greenliving

The next time you consider popping a pill to ease that neck-ache or take the edge of your back ache, think of trying any one (or all) of the following suggestions:

1. Try changing your pillow: Lying on a too thick or too thin pillow can put a strain on your neck/back. According to the Better Sleep Council, your pillow should be selected based on your sleeping position; side sleepers need a firm pillow, back sleepers a medium thickness pillow and for those who sleep on their stomachs, a soft and thin pillow works well.

2. Stop slouching: By standing as tall and straight as possible, you’ll not only seem taller and slimmer, but your back and stomach muscles are pulled into a relaxed position. Slouching on the other hands puts additional pressure on your spine.

3. Do neck rolls and deep breathing exercises: The neck is where most of our tension gets accumulated in. Try doing regular neck exercises such as neck rolls. Deep breathing also helps. Inhale through your nose for a count of 10 seconds. Exhale gently through your mouth.

4. Give acupuncture a shot: Acupuncture has been in certain cases, found to have provided intensive relief lasting up to 6 months. While the results may vary, it’s always an option to be checked out. 

I’ve put on a lot of weight! Honestly, it’s not just one of those ‘girly’ things we women say, but the good, old fashioned honest truth. And I put it on in California! The land of the sun, sea, surfboards and sexybodies apparently didn’t transmit its message to my brain. Which in turn for some unearthly reason, stuffed my mouth and now it’s all quite happily visible around my waist! And if you follow my running blog- http://bcrunner.blogspot.com , then you’ll see that I’ve been using other modes of transportation to get me places.

So, I’ve finally decided to take action, ban the sweeties from my kitchen and begin to rediscover good, healthy food. And here are some things that are going to help me:

1. Shopping seasonal: So now that I’ve bought a whole lot of fresh fruit and veggies from our neighbourhood farmers market, I’m going to be forced to cook and eat them.

2. Chewing slowly: Remember how mum always said (in my case, she continues to), chew slowly?  Chewing slowly allows you to taste and appreciate the food. And the slower you eat, the sooner you’ll feel full.

3. Selecting whole grains: I’ve always eaten whole-grain bread, but now I’m switching to brown rice and whole grain pasta too.

4. Keeping a food diary: There nothing like seeing what you actually eat to completely put you off your next meal. Unless it’s part of point no. 1!

5. Starting each morning with warm water and lemon: Squeeze a bit of fresh lemon juice into your warm glass of water and drink it as soon as you wake. It refreshes you and gets your digestion going.

6. Ending each day with 200 sit ups: I know, this has nothing to do with food or digestion; but everything to do with my belly! So hopefully, as the world reads this and gets inspired to join me, knowing that it’s online shall act as my challenger and motivator.

Here’s to a newer, slimmer and healthier us!

With summer around the corner (though given today’s weather, it seems like a long way off!), most of us have begun to dig out our dresses and shorts. And when that happens, can dusting off our razor kits be far behind?

According the Gillette, the largest supplier of disposable razor blades, over 1.7 billion men shave daily. And that’s just men! Factor in the number of women who shave their legs, underarms etc. on a regular basis, and the numbers that emerge can be quite staggering.

If you must use a razor, go in for the reusable kind. Electric razors are another alternative as though they are filled with toxic hazards (and there’s an upside to that??); they last for years. Select one that plugs directly into a socket rather than the battery operated ones, which don’t last as long.

And while we’re talking razors, why not go in for organic, natural shaving creams? Weleda and Avalon Organics both make excellent natural shaving creams.

There are always alternatives and if you do know of some excellent organic options, do share them with us!

It’s been 7 years since I quit smoking, so finally, I can bring myself to write about it, without receiving smarmy looks from all my smoking friends!

Fact: One tree is cut to fire-cure every 300 cigarettes rolled in paper, which if you smoke a pack a day = one tree every two weeks.

Fact: Each time you light a cigarette, you’re not just blowing smoke, but up to 4000 chemicals into the atmosphere, including benzene and hydrogen cyanide.

Fact: In producing cigarettes, over 11.6 kgs of pesticides are used on crops, and their residue finds it’s way into rivers and steams and of course, the soil.

And finally, think of all the littering that happens with all those smoked out butts! It takes around 18 months to 12 years for them to finally decompose! In the meantime, the chemicals continue to pollute the grass, beach, woods..or whereever they’ve been dropped, not to mention the serious harm they could cause wildlife, which may unsuspectingly ingest them.

So, if you are thinking of quitting because of your own health reasons, now you can add the above facts to help you reach that decision even faster!

I’ve stopped going to the gym. I used to find it enjoyable, working out on the treadmill and appreciating the other beautiful men and women running alongside me. But one day, it dawned on me that, there’s nothing quite as unhealthy as being cooped up in an air conditioned, all sweat, enclosed atmosphere, sharing treadmills and bench presses, while watching inane television soap operas. So, I decided to skip the gym in favor of exercising at home or outdoors.

Exercising outside the gym does not necessarily mean boring or…boring. There are a variety of ways to add fun to the mix. Try going jogging with a buddy.  Not only will you have someone to pace you, but you’ll get that extra energy to do the final 100 meters. Or, join an outdoor walking or jogging group. Most communities have these set up and they are easy and fun to join. Want to try something new? You can always take up cycling, swimming or hiking. How about mountain climbing, surfing or skiing? The outdoors offer a variety of exercises depending on where you live and the level of thrill you seek. If you find that you’re not motivated to don those sneakers unless you pay for it, then set up an ‘exercise box’ and drop in $5 each time you exercise. Use that money to treat yourself to something nice when you finish 10 sessions.

