bottled water perspective um sources change right what does that mean sources change well what we talked about before right you have varying weather patterns varying land use around the sources so the water that you may water sources getting yeah but the water that you were getting from maybe a bottled water two years ago isn't it's different huh yeah and the minerality will change a little bit the and and it changes um and i think you know if we talk about you know how things used to be um if you look into nature like there's a reason we're named loon and it's after the water bird the loon um because i've been obsessed with them my entire life we grew up spending time in a small lake in northern vermont and there were loons there and they're just crazy birds and they have a really crazy call crazy as a loon is based on the loon but the amazing thing about loons is that they are monogamous and their migratory patterns every year to the same lakes year after year unless the water quality declines and then they'll stop showing up and so they really are nature's symbol of water purity but if you look at the way that herds travel and all that sort of stuff they test their water they're attuned to changes in the water all that all those little signals around water quality.

29:39And we've sort of forgotten that, right? Because water has moved into more of an industrial process. And that's where we, as a company, take a really serious commitment to making sure that we're testing at the source, we're testing on a finished goods basis after we do filtration and balancing with minerality. And we're transparent about that with rubber chemicals, microplastics, herbicides, pesticides, and a standard water quality report. What is a legitimate water test report looking like? Is there something that you can share with the audience? You mentioned that they need to update it on their website, but is there things that are like sketchy to you?