This video is absolutely heartbreaking and devastating. I couldn't watch the whole thing and after I stopped, I tried to call this inhumane farm but couldn't get through. It shows how badly cows and their calves are treated. It's brutal and inhumane and only lets us assume what's going on on lots of farms (not only dairy) all over the world. Don't watch this with your children!
Please think twice before purchasing animal products. Buy from farmers you know and trust and where you have the option to see the animals. Organic is a good start, but not the ultimate answer. Cutting down on animal products in another way to go, and trying to incorporate a lot of vegan meals into your diet would help all those poor animals the most - and the planet as well!
... that one third of all cereal crops, and well over 90% of soya, goes into animal feed, not food for humans?
Eating less meat will free up a lot of agricultural land which can revert to growing trees and other vegetation, which, in turn, will absorb more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
And it will help feed more people around the world!
Help our planet by reducing your meat consumption. Meat-free your Mondays (or any other day of the week) - it's a fun way to introduce vegetarian (or, um, even vegan???) recipes to your family. Share your own ideas and experiences here, I'd love to see how you're doing!
In this 4-minute clip from The Today Show, MSNBC's chief medical editor, Dr. Nancy Snyderman, explains a recent study in the journal Pediatrics linking children's pesticide exposures to behavioral problems:
Organo-what? Organophosphates! Who would have thought something that sounds so... healthy and natural is something... so bad and dangerous for us, especially for young children. Organophosphates are, easily said, man-made pesticides that interfere directly with the chemical systems that brain cells use to communicate with each other. So for children with their still developing brains it's especially devastating to be exposed to them. Most of us know that organic produce is the better choice, for our heath and for the environment, yet only about 2% of U.S. food sales are organic. Eating fruits and veggies with residues of pesticides is one way we're all exposed to, so it makes good sense to eat organic whenever possible. Yes, there's still pesticides on organic produce, but in considerably smaller quantities. This is a list of the fruit and vegetables that really should be only consumed if organically grown:
Make sure you buy certified organic produce, and if you can, buy from local farmers that you know. Hard? Doesn't have to be - try your local farmer's market and start a dialogue. Find out what they spray and whether they eat their products themselves or not. Even better: if you have a garden, plant your own. Don't forget - we are what we eat!
From an environmental point of view, drinking bottled water is one of the biggest contributors to pollution.
Did you know that about 30 billion bottles are produced per year, which means 17,000,000 barrels of oil are being used (which is enough to fuel 100,000 cars for the year!) plus 2,500,000 tons of carbon dioxide. 86% of these bottles end up in our landfills – in fact 1,500 plastic bottles per second land in the garbage... and there it takes about 1,000 years to biodegrade!
Did you also know that bottled water costs about 1,900 times more than tap water?
The average American spends about $400 per year on bottled water which totals to 100 Billion Dollars per year that is spent on this beverage!
An independent test performed ty the Environmental Working Grouprevealed 38 low-level contaminants in bottled water. 10 major brands were tested and each of them contained an average of eight chemicals including disinfection byproducts (DBPs), caffeine, Tylenol, nitrate, industrial chemicals, arsenic, and bacteria.
Plus, think about the leaking of the plastic that the bottles are made of. Especially when you reuse those bottles or when they’re exposed to extreme temperatures (like in your car – but who knows what they were exposed to before they land in our hands?)
Seems like we're better off just drinking tap water, which, according to the research done for Tapped! The Movie! is used in about 40% of bottled water anyway.
If you want to be on the safe side though, better get your in-house water filter and a BPA-free reusable water bottle for every family member. I personally have gone back to good old glass bottles. Until further research is done, glass makes me feel most comfortable.
By saying no to bottled water you save your money, our planet and you do something good for your health.
... if every household in the U.S. replaced just one roll of 1,000 sheet virgin fiber bathroom tissue with 100% recycled ones, we could save:
469,000 trees
1.2 million cubic feet of landfill space, equal to 1,700 full garbage trucks
169 million gallons of water, a year's supply for 1,300 families of four
(Source: Seventh Generation)
Now imagine what it'd do if every household replaces paper towels with recycled ones, or, even better, avoid them altogether and use fabric clothes, which are washable and reusable!
Happy recycling - oh, and the new recycled products are just as good as the conventional ones. I have to say they really, really improved a lot! Try them next time you go shopping.
The kids had lots of fun helping in the garden, doing sports with Mr. Marlon from the family Y, eating the delicious baked goods, doing yoga and dancing to live music (my husband Erik played with Los Primos).
I had worked on a display for the event for the past few days, and as always used only recycled materials.
It was so nice chatting with visitors and interested parents about ways to live a greener life. One great start doing so is packing waste-free lunch boxes for school and work. The Pre-K has set up an account with greenraising.com, a company that specializes in reusable items and beautiful jewelry. 45% of the profit through May 31st will benefit the school.
I met and talked to so many nice people who were providing great information. Among them were Nancy Simonic and her partners from eNRG. They showed how to save energy by KEC (KVAR energy controller), solar energy and LED lamps. Dina Aronson from Welltech Bistro had great tips for food allergies and nutrition.
Meenu Mahajan, another mom of a preschooler at the Pre-K, just started her own business (yellow margosa). Her portfolio includes stainless steel dishes and beautiful and reusable fabric gift wraps. This will be another option to get great sustainable stuff locally. I’ll let you know as soon as her website is up and running.
Meenu with some of her beautiful products
Alma Schneider from Take Back the Kitchen was also there. It’s always great to chat with Alma. I can’t believe how much energy and great spirit this woman has! Four kids plus an amazing blog plus Parents Who Rock plus who know what! Makes me kind of jealous J
This is Alma - check out her blog!
Anyway, Alma had brought delicious stuff (green smoothies and tasty salsas) that made me feel like run and try every single vegetarian recipe from her blog!
The baked goods were delicious and it was so much fun chatting with like-minded people. Feels good to live in an environment where everybody cares!