If you are going to watch TV while you exercise, then why not use the opportunity to learn something new? Ever wanted to try yoga or Pilates? How about kick boxing or belly dancing. If you’re new to any exercise, always make sure you start at the beginner’s skill level and always with a doctor’s approval.

So, stop that gym membership (put the money into your ‘exercise box’), don a pair of sneakers and head outdoors!

You may try sucking herbal lozenges when you’re ill, but as soon as you feel really sick, you’re off to the nearest doctor to get a prescription. And a few pills later, you feel better, the tablet box is thrown away (hopefully in the recycle bin), and you forget about it till the next time illness strikes. Sounds familiar?

US health spending will constitute 18.7 percent of the gross domestic product by 2014, up from 15.3 percent in 2003, according to estimates by financial experts from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).

In Canada, total health care spending in 2005 exceeded $4,400 per person or over 10% of gross domestic product (National Health Expenditure Trends, 1975-2005). Canada’s health care spending continues to rise and reached $160.1 billion dollars in 2007, up from $150.3 billion in 2006.

But what happens to all those pills we pop, and how exactly do they affect the environment?

Production: Along with producing synthetic pills by the billions each year, by-products in terms of vast amounts of pollutants are also produced.  Many of the chemical solvents released are considered hazardous and can’t be treated by waste-water treatment plants. In addition to this, pharmaceutical plants also produce toxic particles which are released into the atmosphere, including cyanide and neuro- toxin toluene.

Sewage: Sewage treatment plants degrade most drug residues that come out of our system, but a lot pass through the treatment facilities unchanged. Drug residues then end up flowing into our rivers and oceans and sometimes, pouring back out of our taps! Overall, roughly 100 pharmaceuticals have been found in the waters of Europe and the US, and while this may be a small drop in the ocean so to speak, it can have a larger effect on marine life.

So what can be done?

Take them back to your pharmacy: If you do have expired drugs, then take them back to your pharmacy and ask them if they have a drug disposal programme. Do not throw them into bins, your recycle box or flush them down the toilet. If your pharmacy doesn’t have a program, your municipality should be able to direct you to one that does.

Switch to natural, gentler remedies for everyday illnesses: Remember what you mother and grandmother did when you were ill? Maybe brewed you some nice chamomile tea and made a hot cup of chicken soup? And put a few drops of eucalyptus or tea tree oil on your pillow? They made you poultices when you sprained your ankle, and used menthol to ease your head-aches. There are a number of healthy alternatives to popping a pill. Give them a try and see if they work for you!

Consider the amount of products you use on your body each day. According to a report by the Environmental Working Group, the average adult uses 9 personal care products a day, containing a total of 126 chemical ingredients! Whew! And if that doesn’t seem mind boggling, consider this. According to the report, only 11% have been tested for safety!

So, let’s start with some of the worst offender.

Parabens: These are a group of low cost synthetically produced chemicals widely used as preservatives in the cosmetics and pharmaceutical industries. They can typically be found in moisturisers, shampoos, conditioners, shaving gels, soaps, personal lubricants and toothpaste to name a few. They are also used as food additives. All types of parabens have been found to be estrogenic, meaning they mimic female hormones. They are becoming controversial, and some studies have linked them inconclusively to breast tumors.

Phthalates: Most phthalates are used to make vinyl flexible, which is in turn used in a variety of ways, including in hospitals and home products. However, despite being controversial, phthalates have also been used in the personal care department, especially in producing nail polish, and you will often find it tucked away under the ingredient, fragrance.

Petrolatum: Petrolatum is found in 1 out of every 14 products on the market, including in lipsticks and baby lotions and oils. FDA imposes certain percentage restrictions on the use of petrolatum in food, and requires that it meet impurity restrictions. You can often find petrolatum under ‘skin protection’ on labels, and this indicates that it has been refined and meets the FDA requirements. But in most cases, the consumer has no way of knowing this.

Petrolatum comes from non-renewable crude oil and is not breathable. You decide if you want something like that on your skin!

Sodium Lauryl/Laureth Sulfate (SLS): SLS is a proven skin irritant, and while laureth is less irritating that lauryl, it can still cause dryness. It’s been found not to cause cancer, but it still best avoided.

Talc: Talc is a powder found in everything, from eye shadow to baby powder. Any talc that’s contaminated with asbestos fibres is recognized as being carcinogenic.

Triclosan: Triclosan is an antibacterial chemical used in just about any personal and home care product. All antibacterial wipes and cleaners that kill 99.9% germs contain triclosan. But is that really necessary? Using the vast amount of antibacterial products that we do, does in fact lower our bodies’ resistance to germs, not to mention wrecking havoc on the environment. Triclosan can in fact turn into carcinogenic dioxins when exposed to sunlight in water, and the UK is one of the first to ban it being sold in local supermarkets.

Bottom line, read all labels before you purchase a product. Make sure that they are FDA approved. And mostly, use common sense. Do you really need special antibacterial soap, when regular soap and water works just as well?