I got some new products today. After researching my current skin care products (lotion, cosmetics, deo, etc) on http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com I started throwing away most of it.
I got Ava's facial toner and lotion. I just used it and only time will tell if it works for me or not. I am happy to report that the lotion didn't leave that greasy film on my face that every other face lotion I've tried has. So that's a PLUS!
The reason I decided to try her products was that she claims all of it has a score of 0 according to the cosmetics data base. That means it's completely safe and non toxic.
According to her website, she'll be rolling out all new stuff in 2010 which includes cosmetics, baby care, and men's products. I'm looking forward to giving it a try.
http://www.avaandersonnontoxic.com/default.aspx
Friday, March 12, 2010
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Homemade surface cleaner
Today I tried out my own concoction for a cleaner. Actually, I made it up to defer ants that were invading my bathroom and kids bedroom. I've read that vinegar and certain essential oils make ants scatter. So I mixed up some white vinegar, water, tea tree oil, and peppermint oil. The PO makes it smell awesome!
I decided to use the "ant poison" today to clean my bathrooms. I'm tickled with the results. It cleaned my mirrors and the glass of my back door wonderfully. No streaks!! The best thing about it is that I didn't feel like I needed to wash the toxins off my hands if I had to stop and deal with the kids. And I didn't feel like there might be leftover hazardous residue on my bathtub after a cleaning. I was able to get in the tub without wondering if I might be immersing myself in something bad.
Oh, and the ants are gone too. Can't beat that with a stick. ;-)
Update on 3/20/2010:
Ok, for the record, it only slightly worked on the ants. It doesn't kill them. It only makes them leave. But then they come back. I finally had to spray real ant poison. I was sooo not happy about that but I can't be having holes in my kids clothes that the little boogers chewed on. So I guess I'm still searching for the perfect ant shoo-away that's safe for kids and pets.
Update 3/26/2010:
CINAMMON! Ants hate it! I read that you can use cinnamon oil to get rid of ants. I don't have any CO so I just sprinkled some regular cinnamon on the girls bathroom floor. It worked! They went crazy and fled! We'll see if they come back...
I decided to use the "ant poison" today to clean my bathrooms. I'm tickled with the results. It cleaned my mirrors and the glass of my back door wonderfully. No streaks!! The best thing about it is that I didn't feel like I needed to wash the toxins off my hands if I had to stop and deal with the kids. And I didn't feel like there might be leftover hazardous residue on my bathtub after a cleaning. I was able to get in the tub without wondering if I might be immersing myself in something bad.
Oh, and the ants are gone too. Can't beat that with a stick. ;-)
Update on 3/20/2010:
Ok, for the record, it only slightly worked on the ants. It doesn't kill them. It only makes them leave. But then they come back. I finally had to spray real ant poison. I was sooo not happy about that but I can't be having holes in my kids clothes that the little boogers chewed on. So I guess I'm still searching for the perfect ant shoo-away that's safe for kids and pets.
Update 3/26/2010:
CINAMMON! Ants hate it! I read that you can use cinnamon oil to get rid of ants. I don't have any CO so I just sprinkled some regular cinnamon on the girls bathroom floor. It worked! They went crazy and fled! We'll see if they come back...
Monday, March 8, 2010
The Maker's Diet book
Jordan S. Rubin is the author of this book. Before I get into what the book says that I'm taking to heart, let me be fair and share both sides of the story. Some believe that Jordan is a "quack."
http://www.quackwatch.org/11Ind/rubin.html
Here is an interview with Jordan: http://www.beliefnet.com/Health/Weight-Loss/2004/04/Eating-From-The-Bible.aspx?p=1
Here is the website for his supplements and other products: http://www.gardenoflife.com/Home/tabid/545/Default.aspx
Ok, so let me share how I feel. I don't think you need all of the certification some claim he needs to be "real." Why can't one have knowledge from experience, study, and research alone? Does a piece of paper from a specific group of people really make you better? While I will admit that I'm not sure I agree with everything he says, I do believe he shares alot of good information in his book. It just makes sense to me. Read the book. Do your own research. Then make a decision based on what you learned.
