Bisphenol-A (BPA) has been in the news a lot lately, as governments are finally admitting this hormone disruptor is bad for humans, particularly children. Senators Charles Schumer and Diane Feinstein have just introduced a bill to ban BPA in all children's products, and the US House of Representatives is investigating the FDA's claims that BPA is safe for human consumption. Canada declared BPA a "dangerous substance".
I thought this National Lampoon video parody on drugs in our drinking water would be perfect for April Fool's Day. Too bad the reality of it is truer than we would like to imagine.
The harmful effects of Bisphenol-A (BPA) have been known for some time now. A study released last month by the University of Cincinnati released states that BPA leaching from plastic containers increases greatly with hot liquids. According to Globe and Mail,
The finding suggests that parents sterilizing polycarbonate baby bottles by heating them in water or in a microwave may be inadvertently increasing the amount of the estrogen-mimicking chemical leaching from the containers. It also indicates hikers who use the bottles as a thermos to store hot tea or liquids may be doing the same. The addition of boiling water increased BPA migration rates by up to 55-fold compared with water at room temperature...
If you are a coffee or tea drinker, try using a stainless steel travel mug. This is a great option to use instead of wasteful, paper/styrofoam cups and is a safer alternative to reusable plastic mugs and bottles. This mug is made with fair labor practices, including paying fair wages.
Does your yoga mat contain PVC? There's nothing like yoga for the body and soul, but your yoga mat could be toxic. Most yoga mats contain PVC. PVC has been called the "Poison Plastic". According to the Center for Health, Environment, and Justice,
PVC (polyvinyl chloride) plastic, commonly referred to as vinyl, is one of the most hazardous consumer products ever created. PVC is dangerous to human health and the environment throughout its entire life cycle, at the factory, in our homes, and in the trash. Our bodies are contaminated with poisonous chemicals released during the PVC lifecycle, such as mercury, dioxins, and phthalates, which may pose irreversible life-long health threats.
The Harmony Natural Rubber Yoga Mat is PVC-free, as well as made from natural rubber. Not only are these mats all natural, they provide a slip-resistant surface for your yoga practice. Like any new yoga mat, this product may have a slight rubber smell that will go away with time. It is available in Sedona red, Tibetan orange, black, midnight blue, orchid, and olive green. The Harmony Natural Rubber Yoga Mat adds sustainability to your yoga practice. Other eco-friendly yoga mats are available from Drishti, Terra Pure, and Prana. Only the Harmony yoga mats are made from all natural materials.
Got Aches and Pains? Use Natural Arnica Gel for Relief
Arniflora Arnica Gel is a homeopathic remedy for aches and pains. If you are not familiar with the principles of homeopathy, homeopathic treatment involves giving extremely small doses of natural substances that mimic the symptoms of the same illness in healthy people when given in larger doses. The idea is that “like cures like.” Arniflora contains an 8% tincture of arnica montana, which has been used for centuries to relieve pain. According to the University of Maryland Medical Center,
Arnica ( Arnica montana) has been used for medicinal purposes since the 1500s and remains popular today. Applied topically as a cream, ointment, liniment, salve, or tincture, arnica has been used by both Europeans and Native Americans to soothe muscle aches, reduce inflammation, and heal wounds.
This little yellow flower is a lifesaver when backpacking or when suffering from an injury, such as a sprained ankle or broken bone. Arniflora Arnica Gel works quickly and naturally to relieve aches and pains. This natural product is definitely one to keep stocked in your medicine chest at all times.
FreeRice.com: Feed the Hungry and Improve Your Vocabulary
In honor of Thanksgiving week, here's a site that helps you take aim at world hunger and improve your vocabulary. FreeRice is a simple online vocab quiz. But for each word you get right, they'll donate ten grains of rice through the United Nations to help end world hunger.
FreeRice is a sister site of the world poverty site, Poverty.com. As they explain on the site:
FreeRice has two goals:
1. Provide English vocabulary to everyone for free.
2. Help end world hunger by providing rice to hungry people for free.
This is made possible by the sponsors who advertise on this site.
Whether you are CEO of a large corporation or a street child in a poor country, improving your vocabulary can improve your life. It is a great investment in yourself.
Perhaps even greater is the investment your donated rice makes in hungry human beings, enabling them to function and be productive. Somewhere in the world, a person is eating rice that you helped provide. Thank you.
