Arsenic in Rice

Arsenically speaking, this article shall not be overlooked.

How to Get Arsenic out of Your Diet

A word on dry cleaning

A word on dry cleaning

Two sisters on a mission to create perfectly safe fabrics. They seem to know their stuff inside out!

Below an article why drycleaned pieces of clothing can be harmful.

http://oecotextiles.wordpress.com/2012/04/02/perc-pce-perchloroethylene/

Enjoy reading.

Fancy some 2-Bromo-2-nitropropane-1,3-diol (bronopol)?

Fancy some 2-Bromo-2-nitropropane-1,3-diol (bronopol)?

The issue of choosing safer cosmetics can sound complicated. In fact, it isn't. Like any other skill, it needs some practice, but it's doable and really enjoyable once you get to realize that your diligence with regard to reading product labels can actually protect your health.

Chemists and beauty shops might seem full of choice, but it's most likely only an illusory appearance. The truth is that, in most cases, only the containers bear some difference; the actual beauty products beneath the shiny plastic bottles are all mixtures of synthetic chemicals created in order to make them smell, look, feel, absorb better. Hence, the real choice is limited to how many synthetic chemicals we want in our product. The essence of the product is to sell well, last long and get the job done.I'm sorry if I'm going to disillusion you, but your health rates very low on manufacturers' list of priorities.  

Here is my simple advice:

*Read labels

*Buy healthier alternatives (I mention many on my blog)

*Use Environmental Working Group's Cosmetic Database to research your beauty products. Cosmetics Database is here. Just a click away ;)

*Use fewer products

*Do not trust claims such as 'dermatologist-tested', 'natural', 'gentle'.



TOP TIPS on safer beauty products from The Environmental Working Group

Your body

Getting clean

No { triclocarban (bar soap) or triclosan (liquid soap) }

Yes { hand sanitizers with ethanol/ethyl alcohol }

Moisturizing

No { retinyl palmitate or retinol in daytime skin products }

Your Teeth

No { triclosan in toothpaste }

Your Lips

No { retinyl palmitate or retinol }

Your skin + the sun

Very few sunscreens provide adequate sun protection and are free of harmful ingredients.

No
SPF above 50
Retinyl palmitate
Aerosol spray and powder sunscreen
Oxybenzone
Insect repellent

Yes
Hats and shade in mid-day sun.
Zinc or Titanium are the best active ingredients, otherwise Avobenzone at 3%
SPF 30 for intense sun
Use a lot and reapply frequently

Your hair

No
Fragrance
PEGs, ceteareths and polyethylene
Parabens: propyl, isopropyl, butyl, isobutyl
DMDM hydantoin

Your nails

No
Formaldehyde or formalin in polish, hardeners or other nail products.
Toluene
Dibutyl phthalate (DBP).

Pregnant? Skip polish.

Your kids

Kids are sensitive. Use few products and pick them carefully.

Diaper Cream

No Boric Acid

Baby Wipes

No 2-Bromo-2-nitropropane-1,3-diol (bronopol)

Toothpaste

LIMIT fluoride toothpaste for kids who might swallow it (none for kids under 2)

Would you like some chicken pox?

Collecting honey

Would you like some chicken pox?

A friend of mine sent me message, 'Having chicken pox at the moment. Would you like some for your girl?' I admit, it sounded ridiculous, but I politely replied, 'No, thank you, we are doing just fine without it.' A few weeks later chicken pox hit us anyway. It was only then that I understood that my friend had good intentions at heart. As I discovered,  it's much beneficial for a child to get it in the childhood, rather than later in life when the potential side effects could be morbidly serious for the organism.

I was truly scared of my girl having chicken pox and the days of unbearable itchiness, and the nights of little or no sleep, but I shouldn't have at all!! We had only one sleepless night, and only itchy day, after which we were itch-free again! All to the natural home remedies which I used to zap the chicken pox virus withing literally 2-3 days. Does it sound impossible? Well! That's what I thought at first too.

To begin with, it's important to keep the child occupied as it will keep their mind off the unpleasantness of the itch. It meant over-indulgence in what my child really liked doing for a day or two to keep them as blissfully happy as possible. In a nutshell, we had lots of Peppa Pigs!