Following is what I'm taking away from the book and applying (most but not all) to my own life. Most of this comes from Chapter 5.
How to Get Sick: A Modern Prescription for Illness
1. Stay out of the sun
Jordan claims that, for the most part, sun does not make us ill. It is actually vital to human health (vitamin D). Those who get melanoma (skin cancer) is because they have compromised immune systems.
2. Go to bed after midnight
Rest is essential to good health.
3. Never let them see you sweat
This point covers the use of anti-perspirant. Sweating is healthy. Preventing it is not. Sweating is our natural way of cooling the body as well as shedding toxins. Most anti-perspirants are unhealthy as it contains aluminum. Aluminum is a toxin to the human body.
4. Take megavitamins
Most vitamins on the market are unnatural, synthetic, and artificial. They are not easily absorbed by the human body.
5. Use flouride toothpaste and mouthwash, and drink flouridated water
Flouride is extremely poisonous! This is why it is recommended that children are under a certain age are supposed to avoid it.
6. Use artificial sweeteners and avoid sugars
Sugar can be bad in various forms. Artificial sugar (NurtaSweet, Equal, etc) can be downright deadly.
7. Shower every day, but don't bathe (take a bath)
Excessive showering can rob hair and body of natural oils (as well as soak up chlorine; see next point).
8. Swim in chlorinated pools (and drink and shower with chlorinated water)
Chlorine is an effective bacteria killer. Even the good bacteria in your gut (which is needed for immunity). Chlorine is also effective at eating through lead pipes, corrode metal, and harm cells and DNA in virtually every living thing it touches. It is carcinogenic.
*On a side note, chlorine is used to bleach white bread and most disposable products such as menstrual products, diapers, etc. The bleaching process leaves behind dioxin, also a carcinogen. I'll be touching more on this in other posts.
9. Don't breastfeed your baby.
Mother's milk is the perfect food for babies.
10. Get tatoos.
11. Get all of your immunization shots.
This is a very controversial one as anyone with children well knows.
12. Travel in airplanes often.
Can affect fertility.
13. Expose yourself often to electromagnetic energy (EMF's)
EMF's are television sets, microwaves, cell phones, local media transmission towers, x-rays, CAT scans, MRI, electric blankets, hair dryers, and computers (oh no!).
14. Use alot of skin care products, cosmetics, hair care products, nail care products, shampoos, soaps, perfumes, shaving cream, suntan lotion, and antibacterial soaps.
This is the one I'm really focusing on right now as I can certainly do something about the products I use. Will write more about this later.
15. Take lots of medications.
Every medicine has a side effect. This includes antibiotics, oral contraceptives, cortisteroids. Even taking baby aspirin to prevent heart attacks is dangerous as it can cause bleeding in the intestinal track and can be toxic to the liver.
16. Get your cavities filled with mercury.
Mercury also goes by the name "silver fillings." Mercury is a heavy metal toxin.
17. Do aerobic excercise.
High intensity aerobic exercise producing a very high elevated heart rate for long periods of time through vigorous exercisse such as jogging or running on hard surfaces is essentially unnatural to the body.
18. Wear contact lenses and receive implants of other foreign objects such as silicone breast implants.
19. Live in a toxic home with toxic paint, carpet, mold, paraffin candles, etc.
20. Wear synthetic fabrics.
21. Breathe with shallow breaths.
Most of us use only a fraction of our lung capacity.
22. Swallow your food without chewing well (or at all).
23. Use plastic food storage products, the popular food wraps, and re-use plastic drinking bottles.
This is another one I've been focusing on. Will write more about this later.
24. Eat grocery store produce and processed foods treated with pesticides, herbicides, animal growth hormones, and antibiotics; don't forger hybridized, irradiated, and genetically altered food.
25. Wear tight underclothing.
Effects the lymph system which is crucial to the immune system.
26. Undergo surgery to remove "unnecessary body parts."
This would include tonsils, adenoids, appendix.
