Just in case you think I'm a 100 percent clean eating saint, rest assured, I am not. For Finn's birthday a few weeks ago, I bought Pillsbury's Grands Cinnabon rolls. Because apparently I'm too lazy to get up on a school morning (or any morning for that matter) and make cinnamon rolls from scratch. Yes, I am a mostly scratch cook, but I've never made cinnamon rolls for reals. Maybe one day I'll do that.
Maybe. It looks hard and I'm not about hard.
Anyway, I bought the JUMBO pack at Costco and they've been taking up valuable space in my fridge, space that should probably be used for things like kale and swiss chard, and I needed to do some cleaning out. Hence, the Grands this morning.
Feeling very domestic, I pulled the tube out of the fridge, peeled off the label, opened the tube open by pressing the spoon at the seam as instructed (this part always scares me--I can't stand the big POP, but then again, I used to get scared during Fantasy Island and cover my eyes while my cousin Laura laughed at me), and lovingly placed the pre-rolled rolls in the pan.
I put them in the oven.
Then, as I often do, I stood there and read the ingredients while the rolls baked. Sometimes I remember to read the ingredients before I buy things. Often, I forget and read them after the fact (remember the Corn Flakes...) and have buyer's remorse (but truly, what was I expecting from a package of pre-made cinnamon rolls?). Anyway, I was taken aback at the ingredient list. Not only artificial flavors and preservatives, but also artificial colors. Why would you artificially color a baked good that...doesn't have any color?
I remain mystified.
I did not eat one. I let my husband and children fill themselves with fake food. As I reflect upon my actions, I realize this is probably why Declan is behaving like a pill this afternoon. Fake food does that to him.
I did make them all a huge juice smoothie drink to have with it.
I'm going to pretend it counteracted all of the ingredients in the rolls.
Because I'm totally sure it really works that way. And I've still got one tube to go and I need to rationalize eating it instead of throwing it away.
Showing posts with label Organic living. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Organic living. Show all posts
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Friday, July 9, 2010
Crazy Veganism
First, before I talk about my latest foray into gluten free veganism, I want to reassure you that the bear in the previous post is NOT a grizzly. It's a black bear, which also, confusingly, can be brown. We don't have grizzlies around here, which is good, because the mountain lions are scary enough. Anyway, the black bear is a herbivore, unless he/she gets in your trash, and poses little threat to humans.
Just wanted to put your mind at ease.
But that was a big bear.
So, back to veganism.
Remember back in April when I did my little gluten free/vegan experiment? No? You're not monitoring my every dietary step? How shocking.
Anyway, for many years now I've been curious about different types of food and how they work for/against our bodies. We've made a lot of changes to our diet, some of which I've written about on CaringBridge or here. Basically, we are mostly organic, especially with the Dirty Dozen foods that contain the most pesticides (you can print off a card to take with you to the grocery store here: http://www.foodnews.org/). Of course, our driving motivation to be organic was Finn's leukemia, but I also have read so much about how pesticides are present in kids' urine (eeek, I just said URINE in a blog post), but after just a few days of organic eating, the pesticides disappear. That speaks to me.
There are lots of other things I've wondered about and gluten was one of them. After my two week gluten free/vegan experiment in April, I never went back to eating gluten. I noticed that big a difference. And now when I eat it, I notice a big difference--in a gastrointentinal way. I'll spare you the details.
After the experiment, I also never really went back to cheese (that was a hard one) and most other dairy. It was just astonishing how much better I felt. I did add back in meat and eggs.
But the results of that first challenge were undeniable--I felt better and I lost weight. So on July 5th, I started another gluten free/vegan challenge through a fitness forum I go to each day.
This time I'm going gluten free/vegan for the month of July (I cook vegan stuff that Eamonn and the boys eat, but I also make them a cooked protein to go with their meals). I'm finding it much easier this time. I was already gluten free, so that was no big deal. I just dropped out the meat again and am off and running.
The people who saw on Facebook that I was doing this challenge wondered what the heck I was eating. I had to get some vegan books out of the library, and even modify those a little because a lot of those recipes contained wheat/gluten. It takes more planning, but again, I'm always curious to try new stuff and I do like the results.
For the curious, I've been eating:
Breakfasts: A meal replacement shake called Shakeology (by far the best protein/meal replacement shake EVER--I get the DTs when I skip a day, I think because it contains a plant from the Amazon Rainforest called camu camu. It gives you a natural buzz.); almond milk and granola, fruit, oatmeal, gluten free waffles or pancakes.
Lunches: I make a seed bread in my dehydrator and I load it with all sorts of veggies, sprouts, etc. I also eat Udi's gluten free bread. The kids like it and don't even know it's gluten free. I did discover Udi's has egg whites in it, so I have to steer clear of it for the challenge, but it works well for us on a daily basis otherwise. I love soup, so I eat a lot of soup. Beans, lentils, salads.
Dinners: Again, lots of beans, grains (note--when I first tried to type "grains" I typed "brains," which wouldn't be very vegan), and veggies. The cookbooks I got from the library really helped. I made a delish quinoa tabbouleh the other night that I nearly made myself sick on because I pigged out on it. I'll put the recipe at the bottom. Tonight I'm experimenting and making homemade pizza on a gluten free premade crust. I'll make my own sauce and I'm going to top it with spinach and other veggies, and almond cheese. Very curious about the almond cheese! I eat quinoa pasta with marinara sauces.
Basically, you can find just about anything in vegan form, if you look. I am staying away from tofu on this challenge. Although I like it, I read recently that people with a history of thyroid issues should not tofu. Let's see, what else? Salads with edamame--love that stuff. Pesto. Fruit salads with an orange juice and coconut milk dressing. Tacos--made with white beans and greens and served on corn tortillas. My favorite tortilla chips are inbounds on this challege--happy day--as is popcorn. I did do a challenge where I wasn't allowed to eat popcorn. That didn't go well.
I'll keep you updated. So far I'm down 1.2 pounds this week. It's not as hard as I thought it would be. It's just a different way of doing things! Do I intend to remove meat from my diet forever? I don't think so, but I do find I miss it even less this time. I'm realizing though that when I cook and eat in this way, I need to make sure I prepare a main dish that is vegan so that I'm not just eating a series of side dishes--it's more mentally satisfying that way.
Make this and see what you think:
Quinoa Tabbouleh
1 cup (175 g) quinoa
2 1/2 cups (590 ml) water or stock (I used vegetable stock)
4 scallions, finely chopped
1 cucumber, seeded and finely diced (peeling optional)
2 large tomatoes, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
1/2 cup (30 g) finely chopped flat leaf parsley
1/4 cup (25 g) finely chopped fresh mint
1/3 (80 ml) fresh lemon juice (or to taste)
1 tsp. (6 g) salt (or to taste)
1/4 cup (60 ml) olive oil
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
Directions
Rinse quinoa using small strainer to remove a natural substance called saponin which protects the plant from birds and tends to have a bitter taste. It is easily rinsed off before cooking. (Some brands are pre-rinsed)
In a medium-size pot, add quinoa to water (or stock) and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer 10 – 15 minutes. When all water is absorbed, quinoa is done. Simmer for a few more minutes, if necessary. If excess water remains, turn off heat and let water soak into the grain. If you still have excess water after that, drain off. Let cool.
In large mixing bowl, combine scallions, cucumber, tomatoes, garlic, parsley, mint, lemon juice, salt, and olive oil. Once quinoa cools, add to the bowl, mixing well and tweaking salt, lemon juice, and oil to get right consistency and desired taste.
Yield: 4 – 6 servings
Serving suggestions and variations:
Add any or all of these vegetables: finely chopped celery, green or red bell peppers, or chopped olives. Also try adding 1 cup (240 g) cooked chickpeas or a pinch of cinnamon. Serve as a salad or side dish with pita bread or crackers.
Note: I added chickpeas and kalamata olives.
Nutrition per serving:
212 calories; 11 g fat; 5 g protein; 26 g carbohydrate; 3 g dietary fiber; 0 mg cholesterol; 372 mg sodium.
A note about quinoa:
Nutritionally, quinoa is considered a super grain. A complete protein, it contains 11 grams of protein per 1/2 cup (95 g), offers more iron than other grains, and contains high levels of potassium and riboflavin, as well as B6, niacin, and thiamin.
Just wanted to put your mind at ease.
But that was a big bear.
So, back to veganism.
Remember back in April when I did my little gluten free/vegan experiment? No? You're not monitoring my every dietary step? How shocking.
Anyway, for many years now I've been curious about different types of food and how they work for/against our bodies. We've made a lot of changes to our diet, some of which I've written about on CaringBridge or here. Basically, we are mostly organic, especially with the Dirty Dozen foods that contain the most pesticides (you can print off a card to take with you to the grocery store here: http://www.foodnews.org/). Of course, our driving motivation to be organic was Finn's leukemia, but I also have read so much about how pesticides are present in kids' urine (eeek, I just said URINE in a blog post), but after just a few days of organic eating, the pesticides disappear. That speaks to me.
There are lots of other things I've wondered about and gluten was one of them. After my two week gluten free/vegan experiment in April, I never went back to eating gluten. I noticed that big a difference. And now when I eat it, I notice a big difference--in a gastrointentinal way. I'll spare you the details.
After the experiment, I also never really went back to cheese (that was a hard one) and most other dairy. It was just astonishing how much better I felt. I did add back in meat and eggs.
But the results of that first challenge were undeniable--I felt better and I lost weight. So on July 5th, I started another gluten free/vegan challenge through a fitness forum I go to each day.
This time I'm going gluten free/vegan for the month of July (I cook vegan stuff that Eamonn and the boys eat, but I also make them a cooked protein to go with their meals). I'm finding it much easier this time. I was already gluten free, so that was no big deal. I just dropped out the meat again and am off and running.
The people who saw on Facebook that I was doing this challenge wondered what the heck I was eating. I had to get some vegan books out of the library, and even modify those a little because a lot of those recipes contained wheat/gluten. It takes more planning, but again, I'm always curious to try new stuff and I do like the results.
For the curious, I've been eating:
Breakfasts: A meal replacement shake called Shakeology (by far the best protein/meal replacement shake EVER--I get the DTs when I skip a day, I think because it contains a plant from the Amazon Rainforest called camu camu. It gives you a natural buzz.); almond milk and granola, fruit, oatmeal, gluten free waffles or pancakes.
Lunches: I make a seed bread in my dehydrator and I load it with all sorts of veggies, sprouts, etc. I also eat Udi's gluten free bread. The kids like it and don't even know it's gluten free. I did discover Udi's has egg whites in it, so I have to steer clear of it for the challenge, but it works well for us on a daily basis otherwise. I love soup, so I eat a lot of soup. Beans, lentils, salads.
Dinners: Again, lots of beans, grains (note--when I first tried to type "grains" I typed "brains," which wouldn't be very vegan), and veggies. The cookbooks I got from the library really helped. I made a delish quinoa tabbouleh the other night that I nearly made myself sick on because I pigged out on it. I'll put the recipe at the bottom. Tonight I'm experimenting and making homemade pizza on a gluten free premade crust. I'll make my own sauce and I'm going to top it with spinach and other veggies, and almond cheese. Very curious about the almond cheese! I eat quinoa pasta with marinara sauces.
Basically, you can find just about anything in vegan form, if you look. I am staying away from tofu on this challenge. Although I like it, I read recently that people with a history of thyroid issues should not tofu. Let's see, what else? Salads with edamame--love that stuff. Pesto. Fruit salads with an orange juice and coconut milk dressing. Tacos--made with white beans and greens and served on corn tortillas. My favorite tortilla chips are inbounds on this challege--happy day--as is popcorn. I did do a challenge where I wasn't allowed to eat popcorn. That didn't go well.
I'll keep you updated. So far I'm down 1.2 pounds this week. It's not as hard as I thought it would be. It's just a different way of doing things! Do I intend to remove meat from my diet forever? I don't think so, but I do find I miss it even less this time. I'm realizing though that when I cook and eat in this way, I need to make sure I prepare a main dish that is vegan so that I'm not just eating a series of side dishes--it's more mentally satisfying that way.
Make this and see what you think:
Quinoa Tabbouleh
1 cup (175 g) quinoa
2 1/2 cups (590 ml) water or stock (I used vegetable stock)
4 scallions, finely chopped
1 cucumber, seeded and finely diced (peeling optional)
2 large tomatoes, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
1/2 cup (30 g) finely chopped flat leaf parsley
1/4 cup (25 g) finely chopped fresh mint
1/3 (80 ml) fresh lemon juice (or to taste)
1 tsp. (6 g) salt (or to taste)
1/4 cup (60 ml) olive oil
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
Directions
Rinse quinoa using small strainer to remove a natural substance called saponin which protects the plant from birds and tends to have a bitter taste. It is easily rinsed off before cooking. (Some brands are pre-rinsed)
In a medium-size pot, add quinoa to water (or stock) and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer 10 – 15 minutes. When all water is absorbed, quinoa is done. Simmer for a few more minutes, if necessary. If excess water remains, turn off heat and let water soak into the grain. If you still have excess water after that, drain off. Let cool.
In large mixing bowl, combine scallions, cucumber, tomatoes, garlic, parsley, mint, lemon juice, salt, and olive oil. Once quinoa cools, add to the bowl, mixing well and tweaking salt, lemon juice, and oil to get right consistency and desired taste.
Yield: 4 – 6 servings
Serving suggestions and variations:
Add any or all of these vegetables: finely chopped celery, green or red bell peppers, or chopped olives. Also try adding 1 cup (240 g) cooked chickpeas or a pinch of cinnamon. Serve as a salad or side dish with pita bread or crackers.
Note: I added chickpeas and kalamata olives.
Nutrition per serving:
212 calories; 11 g fat; 5 g protein; 26 g carbohydrate; 3 g dietary fiber; 0 mg cholesterol; 372 mg sodium.
A note about quinoa:
Nutritionally, quinoa is considered a super grain. A complete protein, it contains 11 grams of protein per 1/2 cup (95 g), offers more iron than other grains, and contains high levels of potassium and riboflavin, as well as B6, niacin, and thiamin.