Bentonite Clay

So here are a few simple natural effective home remedies to get rid of chicken pox quickly and efficiently:

1) Oatmeal Bath
Boil two cups of oatmeal in a pot and then put it in a cotton/linen bag and tie it up.  (I used a man-size handkerchief). Soak the bag in the bathtub with lukewarm water and swirl it around so that the water can take the elements from the oatmeal. Make sure to soak the entire body in the bathtub for at least 10 minutes. This will help relieve itchiness and speed up recovery. I bathed my child 2-3 times a day during the critical period.

2) Honey
Use natural honey to treat the spots. Make sure the honey is of best quality, preferably organic and from a good source. Yeah, it's sticky and not necessarily pleasant. I applied tiny little cotton tissue squares on the spots after applying honey to prevent the clothes from sticking to the body.

3) Bentonite Clay
Apply food/cosmetic grade clay mixed with water on the spots. It will dry them up very quickly and will help prevent scar formation.

4) Apple Cider Vinegar
Add some vinegar to the bath.

5) GAIA Baby Organic Skin Soothing Lotion (Australian product)
I used this lotion on the my girl's skin after the worst was over. It contains Wheat Germ Oil,Chamomile, Lavender, Calendula, Zinc, Castor Oil and Beeswax. It's a great soothing lotion for any skin irritation available from health stores and online sellers.

GAIA products

Fooling big people or tempting little people?

How food manufacturers fool parents and tempt children.

Yesterday my daughter was bought Robinsons FruitShoot Juice Drink by a relative. When I saw her proudly holding on the the purple bottle, I froze for a second. I knew that my child likes water, so what on earth was this thing doing in her hand? Apparently, she chose it herself, most likely attracted by the lively-coloured bottle.

Irresistible rainbow colours

I wasn't happy at all, but I didn't want to make too much fuss about it in front of my child. After arriving home I hid the remaining three bottles of this questionable drink and decided to have a closer look at it later. I noticed in the past few months a growing number of kids in the school and elsewhere drinking this juice drink, so my curiosity level was high. When I looked at the ingredients list, I was petrified. The first question that sprang to my head was WHY ON EARTH WOULD ANYONE GIVE SUCH A DRINK TO THEIR CHILD?

The ingredients list goes like this: Water, Fruit Juices from Concentrate (Apple 8%, Blackcurrant 2%), Citric Acid, Acidic Regulator (Sodium Citrate), Natural Colour (Anthocyanins), Natural Flavouring, Preservatives (Potassium Sorbate, Dimethyl Dicarbonate), Sweeteners (Aspartame, Acesulfame K), Antioxidant (Ascorbic Acid).

Well, I won't go into much detail about all the ingredients of the FruitShoot Juice Drink, but even a perfunctory look at the list would raise some suspicion in many diligent parents. While both preservatives used in the juice drink - Potassium Sorbate and Dimethyl Dicarbonate - are not considered to be very toxic, yet they are artificially added to the product to prolong its shelf life, not to add any value to the product itself. As for the two sweeteners used instead of sugar, the only motivation behind them was to create a juice drink which is low in sugar. Most parents know already that too much sugar is not good at all. Therefore, to make a product more attractive to parents, two sweeteners were used so that the product can proudly state that it is low in sugar.

A quick look at the label will gives us a hint of how dishonest manufacturers of convenience food for kids are. It says:

• Best Ever Taste! ---- Well, this is subjective so I won't comment on that.

• NO ARTIFICIAL COLOURS OR FLAVOURS ---- Ha! This statement is malicious once we realize that the so-called juice drink contains two preservatives and two sweeteners.

• Apple & Blackcurrant Juice Drink LOW IN SUGAR ---- How much of a juice drink it's I wonder. It contains only 8% Apple juice and 2% Blackcurrant juice after all. 