27. Visit your medical doctor often.
http://www.quackwatch.org/11Ind/rubin.html
Here is an interview with Jordan: http://www.beliefnet.com/Health/Weight-Loss/2004/04/Eating-From-The-Bible.aspx?p=1
Here is the website for his supplements and other products: http://www.gardenoflife.com/Home/tabid/545/Default.aspx
Ok, so let me share how I feel. I don't think you need all of the certification some claim he needs to be "real." Why can't one have knowledge from experience, study, and research alone? Does a piece of paper from a specific group of people really make you better? While I will admit that I'm not sure I agree with everything he says, I do believe he shares alot of good information in his book. It just makes sense to me. Read the book. Do your own research. Then make a decision based on what you learned.
Following is what I'm taking away from the book and applying (most but not all) to my own life. Most of this comes from Chapter 5.
How to Get Sick: A Modern Prescription for Illness
1. Stay out of the sun
Jordan claims that, for the most part, sun does not make us ill. It is actually vital to human health (vitamin D). Those who get melanoma (skin cancer) is because they have compromised immune systems.
2. Go to bed after midnight
Rest is essential to good health.
3. Never let them see you sweat
This point covers the use of anti-perspirant. Sweating is healthy. Preventing it is not. Sweating is our natural way of cooling the body as well as shedding toxins. Most anti-perspirants are unhealthy as it contains aluminum. Aluminum is a toxin to the human body.
4. Take megavitamins
Most vitamins on the market are unnatural, synthetic, and artificial. They are not easily absorbed by the human body.
5. Use flouride toothpaste and mouthwash, and drink flouridated water
Flouride is extremely poisonous! This is why it is recommended that children are under a certain age are supposed to avoid it.
6. Use artificial sweeteners and avoid sugars
Sugar can be bad in various forms. Artificial sugar (NurtaSweet, Equal, etc) can be downright deadly.
7. Shower every day, but don't bathe (take a bath)
Excessive showering can rob hair and body of natural oils (as well as soak up chlorine; see next point).
8. Swim in chlorinated pools (and drink and shower with chlorinated water)
Chlorine is an effective bacteria killer. Even the good bacteria in your gut (which is needed for immunity). Chlorine is also effective at eating through lead pipes, corrode metal, and harm cells and DNA in virtually every living thing it touches. It is carcinogenic.
*On a side note, chlorine is used to bleach white bread and most disposable products such as menstrual products, diapers, etc. The bleaching process leaves behind dioxin, also a carcinogen. I'll be touching more on this in other posts.
9. Don't breastfeed your baby.
Mother's milk is the perfect food for babies.
10. Get tatoos.
11. Get all of your immunization shots.
This is a very controversial one as anyone with children well knows.
12. Travel in airplanes often.
Can affect fertility.
13. Expose yourself often to electromagnetic energy (EMF's)
EMF's are television sets, microwaves, cell phones, local media transmission towers, x-rays, CAT scans, MRI, electric blankets, hair dryers, and computers (oh no!).
14. Use alot of skin care products, cosmetics, hair care products, nail care products, shampoos, soaps, perfumes, shaving cream, suntan lotion, and antibacterial soaps.
This is the one I'm really focusing on right now as I can certainly do something about the products I use. Will write more about this later.
15. Take lots of medications.
Every medicine has a side effect. This includes antibiotics, oral contraceptives, cortisteroids. Even taking baby aspirin to prevent heart attacks is dangerous as it can cause bleeding in the intestinal track and can be toxic to the liver.
16. Get your cavities filled with mercury.
Mercury also goes by the name "silver fillings." Mercury is a heavy metal toxin.
17. Do aerobic excercise.
High intensity aerobic exercise producing a very high elevated heart rate for long periods of time through vigorous exercisse such as jogging or running on hard surfaces is essentially unnatural to the body.
18. Wear contact lenses and receive implants of other foreign objects such as silicone breast implants.
19. Live in a toxic home with toxic paint, carpet, mold, paraffin candles, etc.
20. Wear synthetic fabrics.
21. Breathe with shallow breaths.
Most of us use only a fraction of our lung capacity.
