Archive for December, 2008
In the book, Anti Cancer - A New Way of Life by David Servan-Schreiber, MD, Phd, the author tells of two different studies on the prevalence of pesticides in children.
A researcher in Washington state conducted a series of tests on 42 children, ages 2 to 5. As families were leaving either a conventional grocery store or an organic co-op, they asked the parents if they would write down everything their children ate or drank for three days. Their diets were determined to be ‘organic’ if more than 75% of the food consumed was from organic sources; and ‘conventional’ if it wasn’t.
After measuring the amount of pesticides present in the children’s urine, she found that the amount of pesticides in the ‘organic’ children’s urine was one sixth that of the ‘conventional’ children’s levels and far below the EPA’s level of minimum exposure rate. The children on the ‘conventional’ diet had levels more than four times above the safe exposure limit set by the EPA.
The second study was done over a period of 15 days on 23 children. Their urine was tested after eating a ‘conventional’ diet for several days, and it showed the presence of pesticides. Then their diet was switched to completely organic foods. Within days, all traces of pesticides were gone from the urine samples. Upon starting on the conventional diet again, their levels quickly resumed.
Since 1940 the production of pesticides and synthetic chemicals has increased to over 150 MILLION TONS a YEAR. Much of the chemicals go into food production, personal care products, household cleaners, manufacture of common construction materials, clothing and every day items. Due to increased exposure of pesticides & synthetic chemicals, cancer rates have increased.
For more information, read the above mentioned book. It is a true eye-opener.
http://www.ewg.org/chemindex/term/447
http://www.organicconsumers.org/
http://www.cdc.gov/ExposureReport/pdf/factsheet_organochlorine.pdf
As we saw at the Washington DC Green Fest, portable solar chargers are the coolest things because they go anywhere and charge lots of electronic devices. They’re not only practical just for around-town use, either.
A solar charger is perfect for someone who travels a lot or spends a lot of time outdoors, be it for their job or favorite hobby.
Golfers, bicyclists, motorcyclists, hikers or avid campers can use a portable solar charger. Anyone who travels to foreign countries, where reliable electricity is a problem, can benefit from owning a portable solar charger. There are no electric outlets or car chargers if you’re on a tractor, inspecting a trail, hunting, fishing, on a 100 mile bike ride, on the 12th hole of the course or 1,000 ft high in your Cessna.
Anyplace where there’s lots of direct sun is perfect for a portable solar charger. It even holds the charge for later use.
As a back up for emergency situations, such as power outages or as a saftey item in a car’s emergency kit, a solar powered portable charger could be life saving.
American consumers use between 300 and 700 plastic bags per year. First introduced in 1977, current use is over 100 billion bags each year in the US. That’s 4 out of every 5 bags in every store each day.
2,000 barrels of oil a DAY are required to make plastic bags. They make up about 73,000 tons of waste at a landfill. Sadly, only about 1% are recycled.
Surf the net and you’ll find sites selling recycled plastic bags made into a variety of things. In South Africa and India, a cottage industry has sprung up harvesting up to 30,000 plastic bags a month from landfills.
There is even a floating landfill - The Great Floating Garbage Patch. This “landfill” is twice the size of Texas and is located in the pacific where currents pool. Much of this trash comes from the United States. It is made up of millions of pounds of trash, mostly plastics. Mistaking these floating plastics for food, each year hundreds of thousands of sea birds and marine life die from digested plastics.
Paper bags aren’t necessarily more environmentally friendly. Single-use paper bags generate 70% more air and 50 times more water pollutants than plastic bags.
Solution: Reusable bags! A sturdy, reusable bag needs only be used 11 times to have a lower environmental impact than using disposable plastic bags.
Time are tough, not doubt about that. If you are considering remodeling your home rather than trying to sell it, consider ‘deconstruction’ instead of ‘demolition.’
Modern homes are comprised of many materials, much of it potentially toxic. Instead of sending it to a landfill, ‘environmentally conscious building material recycling centers,‘ all available over the country.
‘Demolition’ destroys the structure rendering it unusable. It also can spread potentially harmful toxins, not only in your neighborhood (think of your neighbors!) but into the Earth as well. In ‘deconstruction,’ your building is taken apart carefully by skilled workers. Reusable materials are preserved and donated to nonprofit organizations, earning you a tax deduction.
It is just like a thrift store. You can donate new or used building materials, or you can shop and save a lot of money.
Benefits of using ‘deconstruction’ are:
Lift up communities by making repairs more affordable for homeowners, small businesses and community groups.
