Because natural isn't always possible — or easy.
Posted in Eating Healthy, Food, Things that make me go hmmm, Toxins on Jul 18th, 2011
We get all our ice cream cakes from a little, family-owned ice cream shop called Marshall’s Ice Cream Bar. They are heavenly. Different soft-serve flavors sandwiched in between hot fudge, crunchies, and whatever else you want. Our favorite is usually black raspberry and chocolate. The owners personally take your order. It’s always a nice experience [...]
Posted in Eating Healthy, Going Green, Reduce, Safety on May 7th, 2011
Every morning Big Girl and Little Girl have cereal and yogurt. It’s organic yogurt free of artificial flavors and colors, but I still wonder how healthy it is. You see, it comes in a big plastic tub. I believe the tub is BPA-free, but I can’t really be absolutely sure, can I? I looked it [...]
Posted in Eating Healthy, Food, Reduce, Sustainable on Feb 25th, 2011
Until recently, I was not a coffee drinker. I couldn’t understand what the appeal was, quite honestly. Every time I saw a Facebook update that mentioned coffee, my eyes sort of glazed over. Sometime over last summer, though, I got it. It was really hot here. Everywhere I looked someone was drinking an iced coffee. [...]
Posted in Consumer Packaged Goods, Eating Healthy, Environment, School and education, Shopping on Sep 22nd, 2010
One of the most wasteful places, in my opinion, is the school lunchroom. Lots, and I do mean LOTS, of single-serve containers, wrappers, and packages. Take fruit leather, for example. They usually come in a box, each fruit bar individually wrapped. The boxes cost $4 for eight. (Or about $.50 each.) Recently, I came upon [...]
Posted in Environment, Health, Illness, parenting, Pop Culture, Toxins on Aug 10th, 2010
A Facebook friend posted a link today. It was from The Today Show — a segment about early puberty. It was pretty shocking. The segment was based on a new Pediatrics study — Pubertal Assessment Method and Baseline Characteristics in a Mixed Longitudinal Study of Girls — looked at girls ages 6 to 8 who [...]
Posted in Environment, Going Green, Health, Illness, Organic, Preventative medicine, Safety, Toxins on May 8th, 2010
Yesterday the President’s Cancer Panel — I can’t believe I didn’t know it existed — released its most recent annual report, Reducing Environmental Risk: What We Can Do Now. Download it. It’s worth a read. The report explains that, in 2009, more than 1.5 American men, women and children were diagnosed with cancer, and 562,000 [...]
Posted in Environment, Food, Going Green, Health, Safety, Toxins on May 5th, 2010
I have a Google news alert for the acronym “BPA.” Day after day I sit here and read about new dangers of bisphenol A (BPA). This week alone there was a new study that found links BPA exposure to a change in the blood levels of thyroid and reproductive hormones in men. The study, done [...]
Posted in Environment, Going Green, Health, Illness, Pregnancy, Research, Toxins on Feb 16th, 2010
I’m really mad at the Powers that Be. They have let us down yet again. This past month there has been a flurry of new research and lawmaking related to chemicals and toxins and their effects on our children. I want to know why it’s taken so long to figure some of these out. The [...]
Posted in Consumer Packaged Goods, Environment, Going Green on Jan 19th, 2010
Last week the Food and Drug Administration did a 180 on its stance on bisphenol A (BPA), saying it had “concerns” about its use when it comes to fetuses, babies, and children. And maybe parents should avoid exposing their kids after all. The government even pledged $30 million toward research. They need to get to [...]
Posted in Consumer Packaged Goods, Environment, Going Green, Health, Toxins on Dec 2nd, 2009
Consider this: In the 1990s, the average age a little girl got breast buds — a precursor to puberty — was just shy of 11. Today the average age is about nine! More than one in ten girls start developing at seven. (Thanks @DrGreene for pointing this out!) How could this be? Some experts think [...]