Q&A With Branch Basics' Founders: Part Three
Happy Wednesday, friends! Today we are continuing our Q&A series with the three founders of Branch Basics and we are so excited to introduce you to Marilee! Marilee is Allison's aunt and is a wellness/nutritionist guru! You probably remember Marilee's name in both Allison's Q&A and Kelly's Q&A. Read the Q&A with Marilee below to get to know her + learn even more about Branch Basics, the toxin-free, totally safe, and completely pure home cleaning solution that we love. Also, they are kindly offering a promo code for LSK readers…use code LSK20 for 20% off at branchbasics.com!
We have heard so much about you in Allison & Kelly's Q&As! What originally inspired you to become so knowledgeable and passionate about holistic living and toxin-free products?In my twenties I was faced with the fact that I needed a kidney transplant and would never have children. I never had the transplant, had a child and recovered from many lifelong chronic health issues just through the study of using food as medicine which resulted in a radical diet change from the Standard American Diet to eating only nutrient dense real organic food.Later, I had a severely chemically injured 10 year old child that we were told would never recover and would be a bubble boy for the rest of his life, but he did in fact recover and the steps we had to take for him to completely heal revealed just how much having products and materials with harmful chemicals in our homes impacts our mental, physical and emotional wellbeing.Our lives were transformed with the application of just getting back to basics - eating real food and creating a healthy home.
It seems like you played a pretty large role in Allison's journey through turning around her PCOS. What was that like for you, guiding her through that time, as her aunt?It was such an honor and privilege to spend that couple of months with Allison as I had missed much of her growing up years since we had been so isolated from family during the time my son was recovering from chemical injury. Getting to really know her and watch her heal and recover during that time and after she left my home was like seeing my own daughter emerge healthy and strong with her own precious baby. I cherish the relationship I have with Allison now (niece - like a daughter, friend, and business partner) and it wouldn’t have happened had we not all faced major health challenges. We of course know how important our diets are for our overall health, but what is your #1 bit of advice when it comes to eating healthy?Plain and simple. Get back to basics and eat only the organic real food that God created for us!
We love Branch Basics' REVIEW, REMOVE, REPLACE process for beginning the journey of removing toxin-free products from one's home. Can you briefly share why removing toxin-free products from our homes is so crucial?Our home should be a safe haven, a place of refuge and regeneration that is free from contaminants and elements that harm our health. Overwhelming scientific evidence indicates that the air within our homes is polluted and that illness caused by exposure to these pollutants is a serious threat to our health. Research has shown that many of these chemicals in our homes can cause symptoms in every organ, disrupt the endocrine system leading to breast and prostate cancer, endometriosis, fibroid tumors, ovarian cysts, loss of sex drive and fertility and can damage brain chemistry leading to hyperactivity, learning disabilities, depression, and even mental illness. They can also accumulate in the organs, triggering cancers of the liver, lung, colon, thyroid, etc.Creating a healthy home by eliminating these poisons can save money that might otherwise be spent on doctor visits, medication, and missed workdays. A chemical free-living area enables our bodies to use its energy for rejuvenation and healing instead of detoxifying chemicals. Removing this immune stress gives the body the power, and literally the breathing room to maintain health or to recover and heal!
What has been the most joyful part of this Branch Basics journey for you?Having the opportunity to work with our team and share information that is life changing to many people with ears to hear!What is your dream for the future of Branch Basics?We want to create an army of people who are eating real food and have created truly healthy homes so that the healthcare crisis we are facing in America can be turned around. We would also like to have a Branch Basics Healing Center/Resort where people could come and experience the “transforming power of pure” - stay in a facility built with non-toxic materials where no harmful chemicals are used, eat real food, use safe products we would furnish, and wear clothes we would provide to ensure that everyone would not be exposed to residues of toxic laundry products. This would provide participants at our center a fast track to healing that would motivate them to go home and apply what they learned just as Allison and Kelly experienced at my home.