Thursday, July 9, 2009
If I Had My Life to Live Over Again. . .
Tonight I had planned to post pictures and write about how we're having a great time with Eamonn's sister and her family who are currently here visiting us from England. So I sat down with my camera and got ready to download some pictures.
But first I did a quick surf through of all of the blogs and CaringBridge pages I try to get to every few days. We've been doing some traveling with Karen, Neil and the kids, so I had some catching up to do.
There are so many cancer families that I follow now, almost more than I did when Finn was in treatment, that I hardly remember how I originally found many of them. I know many of you followed Finn's story on CaringBridge, so you know how it is: You read a site, see a link, follow it, find a link, follow it, etc., until you're 10 times removed from where you started, but you read a story, it touches your heart, and a bond is formed. You go back over and over again because you identify for whatever reason. And their stories become a part of your life.
Some of the stories are hard to read.
Yes, it sucked out loud that Finn had cancer. It sucks that I will worry about it for the rest of my life. Let's put it this way though--I HOPE I worry about it until the day I die. That will mean Finn outlived me, which I hope he does in grand style.
Anyway, tonight as I was zooming through various blogs and CB sites, I got that "punch in the stomach feel" that comes when I get to a site and realize that another friend has lost their battle. This one particularly sucks though because not only did Missy pass away yesterday, but her son, Ryan, is in the final stages of his battle with neuroblastoma. Their family is planning two memorial services simultaneously.
The number of people dying from various forms of this hideous disease is mindnumbing. And it's getting worse. When are we--and I'm including me in that we, just so you don't think I'm getting all high and mighty and pious on you and wanting you to think that I'm some model citizen who thinks she'll never get cancer because I lead such a clean life--going to wake up and realize that we need to radically change how we live. . .so that we can keep living?
Are we purposely giving ourselves cancer? No, of course not (unless you're a smoker and then, sorry, I've got very little empathy for you if you continue to smoke). There are tons of toxins in our environment that we have no control over. I get that. I'm frustrated by that. In fact, it enrages me.
But there are so many things we can control. I realize that at 41 years old, it may be too late for me to reverse any damage done, but it's not too late for my kids. And it's not too late for your kids. We all just need to get a grip, reprioritize our lives and DO SOMETHING.
People tell me they can't afford organic food. Really? How was that trip to Mexico? I love your new car. How many channels do you get on your cable?
I sound like a lobbyist for the organic food industry. I'm not. I'm just mad that every day, people like you and me have to make choices. Not easy choices like: will I wear the blue shirt or the yellow shirt today? But stuff that seems inocuous, but isn't, if you do a little bit of research at all: Will I spend the money this week to have food, personal care items, household cleaners, and things like laundry detergent without chemicals so that my family's health isn't affected? We seriously have to ask ourselves that? Why should that be something I have to choose between? Why are there chemicals in things that we rub on our bodies or put into them? Manufacturers are allowed to make and sell things that are dangerous and we have to decide whether or not we can afford to avoid them?
Unfortunately, it comes down to choices. Eamonn and I have been talking a lot about choices lately. We've always talked about where our money is best spent and in these financially trying times, it is so, so tempting to stroll into WalMart and cut our grocery bill in half by buying non-organic produce, shampoo and lotions with chemicals that are wreaking havoc on our bodies. But we pretty much have an agreement that this is one area that we will continue to not compromise. After witnessesing so much tragedy from cancer (and the other havoc these chemicals can cause), we are compromising our budget in other areas to make chemical-avoidance a priority.
I know the FDA tells us these chemicals are safe. For adults. In small quantities. But if I'm getting a little bit from my shampoo, a little bit from my lotion, makeup, hair gel, hairspray, face cleaner, soap, laundry detergent, fabric softener and dryer sheets, dish washing powder, from clothing, from that tomato, that lettuce, that pepper, that meat, that milk, that cereal, that toilet bowl cleaner. . .the list is endless and overwhelming. . .how far did the FDA go with their research? Did they test two of these chemicals' effects together? Five? The several hundred that the average women comes in contact each day? What is the effect on kids? Oops, they only did research on adults.
I know I used to say things like, "Make small changes--try to move towards an organic lifestyle slowly."
Screw that.
Read Jillian Michaels' book "Master Your Metabolism." If you can read that and not make major changes in your life, more power to you--you're a braver man than I am (and if you can still drink diet soda with a happy heart, I'll be amazed).
I know I sound like a crazy fringe hippy. I might be. Really though, I'm just sick of us as a population being surprised at our bad health and having to go on all sorts of prescription medicines when so much of it is flat out what is going in our mouths and what we're surrouding ourselves with every day.
With all of that said, I believe in enjoying life. I believe in living for today because we're not guaranteed tomorrow--I. Get. That. Do I want to go through life eating only mung bean sprouts and tofu? But maybe that's not a good example because I actually love mung bean sprouts and I'd never eat tofu because it's a totally processed food. But that's another story. Plus, I love Fritos. That makes it hard.
My point here is that people like to say things to me like, "It's part of childhood for kids to enjoy soda and Doritos!" Or, "I only drink diet soda so I won't have all the extra calories!" (Nevermind the research that shows our bodies freak out and go into a tailspin because we're giving it a "calorieless" food). Or, "The organic food industry is a big scam." Or even, "Food would go bad without all of the preservatives in it!" Personally, I love, "My lawn would have weeds in it if I didn't put pesticides on it!"
It's hard for me to keep quiet when people say things like that. Plus, I'm a Sagittarius and a middle child which makes me prone to speaking my mind.
And I guess in my less radical moods I might agree. Yes, we should all go ahead and drink that drink with artificial sweetners, gorge on that processed food (or even eat it in moderation), roll around in that lotion that has all sorts chemicals that mimic estrogen and disrupt our endocrine systems, smoke.
We should do it because we only live once. We're not guaranteed tomorrow. We're on vacation. We deserve a treat. It's our kids' rights. We shouldn't deprive ourselves. Take your pick.
When we're all hooked up to chemo poles in an infusion room somewhere in our 40s or 50s (or in many cases, watching our children be hooked up), I wonder if we'll think, "But that was so worth it."
Personally, I'll probably wonder (obsess) what I could have done differently. In fact, I think it every day already when I look at Finn. It's a shitty way to go through life. I don't advise it.
But first I did a quick surf through of all of the blogs and CaringBridge pages I try to get to every few days. We've been doing some traveling with Karen, Neil and the kids, so I had some catching up to do.
There are so many cancer families that I follow now, almost more than I did when Finn was in treatment, that I hardly remember how I originally found many of them. I know many of you followed Finn's story on CaringBridge, so you know how it is: You read a site, see a link, follow it, find a link, follow it, etc., until you're 10 times removed from where you started, but you read a story, it touches your heart, and a bond is formed. You go back over and over again because you identify for whatever reason. And their stories become a part of your life.
Some of the stories are hard to read.
Yes, it sucked out loud that Finn had cancer. It sucks that I will worry about it for the rest of my life. Let's put it this way though--I HOPE I worry about it until the day I die. That will mean Finn outlived me, which I hope he does in grand style.
Anyway, tonight as I was zooming through various blogs and CB sites, I got that "punch in the stomach feel" that comes when I get to a site and realize that another friend has lost their battle. This one particularly sucks though because not only did Missy pass away yesterday, but her son, Ryan, is in the final stages of his battle with neuroblastoma. Their family is planning two memorial services simultaneously.
The number of people dying from various forms of this hideous disease is mindnumbing. And it's getting worse. When are we--and I'm including me in that we, just so you don't think I'm getting all high and mighty and pious on you and wanting you to think that I'm some model citizen who thinks she'll never get cancer because I lead such a clean life--going to wake up and realize that we need to radically change how we live. . .so that we can keep living?
Are we purposely giving ourselves cancer? No, of course not (unless you're a smoker and then, sorry, I've got very little empathy for you if you continue to smoke). There are tons of toxins in our environment that we have no control over. I get that. I'm frustrated by that. In fact, it enrages me.
But there are so many things we can control. I realize that at 41 years old, it may be too late for me to reverse any damage done, but it's not too late for my kids. And it's not too late for your kids. We all just need to get a grip, reprioritize our lives and DO SOMETHING.
People tell me they can't afford organic food. Really? How was that trip to Mexico? I love your new car. How many channels do you get on your cable?
I sound like a lobbyist for the organic food industry. I'm not. I'm just mad that every day, people like you and me have to make choices. Not easy choices like: will I wear the blue shirt or the yellow shirt today? But stuff that seems inocuous, but isn't, if you do a little bit of research at all: Will I spend the money this week to have food, personal care items, household cleaners, and things like laundry detergent without chemicals so that my family's health isn't affected? We seriously have to ask ourselves that? Why should that be something I have to choose between? Why are there chemicals in things that we rub on our bodies or put into them? Manufacturers are allowed to make and sell things that are dangerous and we have to decide whether or not we can afford to avoid them?
Unfortunately, it comes down to choices. Eamonn and I have been talking a lot about choices lately. We've always talked about where our money is best spent and in these financially trying times, it is so, so tempting to stroll into WalMart and cut our grocery bill in half by buying non-organic produce, shampoo and lotions with chemicals that are wreaking havoc on our bodies. But we pretty much have an agreement that this is one area that we will continue to not compromise. After witnessesing so much tragedy from cancer (and the other havoc these chemicals can cause), we are compromising our budget in other areas to make chemical-avoidance a priority.
I know the FDA tells us these chemicals are safe. For adults. In small quantities. But if I'm getting a little bit from my shampoo, a little bit from my lotion, makeup, hair gel, hairspray, face cleaner, soap, laundry detergent, fabric softener and dryer sheets, dish washing powder, from clothing, from that tomato, that lettuce, that pepper, that meat, that milk, that cereal, that toilet bowl cleaner. . .the list is endless and overwhelming. . .how far did the FDA go with their research? Did they test two of these chemicals' effects together? Five? The several hundred that the average women comes in contact each day? What is the effect on kids? Oops, they only did research on adults.
I know I used to say things like, "Make small changes--try to move towards an organic lifestyle slowly."
Screw that.
Read Jillian Michaels' book "Master Your Metabolism." If you can read that and not make major changes in your life, more power to you--you're a braver man than I am (and if you can still drink diet soda with a happy heart, I'll be amazed).
I know I sound like a crazy fringe hippy. I might be. Really though, I'm just sick of us as a population being surprised at our bad health and having to go on all sorts of prescription medicines when so much of it is flat out what is going in our mouths and what we're surrouding ourselves with every day.
With all of that said, I believe in enjoying life. I believe in living for today because we're not guaranteed tomorrow--I. Get. That. Do I want to go through life eating only mung bean sprouts and tofu? But maybe that's not a good example because I actually love mung bean sprouts and I'd never eat tofu because it's a totally processed food. But that's another story. Plus, I love Fritos. That makes it hard.
My point here is that people like to say things to me like, "It's part of childhood for kids to enjoy soda and Doritos!" Or, "I only drink diet soda so I won't have all the extra calories!" (Nevermind the research that shows our bodies freak out and go into a tailspin because we're giving it a "calorieless" food). Or, "The organic food industry is a big scam." Or even, "Food would go bad without all of the preservatives in it!" Personally, I love, "My lawn would have weeds in it if I didn't put pesticides on it!"
It's hard for me to keep quiet when people say things like that. Plus, I'm a Sagittarius and a middle child which makes me prone to speaking my mind.
And I guess in my less radical moods I might agree. Yes, we should all go ahead and drink that drink with artificial sweetners, gorge on that processed food (or even eat it in moderation), roll around in that lotion that has all sorts chemicals that mimic estrogen and disrupt our endocrine systems, smoke.
We should do it because we only live once. We're not guaranteed tomorrow. We're on vacation. We deserve a treat. It's our kids' rights. We shouldn't deprive ourselves. Take your pick.
When we're all hooked up to chemo poles in an infusion room somewhere in our 40s or 50s (or in many cases, watching our children be hooked up), I wonder if we'll think, "But that was so worth it."
Personally, I'll probably wonder (obsess) what I could have done differently. In fact, I think it every day already when I look at Finn. It's a shitty way to go through life. I don't advise it.
Monday, May 18, 2009
(Ear) Waxing Poetic
I have decided every trip to Chicago with my cousin Jeannie must be accompanied by some sort of trauma. For her. It's like some sort of trial to see how she holds up.
I think she got off easy in 2005. If there was trauma, I've blocked it out. In 2006, Aunt Kathy and I dragged Jeannie to Nordstrom for a bra fitting. I found the whole experience to be uplifting. Jeannie? Not so much. I don't think she digs strangers fiddling around with her parts. I figure once they've fiddled around with my parts, we're no longer strangers, and I might even have a new friend.
I thought long and hard about what Jeannie's Trial would be this year. I wasn't really struck with inspiration until we were actually in Chicago and we were, for some bizarre reason, having a conversation about ear wax. Aha! It had to be ear candling for 2009 (Yes, sadly there was a three year gap in my Chicago sojourns. Jeannie went to Chicago without me and trauma-free for those years.).
If you've never used ear candles before, I highly recommend it. It's amusing and slightly gross--a great combination.
So what is ear candling? You use beeswax (or sometimes other types) candles and fit the point down in your ear. The candles are hollow. After getting the pointed end down in your ear, you light the other end and voila! The vacuum of the flame/heat draws some pretty interesting things out of your ears.
Of course, this is something I learned from my sisters--those two tend to be my entrees to all things bizarre in the natural world. Neti pots? My sisters. Eating raw oat groats? Ditto. Homeopathy? Cleansing? Kombucha? Sisters. Sisters. Sisters.
The ear candling has become something we all do together, usually when my mom is in town. Sometimes, if you're lucky, you get a huge Shrek-like piece of wax out of your ear. Other times, not that much comes out. That's kind of a bummer.
