Take a moment to watch this fun and non-sensationalized video about the story behind the cosmetics you use everyday.
Archive for the ‘Healthy Living’ Category
The Story of Cosmetics
Thursday, July 22nd, 2010
Sunshine & Bugs – a Natural Defence
Thursday, July 8th, 2010
Every summer it begins anew… the liberal slathering of sunscreen and new appreciation for insect repellant. This summer I restocked an old favorite – Badger SPF 30 Sunscreen. I’ve written about it before here and here. Badger works, has a pleasant herbal scent and is totally SAFE, with no icky carcinogenic chemicals. (But, as I learned on our June camping trip, don’t rely on an expired bottle… they’re not kidding when they say an expired bottle will not be as effective).
This summer, on the recommendation of a friend, I decided to add Badger Anti-Bug Balm to my shopping bag along with the sunscreen. This certified organic balm comes in an easy-to-use push up stick. My kids seemed to enjoy rubbing it all over and I appreciated that we weren’t inhaling it, as is inevitable with a spray. Best of all, it really worked! We spent several lazy evenings sitting around at dusk by our campsite. Once we applied Badger Anti-Bug Balm, the bugs took a hike. Unlike typical insect repellents, Badger’s doesn’t use DEET. It’s safe enough for the whole family.
This is part of the Healthy Child Blog Carnival – an effort by Healthy Child Healthy World to help inspire a movement to protect children from harmful chemicals.
Here are some other posts I enjoyed:
The Evolution of a Lawn, Shoes Off at the Door Please and The most expensive egg we’ll ever eat.
for the sake of Strawberries
Thursday, June 24th, 2010Here’s some news from Healthy Child Healthy World with a call for you to speak up for the sake of strawberries. I hope you’ll take a minute to add your voice of concern.
Strawberry Lovers, Take Action!
by Amy Rosenthal,
Environmental Working Group:
Methyl iodide: it’s listed as a human carcinogen, is considered a neurotoxin and has been linked to late-term miscarriages. Now the state of California is poised to let farmers spray it on the state’s strawberry fields – fields that provide over 85% of the US crop.
California’s regulators are all but ignoring their scientific advisors by proposing a “safe” level of exposure (for those doing the spraying) at a rate 120 times higher than that recommended by their own scientists and an outside independent panel.
What’s so bad about methyl iodide?
This toxic chemical, that gets extra precaution and a fume hood when handled in a lab, has been linked to thyroid disease, neurological damage, lung tumors and fetal harm. Both California state scientists and an outside review panel determined that when widely used as a pesticide, methyl iodide would have “a significant adverse impact on public health.”
Too much at stake
But the Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) appears to be putting the profits of strawberry growers and pesticide manufacturers above the interests of public health and is poised to allow farmers to sterilize their soil with methyl iodide, risking:
- The health of Californians living and working near any field where the pesticide is sprayed. DPR claims that safety measures such as buffer zones and tarps will prevent a dangerous level of human exposure, but enforcement of these safety measures is often lax.
- The health of farm workers who will face the highest exposure to the toxic poison. While DPR insists that the use of respirators and other precautions will make it safe, experience has shown that real life application of these measures often falls short.
- California’s air & water quality. Methyl iodide is a particularly volatile chemical, and when released into the environment, there’s a risk of contamination of air and groundwater.
Speak up
There is still time for California’s regulators to change their mind. Tell the California Department of Pesticide Regulation that use of methyl iodide should not be permitted in California. Anyone (even non-Californians) can email them a comment through June 29th. Below we’ve given you some sample text – feel free to add, or send as is today!
Sample Text:
I am concerned about the pending approval of methyl iodide for use as a fumigant on California fields. Agricultural spraying of this poisonous chemical, linked to cancer, thyroid damage and fetal loss, threatens farm workers, Californians living in agricultural areas, and the state’s water & air quality. I urge the DPR to put the health of the state’s citizens & environment first and withdraw its recommendation to approve the use of methyl iodide.
The mission of the Environmental Working Group (EWG) is to use the power of public information to protect public health and the environment. EWG is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, founded in 1993 by Ken Cook and Richard Wiles.
First Harvest
Thursday, June 10th, 2010Eating well and eating sustainably rarely gets better than backyard gardening. This year we put in our first garden ever. It was hard going. But largely thanks to help from my mom, it did go in. Here’s a montage from about 2 weeks ago:
This week we took our first harvest, just in time for snacks. Those carrots are baby carrots that were “thinned” to allow others more room to grow. Yum!
