Approximately one-third of a pound of chemicals are used to grow the cotton in one t-shirt. There are an array of harsh chemicals that are used throughout the garment manufacturing process, most of which are toxic to humans. These include chlorine, sodium hydroxide, heavy metal salts and formaldehyde. Residuals of these toxins stay in the fabric. They also find their way into wastewater systems, particularly in developing countries.
Many dyes that are excluded from the Organic Standards contain toxic components, said Martin Ledvina, co-founder of Earth Creations, Inc. Most conventional dyes don’t comply with EPA regulations so they’re sent overseas. The products that use these dyes, often made in sweatshops, make [...]
Earth Creations offers eco–friendly fashion
Will Mexico’s new planned wastewater plant harm lush farmland?
Sewers of Mexico city have been spewing “black water” 60 miles downhill to irrigate what is now lush farmland in the Mezquital Valley, in the Mexican state of Hidalgo. Though the stench belies the bucolic view of corn and alfalfa fields, the water is filled with toxins, including chemicals dumped by factories.
Mexico City has flushed its wastewater for the past 100 years to help irrigate this farmland through a series of canals that then trickle out onto the fields. The government recently announced plans to build a giant wastewater treatment plant, the first proactive measure it’s taken to manage flooding wastewater in almost 40 years.
Budgeted to cost $1 billion, the plant will begin operating in 2012 and will clean 60 percent of the [...]
Auric Blends Natural Perfumes
Since the late 19th century, perfumes have enticed our senses. Yet even the most expensive perfumes are loaded with petrochemicals, many toxic to humans. A 1991 EPA study found many perfumes include potentially hazardous chemicals like acetone (used as a cleaning solvent), benzyl acetate (a solvent used in plastics), ethanol (grain alcohol), ethyl acetate (a solvent) and methylene chloride (a solvent).
The FDA says fragrances are responsible for 30 percent of all allergic reactions. Yet this hasn’t stopped the growth of this multi-billion dollar industry.
There’s a small but growing trend within the perfume industry – quality perfumes made with natural ingredients. Auric Blends, a Sonoma County company, has created four unique, [...]
Can we be BPA free?
Anyone strolling around a “gear” store (read: expensive clothing and equipment for outdoor activites… I admit I am an addict) will see an assortment of water bottles available for their nature excursions. “BPA Free!” read the plastic options. And in response to the growing number of consumers wishing avoid plastic altogether, popular metal brands like KleenKanteen are now steady shelf presences.
While this anecdote illustrates increasing awareness that BPA is “bad”, few really know the extent to which bisphenol-A has penetrated our daily lives—and for many of us, since childhood.
At some point, you were likely given plastic formula bottles (BPA lined) filled with baby formula (contains BPA). Once you graduated from [...]
Link Sunday
A roundup of our favorite links from the past week…
1. Houses warmed by compost?
2. Eco-conscious “Save-the-Dates”, Michel Gondry video-style
3. Water refugees in the Middle East
4. 17,000 chemicals in daily household products kept hidden by obscure law
5. Permafrost is receding– fast.
6. School House Rocks “Electricity”, contains conservation message
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Dirty Dozen
According to the Green Guide, the average adult uses at least 9 skincare products a day (think: soap, lotion, sunscreen, fragrance, deodorant, etc) with over 120 chemicals between them, many of which have some degree of toxicity.
To help when you’re in the store trying to pick out what will not disrupt your hormones, here is a printable, wallet-sized green guide.
The guide is based on the “dirty dozen” of harmful and very common chemicals. It’s worth the scavenge to find products free of these, but your body will thank you.
And for those wishing to read more in-depth, follow this link or read the information from the Green Guide below:
Ingredients to [...]
Advice From Tessa
I work with a wonderful woman who is thoroughly devoted to not using products that contain harmful chemicals or toxins.
Make-up, soaps, shampoos, lip balms, toothpaste– all products we use everyday of our lives, and for most of the world, all products that contain chemicals that we would never knowingly put on our bodies, let alone allow to absorb into our skin.
Tessa did years of research online, and spent years of trial-and-error testing the poison-free products to see which are worth the extra cost.
This is valuable info. Here is Tessa’s list.
I use mostly:
Avalon Organics (face soap, face lotion, body lotion);
Aubrey Organics (shampoo and conditioner); and
Tom’s of Maine (deodorant, toothpaste and soap)
For [...]
Chemicals; the Good, the Bad, and the Harmful
In the early 1900’s scientists from different backgrounds, labs and companies were experimenting on their various products. One would pick up on the compounds of another and add or take away a chemical or two and by the 1950’s the fantastic product that we know today as plastics had evolved and was on earth to stay. Plastic material was soon found in every type of industry around the globe.
Plastics in one form or another during its evolution have been and are still good for human use regarding the quality and comforts of life that it offers. I would not want medical professionals to still be sterilizing needles or washing glass [...]
Non Stick Cookware+ Thyroid Disease?
Study Raises Questions About Non-Stick Chemical Known as PFOA
Jan. 21, 2010 — A chemical compound used to make non-stick cookware, food wrappers, and water-resistant coatings for carpets and fabrics has been linked to an increased risk for thyroid disease in an early study.
Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) has previously been shown to influence thyroid hormone levels in animals.
But the newly reported study is among the first to suggest that exposure to PFOA might cause thyroid disease in humans.
The study included nearly 4,000 adults who took part in the CDC’s ongoing nationwide Health and Nutrition Examination (NHANES) study between 1999 and 2006.
Researchers found that participants who had the highest levels of PFOA in their [...]
PVC FREE SCHOOLS
Top Ten Reasons
Your School
Should Go PVC-Free
Polyvinyl chloride (PVC or vinyl) plastic poses serious environmental
and health threats at all stages of its lifecycle: from manufacturing to
use to disposal. Here are the top ten reasons schools should go
PVC-free and build or renovate with PVC-free building materials.
1. Children More At Risk from Toxic Chemicals
Children are not “little adults” – their developing brains and bodies, their metabolism and behaviors make them uniquely vulnerable to harm from toxic chemicals such as those released by the PVC lifecycle:
• Exposure begins in the womb through the mother’s exposures to toxic chemicals. Infants
ingest chemicals through breast milk, formula and contact with their environment.
• Rapid brain development in the [...]