So I was pretty excited to introduce Jeannie and Aunt Kathy to this new venture. Aunt Kathy, always game for anything, drove us around town to find the ear candles. I think Jeannie was secretly relieved when Whole Foods told us they don't carry ear candles--probably some sort of liability if a customer lights themselves on fire. But I'm just guessing.
But we were rewarded the next day when we found a local health food store that carried the candles. I raced back out to the car brandishing the candles like the Olympic torch. We were on our way to see Jersey Boys so our appointment with our ear wax had to wait a bit. And, as an aside here, go see Jersey Boys. Awesome.
So Sunday night, after prying Jeannie away from her computer, we began.
Here's what ear candling looks like:
Setting her alight.
Jeannie waits patiently for the candle to burn down.
Note how carefully I'm watching to make sure Jeannie doesn't catch fire. I'm a good cousin that way.
I'll spare you photos of what came out of our ears. Actually, none of us was really that waxy, which was a bummer. Next time I'll have my Mom come--she's usually good for some impressive chunks.
"Experts" poo poo ear candling and say it doesn't really pull wax out. But heck, if that's not wax coming out of my ears, I'd love to know what in the world is it? Portions of my brain? Come to think of it, that's entirely possible. You do see a lot of powdery stuff when you unroll the candle. I think that's the beeswax dust. But there are large chunks of what is obviously wax and frankly, I think I hear better after we do the candles.
So to heck with the experts--I dig it, I think it works, and that's what matters.
A few tips:
1. Don't do the ear candles alone. For obvious reasons. I also don't recommend wearing a lot of hairspray prior to having a lighted candle near your head.
2. Use a tin pie plate between you and the flame. For obvious reasons.
3. Have a bowl of water ready to put out the candle when you're finished. Or, as Jeannie pointed out, you could pour it over the person's head if you set them on fire.
Good luck. And remember, only you can prevent forest fires.
*********************
As a preview for tomorrow, I'll be posting an update on my hair. Get ready Anne K.!
I think she got off easy in 2005. If there was trauma, I've blocked it out. In 2006, Aunt Kathy and I dragged Jeannie to Nordstrom for a bra fitting. I found the whole experience to be uplifting. Jeannie? Not so much. I don't think she digs strangers fiddling around with her parts. I figure once they've fiddled around with my parts, we're no longer strangers, and I might even have a new friend.
I thought long and hard about what Jeannie's Trial would be this year. I wasn't really struck with inspiration until we were actually in Chicago and we were, for some bizarre reason, having a conversation about ear wax. Aha! It had to be ear candling for 2009 (Yes, sadly there was a three year gap in my Chicago sojourns. Jeannie went to Chicago without me and trauma-free for those years.).
If you've never used ear candles before, I highly recommend it. It's amusing and slightly gross--a great combination.
So what is ear candling? You use beeswax (or sometimes other types) candles and fit the point down in your ear. The candles are hollow. After getting the pointed end down in your ear, you light the other end and voila! The vacuum of the flame/heat draws some pretty interesting things out of your ears.
Of course, this is something I learned from my sisters--those two tend to be my entrees to all things bizarre in the natural world. Neti pots? My sisters. Eating raw oat groats? Ditto. Homeopathy? Cleansing? Kombucha? Sisters. Sisters. Sisters.
The ear candling has become something we all do together, usually when my mom is in town. Sometimes, if you're lucky, you get a huge Shrek-like piece of wax out of your ear. Other times, not that much comes out. That's kind of a bummer.
So I was pretty excited to introduce Jeannie and Aunt Kathy to this new venture. Aunt Kathy, always game for anything, drove us around town to find the ear candles. I think Jeannie was secretly relieved when Whole Foods told us they don't carry ear candles--probably some sort of liability if a customer lights themselves on fire. But I'm just guessing.
But we were rewarded the next day when we found a local health food store that carried the candles. I raced back out to the car brandishing the candles like the Olympic torch. We were on our way to see Jersey Boys so our appointment with our ear wax had to wait a bit. And, as an aside here, go see Jersey Boys. Awesome.
So Sunday night, after prying Jeannie away from her computer, we began.
Here's what ear candling looks like:
Setting her alight.
Jeannie waits patiently for the candle to burn down.
Note how carefully I'm watching to make sure Jeannie doesn't catch fire. I'm a good cousin that way.
I'll spare you photos of what came out of our ears. Actually, none of us was really that waxy, which was a bummer. Next time I'll have my Mom come--she's usually good for some impressive chunks.
"Experts" poo poo ear candling and say it doesn't really pull wax out. But heck, if that's not wax coming out of my ears, I'd love to know what in the world is it? Portions of my brain? Come to think of it, that's entirely possible. You do see a lot of powdery stuff when you unroll the candle. I think that's the beeswax dust. But there are large chunks of what is obviously wax and frankly, I think I hear better after we do the candles.
So to heck with the experts--I dig it, I think it works, and that's what matters.
A few tips:
1. Don't do the ear candles alone. For obvious reasons. I also don't recommend wearing a lot of hairspray prior to having a lighted candle near your head.
2. Use a tin pie plate between you and the flame. For obvious reasons.
3. Have a bowl of water ready to put out the candle when you're finished. Or, as Jeannie pointed out, you could pour it over the person's head if you set them on fire.
Good luck. And remember, only you can prevent forest fires.
*********************
As a preview for tomorrow, I'll be posting an update on my hair. Get ready Anne K.!
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Living Organically, Part 6: Corrections & Miscellaneous Chatter
In my continuing effort to spread misinformation across the blogisphere, I'm here to announce that I posted the wrong name of the sunscreen we use. I wrote that we use Aubrey Organics. We don't. It's not because I don't like Aubrey Organics--I do. They have a fine line of skincare products. It's just that what's sitting here in front of me is Alba Botanica brand. Alba. Aubrey. I'm easily confused.
So, my bottle says, really and truly, Alba Botanica Kids Sunscreen. SPF 30+. Water resistant. No one has been burned yet using this one so it gets a thumbs up from me.
I thought I'd also update you on the Crystal Stick. The weather is getting warmer and the Crystal Stick is getting tested in new ways. It definitely doesn't protect against wetness, but I knew that it wouldn't because it isn't an antipersperant. So I'm experiencing wet underarms--not my favorite thing. But the odor factor seems to still be good. Eamonn said he is smelly after one of his rides, but then again, he said he used to be stinky after his rides when he used commercial deoderant/antipersperant, too. My guess is that nothing can stand up to that sort of exercise factor--we're talking hours out on the bike, not just 60 minutes of bouncing around in the basement to Turbo Jam like I do. I asked Eamonn if we should revert back to our old deoderant/antipersperant during the summer. He said no. We're holding fast in our commitment to chemical free living, baby! People may talk about our underarm rings, but we're chemical free! If the kids comment, I'll know we do actually stink. Last summer when we were in Leadville waiting for Eamonn to finish the mountain bike race, some really stinky guy with a sleeveless shirt came and stood right next to us. Then he raised his arm right over our heads to shake hands with someone. I nearly fainted, but of course, I didn't say anything. Finn, however, has no such filter. "UGH! What's that SMELL???" He shrieked it. So my guess is if we do ever get smelly, we'll hear about it.
I was also thinking about other things that we've read about and that we do to try to steer clear of chemicals, toxins, etc. Here's a bizarre random sampling:
Teflon/Non-stick. We got rid of all of that. There was a scandal awhile back about how Dupont knew Teflon gave off toxins, but never made the public aware. It has to do with the surface being heated over a certain temperature. It actually made birds keel over dead. It might be too little too late for me, and all of the Garvins, though. Does anyone remember the Christmas Tara mashed the potatoes right in the Teflon pan and there were bits of Teflon in the mash? I know she tried to tell people it was pepper, but it wasn't. We're probably all radioactive now. At any rate, good things to cook in are stainless steel and cast iron. People shy away from cast iron because they think they have to do all sorts of stuff to it. You really don't. You just don't use soap. After you finish cooking, wait for it to cool, then take a stiff brush and scrub it out with straight water. You might need to wipe a little oil around in it when you first get it, but when you've made as much bacon as I have in your pan, you'll find it stays well-seasoned. There are other non-stick surfaces out there, but they're pretty much just Teflon under another name.
Lawn chemicals. I can't remember if I talked about this already or not. I think I did a little. There are tons of organic lawn options out there now. Chicken poop for nitrogen, vinegar for weed killer, etc. I'm not overly knowledgable about lawn care, but I do know that I don't want to spray something on the lawn and then have the kids roll around on it. Declan actually got a rash from something they sprayed at the school. And, as the school district said to me when I called about it, "It washes away after the rain," it's still getting down in the dirt. It's still there. It doesn't just go away. It evaporates or is absorbed by something. I don't want that something to be the boys. The school district said to me, "But it's just a little bit." Yeah, so if we're getting a few chemicals here, there and everywhere, what is the cumulative effect? I don't think there's anyone anywhere that is tracking these things all together. Anyway, we don't spray our backyard and we got an exemption from our homeowners association so they won't spray our frontyard. It was interesting because the only reason they gave us the exemption was because of Finn. If we didn't have a kid who'd had cancer in our house, we would have been forced to have the lawn treatments. Not sure what I think of that.
Man, I'm just like Andie McDowell and her obsesion with the garbage barge in Sex, Lies and Videotape, only slightly less famous and beautiful.
I can't conjure any other random thoughts right now.
The bottom line is that while our armpits may be wet and we have dandelions growing in our yard, in the end, does it really matter? Will that make someone not want to be my friend? I hope not, but if so, then it is what it is.
As a different sort of update, Finn had his first post-port-removal clinic visit last Thursday. His counts were stellar--ANC = 5900 or so. In fact, I recently had bloodwork done and Finn's blood counts are higher in literally every area than mine. The competitive side of me thinks: darn it. But the mother side of me says: yay! My kid has healthy blood! He did have to get a finger stick, which he was not at all happy about, but we'll try numbing it next time to see if that helps.
Finally, Finn is going to lead the Survivors' Lap at the local Relay for Life on Friday, June 13th. What a sweet thing it is to be able to say "Survivor" and "Finn" in the same breath.
So, my bottle says, really and truly, Alba Botanica Kids Sunscreen. SPF 30+. Water resistant. No one has been burned yet using this one so it gets a thumbs up from me.
I thought I'd also update you on the Crystal Stick. The weather is getting warmer and the Crystal Stick is getting tested in new ways. It definitely doesn't protect against wetness, but I knew that it wouldn't because it isn't an antipersperant. So I'm experiencing wet underarms--not my favorite thing. But the odor factor seems to still be good. Eamonn said he is smelly after one of his rides, but then again, he said he used to be stinky after his rides when he used commercial deoderant/antipersperant, too. My guess is that nothing can stand up to that sort of exercise factor--we're talking hours out on the bike, not just 60 minutes of bouncing around in the basement to Turbo Jam like I do. I asked Eamonn if we should revert back to our old deoderant/antipersperant during the summer. He said no. We're holding fast in our commitment to chemical free living, baby! People may talk about our underarm rings, but we're chemical free! If the kids comment, I'll know we do actually stink. Last summer when we were in Leadville waiting for Eamonn to finish the mountain bike race, some really stinky guy with a sleeveless shirt came and stood right next to us. Then he raised his arm right over our heads to shake hands with someone. I nearly fainted, but of course, I didn't say anything. Finn, however, has no such filter. "UGH! What's that SMELL???" He shrieked it. So my guess is if we do ever get smelly, we'll hear about it.
I was also thinking about other things that we've read about and that we do to try to steer clear of chemicals, toxins, etc. Here's a bizarre random sampling:
Teflon/Non-stick. We got rid of all of that. There was a scandal awhile back about how Dupont knew Teflon gave off toxins, but never made the public aware. It has to do with the surface being heated over a certain temperature. It actually made birds keel over dead. It might be too little too late for me, and all of the Garvins, though. Does anyone remember the Christmas Tara mashed the potatoes right in the Teflon pan and there were bits of Teflon in the mash? I know she tried to tell people it was pepper, but it wasn't. We're probably all radioactive now. At any rate, good things to cook in are stainless steel and cast iron. People shy away from cast iron because they think they have to do all sorts of stuff to it. You really don't. You just don't use soap. After you finish cooking, wait for it to cool, then take a stiff brush and scrub it out with straight water. You might need to wipe a little oil around in it when you first get it, but when you've made as much bacon as I have in your pan, you'll find it stays well-seasoned. There are other non-stick surfaces out there, but they're pretty much just Teflon under another name.
Lawn chemicals. I can't remember if I talked about this already or not. I think I did a little. There are tons of organic lawn options out there now. Chicken poop for nitrogen, vinegar for weed killer, etc. I'm not overly knowledgable about lawn care, but I do know that I don't want to spray something on the lawn and then have the kids roll around on it. Declan actually got a rash from something they sprayed at the school. And, as the school district said to me when I called about it, "It washes away after the rain," it's still getting down in the dirt. It's still there. It doesn't just go away. It evaporates or is absorbed by something. I don't want that something to be the boys. The school district said to me, "But it's just a little bit." Yeah, so if we're getting a few chemicals here, there and everywhere, what is the cumulative effect? I don't think there's anyone anywhere that is tracking these things all together. Anyway, we don't spray our backyard and we got an exemption from our homeowners association so they won't spray our frontyard. It was interesting because the only reason they gave us the exemption was because of Finn. If we didn't have a kid who'd had cancer in our house, we would have been forced to have the lawn treatments. Not sure what I think of that.
Man, I'm just like Andie McDowell and her obsesion with the garbage barge in Sex, Lies and Videotape, only slightly less famous and beautiful.
I can't conjure any other random thoughts right now.
The bottom line is that while our armpits may be wet and we have dandelions growing in our yard, in the end, does it really matter? Will that make someone not want to be my friend? I hope not, but if so, then it is what it is.
As a different sort of update, Finn had his first post-port-removal clinic visit last Thursday. His counts were stellar--ANC = 5900 or so. In fact, I recently had bloodwork done and Finn's blood counts are higher in literally every area than mine. The competitive side of me thinks: darn it. But the mother side of me says: yay! My kid has healthy blood! He did have to get a finger stick, which he was not at all happy about, but we'll try numbing it next time to see if that helps.
