The Organic Debate

Make this Year a Green One: Tips

So the holidays are over and life is starting to get back to normal. It's the beginning of a new year so why not start it right? You are obviously reading my blog because you want to educate yourself on how you can live a greener lifestyle. So I'm going to give you a few tips as to how you can so this. Just choose the tips you really think you can do - even if it's one. One may not seem like much but if you stick to it throughout 2009 the difference you will make overall will be huge.

• Cards: How many cards do you think you & your family get each year? With birthdays, Valentine's Day and especially the holidays you are wasting a lot of paper (not to mention precious trees). So why not reuse them..? Your Christmas cards can be trimmed and used for next years gift tags. You can use these cut outs for scrapbooking or crafts. Be creative!
• Packaging: Buy products that contain less packaging material. When shopping for your kids, opt for toys that don't contain a lot of plastic. Most often this plastic is not recyclable and it just ends up clogging up our landfills. Many companies are jumping on the bandwagon to offer products with less waste. Buy from these companies whenever you can. Also try buying products that are refillable. For example, spend a bit more on a nice soap pump for your bathroom/kitchen and refill it with the large containers of liquid soap. It wastes less plastic and you'll also save money!
• Recycled Goods: When you go to the grocery you'll now see more products that are created with biodegradable, sustainable and/or recycled elements. Make a resolution to switch at least one of your every day products to something more eco-friendly. Buy your kids a reusable lunch pail with a stainless steel bottle that can be filled with juice or water. You can buy anything from toilet paper made with recycled fibers to clothing produced from sustainable sources like bamboo (and it's safer for you & your family to wear organic clothing like bamboo as it's not sprayed with harmful chemicals).
• Shop Local: Look for locally manufactured products. Produce is an easy thing to shop for locally when it's the right time of the year. Local is beneficial in many ways:

~ Puts money back into our ecomony
~ Less transportation is used - hence less emissions being released into the air we breathe - making it easier on our environment
~ Fresher is better. Did you know that more and more nutrients are lost in produce the longer it sits? So strawberries imported from Costa Rica will contain less valuable vitamins than a fruit stand selling strawberries from their fields on the side of a road
~ We can trust the source. Some people will buy organic because it's called organic. However, the regulations in Mexico are much different than our regulations. So an 'organic' tomato from Mexico may be less healthy for you than an apple purchased at a local apple orchard.

Please note: When trying to decide on which local produce market to buy from, don't be afraid to ask them how they grow their produce. They may spray only in the flowering stages or may spray the actual fruit/vegetable. Obviously the less pesticides, the better!

There are many more products you can buy that are created locally. Simply do an online search for what you are looking for before heading out the door - you might be surprised what is available in your region of the world. Also try to shop at local retailers. Chances are these stores will carry as many domestic products as they can.
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For my new year's resolution for my blog, I vow to publish at least 1 post a week. If you have any suggestions as to what you would like to hear about, please let me know. Happy New Year!

There's nothing fresh about air 'fresh'eners

It's the holidays and many of us fill our homes with the sweet smells that remind us of the holidays. But what many do not realize, that smell comes at a cost.

What exactly is a fragrance? Well, we don't really know. The truth is most fragrances contain thousands of different chemicals - all combined to create a certain scent - that have been link to many health issues including cancer. So anything that has any form of fragrance or scent should be avoided. Unfortunately there are countless products that contain these toxins including many that we use daily: skin care, shampoo/conditioner, candles (look for non-conventional forms of candle like those made of soy), perfume, laundry detergent, dryer sheets (invest in dryer balls) and even food additives (ie that buttery popcorn smell)!

Got asthma? Get rid of any product you have with a fragrance! Fragrance is increasingly cited as a trigger in health conditions including asthma, allergies and migraine headaches. A US study put fragrances in the same category as second hand smoke as a trigger for asthma in school-age children. Up to 72 percent of asthmatics report their asthma attacks are triggered by fragrance! Those signs you see in a Naturopath's office or doctor's offices that state 'no perfumes allowed' are up because of these reactions.

Just take a look around your home & see just how many products you use every day that contain 'fake'rances. These toxins are being absorbed through your skin and even inhaled into your lungs. Not only that, they are contributing to indoor air pollution and, in cold weather, are trapped in your home. Doing this check can be a bit overwhelming so just try to make one change at a time. As I've said in a previous post, when buying soap or skin care products look for fragrance free, not unscented. 'Unscented' products often use more chemicals to cover up a strong scent.

As usual, we need to get back to the basics. For a room spray, mix pure water with 25-50 drops of orange oil. For a lasting scent, try mixing 2 tsp of baking soda with your favourite essential oil.

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Interesting...The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics (safecosmetics.org) lists the cosmetic companies who have signed their pledge to remove chemicals that are known or strongly suspected to be toxic from their products. (Avon, Estée Lauder, L’Oréal, Revlon, Procter & Gamble and Unilever have all refused to sign)!

Sources:
http://www.greenlivingonline.com/BeautyFashion/wake-up-and-smell-the-chemicals/
http://www.naturallifemagazine.com/0210/perfume.htm
http://www.naturalnews.com/023859.html