Reduce construction waste and keep reusable material out of landfills
Promote environmentally friendly building materials and methods.
Develop career opportunities and ‘green’ jobs for nearby residents.
www.LoadingDock.org or www.BuildingReuse.org and www.Habitat.org/Env/Restores are just a few of the environmentally responsible organizations who can help recycle your house!
The holiday season is the ‘trashiest‘ time of year. From Thanksgiving to Christmas, a staggering amount of waste is created. There is an increase of over 25% in trash tonnage. Wrapping paper alone accounts for an additional 25 million tons every holiday season or one million tons a week.
What are you doing to have an more environmentally friendly holiday season and reduce your footprint? There are many things you can do:
Recycle your wrapping paper: A tradition in my family, and it almost became a contest between my Mom and Grandmother, was reusing (now called ‘re purposing’) gift wrap. Mom and Grandma would smooth out and save the larger pieces of wrapping paper to recycle next Christmas. Years later, we’d laugh as we’d recognize the paper from years past.
Wrap a gift in a gift: Give two gifts at once. Wrap one in a reusable shopping bag which is a strong, lightweight recyclable tote bag. This way the recipient gets TWO gifts, one which is totally environmentally responsible. Or, you might try hiding a gift in a piece of fair trade, organic clothing.
Get off the mailing lists for catalogs and unwanted subscriptions. Call the 800 number and have your name removed from the list. Contact all your subscriptions, credit cards and tell them that you do not want your name rented or sold. This will dramatically cut down on your junk mail. If you do get an unwanted catalog, call their 800 number right away, because these things are like rabbits. They multiply quickly!
Give chargers & rechargeable batteries - especially to parents with young children. Batteries account for a massive amount (and environmentally harmful) of holiday waste. Consider giving a battery charger and rechargeable batteries as gifts. Take your dead batteries to a safe recycling center - never throw them in the trash. This endangers the collection people, those who process your trash and the environment.
Lastly: Think before you buy. Sometimes the best gift is the simplest one: time spent with family and friends doing things that don’t cost money! Make memories instead of garbage!
The origin of the word ’spa’ comes from ’sanitas per agua’ (health through water). Long before facials and massages became synonymous with the word ’spa,’ bathing was the route to wellness of whole-body detoxification. Citizens of ancient Rome bathed daily. From the late 1700s to the present day, German physicians prescribed patients a ‘kur’ (cure or treatment) of one bath a day for 10-20 days. Thalassotherapy, introduced by the French, uses ocean water and seaweed.
Common annoying skin problems like acne and eczema have been linked to stress. When the panic ‘fight or flight’ hormones, cortisol and adrenalin are released, it weakens the body’s defense system. This leads to breakouts. You can, however, get relief. All you have to do is go through your bathroom door.
Signaling the body that it’s time to wind down, a nightly bath is a relaxing before-bed ritual. Create one with some favorite calming music and a relaxing scent. Gently exfoliate by rubbing some aromatic bath salts over your body. Once or twice a week, soak for at least 20 minutes in a detox bath. It will give your system time to release physical symptoms and toxins.
Regular relaxed bathing strengthens the immune system by assisting it to fight off illness. A ‘fake fever’ by bathing in hot water, increases body temperature kills and off germs. This is an helpful aid, especially during cold and flu season. Release toxins and relax in a good hot bath!
Our multitasking, workaholic culture can wreak havoc on our bodies. We’ve seen an increase in all sorts of chronic degenerative disease. Stress causes a serious energy depletion, sapping vitamins and minerals because the body secretes adrenalin and cortisol when you’re running at full tilt. These create disease in the body from heart disease, arthritis and a host of other immune-response conditions. Could it be that we need time to slow down?
Many of you say “I don’t have the time.” Well, then you just have to make time. Why not treat yourself to a once a week spa: your detox bath session.
A detox bath itself is healing for your body. Aromatic bath salts added to your detox bath water will relax you. Using Himalayan salts to exfoliate and refresh your skin and chemical-free bath products will do a lot to help your body be healthy. Organic skin care is just another way of taking care of yourself.
So, send the kids off to the babysitter’s, or have your partner take them out for a while. Unplug the phone and brew a pot of your favorite organic herbal tea. Run yourself a hot bath, pour in a generous amount of Epsom salts, and Himalayan bath salts. Add some organic, aromatic bath oil like lavender. Light some of your favorite incense and a soy candle and ease in for an hour or so of pure bliss.
You probably won’t want to get out!