Finally, Finn is going to lead the Survivors' Lap at the local Relay for Life on Friday, June 13th. What a sweet thing it is to be able to say "Survivor" and "Finn" in the same breath.
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Hope you didn't run out to the store!
Clearly, I'm still on the learning curve, too. As I was running a bath the other night (I like to sit in there and soak until I'm a prune), I happened to take a gander at two of my Jason products--bath/shower gel and hand soap. ARGH! Both of them contain two chemicals that EWG isn't too happy about: Sodium Myreth Sulfate (really the same thing as Sodium Laurel Sulfate) and Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine.
This really bums me out (if anyone actually says that anymore) because I love my Jason soaps. I take my baths very, very seriously. Now I've got to start the hunt all over again. The Jason products were reasonably priced, too. Ah, well. Such is life.
And a quick answer to Beth who asked about sunscreen. We have tested a zillion different "natural" kinds of sunscreen with varying results. Several times we have found that the natural versions don't actually protect that well, so that even after lathering up, we still get a little pink. Now, I have read that our bodies need about 15 minutes of peak-time sun exposure every day to maintain sufficient vitamin D stores. But after that, get covered up. These days we're having good luck with a brand called Aubrey Organics, their kids' version (we all use it though--I don't think the sunscreen knows I'm of legal age). No burns so far with this brand.
Well, heck, I'll let you know how the search for a new bubble bath and hand soap pans out. Sorry about that.
This really bums me out (if anyone actually says that anymore) because I love my Jason soaps. I take my baths very, very seriously. Now I've got to start the hunt all over again. The Jason products were reasonably priced, too. Ah, well. Such is life.
And a quick answer to Beth who asked about sunscreen. We have tested a zillion different "natural" kinds of sunscreen with varying results. Several times we have found that the natural versions don't actually protect that well, so that even after lathering up, we still get a little pink. Now, I have read that our bodies need about 15 minutes of peak-time sun exposure every day to maintain sufficient vitamin D stores. But after that, get covered up. These days we're having good luck with a brand called Aubrey Organics, their kids' version (we all use it though--I don't think the sunscreen knows I'm of legal age). No burns so far with this brand.
Well, heck, I'll let you know how the search for a new bubble bath and hand soap pans out. Sorry about that.
Friday, May 9, 2008
Living Organically, Part Five: You are What You. . .Wear?
Heck, I didn't know what to call this one.
First, sorry for being MIA for more than a week. I had to go to Denver this week for a client meeting and then drove home Wednesday night in a blizzard. Seriously, I thought I was going to be spending the night on Vail Pass in my spring clothing. Of course, I had all of my winter gear in the back, but it was pretty bizarre that when I left Denver, is was 79 degrees. On top of the pass, at nearly 11,000 feet, visibility was zero because of the driving snow. I was unamused. I did console myself with the fact that if I did indeed get stranded, I was accompanied by two dozen Krispy Kreme doughnuts I was taking back to Tara, Craig and Garvin, and Declan, Finn and Eamonn. So there's my confession for the week--I let my kids eat doughnuts. And the next day they had sugary cereal because they wanted the Indiana Jones goodies from the box and I bought it. A fine example of healthy living, right there.
Second, for Anna in Illinois, the type of spray bottle I use for the vinegar. . .I started with those small personal care size bottles, but I was refilling them so often it was driving me crazy. So at WalMart, in both the cleaning area or the automotive area, they sell large plastic spray bottles. Now I have several around the house--one for each bathroom and the kitchen. I've had no problems with them malfunctioning so far! Sorry it took me so long to answer and leave you hanging with your rusty bottle.
Chemical Free Body
OK, so the next thing I wanted to talk about is the kinds of chemicals we put on our bodies, and how to avoid them. I read an article that said the average woman puts about 150 chemicals on her body a day through things like soap, lotion, shampoo, conditioner, makeup and verious and sundry moisturizers.
Again, one of my fave sites is the Environmental Working Group at www.ewg.org. You can go to their site and run reports on different products to see what they rank the top and bottom of the list. I need to do that for sunscreen because the products change so quickly.
Anyway, all of the body products were one of the last things we changed. I hadn't given it much thought. But don't they (who is "they" anyway) say that your skin the biggest organ of the body? Pretty much everything we rub onto ourselves gets absorbed, doesn't it? And so, since we were changing all of the other things in our lives--the food, the chemicals, etc.--it just seemed natural that we should go ahead and do all things health and beauty-related, too.
A lot of the "healthy" grocery stores put out a publication called Better Nutrition, or its equivalent, and you can pick up the magazine for free at the store. Raisin Rack in Westerville always had some freebie mag that had good info in it. Vitamin Cottage had a new copy when I was in there a few weeks ago and it just happened to be a special "beauty" issue. I'm going to post pictures of the various products I use, but I still switch around somewhat. Sometimes I'll get attached to something only to be unable to find it the next time I go to the store (that probably won't happen if you have access to a bigger store like Whole Foods though). So I'll try something new. So what you'll see is what I'm using right now. It may be different next week!
But first, here's a list of the stuff you should try to avoid. This was, again, a learning process for me. I'd throw something into my cart only to discover it still had some objectionable ingredient in it. I still have to remind myself to stop and read the labels. It will probably always be like this because I'm just a forgetful person. Just ask Eamonn.
So, avoid products with:
-Diethanolamine (DEA)
-Momoethanolamine (MEA)
-FD&C color pigments
-Imidazolidinyl urea and DMDM hydantoin
-Petrochemicals
-Parabens
-Polyethylene glycol
-Propylene glycol
-Sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) and soidum laureth sulfate (in most toothpastes)
I probably spelled some of those wrong. Basically, I adopted the same attitude towards stuff for the body as I did for food: If I didn't recognize an ingredient, I steered clear of it. Or I went and looked it up online first to see what the heck it was. Because there are actually totally inocuous things that have crazy names. But the bottom line was--we didn't want to put any chemicals on our bodies. And so we don't. Except for those times I roll around in the Krispy Kreme box.
Hand Soap, Sower/Bath Gel and Lotion
I've used the Jason brand of products for many years now. It's one that I've stuck with pretty consistently.
I like their consistency and they're pretty reasonably priced. Also, our local grocery store carries them and I don't have to make a special trip anywhere.
One thing I have noticed about "natural" soap products, things like bath/shower gel and dish soap, is that they aren't as foamy--the bubbles don't stay around as long. This is because they don't have whatever chemical it is that makes the super foamy reaction. So that was something to get used to.
For shampoo and conditioner, I've used Nature's Gate Organics for awhile. I like the consistency of the conditioner, especially. It keeps me from getting too frizzy!
They make all different "flavors." I usually like lavender for various body products, but sometimes I have to take what I can get.
Right now Eamonn is using Avalon Organics tea tree oil shampoo--helps control any flakiness (hope he doesn't mind me saying that in public). If you haven't ever heard of tea tree oil (which I believe is the basis of most of the Melaleuca products because I think Melaleuca actually means tea tree oil in some language), it's a marvelous thing. For example, if you have, not to be gross, a toenail fungus, don't take any of those crazy oral drugs that cause liver damage. Nope, get yourself some tea tree oil, I actually have Melaleuca oil, and dab it on your toenail. It takes awhile to work--the nail has to regrow, but that would be the same for the oral drug, too. It's not going to cure an existing bad nail--you grow a new good one. So why not do it the natural way is my train of thought these days.
The point of all of this is: For every chemical out there, there's a natural solution, that probably existed before the chemical was even invented. It probably works as good as, if not better than, the chemical, it's potentially cheaper, and it's not going to kill you, which rates highly in my book.
I know I already talked about laundry, but here is a picture of the Melaleuca laundry detergent and fabric softener. Several of you e-mailed about this to order (Lisa, I still haven't heard about the international ordering issue) it, so here's what you'll be getting.
This is Lemon Brite, also from Melaleuca. Apparently I use more Melaleuca products than I remembered. Anyway, it's a dish soap and one of the better natural alternatives because I feel like it keeps its bubbles well. I like bubbles. I also like the way it smells.
For the dishwasher, I use powder from Seventh Generation. I forgot to take a picture of it and I'm too lazy to go do it now. Picture a box with one of those little pour things on the side--just like Cascade, except the box is white and the product won't put chemicals all over your dishes. Apparently using natural automatic dishwashing powder is especially important for cancer patients. I don't know why though. It's something "they" say, you know. So I do it.
Next up: Toothpaste
We haven't used floruide toothpaste for a long time. Heck, maybe that's why I got my first cavity, although the dentist says probably not. He said, "You're just getting older." I'm never going to him again. Anyway, there are varying beliefs about flouride. Google it, check it out and draw your own conclusion. I can't have your cavities on my conscience. I've got my own to worry about. Well, just that small one anyway.
Of all the things we've changed in our lives, the toothpaste was the hardest for me. I was a diehard Crest girl and when you've never had any cavities, why mess with perfection? But I switched us anyway. At any rate, for a long time we used Tom's of Maine, and we still have some of that around. But I'm about 99% sure that Tom's has the dreaded SLS (Sodium Laurel Sulfate) in it. I don't know a ton about SLS except that the FDA has suggested manufacturers stop using it--but it's not mandatory to stop.
So what we're shifting over to is, drumroll please, Melaleuca. I really like their toothpolish. I like the way it feels and tastes. I'm a big fan.
This what the boys use. Also no flouride. We also don't do flouride treatments at the dentist. They think we're crazy. I can imagine some eye rolling from here. But, everyone has to do what they think is best for their family. Apparently in our house that means eating Krispy Kreme doughnuts and then brushing with non-flouride toothpaste. There are probably a lot of conclusions that can be drawn from that situation right there.
This is what I use for the boys' shampoo: Earth's Best. This was another one that was hard to change because who doesn't love the smell of Johnson's Baby Shampoo? It smells so good you want to nibble on their toes. But then I looked at the ingredients. . .
This is Eamonn's shaving cream and I think he was relieved when I bought this brand. Tom's of Maine makes toothpaste and shaving cream. . .in nearly identical packages. And there was that one horrible morning that Eamonn tried to brush his teeth with his shaving cream. Someone at Tom's needs to rethink their packaging stragegy.
Skincare:
I hate my skin. And I feel like I'm always looking for THE thing that's going to shrink my gigantic pores and get rid of my wrinkles. Let's face it--it ain't happening. Quite frankly, my most hated part of the day, right behind trying to decide what's for dinner every night and realizing that half of the ingredients I need are either frozen or on the grocery store shelf instead of in my cupboard, is washing my face at night. Oftentimes, if I haven't worn makeup, I just skip this step. I hate it. I don't know why. But for those times when I do wash my face, these Avalon Organics products are my current faves. I've tried a bunch of different stuff, but this seems to work best right now. Until I get a new batch of wrinkles and have to move on to something else.
But, speaking of wrinkles, I used to look and look for some sort of special under eye cream to put on at night in addition to moisturizer. For awhile I used a product from Arbonne,which is supposedly all natural, but they used parabens, one of the big chemical no-nos. And then I was talking to a friend and she said, "I use. . ."
Yes, that's coconut oil(also called coconut butter). Well, heck, I had that in my pantry. And that was that. I started using it at night and I'm quite pleased with it. Eamonn actually uses it, too--he comes from a wrinkly stock of people and was getting paranoid he'd turn into a Sharpei any day now. And the good thing about the coconut oil is that it doesn't clog your pores. I had problems with these little things called milia--little white bumps I'd get under my eyes where moisturizer was clogging my pores. I have no problems with the coconut oil. Plus, if you're getting ready for bed and you're hungry, you could eat it. Do a search on coconut oil--there are tons of health benefits from it. Erin even makes her popcorn in it.
And finally, the natural replacement product that I'm most psyched about. . .
The Crystal. Hats off to Paige for finding and road testing this. I had seen it in magazines and in the stores before but I always thought it was some crazy gimmick. You use this instead of deoderant/antipersperant. Antipersperant is one of the most alarming things we put on our bodies--all of that aluminum and other chemicals right onto a very sensitive part of your bod.
My entire antipersperant-wearing life, I've had a rash under my arms--heck, I know this is probably way more than you ever wanted to know about me. Tell you what, I'll go on about the armpit issues and spare you the tampon discussion and we'll call it even, OK? So, where was I? Right, my armpit rash. So let's see. When did I start wearing antipersperant? Maybe 6th grade, 12 years old? So for 28 years, I had a rash. I thought it was normal. Then I started hearing more and more disturbing things about the stuff. Then my sisters stopped using it. So I did the same. And I stunk. But my rash went away. I went back. Rash. Stopped. Stunk. What's a girl to do? I began experimenting. I tried all sorts of natural deoderants. I stunk. They might have worked on a 20 degree day where I did nothing more than drive around in the car. But last through something like a workout? Forget it. Stink. Stank. Stunk. As the Grinch would say.
After spending the boys' college funds on my Great Deoderant Experiment, I figured I was destined to a life of rashes or stinkiness. Then along came Paige who, just like those girls at Glamour magazine, did a road test and gave a thumbs up. I dove in and bought the Crystal, too. It uses natural salts to stop you stinking. And it works. It worked all winter and it even works during a workout. It will be interesting to see how it pans out during a hot summer. I'm still in testing mode. But for now, it's a thumbs up. Eamonn also uses it. I don't smell him and he doesn't seem to smell me (or maybe he's afraid to tell me), which is, I hope, a huge relief to those of you who were VERY disturbed by my earlier posts where I said we no longer wear deoderant.
And as for makeup items, don't laugh, but I use those Bare Minerals that are always on the shopping channel. I love them. I need to do more research on them, but I think they're pretty clean. Anyway, lots of companies are coming out with mineral-based makeup lines and you can get them at places like WholeFoods. Again, too lazy to take a picture.
I also forgot to say what bar soap we use: Melaleuca, Platinum. Love it.
I know there are tons of typos, but I'm going to bed!