A final thought on the convenience product for children. Whether we realize it or not, many convenience foods are designed to appeal to a child's mind. They are made to look attractive and appetizing to a young child who likes all those cute colourful things. It is not so because food manufacturers worry about your child eating a healthy and balanced diet or because they are worried your child will starve to death as a result of (such an often food) fussiness. Let's be very clear on that one: they do it for their very own financial gain to sell more of their own product. After all, there is nothing healthy about FruitShoot Juice Drink and dozen of other products on the shop shelves.

Making it all look, taste and sound fun, while the label isn't so much fun at all.

Radiation

The article below is an interesting take on radiation and the current exposure guidelines.

The question of radiation explained in more detail.

A word on Monsanto

Another perspective on Monsanto found and shared below:

http://naturalsociety.com/monsanto-declared-worst-company-of-2011/

A farmer's fight with Monsanto

Monsanto, once an elegant family name, is nowadays a synonym of aggressive business strategies, malicious lobbying practices, seed commercialization, forceful litigation and questionable licensing agreements. All of the above made Monsanto a target of alter-globalization movement and environment activists.  

Based on my observations, Monsanto remains relatively unknown to an average urban dweller in Europe. Hence, I will try to introduce the main facts and controversies concerning this leading multinational agricultural biotechnology corporation.

Briefly about Monsanto

Main products

1) GE (genetically engineered) seeds which are specifically genetically modified to make them resistant to Monsanto produced agricultural chemicals, such as "Round Up" herbicide.

2) Plant biotechnology traits

3) Crop protection chemicals - including globally used herbicide RoundUp

rBGH (recombinant Bovine Growth Hormone) - synthetic hormone injected into cows to increase milk production.

Globally Monsanto employs 21,035 staff in 66 countries.

Legal issues

Monsanto is notable for its involvement in high profile lawsuits, as both plaintiff and defendant. It has been involved in a number of suits, where fines and damages have run into the hundreds of millions of dollars, usually over health issues related to its products. Monsanto has received media coverage for its alleged unfair suing of farmers, highlighted in the documentary The World According to Monsanto.

Environmental record

Monsanto has been identified by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as being a "potentially responsible party" for 56 contaminated sites in the United States. Monsanto has been sued, and has settled, multiple times for damaging the health of its employees or residents near its those sites through pollution and poisoning.

Lobbying

The company spent $8,831,120 for lobbying in 2008.

Public officials formerly employed by Monsanto

• Justice Clarence Thomas worked as an attorney for Monsanto in the 1970s. Thomas wrote the majority opinion in the 2001 Supreme Court decision J. E. M. AG SUPPLY, INC. V. PIONEER HI-BRED INTERNATIONAL, INC. which found that "newly developed plant breeds are patentable under the general utility patent laws of the United States." This case benefited all companies which profit from genetically modified crops, of which Monsanto is the largest.

• Michael R. Taylor was an assistant to the Food and Drug Administration(FDA) commissioner before he left to work for a law firm on gaining FDA approval of Monsanto’s artificial growth hormone in the 1980s. Taylor then became deputy commissioner of the FDA from 1991 to 1994. Taylor was later re-appointed to the FDA in August 2009 by President Barack Obama.

• Dr. Michael A. Friedman was a deputy commissioner of the FDA before he was hired as a senior vice president of Monsanto.

• Linda J. Fisher was an assistant administrator at the US Environmental Protection Agency(EPA) before she was a vice president at Monsanto from 1995 to 2000. In 2001, Fisher became the deputy administrator of the EPA.

Intimidation

Since the mid-1990s, Monsanto has sued approx.150 individual US farmers for patent infringement in connection with its genetically engineered seed. The usual claim involves violation of a technology agreement that prohibits farmers from saving seed from one season's crop to plant the next, a common farming practice. The common practice employed by Monsanto is intimidation of farmers who often out of fear rather than anything else succumb to Monsanto's pressure in making a settlement.

However, there are success stories of farmers who had sufficient strength and resilience to confront Monsanto. One of them is Percy Schmeiser, a Canadian farmer who was accused by Monsanto of patent infringement. He eventually won the lawsuit against Monsanto.

The film based on Percy Schmeiser story by Bertram Verhaag 'DAVID VERSUS MONSANTO'.

Percy Schmeiser's website