Better Boy yielded three large, ripe beauties. Technically, Celebrity sported our first ripe full-sized tomatoe… but my 3-year-old picked and sqooshed it under his shoe before I could say “NO!” That’s real life gardening with children!
How does your garden grow?
Natural Remedy for Insect Stings
Thursday, May 27th, 2010This week Liam was stung by a wasp. Poor thing, he was stung by a bee last fall, so I’m starting to feel that he has bad luck. This incident wasn’t his fault at all. The wasp had made a nest under our slide. As soon as it happened, I carried him inside and plunked the crying child on my kitchen counter.
As I reached for a homeopathic remedy for insect stings, I was racking my brain to recall the right folk remedy. Was it raw honey or baking soda that would soothe the sting? Liam willingly took the homeopathy, but it didn’t calm him down one bit. Guessing, I grabbed the baking soda (less messy!) and applied some powder right his sting. Instantly, he settled and stopped crying. Shocked, I asked him if the sting felt better. He insisted it did and remained calm. In fact, the sting barely bothered him at all after that. It was like it’d never happened. Wow! I won’t forget that trick anytime soon.
A little research today reveals that the alkalinity of the baking soda neutralizes the acidity of the sting. Folks suggest making a little paste of baking soda and water, applying for 15-20 minutes. I was going fast and simply used straight baking soda, but neutralize it did! I’m kind of jealous that my mom didn’t know this natural remedy for insect stings when I was a child. I remember how bee stings would hurt and hurt and hurt FOREVER.
Turns out that raw honey is actually another natural remedy for stings. I found a whole list of folk remedies for insect stings here. But, honestly, I think if you just remember to use baking soda, you’ll be set. Ah, baking soda, you never fail to amaze us!
Petition for Safer Chemicals
Friday, April 2nd, 2010The American Chemistry Council (ACC) continues to lobby for laws that protect profits at the expense of consumers. Right now chemical reform is being discussed in Congress, and while the ACC appears to support reform, there’s a long way between what the ACC considers reform and what parents and organizations such as Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families desire. Here’s a nice summary from Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families:
What Public Health Advocates Want
• Public disclosure of safety information for all chemicals in use
• Prompt action to phase out or reduce the most dangerous chemicals
• Deciding safety based on real world exposure to all sources of toxic chemicals
What the Chemical Industry Wants
• Limited testing of a handful of chemicals, leaving us in the dark about safety hazards
• More lengthy and costly studies of chemicals already proven to be dangerous
• An assumption that we are only exposed to one chemical at a time, and from one source at a time
Add your voice to the cry for REAL chemical reform - Sign the petition to Congress.
Friend to Friend
Monday, March 29th, 2010I made a wonderful new friend this weekend. She’s fun, clever, real and we have lots in common. But, as she put it, she’s not friends with many “green” women like me. I was so thankful that she could hear about my natural lifestyle with acceptance, rather than annoyance. And, I have to admit, I hope to share more about my passion for healthy living in the future.
As life would have it, I came across a moving video produced by Healthy Child, Healthy World today. They are a non-profit that advocates for and educates the public about the health of our children in our modern world. It’s called “A Wake-Up Story” and it’s a simple way to introduce a friend like mine to the reasons why I care. I hope you’ll watch this SHORT video:
BPA-free Tomato Sauce & Tomato Paste!
Monday, March 15th, 2010Eliminating canned foods takes some work. But, there are readily available alternatives to most canned foods like fruit, vegetables and beans. When it comes to tomato sauce and tomato paste, I’ve been at a lost to find a replacement… until now!
Check out these gorgeous glass jars chock full of organic goodness! The Bionaturae organic foods company packages tomato sauce (strained tomatoes), tomato paste and a variety of fruit nectars in healthy, BPA-free glass. Thank-you very much!!! It’s available on Amazon, but the shipping is outrageous. A friend pointed out that the Bionaturae line is also available on Vitacost.com, an excellent natural living store from which I already purchase most of our toiletries. Fortunately, Vitacost has $4.99 flat rate shipping. I added a 12 pack of tomato paste and 6 extra-large jars of sauce to my order. They arrived without any breakage. Don’t they look pretty?