Next topic: Homeopathy. Ooooo, we're really getting into the voodoo now!
First, sorry for being MIA for more than a week. I had to go to Denver this week for a client meeting and then drove home Wednesday night in a blizzard. Seriously, I thought I was going to be spending the night on Vail Pass in my spring clothing. Of course, I had all of my winter gear in the back, but it was pretty bizarre that when I left Denver, is was 79 degrees. On top of the pass, at nearly 11,000 feet, visibility was zero because of the driving snow. I was unamused. I did console myself with the fact that if I did indeed get stranded, I was accompanied by two dozen Krispy Kreme doughnuts I was taking back to Tara, Craig and Garvin, and Declan, Finn and Eamonn. So there's my confession for the week--I let my kids eat doughnuts. And the next day they had sugary cereal because they wanted the Indiana Jones goodies from the box and I bought it. A fine example of healthy living, right there.
Second, for Anna in Illinois, the type of spray bottle I use for the vinegar. . .I started with those small personal care size bottles, but I was refilling them so often it was driving me crazy. So at WalMart, in both the cleaning area or the automotive area, they sell large plastic spray bottles. Now I have several around the house--one for each bathroom and the kitchen. I've had no problems with them malfunctioning so far! Sorry it took me so long to answer and leave you hanging with your rusty bottle.
Chemical Free Body
OK, so the next thing I wanted to talk about is the kinds of chemicals we put on our bodies, and how to avoid them. I read an article that said the average woman puts about 150 chemicals on her body a day through things like soap, lotion, shampoo, conditioner, makeup and verious and sundry moisturizers.
Again, one of my fave sites is the Environmental Working Group at www.ewg.org. You can go to their site and run reports on different products to see what they rank the top and bottom of the list. I need to do that for sunscreen because the products change so quickly.
Anyway, all of the body products were one of the last things we changed. I hadn't given it much thought. But don't they (who is "they" anyway) say that your skin the biggest organ of the body? Pretty much everything we rub onto ourselves gets absorbed, doesn't it? And so, since we were changing all of the other things in our lives--the food, the chemicals, etc.--it just seemed natural that we should go ahead and do all things health and beauty-related, too.
A lot of the "healthy" grocery stores put out a publication called Better Nutrition, or its equivalent, and you can pick up the magazine for free at the store. Raisin Rack in Westerville always had some freebie mag that had good info in it. Vitamin Cottage had a new copy when I was in there a few weeks ago and it just happened to be a special "beauty" issue. I'm going to post pictures of the various products I use, but I still switch around somewhat. Sometimes I'll get attached to something only to be unable to find it the next time I go to the store (that probably won't happen if you have access to a bigger store like Whole Foods though). So I'll try something new. So what you'll see is what I'm using right now. It may be different next week!
But first, here's a list of the stuff you should try to avoid. This was, again, a learning process for me. I'd throw something into my cart only to discover it still had some objectionable ingredient in it. I still have to remind myself to stop and read the labels. It will probably always be like this because I'm just a forgetful person. Just ask Eamonn.
So, avoid products with:
-Diethanolamine (DEA)
-Momoethanolamine (MEA)
-FD&C color pigments
-Imidazolidinyl urea and DMDM hydantoin
-Petrochemicals
-Parabens
-Polyethylene glycol
-Propylene glycol
-Sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) and soidum laureth sulfate (in most toothpastes)
I probably spelled some of those wrong. Basically, I adopted the same attitude towards stuff for the body as I did for food: If I didn't recognize an ingredient, I steered clear of it. Or I went and looked it up online first to see what the heck it was. Because there are actually totally inocuous things that have crazy names. But the bottom line was--we didn't want to put any chemicals on our bodies. And so we don't. Except for those times I roll around in the Krispy Kreme box.
Hand Soap, Sower/Bath Gel and Lotion
I've used the Jason brand of products for many years now. It's one that I've stuck with pretty consistently.
I like their consistency and they're pretty reasonably priced. Also, our local grocery store carries them and I don't have to make a special trip anywhere.
One thing I have noticed about "natural" soap products, things like bath/shower gel and dish soap, is that they aren't as foamy--the bubbles don't stay around as long. This is because they don't have whatever chemical it is that makes the super foamy reaction. So that was something to get used to.
For shampoo and conditioner, I've used Nature's Gate Organics for awhile. I like the consistency of the conditioner, especially. It keeps me from getting too frizzy!
They make all different "flavors." I usually like lavender for various body products, but sometimes I have to take what I can get.
Right now Eamonn is using Avalon Organics tea tree oil shampoo--helps control any flakiness (hope he doesn't mind me saying that in public). If you haven't ever heard of tea tree oil (which I believe is the basis of most of the Melaleuca products because I think Melaleuca actually means tea tree oil in some language), it's a marvelous thing. For example, if you have, not to be gross, a toenail fungus, don't take any of those crazy oral drugs that cause liver damage. Nope, get yourself some tea tree oil, I actually have Melaleuca oil, and dab it on your toenail. It takes awhile to work--the nail has to regrow, but that would be the same for the oral drug, too. It's not going to cure an existing bad nail--you grow a new good one. So why not do it the natural way is my train of thought these days.
The point of all of this is: For every chemical out there, there's a natural solution, that probably existed before the chemical was even invented. It probably works as good as, if not better than, the chemical, it's potentially cheaper, and it's not going to kill you, which rates highly in my book.
I know I already talked about laundry, but here is a picture of the Melaleuca laundry detergent and fabric softener. Several of you e-mailed about this to order (Lisa, I still haven't heard about the international ordering issue) it, so here's what you'll be getting.
This is Lemon Brite, also from Melaleuca. Apparently I use more Melaleuca products than I remembered. Anyway, it's a dish soap and one of the better natural alternatives because I feel like it keeps its bubbles well. I like bubbles. I also like the way it smells.
For the dishwasher, I use powder from Seventh Generation. I forgot to take a picture of it and I'm too lazy to go do it now. Picture a box with one of those little pour things on the side--just like Cascade, except the box is white and the product won't put chemicals all over your dishes. Apparently using natural automatic dishwashing powder is especially important for cancer patients. I don't know why though. It's something "they" say, you know. So I do it.
Next up: Toothpaste
We haven't used floruide toothpaste for a long time. Heck, maybe that's why I got my first cavity, although the dentist says probably not. He said, "You're just getting older." I'm never going to him again. Anyway, there are varying beliefs about flouride. Google it, check it out and draw your own conclusion. I can't have your cavities on my conscience. I've got my own to worry about. Well, just that small one anyway.
Of all the things we've changed in our lives, the toothpaste was the hardest for me. I was a diehard Crest girl and when you've never had any cavities, why mess with perfection? But I switched us anyway. At any rate, for a long time we used Tom's of Maine, and we still have some of that around. But I'm about 99% sure that Tom's has the dreaded SLS (Sodium Laurel Sulfate) in it. I don't know a ton about SLS except that the FDA has suggested manufacturers stop using it--but it's not mandatory to stop.
So what we're shifting over to is, drumroll please, Melaleuca. I really like their toothpolish. I like the way it feels and tastes. I'm a big fan.
This what the boys use. Also no flouride. We also don't do flouride treatments at the dentist. They think we're crazy. I can imagine some eye rolling from here. But, everyone has to do what they think is best for their family. Apparently in our house that means eating Krispy Kreme doughnuts and then brushing with non-flouride toothpaste. There are probably a lot of conclusions that can be drawn from that situation right there.
This is what I use for the boys' shampoo: Earth's Best. This was another one that was hard to change because who doesn't love the smell of Johnson's Baby Shampoo? It smells so good you want to nibble on their toes. But then I looked at the ingredients. . .
This is Eamonn's shaving cream and I think he was relieved when I bought this brand. Tom's of Maine makes toothpaste and shaving cream. . .in nearly identical packages. And there was that one horrible morning that Eamonn tried to brush his teeth with his shaving cream. Someone at Tom's needs to rethink their packaging stragegy.
Skincare:
I hate my skin. And I feel like I'm always looking for THE thing that's going to shrink my gigantic pores and get rid of my wrinkles. Let's face it--it ain't happening. Quite frankly, my most hated part of the day, right behind trying to decide what's for dinner every night and realizing that half of the ingredients I need are either frozen or on the grocery store shelf instead of in my cupboard, is washing my face at night. Oftentimes, if I haven't worn makeup, I just skip this step. I hate it. I don't know why. But for those times when I do wash my face, these Avalon Organics products are my current faves. I've tried a bunch of different stuff, but this seems to work best right now. Until I get a new batch of wrinkles and have to move on to something else.
But, speaking of wrinkles, I used to look and look for some sort of special under eye cream to put on at night in addition to moisturizer. For awhile I used a product from Arbonne,which is supposedly all natural, but they used parabens, one of the big chemical no-nos. And then I was talking to a friend and she said, "I use. . ."
Yes, that's coconut oil(also called coconut butter). Well, heck, I had that in my pantry. And that was that. I started using it at night and I'm quite pleased with it. Eamonn actually uses it, too--he comes from a wrinkly stock of people and was getting paranoid he'd turn into a Sharpei any day now. And the good thing about the coconut oil is that it doesn't clog your pores. I had problems with these little things called milia--little white bumps I'd get under my eyes where moisturizer was clogging my pores. I have no problems with the coconut oil. Plus, if you're getting ready for bed and you're hungry, you could eat it. Do a search on coconut oil--there are tons of health benefits from it. Erin even makes her popcorn in it.
And finally, the natural replacement product that I'm most psyched about. . .
The Crystal. Hats off to Paige for finding and road testing this. I had seen it in magazines and in the stores before but I always thought it was some crazy gimmick. You use this instead of deoderant/antipersperant. Antipersperant is one of the most alarming things we put on our bodies--all of that aluminum and other chemicals right onto a very sensitive part of your bod.
My entire antipersperant-wearing life, I've had a rash under my arms--heck, I know this is probably way more than you ever wanted to know about me. Tell you what, I'll go on about the armpit issues and spare you the tampon discussion and we'll call it even, OK? So, where was I? Right, my armpit rash. So let's see. When did I start wearing antipersperant? Maybe 6th grade, 12 years old? So for 28 years, I had a rash. I thought it was normal. Then I started hearing more and more disturbing things about the stuff. Then my sisters stopped using it. So I did the same. And I stunk. But my rash went away. I went back. Rash. Stopped. Stunk. What's a girl to do? I began experimenting. I tried all sorts of natural deoderants. I stunk. They might have worked on a 20 degree day where I did nothing more than drive around in the car. But last through something like a workout? Forget it. Stink. Stank. Stunk. As the Grinch would say.
After spending the boys' college funds on my Great Deoderant Experiment, I figured I was destined to a life of rashes or stinkiness. Then along came Paige who, just like those girls at Glamour magazine, did a road test and gave a thumbs up. I dove in and bought the Crystal, too. It uses natural salts to stop you stinking. And it works. It worked all winter and it even works during a workout. It will be interesting to see how it pans out during a hot summer. I'm still in testing mode. But for now, it's a thumbs up. Eamonn also uses it. I don't smell him and he doesn't seem to smell me (or maybe he's afraid to tell me), which is, I hope, a huge relief to those of you who were VERY disturbed by my earlier posts where I said we no longer wear deoderant.
And as for makeup items, don't laugh, but I use those Bare Minerals that are always on the shopping channel. I love them. I need to do more research on them, but I think they're pretty clean. Anyway, lots of companies are coming out with mineral-based makeup lines and you can get them at places like WholeFoods. Again, too lazy to take a picture.
I also forgot to say what bar soap we use: Melaleuca, Platinum. Love it.
I know there are tons of typos, but I'm going to bed!
Next topic: Homeopathy. Ooooo, we're really getting into the voodoo now!
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Living Organically: Clean House Questions
I’m going to take a crack at answering your questions. First, I got out my Home Safe Home book. For those of you who ran directly to the library in great excitement to check it out, you immediately discovered that Virginia Dadd isn’t the author—it’s Debra Lynn Dadd. Sorry about that. Maybe Virginia is Debra’s sister. Or cousin or something.
So moving through the questions. . .
Bridget asked about a “clean” smell. Well, I wouldn’t describe vinegar as a clean smell. In fact, it’s pretty smelly when you’re actually using it. The boys always run in and smell it and then run out. Bu the thing is that it dissipates really quickly and there’s no smell at all. I know we all grew up with those “clean” smells and my personal favorite is Murphy’s Oil soap, but I think that some of the “clean” smells aren’t necessarily the healthiest. In fact, not too long ago I read something specifically about pine scented cleaning stuff like PineSol and how toxic it is. So I’m wondering now, should clean smell like anything? I don’t know the answer to that.
As for the baking soda, it’s not abrasive at all. I used it on my lovely sink in Ohio and there was nary a scratch mark. In fact, before I switched to baking soda, I was using a “soft scrub” type of product. I actually thought it had done something to the finish in the sink. The baking soda was tons better than anything else.
Leeann asked about using vinegar on granite. I did a search on this and got really mixed results. Some people said, “Yes, I use it, no problem.” Other people said, “No way, don’t do it.” I’d check with the people who installed your counter and see what they say. I’m totally jealous that you have granite counters.
As for the Melaleuca laundry detergent, yes, it does work for front loading machines, no problem. And the scent is really no scent at all. It’s unscented so I’m not sure what I’m smelling! Clean clothes? What a novel idea! But no, we don’t have any reaction or rashes or anything.
Ann, for cleaning your wood floors, here’s what it says in the book Clean & Green:
All purpose floor cleaner—1 cup vinegar to one pail of water. Wash the floor as you normally would.
How’s that for vague? I read somewhere else to use a one to four ratio of vinegar to water.
There’s also a floor disinfectant “recipe”:
½ cup Borax, 2 gallons hot water. Pour Borax into bottom of bucket. Add water. Stir to dissolve. Proceed as usual.
And I’m glad you had such good luck with baking soda in your sink!
