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9 More Common Chemicals & How to Avoid Them

12/7/2014

Last week we talked about 9 dangerous chemicals that are commonly found in the personal care products you use every day. Use of these chemicals has been linked to cancer, infertility and reproductive issues, obesity, hormone imbalance, endocrine system disruption, autism, ADHD, liver and kidney toxicity, and more; yet many people aren't aware of the harmful effects these ingredients may be having on their health.

If you haven't checked out last week's post, be sure to do so, and make a list of these chemicals so that you can check labels when shopping and avoid them!

This week we're exploring 9 more common chemicals that you should avoid - and how to find safer, healthier alternatives, so that you can buy the gift of good health for yourself and your loved ones this holiday season.

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The Great GMO Experiment

10/12/2014

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One of the fiercest debates raging in the food community these days (or maybe ever), is the debate about genetically modified organisms - and particularly, foods. In truth, the debate is more about politics than it is about health, but health is where we need to start. The pro-GMO camp swears that GM foods are totally safe, while the other side counters with a range of arguments, from the seemingly reasonable contention that GM foods should be labeled as such, to the extreme position that GMOs could be the end of life on this planet.

If you've been reading this blog for a while, you probably can guess that I fall somewhere in the middle. But I still think it's an important topic to address, especially considering how much of our food now contains genetically modified ingredients.

For one thing, the contentions that GMOs are "safe" for humans to eat really don't have a lot of long-term evidence to back them up.

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Our Homesteading Adventure: Part 1

10/5/2014

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Our new home on 5 acres.

I didn't have much time to work on a big blog post for you today, but I thought it might be fun this week to share some pictures of our new home, and some of our plans for the future! Ever since my childhood on a farm in the Ozark mountains, a part of me has always longed for my farm-girl roots. No matter how large a city I have lived in (Houston, TX), or how nice a suburb (Dublin, OH), and how long I stayed there, it just never quite felt like home.

That's why I'm so excited to finally have a house and land of my own! My husband and I recently purchased an old home on 5 acres of beautiful farmland, and now comes the challenging part: figuring out what we want to do with it!

If you've been reading our Green Living blog lately, we've been doing a series on homesteading, and I guess that is as good a word to describe it as any. We aren't trying to be large-scale farmers. I don't know that we will ever even try in any way to make a living off the land.

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Connecting With The Dirt

9/28/2014

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"You know you came from it...and someday you'll return to it."
"Dirt" -- Florida Georgia Line

In our overly sanitized, sterilized, anti-bacterial-focused modern world, it seems that one of the things humans most fear is dirt. And it is no wonder, as for many years of early civilization, diseases were closely linked to hygiene, and cleanliness (or the lack thereof) was often to blame for the spread of many dangerous illnesses. So indeed, we have come a long way. But we must not forget that dirt is also a necessary part of life. and in fact, none of us would be alive today without the life-giving properties of good soil.

Growing up on a farm, this is something that is pretty obvious to me, but for those who did not have the close connection that I had with the earth beneath my feet, it may not be your first thought when you think of food. But whether you are vegan, omnivorous, or some other label you give yourself - no matter what your diet is like - everything that you eat at one time, in some form, came from the soil.

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The Ethics of Eating Meat

2/2/2014

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Thanks to those of you who submitted suggestions in reply to our question last week! Keep an eye out for posts addressing your preferred topic(s) coming soon....

I am nearing the end of The Omnivore's Dilemma, having taken my time to really think about each section, and enjoying my leisurely way through the story that is so well-told in its pages. I am now well into the hunting & gathering section, and it has made me think (again, as I often have before) about my feelings about eating meat.

As you probably know by now, I am not a vegetarian, and don't intend to become one. However, you never know how your tastes may change, so I won't say it's out of the realm of possibility. If I ever do make such a change, it probably will be for one reason only. As you also probably know by now, I do see humans as omnivores, and (clean, naturally & sustainably raised) meat as a healthy thing to eat (in moderation). After all, humans from all cultures, areas of the globe, and walks of life have been eating meat for thousands of years.

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Empire of Corn - Part 2

1/12/2014

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Last week we talked about corn, and especially about the detrimental effects of corn being fed to animals - particularly cattle. We left you with the surprising fact that each person in the US consumes about 1 ton of corn per year. How does one person possibly eat that much corn? Besides feeding meat animals, and your gas tank, here's what happens to most of the rest of that corn:

It is processed.

First, the grains of corn are usually soaked in an acid bath, then ground, the germ separated out, the kernels crushed, then further ground, filtered, spun, etc. Water is added, more acids are added, dissolving, pulverizing, separating into different components, and the process goes on. If it sounds like quite an intensive process, it is. According to Michael Pollan's book, The Ominivore's Dilemma, for every calorie of processed food produced from corn, 10 calories of fossil fuel energy are burned.

Along with corn syrup (not surprisingly one of the largest uses), corn also becomes corn starch, citric and lactic acid, glucose, fructose, maltodextrin, ethanol, sorbitol, mannitol, xanthan gum, modified and unmodified starches, dextrins, cyclodextrins, and MSG - among hundreds of others. Most all of these will be familiar to you if you've ever looked at the label of most processed food items. It's no wonder that you eat a lot more corn than you might think you do!

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Forward>>

9 More Common Chemicals & How to Avoid Them

The Great GMO Experiment

Our Homesteading Adventure: Part 1

Connecting With The Dirt

The Ethics of Eating Meat

Empire of Corn - Part 2

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