Raise your hand if you want your kids to stay healthy in school.

RODALE NEWS, EMMAUS, PA—Kids go to school to sharpen their minds. They should be exposed to the ABCs, not to PVCs, VOCs, or BPA. Unfortunately, many manufacturers of back-to-school supplies deserve an F for offering school products laced with chemicals that scientists have linked to developmental and learning problems, among other ailments. The good news is that parents, public health leaders, and advocacy groups have been calling for safer products, and marketers are listening. So there are more and more options for smart choices that protect your family’s health. We scoured the Internet and walked the aisles of big-box stores, we talked to child health experts, environmental health specialists, and concerned parents…and following their collective advice, we’ve compiled this ultimate guide that will help you equip your kids for a safe, healthy, nontoxic school year.

Here are five tips from our new e-book, "Rodale's Nontoxic Back-to-School Shopping Guide," which you can download in full from Amazon.com and other retailers.

1. Demand organic. Choose organic food and products for your kids, and yourself, whenever possible. Food and crops grown with organic techniques aren’t treated with toxic, synthetic pesticides, fertilizers, and other questionable chemicals. So you not only avoid consuming toxic agrichemicals, but you also help keep them out of our soil and water. And organic agriculture helps mitigate global warming by trapping carbon in the soil instead of releasing it into the atmosphere as a greenhouse gas. Look for the USDA Organic seal, which ensures that strict organic standards were followed in the preparation and processing of a product, or buy from organic farmers who you trust. Read Why We All Need an Organic Manifesto for more information about organic.