Sheila wrote about vinegar for sunburn—I never in a million years would have thought of that. In fact, vinegar seems like it would sting. But I’m definitely going to try it because one thing is certain: I will at some point remember to put sunscreen on everyone but myself. And it will be sooner rather than later. Although it’s supposed to snow tonight so the urgency isn’t imminent.
Cindy, from everything I’ve read, vinegar is actually a disinfectant. It took me awhile to get behind the concept that I wasn’t using something officially labeled “antibacterial,” but I found and read an article that in the U.S., Heinz can’t label its vinegar as antibacterial without registering it as pesticide. And I’m guessing if they did that, their sales of “pesticide labeled vinegar” would fall off dramatically. Apparently here in the U.S. you can’t have it both ways.
In Home Safe Home, it talks about how a lot of essential oils have antibacterial properties. Cinnamon is apparently one of the most potent! But here’s what it says about vinegar: “Vinegar can also be used as a disinfectant. She (the author) recommends straight vinegar for cleaning the toilet rim—spray it on and wipe it off.”
Slicker, I’ll e-mail you directly with Melaleuca info. You don’t actually need someone near you—the company ships straight to your door.
Sweeney, way to go! You’re on your way. Next step—bread baking! Ha! And I will write about personal care items next.
Oh my word. It’s 10pm and I haven’t done my work yet.
See you next time for Living Organically: A Chemical Free Body. Wait, that makes me sound like a recovering drug user. I’ll think of a better title before then.
So moving through the questions. . .
Bridget asked about a “clean” smell. Well, I wouldn’t describe vinegar as a clean smell. In fact, it’s pretty smelly when you’re actually using it. The boys always run in and smell it and then run out. Bu the thing is that it dissipates really quickly and there’s no smell at all. I know we all grew up with those “clean” smells and my personal favorite is Murphy’s Oil soap, but I think that some of the “clean” smells aren’t necessarily the healthiest. In fact, not too long ago I read something specifically about pine scented cleaning stuff like PineSol and how toxic it is. So I’m wondering now, should clean smell like anything? I don’t know the answer to that.
As for the baking soda, it’s not abrasive at all. I used it on my lovely sink in Ohio and there was nary a scratch mark. In fact, before I switched to baking soda, I was using a “soft scrub” type of product. I actually thought it had done something to the finish in the sink. The baking soda was tons better than anything else.
Leeann asked about using vinegar on granite. I did a search on this and got really mixed results. Some people said, “Yes, I use it, no problem.” Other people said, “No way, don’t do it.” I’d check with the people who installed your counter and see what they say. I’m totally jealous that you have granite counters.
As for the Melaleuca laundry detergent, yes, it does work for front loading machines, no problem. And the scent is really no scent at all. It’s unscented so I’m not sure what I’m smelling! Clean clothes? What a novel idea! But no, we don’t have any reaction or rashes or anything.
Ann, for cleaning your wood floors, here’s what it says in the book Clean & Green:
All purpose floor cleaner—1 cup vinegar to one pail of water. Wash the floor as you normally would.
How’s that for vague? I read somewhere else to use a one to four ratio of vinegar to water.
There’s also a floor disinfectant “recipe”:
½ cup Borax, 2 gallons hot water. Pour Borax into bottom of bucket. Add water. Stir to dissolve. Proceed as usual.
And I’m glad you had such good luck with baking soda in your sink!
Sheila wrote about vinegar for sunburn—I never in a million years would have thought of that. In fact, vinegar seems like it would sting. But I’m definitely going to try it because one thing is certain: I will at some point remember to put sunscreen on everyone but myself. And it will be sooner rather than later. Although it’s supposed to snow tonight so the urgency isn’t imminent.
Cindy, from everything I’ve read, vinegar is actually a disinfectant. It took me awhile to get behind the concept that I wasn’t using something officially labeled “antibacterial,” but I found and read an article that in the U.S., Heinz can’t label its vinegar as antibacterial without registering it as pesticide. And I’m guessing if they did that, their sales of “pesticide labeled vinegar” would fall off dramatically. Apparently here in the U.S. you can’t have it both ways.
In Home Safe Home, it talks about how a lot of essential oils have antibacterial properties. Cinnamon is apparently one of the most potent! But here’s what it says about vinegar: “Vinegar can also be used as a disinfectant. She (the author) recommends straight vinegar for cleaning the toilet rim—spray it on and wipe it off.”
Slicker, I’ll e-mail you directly with Melaleuca info. You don’t actually need someone near you—the company ships straight to your door.
Sweeney, way to go! You’re on your way. Next step—bread baking! Ha! And I will write about personal care items next.
Oh my word. It’s 10pm and I haven’t done my work yet.
See you next time for Living Organically: A Chemical Free Body. Wait, that makes me sound like a recovering drug user. I’ll think of a better title before then.
Monday, April 28, 2008
Living Organically, Part Four: Clean House
I can sum up my "recipe" for cleaning without chemicals in one picture:
Truly, that's it. I sat down and tried to think of everything I use to clean, and this was it. It's simple and it's cheap. I'm sure I don't need to run down the whole list of why you should stear clear of cleaning products with chemicals. I cringe to think of all of the crap we inhaled prior to changing. Personally, I've decided that anything that's marked as poisonous isn't something I want to be breathing. Plus, it's better for the environment.
When Marci arranged for the cleaning service for us after Finn was diagnosed, I noticed that they cleaned with vinegar. I was intrigued. How could vinegar clean? Little did I know. White vinegar can do about everything. I buy it in those huge plastic bottles at Costco. I think that big bottle is less than $3. It might even be less than $2. I also buy the big bags of baking soda at Costco. They're in the mid $4 range. The big box of Borax is from WalMart for under $4. You can get smaller boxes at the grocery store, but they're way more expensive.
Here's a rundown of what I clean and how:
Toilets--The bowl. Flush. After the bowl has filled again, sprinkle the Borax around. You can let it sit for awhile or go ahead and scrub. For the rim, seat and other parts of the toilet, I use straight white vinegar. I just spray it on and wipe. Also, because sponges gross me out, I use Costo's paper towels, which you can actually scrub and scour with because they're so strong. I know this environmentally horrible because I'm using so much paper towel. I just hope I'm making up for it by using environmentally conscious products. Does it work like that?
Sinks, shower trays, bathtubs, stuff like that--I sprinkle in some baking soda and then add a little water which makes a paste. Scrub. The end. Seriously, when we built our house in Ohio, I had chosen this amazing gourmet kitchen sink. I loved that sink, and I still miss it. At any rate, it was a light color and it would stain. For years I tried a zillion different types of cleansers. And they got the stains out, kinda sorta. But because I am anal retentive, I was never really satisfied. Then I switched to baking soda and that was that. It didn't even require much more scrubbing. It was like some sort of crazy miracle.
The baking soda "paste" is also great for hard water marks. We use it on the glass of our shower and it takes it right off. And believe me, you ain't seen hard water until you get your water from mountain runoff. It's like rock deposits. So trust me, this works.
Mirrors--Straight vinegar in a spray bottle. I use paper towels, but there are die hards who swear by cleaning mirrors with vinegar and newspaper for a streak-free shine, but all that newsprint on my hands grosses me out.
Wood floors--Diluted white vinegar and water. But check with your flooring manufacturer on this one. It's what we were told in our last house when we had a new wood floor, but I don't want to ruin anyone's floor.
Countertops--straight white vinegar. Stovetop--straight white vinegar. Spill chicken juice on the counter? Straight white vinegar. Hangover remedy? Straight white vinegar. OK, I'm kidding on that one, but white vinegar is to me as Windex was to the dad in "My Big Fat Greek Wedding." I just can't think of a single thing I don't use it for.
Laundry--The boys and I all have really sensitive skin, so we've used natural laundry detergent for years. But last summer I switched to Melaleuca and I love it. It takes just one ounce to wash a full load. I'm a huge, huge fan. I don't always recommend brands on the blog, but when there's something I really, really like, I'll let you know. Anyway, I use the Melaleuca liquid detergent and also the fabric softener, BUT I don't put the fabric softener in the wash. Nope, here's what I do: To the wash I put a one ounce pump of the detergent, about a half cup of baking soda (I could probably stop this because the Melaleuca is that good, but I got in the habit of using it when I used a different natural detergent that didn't get things as clean as Meleleuca does and I just haven't stopped), and then I fill a Downy Ball with white vinegar and throw it in there. The white vinegar is a natural fabric softener. Bizarre, I know. But I still then take an old washcloth and spray it 5 or so times with the Melaleuca fabric softener. It's just so dry here I feel like we need the extra static control. Plus I love the way it smells.
There are tons of other things you can do around the house and not use chemicals. You can use vinegar for weed control in your yard, toothpaste to clean your silver (if you own a silver service like my mother who used to make me clean it), or unclog your drains with baking soda and vinegar. Speaking of drains, that's possibly my favorite "green" cleaning thing to do.
Drains--To keep your drains running smoothly and smell fresh (because have you ever noticed how nasty your drain gets?), pour one cup of baking soda down. Then pour in vinegar. Voila--you've got your basic 7th grade science class volcano on your hands. Add vinegar until it stops bubbling. Or you can keep putting baking soda and vinegar in there and watching it for fun to see what roils out of there, like I do. When all the bubbling is done though, pour boiling water down there. Ahhh, fresh, clean drains.
I learned all of this info from either my sisters (of course) or two different books that I really like: Home Safe Home by Virginia Dadd or Clean and Green, whose author I don't remember and am too lazy to walk downstairs to see who it is.
So that's it! Use up what chemicals you've got and then go out and get yourself some vats of vinegar and baking soda. It's tons cheaper and your lungs will thank you for it.
Truly, that's it. I sat down and tried to think of everything I use to clean, and this was it. It's simple and it's cheap. I'm sure I don't need to run down the whole list of why you should stear clear of cleaning products with chemicals. I cringe to think of all of the crap we inhaled prior to changing. Personally, I've decided that anything that's marked as poisonous isn't something I want to be breathing. Plus, it's better for the environment.
When Marci arranged for the cleaning service for us after Finn was diagnosed, I noticed that they cleaned with vinegar. I was intrigued. How could vinegar clean? Little did I know. White vinegar can do about everything. I buy it in those huge plastic bottles at Costco. I think that big bottle is less than $3. It might even be less than $2. I also buy the big bags of baking soda at Costco. They're in the mid $4 range. The big box of Borax is from WalMart for under $4. You can get smaller boxes at the grocery store, but they're way more expensive.
Here's a rundown of what I clean and how:
Toilets--The bowl. Flush. After the bowl has filled again, sprinkle the Borax around. You can let it sit for awhile or go ahead and scrub. For the rim, seat and other parts of the toilet, I use straight white vinegar. I just spray it on and wipe. Also, because sponges gross me out, I use Costo's paper towels, which you can actually scrub and scour with because they're so strong. I know this environmentally horrible because I'm using so much paper towel. I just hope I'm making up for it by using environmentally conscious products. Does it work like that?
Sinks, shower trays, bathtubs, stuff like that--I sprinkle in some baking soda and then add a little water which makes a paste. Scrub. The end. Seriously, when we built our house in Ohio, I had chosen this amazing gourmet kitchen sink. I loved that sink, and I still miss it. At any rate, it was a light color and it would stain. For years I tried a zillion different types of cleansers. And they got the stains out, kinda sorta. But because I am anal retentive, I was never really satisfied. Then I switched to baking soda and that was that. It didn't even require much more scrubbing. It was like some sort of crazy miracle.
The baking soda "paste" is also great for hard water marks. We use it on the glass of our shower and it takes it right off. And believe me, you ain't seen hard water until you get your water from mountain runoff. It's like rock deposits. So trust me, this works.
Mirrors--Straight vinegar in a spray bottle. I use paper towels, but there are die hards who swear by cleaning mirrors with vinegar and newspaper for a streak-free shine, but all that newsprint on my hands grosses me out.
Wood floors--Diluted white vinegar and water. But check with your flooring manufacturer on this one. It's what we were told in our last house when we had a new wood floor, but I don't want to ruin anyone's floor.
Countertops--straight white vinegar. Stovetop--straight white vinegar. Spill chicken juice on the counter? Straight white vinegar. Hangover remedy? Straight white vinegar. OK, I'm kidding on that one, but white vinegar is to me as Windex was to the dad in "My Big Fat Greek Wedding." I just can't think of a single thing I don't use it for.
Laundry--The boys and I all have really sensitive skin, so we've used natural laundry detergent for years. But last summer I switched to Melaleuca and I love it. It takes just one ounce to wash a full load. I'm a huge, huge fan. I don't always recommend brands on the blog, but when there's something I really, really like, I'll let you know. Anyway, I use the Melaleuca liquid detergent and also the fabric softener, BUT I don't put the fabric softener in the wash. Nope, here's what I do: To the wash I put a one ounce pump of the detergent, about a half cup of baking soda (I could probably stop this because the Melaleuca is that good, but I got in the habit of using it when I used a different natural detergent that didn't get things as clean as Meleleuca does and I just haven't stopped), and then I fill a Downy Ball with white vinegar and throw it in there. The white vinegar is a natural fabric softener. Bizarre, I know. But I still then take an old washcloth and spray it 5 or so times with the Melaleuca fabric softener. It's just so dry here I feel like we need the extra static control. Plus I love the way it smells.
There are tons of other things you can do around the house and not use chemicals. You can use vinegar for weed control in your yard, toothpaste to clean your silver (if you own a silver service like my mother who used to make me clean it), or unclog your drains with baking soda and vinegar. Speaking of drains, that's possibly my favorite "green" cleaning thing to do.
Drains--To keep your drains running smoothly and smell fresh (because have you ever noticed how nasty your drain gets?), pour one cup of baking soda down. Then pour in vinegar. Voila--you've got your basic 7th grade science class volcano on your hands. Add vinegar until it stops bubbling. Or you can keep putting baking soda and vinegar in there and watching it for fun to see what roils out of there, like I do. When all the bubbling is done though, pour boiling water down there. Ahhh, fresh, clean drains.
I learned all of this info from either my sisters (of course) or two different books that I really like: Home Safe Home by Virginia Dadd or Clean and Green, whose author I don't remember and am too lazy to walk downstairs to see who it is.