22. Swallow your food without chewing well (or at all).
23. Use plastic food storage products, the popular food wraps, and re-use plastic drinking bottles.
This is another one I've been focusing on. Will write more about this later.
24. Eat grocery store produce and processed foods treated with pesticides, herbicides, animal growth hormones, and antibiotics; don't forger hybridized, irradiated, and genetically altered food.
25. Wear tight underclothing.
Effects the lymph system which is crucial to the immune system.
26. Undergo surgery to remove "unnecessary body parts."
This would include tonsils, adenoids, appendix.
27. Visit your medical doctor often.
Everthing causes cancer
You've heard it said. You probably said it yourself. Heck, I've said it numerous times. It really does seem as if everything causes cancer!
So, why then would I put so much care and research into living a natural lifestyle if I could possibly end up with cancer anyhow?
"You can live on bland food so as to avoid an ulcer, drink no tea, coffee or other stimulants in the name of health, go to bed early, stay away from night life, avoid all controversial subjects so as to never give offense, mind your own business, avoid involvement in other people's problems, spend money only on necessities and save all you can. You can still break your neck in the bathtub and it will serve you right." Eileen Guder
If this is so, then what's the point of trying to be safe? In my very simple way of thinking, I say "Yes, this is true. But God also gives us the knowledge, common sense (some of us) and resources to avoid stepping on the soap on the way into the bathtub."
So, why then would I put so much care and research into living a natural lifestyle if I could possibly end up with cancer anyhow?
"You can live on bland food so as to avoid an ulcer, drink no tea, coffee or other stimulants in the name of health, go to bed early, stay away from night life, avoid all controversial subjects so as to never give offense, mind your own business, avoid involvement in other people's problems, spend money only on necessities and save all you can. You can still break your neck in the bathtub and it will serve you right." Eileen Guder
If this is so, then what's the point of trying to be safe? In my very simple way of thinking, I say "Yes, this is true. But God also gives us the knowledge, common sense (some of us) and resources to avoid stepping on the soap on the way into the bathtub."
Saturday, March 6, 2010
My First Blog
Who would of thought? A blog? Not me! I find that I'm the type that likes to share what I believe. But I usually get strange looks when I share. I have a nagging suspicion that people may actually think I'm strange. And I think I'm ok with that. But, for the most part, I usually have to keep my thoughts to myself. That is soooo not easy for me! So that's why I started this blog.
I find that I'm leaning more and more toward a more natural lifestyle. It started with natural birth. Even though I was in a hospital, I birthed all three of my girls without being induced and without medications. My interest in doing things naturally has progressed from that.
I recently started cloth diapering my baby. I wouldn't even consider it with my first two. Who wants to fold, pin, and wash diapers? And who can stand those horrible plastic pants? Not me! No mam. And yet I found that cloth diapers are nothing like that at all. Well, except for the washing part which I, strangely, don't mind at all.
The cloth diaper community has opened me up to a whole new world of natural living. For example: Did you know most commercial health and care products are dangerous? From disposable menstrual products to baby shampoo. I'll write more about that later.
So, in my pursuit of more natural and healthy living, I've decided to share my findings, share what I've decided to do about it, and share how it's working out. Will anyone ever read this blog? Perhaps not. But at least I now have an outlet and an organization to my thoughts.
I find that I'm leaning more and more toward a more natural lifestyle. It started with natural birth. Even though I was in a hospital, I birthed all three of my girls without being induced and without medications. My interest in doing things naturally has progressed from that.
I recently started cloth diapering my baby. I wouldn't even consider it with my first two. Who wants to fold, pin, and wash diapers? And who can stand those horrible plastic pants? Not me! No mam. And yet I found that cloth diapers are nothing like that at all. Well, except for the washing part which I, strangely, don't mind at all.
The cloth diaper community has opened me up to a whole new world of natural living. For example: Did you know most commercial health and care products are dangerous? From disposable menstrual products to baby shampoo. I'll write more about that later.
So, in my pursuit of more natural and healthy living, I've decided to share my findings, share what I've decided to do about it, and share how it's working out. Will anyone ever read this blog? Perhaps not. But at least I now have an outlet and an organization to my thoughts.
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