P.S. My rough calculations show that at Vitcost prices, Bionaturae organic tomato paste is about 75 cents more per jar than regular canned tomato paste. Bionaturae organic tomato sauce is sold in 24 oz jars, rather than the typical 16 oz can. As such, the Bionaturae sauce is about 45 cents more per 16 oz than regular canned tomato sauce. It’ll be easy to store partially used jars of sauce in the fridge for later use.
Natural Birth Control
Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010The birth control pill is hardly ideal. While I realize it has its BIG advantage (convenience), many women suffer from the side-effects of its daily dose of artificial hormones. When I was investigating birth control options, I came across Toni Weschler’s book, Taking Charge of Your Fertility. It is an excellent, eye-opening lesson about a woman’s monthly cycle of fertility. I used the methods taught in this book to effectively pinpoint my periods of fertility. This served as a drug-free means of birth control and pregnancy-achievement until my husband and I (mostly my husband) decided that our family was complete.
How does it work? Does it really work? Well, even the author recommends Fertility Awareness as a birth control method only for those willing to follow all the rules. As a fastidious type myself, it worked for me. Tanya Triber, a freelance writer, has written a detailed piece for Mindful Mama that’s a perfect introduction to someone curious about the whole idea: On Fertile Ground: The Fertility Awareness Method. All you need is an inexpensive Basal thermometer (which goes in your mouth) and time enough to read the book and you’ve got free, natural birth control or pregnancy achievement, along with a new-found understanding for the way your body works.
BPA Protection: Spinach and Soy
Wednesday, February 24th, 2010
To me, this is very exciting.
When parents learn about the possible dangers from chemical estrogens in the environment, such as those found in some plastics, pesticides, and personal care products, one of the first questions I’m asked is, “What to do if your child was already exposed?”
BPA, one of these chemical estrogens, is found in hard plastics, in the linings of many food cans, and in many cash register receipts. And it doesn’t stay there. It gets into our bodies when we eat or drink something that has been stored or especially heated in one of these containers. It could get into our bodies when we handle receipts, then eat without washing our hands.
The CDC estimates that right now BPA is in the bodies of 93 percent of Americans, with higher levels in teens than in adults, and higher levels in children than in teens.
In animal studies, exposure to even trace amounts early in life has been linked to health problems including obesity, early puberty, and breast and prostate cancer.
Researchers at Duke University have shown that this early exposure affects the offspring’s epigenetics: it turns on and off different genes, resulting in the problems that we see.
Here’s the exciting part: They found that they could completely block BPA damage, even in the face of significant exposure, by giving pregnant animals extra folate (found mostly in green leafy vegetables – foliage – such as spinach) or extra genistein (found mostly in legumes such as soy). The amount of genistein given was comparable to what we would get in our diets if we ate soy foods regularly.
These nutrients switched the genes back the way they should be, and the BPA effect was completely nullified. The researchers describe this as compelling evidence that certain nutrients can counteract BPA when given during pregnancy.
Beyond this, the researchers propose that these nutrients could block the effects of chemical estrogen exposures, even if given later in childhood and possibly even in adulthood.
This research is still preliminary, but it makes sense to me.
Before this study, I already recommended including some green leafy veggies and whole soy foods in your family’s diet. This study suggests these may nourish and protect your child in more ways than we expected. Of course I do not recommend knowingly ingesting
BPA or other potentially harmful chemicals, but eating a healthy diet that includes green leafy vegetables and soy is a great idea for the times you or your children are unknowingly exposed.
by Alan Greene, MD, Clinical Professor of Pediatrics at Stanford University School of Medicine, Attending Pediatrician at Packard Children’s Hospital, and Senior Fellow at the University California San Francisco Center for the Health Professions. He is also founder of DrGreene.com, and author of Raising Baby Green and Feeding Baby Green.
Calafat, A.M., Kuklenyik, Z., Reidy, J.A., Caudill, S.P., Ekong, J., and Needham L.L. “Urinary Concentrations of Bisphenol A and 4-Nonylphenol in a Human Reference Population. Environmental Health Perspectives, Apr 2005, 113:391-395.
Dolinoy, D.C., Huang, D., and Jirtle, R.L. “Maternal Nutrient Supplementation Counteracts Bisphenol-A-Induced DNA Hypomethylation in Early Development.” PNAS, 7 Aug 2007, 104(32):13056-13061.
The opinions expressed here are solely those of the author and not necessarily those of Healthy Child Healthy World. Courtesy of Healthy Child Healthy World: a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit inspiring parents to protect young children from harmful chemicals.
Image Courtesy of Laurel Fan / CC BY-SA 2.0