So that's it! Use up what chemicals you've got and then go out and get yourself some vats of vinegar and baking soda. It's tons cheaper and your lungs will thank you for it.
Sunday, March 23, 2008
Living Organically, Part One: You Are What You Eat
I know I talked way back in January when I was still posting on Finn’s CaringBridge page about how I was experimenting with raw food and then I never wrote anything more about it. Several people expressed interest in hearing more about it, so finally, here I go, but I’m approaching this in steps.
I rambled about a lot of things in that particular post, like how I don’t wear deodorant (which apparently freaked several of you out), and how basically we’re living in a totally toxic world and killing ourselves, slowly but surely. So I’m going to start with my eating transition, but then I’ll do other posts about chemical-free living. If the thought of this makes your eyes roll back in your head or disregard what I’m saying because you think I’ve turned into a crunchy hippie-type now that I live in Colorado, that’s fine, I understand. I’d probably think that, too.
But a few notes before I start with food: we started eating organically back in 2003, before Finn ever even got sick and when we still lived in Ohio, I haven’t been wearing deodorant for several years now so that also began in Ohio, and we also have been running a chemical-free household for about the past 3years, so that also started in Ohio. I just wanted to point out that I’m not a crazy hippie in Colorado. I was a crazy hippie in Ohio first.
Finally, I need to put a big disclaimer out there. I like to read and research things a lot. But that doesn’t mean that I think I know everything. I’m always interested in learning more. And more and more. Tara says I’m very high maintenance in the Need for Information Department. She’s right. But, although I have spent a lot of time researching and making the decisions we’ve made to run our household, these are the decisions we’ve made that are right for US. I don’t purport to say that they’re right for everyone and I don’t want anyone to take anything I say as medical advice. I don’t want to get sued!
If you’re interested in what I’ve got to say—great. If not—also great. Everyone has to make the decisions they think are right for their family and their budget and their health. I’m very fortunate that Eamonn supports all of my crazy research, ideas, and theories, even though they sometimes cost a lot of money. We decided long ago that in terms of health and safety, expense wasn’t going to be a reason we DIDN’T do something. However, as a result, our food bill is second only to our mortgage and we have had to economize in a lot of other ways to be able to afford to eat the way we do.
Bottom line, while I have done a lot of research, I certainly don’t know everything and I’m always interested in learning more. If there are a bunch of you out there who feel likewise and have info to share, even if it contradicts what I’ve said, please let me know. I’m definitely open to new ideas. Let’s face it—things change all the time and things I’m doing today may be proved totally wrong tomorrow. But if there are a lot of people who are interested in exchanging ideas about living organically, maybe we could start an online forum where we could all post and exchange info. Just a thought. Post a comment or e-mail me at nrooney@centurytel.net and let me know.
With that, I’ll segue into The Eating Habits of the Rooney Family which we’ll call Living Organically, Part One.
Eating. . .
My sisters are way more progressive that I am in terms of trying new ways of doing things; they were eating organically several years before we were. In fact, we used to make fun of them. When Tara would come in town for a visit, I’d say, “Do you want to eat our poisonous food or do you want to bring your own?” Eamonn and I would wonder why they would spend such exorbitant amounts of money for organic food. We thought they were totally crazy. Erin fed my niece something called oat groats. What the **** was an oat groat anyway?
Over years of hearing about organics and oat groats, it started to sink in. Right. Why would we want to eat something that had chemicals sprayed on it? At first when I started my research frenzy, organizations like Consumer Reports said things like, “If you wash your fruits and vegetables with dish soap (which I still also do because it grosses me out to think about the people/places/things that come in contact with our food), you’ll remove the pesticides from the skin of the food and it will be similar to organic food,” or something like that. OK, but what about the INSIDE of the food, I remember thinking? It reminded me of a line from a song called “Maybe It’s Imaginary” by Kirsty McColl (I know I posted this on Finn’s site before, so bear with me) that goes:
We wash all the food and we peel off the skin
But what is the point if it's poisoned within?
Now I don't know why we say OK
Maybe it's imaginary, hope it's not too late
I mean, yeah. You can’t wash away whatever it’s been grown in. Happily, a few years later, Consumer Reports has totally gone the other way and hopped on the Dirty Dozen bandwagon and now advises that there are certain fruits and veggies that we really should eat organically (they recommend meats and dairy, too). A really great Web site is www.ewg.org. It’s for the Environmental Working Group and on their site they have a grocery shopping list that you can print and carry in your wallet with you when you go to the grocery store. Personally, I can never remember all of the 12 items, so here’s a list:
• Apples
• Cherries
• Grapes, imported (Chili)
• Nectarines
• Peaches
• Pears
• Raspberries
• Strawberries
• Bell peppers
• Celery
• Potatoes
• Spinach
But I really recommend downloading and printing that list in case you’ve got a non-existent memory, like me.
I know that the FDA says that the stuff sprayed on our food is “safe,” and I don’t wish to sound like a conspiracy theorist, but I don’t have a whole lot of faith in the FDA these days. These are the people who happily brought us Vioxx, Ketek (a prescription drug I actually took 3 years ago, but was recalled because it actually caused organ failure and it was known, but they released it anyway—nice), and a whole host of “oops, that drug has some big problems” issues. After spending more than 10 years around organizations that do a lot of lobbying and going to Washington D.C. myself and seeing the lobbyists work on Capitol Hill, I’ve seen enough to know how it works. Things happens, drugs approved, legislation passed, etc., because of the powerful lobbying train. Again, I don’t want to sound like a crazy freak, but the FDA is overworked and understaffed (there are lots of articles in the mainstream press about it anyway, so it’s not just me) and I don’t really have any faith when they tell me, “Um, right, that won’t hurt you. We think.”
Trying to rationalize to me that “there’s just a little bit of stuff sprayed on your food, not enough to cause any damage.” I just don’t buy it. Because what if that little bit in our food and that little bit in our lotion, shampoo, hairspray, cleaning products, and what we breathe in the air all adds up to a lot of something that our bodies can no longer handle? And it’s not just the stuff that’s getting sprayed, it’s the very ingredients of the food itself. Plus, when the FDA says it’s “safe,” they’ve only said it’s safe for adults—think about the effects multiplied many more times on the smaller bodies of our kids. And have you noticed how many more pets get cancer these days? They’re an even smaller microcosm of our world.
As you can see, our transition to where we are today has been a huge domino effect. We started off eating a few things organically and as time we went on we just went whole hog. Obviously we ramped things up significantly once Finn got sick. I don’t know if the things we do, eating organically, trying to live as chemical-free as possible, will make any difference in the end, but personally, I don’t want to take that chance. Before Finn got sick, I used to be cavalier—you’ve got to die of something right? But, I don’t want it to be cancer. I don’t want my kids to have cancer. I don’t want to see anyone else go through what Finn did. And if that means I have to go to the ends of the earth, spend my time researching and testing crazy theories, I’ll do it. Happily. Besides, I’m naturally curious that way and trying new things, with food of course, is something I consider fun. Freak.
So we started with the Dirty Dozen and it just grew from there. We had an ideal situation in Ohio—close to stores that carried lots of organic products, we belonged to a co-op where we could buy most of the stuff wholesale though; near a butcher who raised and butchered his own meat and made his own lunchmeat; pretty close to a dairy where we could buy raw milk; we belonged to a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) where we got inexpensive organic veggies straight off the farm.
I’m struggling somewhat here in Colorado. Groceries are crazy expensive. We joined a CSA out here, but it’s 3x the price. The raw milk is about 2x the price. I have trouble finding organic meat. Surprisingly, Costco has it most consistently. So we just have to do what we can, when we can. But some of you have mentioned that you have trouble finding organic things—I feel your pain.
The most important thing I’m trying to do now is remember to read food labels. There are chemicals, additives and artificial colorings and flavorings in everything, and there is more and more current, reliable research about what these additives are doing to us, and more specifically, our kids. Last fall a study in a British medical journal showed that certain very common food additives cause ADD-like symptoms in kids about 1 hour after consumption.
Here’s a link to the article from Time magazine if you want to read it.
http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1659835,00.html
Unfortunately, these additives are in almost everything we eat, even the snack foods that the kids at Declan’s school can purchase. How much sense does this make? We let them eat these snacks, they go out to recess, and then right when these additives are kicking in, we ask the kids to come back inside and learn. Totally counterintuitive. We’re asking the impossible of them. No wonder there are behavioral problems in schools. I’m currently working with our school to replace the things like Doritos and Cheetos, etc., and all of that crap, with healthier alternatives. Tara has already succeeded at Garvin’s school. My hero. We don’t want to be snack Nazis—there’s a time and place for fun food—but not as a matter of course and definitely not at school.
One day last fall I took the kids to Costco and we were sampling our way around the store, as usual, and we tasted Activia yogurt. Declan liked it and asked if I would buy it for him to have as a snack at school (they have snack time in the morning). Yogurt? Of course! What a healthy choice, right? Only I didn’t read the label until we got home. High fructose corn syrup. Ugh. One of the worst and most unhealthy sweetners. Another thing we sampled that day was these single-serve containers of grapefruit (don’t get the wrong idea, my kids will choose junk over health food every single time, but Declan happens to love grapefruit). Again, what a great snack idea! Not. When I got home and read the label, it had one of the preservatives in it listed in the British study. Dang it! In grapefruit? Is nothing sacred?
But I say these things to point out that for all of my “watchdoggedness” I get tripped up all the time and I need to do better, too. It’s frustrating because most processed grocery store food is full of all kinds of stuff that manufacturers use to make things taste “good” and make things shelf stable, but we really have no idea what the effects on our bodies are going to be.
Personally, I think that we’re now starting to see the results—definitely higher rates of obesity and diabetes, but in my heart, I feel like the higher rates of cancer are all a part of it. How can it not be? Our bodies just weren’t designed to deal with all of this.
Do I think I’m going to cure the world of cancer and all of its other ills by ranting on like this? No. Do I think that anything is going to really change in my lifetime? Probably not. Do I realize that even back when people were eating only natural foods grown on their farm and not putting chemicals on their bodies that people still got cancer? Yes. Do I think that some people, no matter what they do, are just more susceptible to cancer? Yes. Do I think that Declan and Finn, or maybe Declan and Finn’s children will look back and think, “Holy cow! I can’t believe the things they used to put into food!” Yes.
There are so many things in life that we can’t control—the quality of the air we breathe, and obviously the water we drink after that totally gross report of prescription drugs in our drinking water, the kinds of toxic waste that are dumped into the ground to filter back into our lives, etc. So my feeling is that we need to control what we can and protect ourselves that way.
Last fall I heard a woman speak about nutrition and women’s health. Her style and manner of speaking totally turned me off—she had a really in-your-face presentation style and I sat there thinking, “Who the hell do you think you are talking like this to me?” Well, who the hell she is is a two-time leukemia survivor (same type as Finn) who after her illness has gone on to get her PhD and become a nutritionist specializing in women’s health issues. And as I sat there listening to her, I realized that the reason she presents the way she does is because Americans need a huge kick in the ass. We just aren’t getting it! What do we need? A whole bunch of people to start dying of cancer before we wake up and smell the coffee? Um, hello! We have eaten like crap for about a generation and now we’re paying the ultimate price—literally with our lives. I’m not trying to be melodramatic here, just matter of fact. We. Are. Killing. Ourselves. And unfortunately, we're killing our kids, too.
During the presentation the woman spoke about how she has a certain way of eating and takes certain supplements, as does her young daughter. She said that people often ask her how she gets her daughter to eat in this healthful way. And what she said next really resonated with me: “What kind of steward would I be for my child if I didn’t?” Zing. That hit home on so many levels. We are our children’s stewards and I will do anything to carry out that mission.
For more than a year, Finn has been taking a whole food supplement, approved by his oncologist, of course. He takes a “gummy” version of it, but the company also makes chewables and capsules. I felt like I saw results with Finn and so we all started taking it (I’m a big fan of it and if anyone wants more info about it, I’m happy to share it via e-mail, but it’s one of those network marketing things and I don’t want to be pushing products on my blog, so contact me separately if you want more info). The only person who wasn’t taking it was Declan because he didn’t like the taste. Boo hoo. They also make capsules, but I hadn’t thought to offer those to Declan. Anyway, after I heard this woman speak, I realized I needed to take charge in my own house. I came home and the next morning I lined Declan’s options out for him. I said you can choose from the gummies, chewables or the capsules, but you’re going to take this. He said, “OK, I’ll take the capsules.” I nearly fell over. But I felt like it was a hugely important thing in my attempt to be a steward for my children. And that’s what I’m determined to be from now on.
I’m not kidding myself. I know that doing all of these things doesn’t guarantee that I, or Declan or Eamonn will never have cancer, or that Finn will never get cancer again. Or that we won’t have some other serious illness. But I want to know in my heart that I did everything I could to prevent it. And if something would happen, I’d like to think that nutritionally, we have a leg to stand on and maybe mitigate some of the effects of medicines we have to take, or recover faster.
As a comical aside and preparation for my next post, which will be more about food, specifically raw food, if you get BBC America on your TV, watch a show called You Are What You Eat. You’ll be grossed out. A nutritionist confronts people with horrible eating habits and then helps them revamp. Even though it takes place in England, their diet isn’t too far from ours—not enough fruits and veggies—and way too much processed food that doesn’t provide any of the nutrients we need, and in fact, leaches them from our bodies. You’ll learn how your tongue, your fingernails, skin, and hair are all windows into your inner health. I find it so interesting. Plus it’s inspiring when these totally overweight people start eating and exercising and lose weight.
OK, so that’s the first part of your homework: Watch You Are What You Eat if you can.
The second part of your homework is take a look at what's in your cupboard. I think you'll be unpleasantly surprised at what's in there hidden in things that are marketed to us as healthy--things like high fructose corn syrup, partially hydrogenated oils, artificial colors, sulphur dioxide, and a whole lot of things that shouldn't be eaten. Check out your fave snacks and see. Maybe you're more with it than I was and you've already figured this out. If so, yay you!