Now that you've looked into the heart of the food system and been into the belly of the beast, how should I eat, and what should I buy, and if I'm concerned about health, what should I be eating? I decided I would see what kind of very practical answers I could give people.
As someone who struggles to get enough calcium in my diet through whole foods, I try to take a daily calcium supplement. Historically, I've rotated between Tums and Viactive, preferring chewable calcium supplements to the giant horsepill variety. I usually buy the chocolate or caramel flavor of Viactive, but have long felt that people who believe it tastes like real chocolate are kidding themselves. Well, as of right now, I am changing my tune: with Adora Chocolate Calcium Supplements, you can have your chocolate and your calcium, too.
Klean Kanteen Sippy Cup - BPA-Free for the Whole Family
BPA-free drinking vessels aren't just for babies and grown-ups. Check out your toddler's sippy cups to make sure they don't contain the dangerous chemical compound found in hard plastics. (Here's how to tell.)
The Klean Kanteen stainless steel sippy cup is safe and non-leaching, with no epoxy coating on the inside of the bottle. It comes with a non-leaching #5 polypropylene adaptor and #5 polypropylene sippy spout. (The Klean Kanteen Sippy Cup also works with the Avent Sippy Spouts - two of which are included - and is dishwasher safe. ) When your child outgrows the sippy spout, you can replace it with any other Klean Kanteen cap.
In another sign that eating less meat has become mainstream, Mark Bittman, author of The Minimalist column for The New York Times offers up How to Cook Everything Vegetarian.
We're big fans of Bittman's How to Cook Everything cookbook, which features tasty recipes using minimal ingredients and prep time. Bittman offers up simple recipes and easy-to-follow instructions, followed by numerous variations. How to Cook Everything Vegetarian includes more than 2000 recipes and variations.
SkinFree products are all natural, fragrance-free and petroleum-free. SkinFree owner Julie Hilton, a practicing pharmacist, designed the skincare line in response to customer requests for recommendations on products for difficult skin conditions, especially fragrance allergies. Her products are recommended for individuals with skin allergies, eczema, psoriasis, and dermatitis. They're also ideally suited for pregnant moms, babies, diabetics, renal patients and people undergoing radiation therapy. I can understand why.
When I was pregnant, I developed a sensitivity to petroleum-based ingredients in my regular skincare products. My skin was dry and itchy, but I couldn't stand the petroleum smell in products containing mineral oil or petroleum jelly.
* Cut down on canned foods. To keep food from reacting with the metal of the can, a plastic coating made from bisphenol A is commonly applied to the inside of the can. This coating appears as a solid color on the inside of the can, and can leach into the food stored inside.
* Avoid eating or drinking from polycarbonate plastics – used in such products as hard plastic baby bottles, 5 gallon water cooler bottles, hard plastic water bottles, plastic silverware, and Lexan products. You can check for the type of plastic on the bottom of the bottle – polycarbonate bottles may be labeled with recycling number 7 ("Other" type of plastic) or may contain the letters "PC" below the recycling symbol. Bisphenol A may leach out of these types of bottles into your beverage or food. Alternatives include bottles and other materials made from glass, stainless steel, or polypropylene bottles labeled number 5 on the bottom (translucent, not transparent).
So, you may want to think about replacing your Nalgene bottles and your plastic sippy cups and baby bottles, and looking for alternatives.
Sandra Blum just wrote in to let us know about the launch of a new site for parents concerned making safe and healthy choices for their children - Safe Alternatives for Baby. She writes:
With this blog, we wish to shine the light from potentially harmful or toxic choices we may unknowingly make for our children, onto safer alternatives. We hope to inspire parents to become as aware as possible.
Initial entries focus on sunblock, water filters, baby wipes and pacifiers.
Good luck to Sandra and her partner Samantha on the new site. Sandra and Samantha, welcome to the blogosphere! Keep us posted.
BPA-Free Camelbak Plastic Water Bottle
Michael Pollan, author of 
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Chocolate Lovers and Nutrition Buffs Unite! I've just discovered 
BPA-free drinking vessels aren't just for babies and grown-ups. Check out your toddler's sippy cups to make sure they don't contain the dangerous chemical compound found in hard plastics. (
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