If you feel like it, post your results about what you found. Sharing info is the only way we'll all learn more.
I’ll be back in a few day with more about raw food.
Oh my word. This post is so long. Is anyone still awake?
I rambled about a lot of things in that particular post, like how I don’t wear deodorant (which apparently freaked several of you out), and how basically we’re living in a totally toxic world and killing ourselves, slowly but surely. So I’m going to start with my eating transition, but then I’ll do other posts about chemical-free living. If the thought of this makes your eyes roll back in your head or disregard what I’m saying because you think I’ve turned into a crunchy hippie-type now that I live in Colorado, that’s fine, I understand. I’d probably think that, too.
But a few notes before I start with food: we started eating organically back in 2003, before Finn ever even got sick and when we still lived in Ohio, I haven’t been wearing deodorant for several years now so that also began in Ohio, and we also have been running a chemical-free household for about the past 3years, so that also started in Ohio. I just wanted to point out that I’m not a crazy hippie in Colorado. I was a crazy hippie in Ohio first.
Finally, I need to put a big disclaimer out there. I like to read and research things a lot. But that doesn’t mean that I think I know everything. I’m always interested in learning more. And more and more. Tara says I’m very high maintenance in the Need for Information Department. She’s right. But, although I have spent a lot of time researching and making the decisions we’ve made to run our household, these are the decisions we’ve made that are right for US. I don’t purport to say that they’re right for everyone and I don’t want anyone to take anything I say as medical advice. I don’t want to get sued!
If you’re interested in what I’ve got to say—great. If not—also great. Everyone has to make the decisions they think are right for their family and their budget and their health. I’m very fortunate that Eamonn supports all of my crazy research, ideas, and theories, even though they sometimes cost a lot of money. We decided long ago that in terms of health and safety, expense wasn’t going to be a reason we DIDN’T do something. However, as a result, our food bill is second only to our mortgage and we have had to economize in a lot of other ways to be able to afford to eat the way we do.
Bottom line, while I have done a lot of research, I certainly don’t know everything and I’m always interested in learning more. If there are a bunch of you out there who feel likewise and have info to share, even if it contradicts what I’ve said, please let me know. I’m definitely open to new ideas. Let’s face it—things change all the time and things I’m doing today may be proved totally wrong tomorrow. But if there are a lot of people who are interested in exchanging ideas about living organically, maybe we could start an online forum where we could all post and exchange info. Just a thought. Post a comment or e-mail me at nrooney@centurytel.net and let me know.
With that, I’ll segue into The Eating Habits of the Rooney Family which we’ll call Living Organically, Part One.
Eating. . .
My sisters are way more progressive that I am in terms of trying new ways of doing things; they were eating organically several years before we were. In fact, we used to make fun of them. When Tara would come in town for a visit, I’d say, “Do you want to eat our poisonous food or do you want to bring your own?” Eamonn and I would wonder why they would spend such exorbitant amounts of money for organic food. We thought they were totally crazy. Erin fed my niece something called oat groats. What the **** was an oat groat anyway?
Over years of hearing about organics and oat groats, it started to sink in. Right. Why would we want to eat something that had chemicals sprayed on it? At first when I started my research frenzy, organizations like Consumer Reports said things like, “If you wash your fruits and vegetables with dish soap (which I still also do because it grosses me out to think about the people/places/things that come in contact with our food), you’ll remove the pesticides from the skin of the food and it will be similar to organic food,” or something like that. OK, but what about the INSIDE of the food, I remember thinking? It reminded me of a line from a song called “Maybe It’s Imaginary” by Kirsty McColl (I know I posted this on Finn’s site before, so bear with me) that goes:
We wash all the food and we peel off the skin
But what is the point if it's poisoned within?
Now I don't know why we say OK
Maybe it's imaginary, hope it's not too late
I mean, yeah. You can’t wash away whatever it’s been grown in. Happily, a few years later, Consumer Reports has totally gone the other way and hopped on the Dirty Dozen bandwagon and now advises that there are certain fruits and veggies that we really should eat organically (they recommend meats and dairy, too). A really great Web site is www.ewg.org. It’s for the Environmental Working Group and on their site they have a grocery shopping list that you can print and carry in your wallet with you when you go to the grocery store. Personally, I can never remember all of the 12 items, so here’s a list:
• Apples
• Cherries
• Grapes, imported (Chili)
• Nectarines
• Peaches
• Pears
• Raspberries
• Strawberries
• Bell peppers
• Celery
• Potatoes
• Spinach
But I really recommend downloading and printing that list in case you’ve got a non-existent memory, like me.
I know that the FDA says that the stuff sprayed on our food is “safe,” and I don’t wish to sound like a conspiracy theorist, but I don’t have a whole lot of faith in the FDA these days. These are the people who happily brought us Vioxx, Ketek (a prescription drug I actually took 3 years ago, but was recalled because it actually caused organ failure and it was known, but they released it anyway—nice), and a whole host of “oops, that drug has some big problems” issues. After spending more than 10 years around organizations that do a lot of lobbying and going to Washington D.C. myself and seeing the lobbyists work on Capitol Hill, I’ve seen enough to know how it works. Things happens, drugs approved, legislation passed, etc., because of the powerful lobbying train. Again, I don’t want to sound like a crazy freak, but the FDA is overworked and understaffed (there are lots of articles in the mainstream press about it anyway, so it’s not just me) and I don’t really have any faith when they tell me, “Um, right, that won’t hurt you. We think.”
Trying to rationalize to me that “there’s just a little bit of stuff sprayed on your food, not enough to cause any damage.” I just don’t buy it. Because what if that little bit in our food and that little bit in our lotion, shampoo, hairspray, cleaning products, and what we breathe in the air all adds up to a lot of something that our bodies can no longer handle? And it’s not just the stuff that’s getting sprayed, it’s the very ingredients of the food itself. Plus, when the FDA says it’s “safe,” they’ve only said it’s safe for adults—think about the effects multiplied many more times on the smaller bodies of our kids. And have you noticed how many more pets get cancer these days? They’re an even smaller microcosm of our world.
As you can see, our transition to where we are today has been a huge domino effect. We started off eating a few things organically and as time we went on we just went whole hog. Obviously we ramped things up significantly once Finn got sick. I don’t know if the things we do, eating organically, trying to live as chemical-free as possible, will make any difference in the end, but personally, I don’t want to take that chance. Before Finn got sick, I used to be cavalier—you’ve got to die of something right? But, I don’t want it to be cancer. I don’t want my kids to have cancer. I don’t want to see anyone else go through what Finn did. And if that means I have to go to the ends of the earth, spend my time researching and testing crazy theories, I’ll do it. Happily. Besides, I’m naturally curious that way and trying new things, with food of course, is something I consider fun. Freak.
So we started with the Dirty Dozen and it just grew from there. We had an ideal situation in Ohio—close to stores that carried lots of organic products, we belonged to a co-op where we could buy most of the stuff wholesale though; near a butcher who raised and butchered his own meat and made his own lunchmeat; pretty close to a dairy where we could buy raw milk; we belonged to a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) where we got inexpensive organic veggies straight off the farm.
I’m struggling somewhat here in Colorado. Groceries are crazy expensive. We joined a CSA out here, but it’s 3x the price. The raw milk is about 2x the price. I have trouble finding organic meat. Surprisingly, Costco has it most consistently. So we just have to do what we can, when we can. But some of you have mentioned that you have trouble finding organic things—I feel your pain.
The most important thing I’m trying to do now is remember to read food labels. There are chemicals, additives and artificial colorings and flavorings in everything, and there is more and more current, reliable research about what these additives are doing to us, and more specifically, our kids. Last fall a study in a British medical journal showed that certain very common food additives cause ADD-like symptoms in kids about 1 hour after consumption.
Here’s a link to the article from Time magazine if you want to read it.
http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1659835,00.html
Unfortunately, these additives are in almost everything we eat, even the snack foods that the kids at Declan’s school can purchase. How much sense does this make? We let them eat these snacks, they go out to recess, and then right when these additives are kicking in, we ask the kids to come back inside and learn. Totally counterintuitive. We’re asking the impossible of them. No wonder there are behavioral problems in schools. I’m currently working with our school to replace the things like Doritos and Cheetos, etc., and all of that crap, with healthier alternatives. Tara has already succeeded at Garvin’s school. My hero. We don’t want to be snack Nazis—there’s a time and place for fun food—but not as a matter of course and definitely not at school.
One day last fall I took the kids to Costco and we were sampling our way around the store, as usual, and we tasted Activia yogurt. Declan liked it and asked if I would buy it for him to have as a snack at school (they have snack time in the morning). Yogurt? Of course! What a healthy choice, right? Only I didn’t read the label until we got home. High fructose corn syrup. Ugh. One of the worst and most unhealthy sweetners. Another thing we sampled that day was these single-serve containers of grapefruit (don’t get the wrong idea, my kids will choose junk over health food every single time, but Declan happens to love grapefruit). Again, what a great snack idea! Not. When I got home and read the label, it had one of the preservatives in it listed in the British study. Dang it! In grapefruit? Is nothing sacred?
But I say these things to point out that for all of my “watchdoggedness” I get tripped up all the time and I need to do better, too. It’s frustrating because most processed grocery store food is full of all kinds of stuff that manufacturers use to make things taste “good” and make things shelf stable, but we really have no idea what the effects on our bodies are going to be.
Personally, I think that we’re now starting to see the results—definitely higher rates of obesity and diabetes, but in my heart, I feel like the higher rates of cancer are all a part of it. How can it not be? Our bodies just weren’t designed to deal with all of this.
Do I think I’m going to cure the world of cancer and all of its other ills by ranting on like this? No. Do I think that anything is going to really change in my lifetime? Probably not. Do I realize that even back when people were eating only natural foods grown on their farm and not putting chemicals on their bodies that people still got cancer? Yes. Do I think that some people, no matter what they do, are just more susceptible to cancer? Yes. Do I think that Declan and Finn, or maybe Declan and Finn’s children will look back and think, “Holy cow! I can’t believe the things they used to put into food!” Yes.
There are so many things in life that we can’t control—the quality of the air we breathe, and obviously the water we drink after that totally gross report of prescription drugs in our drinking water, the kinds of toxic waste that are dumped into the ground to filter back into our lives, etc. So my feeling is that we need to control what we can and protect ourselves that way.
Last fall I heard a woman speak about nutrition and women’s health. Her style and manner of speaking totally turned me off—she had a really in-your-face presentation style and I sat there thinking, “Who the hell do you think you are talking like this to me?” Well, who the hell she is is a two-time leukemia survivor (same type as Finn) who after her illness has gone on to get her PhD and become a nutritionist specializing in women’s health issues. And as I sat there listening to her, I realized that the reason she presents the way she does is because Americans need a huge kick in the ass. We just aren’t getting it! What do we need? A whole bunch of people to start dying of cancer before we wake up and smell the coffee? Um, hello! We have eaten like crap for about a generation and now we’re paying the ultimate price—literally with our lives. I’m not trying to be melodramatic here, just matter of fact. We. Are. Killing. Ourselves. And unfortunately, we're killing our kids, too.
During the presentation the woman spoke about how she has a certain way of eating and takes certain supplements, as does her young daughter. She said that people often ask her how she gets her daughter to eat in this healthful way. And what she said next really resonated with me: “What kind of steward would I be for my child if I didn’t?” Zing. That hit home on so many levels. We are our children’s stewards and I will do anything to carry out that mission.
For more than a year, Finn has been taking a whole food supplement, approved by his oncologist, of course. He takes a “gummy” version of it, but the company also makes chewables and capsules. I felt like I saw results with Finn and so we all started taking it (I’m a big fan of it and if anyone wants more info about it, I’m happy to share it via e-mail, but it’s one of those network marketing things and I don’t want to be pushing products on my blog, so contact me separately if you want more info). The only person who wasn’t taking it was Declan because he didn’t like the taste. Boo hoo. They also make capsules, but I hadn’t thought to offer those to Declan. Anyway, after I heard this woman speak, I realized I needed to take charge in my own house. I came home and the next morning I lined Declan’s options out for him. I said you can choose from the gummies, chewables or the capsules, but you’re going to take this. He said, “OK, I’ll take the capsules.” I nearly fell over. But I felt like it was a hugely important thing in my attempt to be a steward for my children. And that’s what I’m determined to be from now on.
I’m not kidding myself. I know that doing all of these things doesn’t guarantee that I, or Declan or Eamonn will never have cancer, or that Finn will never get cancer again. Or that we won’t have some other serious illness. But I want to know in my heart that I did everything I could to prevent it. And if something would happen, I’d like to think that nutritionally, we have a leg to stand on and maybe mitigate some of the effects of medicines we have to take, or recover faster.
As a comical aside and preparation for my next post, which will be more about food, specifically raw food, if you get BBC America on your TV, watch a show called You Are What You Eat. You’ll be grossed out. A nutritionist confronts people with horrible eating habits and then helps them revamp. Even though it takes place in England, their diet isn’t too far from ours—not enough fruits and veggies—and way too much processed food that doesn’t provide any of the nutrients we need, and in fact, leaches them from our bodies. You’ll learn how your tongue, your fingernails, skin, and hair are all windows into your inner health. I find it so interesting. Plus it’s inspiring when these totally overweight people start eating and exercising and lose weight.
OK, so that’s the first part of your homework: Watch You Are What You Eat if you can.
The second part of your homework is take a look at what's in your cupboard. I think you'll be unpleasantly surprised at what's in there hidden in things that are marketed to us as healthy--things like high fructose corn syrup, partially hydrogenated oils, artificial colors, sulphur dioxide, and a whole lot of things that shouldn't be eaten. Check out your fave snacks and see. Maybe you're more with it than I was and you've already figured this out. If so, yay you!
If you feel like it, post your results about what you found. Sharing info is the only way we'll all learn more.
I’ll be back in a few day with more about raw food.
Oh my word. This post is so long. Is anyone still awake?
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