Share and Voice: Norwex

I'm not sure if any of you have heard of Norwex before but I thought I'd tell you all a little bit about it since my mom sells it and I use the products. Norwex is a company that sells eco-friendly and organic cleaning products. They are chemical free and use the microfiber concept. The company originated in Norway and is now in several other countries including the U.S. I encourage everyone to check out the products on the website. From personal experience,  I can tell you they clean very well. Sometimes they clean even better than typical chemical products. I use one of the microfiber clothes to wash my face and clean off my eye make-up. And let me tell you girls, it works wonders. I don't use any soap; I just use water on the cloth. If any of you are interested in buying any of the products, let me know! I can order through my mom or my cousin.

Read 'n' Seed: Part 4 of Hormone Deception

For the last portion of Hormone Deception, I read "Part 3: What to Do about Hormone Disruptors" of the book which included chapters 12, 13, 14, and 15. To sum this part it, Berkson basically broke down where we can get all of these hormones and then presented ways of how to reduce our intake of them.

Chapter 12: Food and Drink
Dairy: Cows are typically given growth hormones to produce more milk and grow faster. They are also fed antibiotics to fight the infections that are caused by the growth hormone BGH (bovine growth hormone). These typically can act as hormone disruptors. People are worried that they will not be able to get their daily intake of calcium if they do not consume milk. This is not true as many other natural leafy greens and beans can provide the adequate amount of calcium.  To lessen your exposure, it is suggested that one should

• Eat less dairy, especially the products that are high in fat content
• Buy organic dairy
• Remove cling wrap immediately from cheese and meats

Meat and Poultry: also high in hormone disruptors, try to buy products that are organic or free-range/grass fed.

Fruits and Vegetables: Many are treated with pesticides and herbicides for better growth. One should be sure to wash them with "a mild solution of dish detergent or diluted vinegar" to get rid of some of the chemicals

• Best non-organic: avocados, corn, bananas, plums, green onions, watermelon, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, sweet potatoes, onions.
• Worst non-organic (try to buy organically if possible): strawberries, spinach, cabbage, pineapples, green beans, asparagus, apricots, red raspberries, cherries, apples, peaches, grapes, sweet peppers, celery, cucumbers, cantaloupe

Other suggestions from the chapter: limit the amount of food that comes from a tin can, plastic containers (replace with glass instead), has a lot of additives, and filter and test your water.

Chapter 13: Detoxification and Dietary Suggestions
Berkson provides simple suggestions to help promote the livers natural cleansing

• Drink 5-8 cups of filtered water per day
• Exercise daily to excrete chemicals through sweat
• Eat high-fiber, low-fat proteins. And make them organic
• Get adequate vitamins and minerals
• Avoid the "white" carbohydrates (white flour, white sugar, etc.)
• Try to consume a lot of antioxidants and amino acids which help support enzyme detox
• Avoid excessive amounts of alcohol and Acetaminophen

Chapter 14: Room-by Room Tour
Berkson breaks down each room and discusses ways to reduce the risk of ingesting hormone disruptors

Overall air supply

• Ventilate your house by opening windows for better air exchange
• Add house plants to increase oxygen production

At the Front Door

• Insist that visitors take their shoes of outside or right by the door
• Have a rug to wipe off the collected chemicals on the bottom of your shoes (which may be 75-100% as effective as taking off your shoes before entering)
• Dust the front door on a weekly basis
• If you work in a chemical environment, change your clothes before entering

Living Room

• Vacuum  the furniture and carpet on a regular basis to get rid of the dust that collects (preferably with a high-efficiency particle air vacuum cleaner)
• Wash all surfaces at least once per month that are frequently touched by others
• Clean thoroughly around fireplaces or woods stoves
• Check your house for lead paint that is toxic

Bathroom

• Use non-chemically based cleaners
• Reduce the use of air fresheners. They typically contain pesticides.
• When taking a hot shower or bath, open a window or turn on a ceiling fan as to not inhale the steam with chloroform in it that can be soaked in by the skin and taken into the lungs

Bedroom

• Let dry-cleaned clothes air out before you put them in your closet. Many chemicals are used in the process of dry cleaning
• Vacuum your mattress as it tends to harbor dust and skin particles

Kitchen

• Do not store cleaning supplies under the skin. The heat from the pipes can vaporize some of the chemicals into the air.
• Avoid using heavy-duty chemical cleaners
• Filter the water you drink and get it tested
• Use the exhaust fan over the stove
• Avoid using plastic containers, especially in the microwave. This goes for cling wrap also. They tend to have a lot of plasticizers in them which means more chemicals.
• Avoid using Styrofoam products

Laundry Room

• Attempt to by soaps and detergents that are free from nonyl phenol ethoxylates
• Use nonchlorine bleach
• Open a window when running the washing machine

Garage

• Try to carpool as often as possible
• Leave your garage door open several hours after parking in it and never let your car run while in the garage

Chapter 15: How Can You Help?
To sum things up quite shortly, Berkson basically says to be aware of what you are buying, eating, and what you are around on a daily basis. Read the labels, recycle, and avoid using anything that is simply more man-made than natural. Everyone should make themselves aware not only for themselves but for the future generations.

Overview of the Book
We have only been living with this many chemicals for about the last half of a century so it is century not too late to turn things around and live more simply and naturally. I never realized until reading this book what an effect the environment has on my body. I think it's really scary and it needs to come to an end. Berkson is basically saying that all of these chemicals and synthetic hormones are changing the way our body reacts naturally. It is actually changing the amount of femininity in men of all species which I think is pretty remarkable. We need to be aware that we do not fully know how we react to these chemicals in the long run so we need to be on guard and question what we are ingesting.

Three Most Significant Things from the Book

• We need to be aware of the chemicals that we are putting in our bodies through nearly everything we encounter. It is interfering with our natural hormone production.
• The chemicals that act as hormone disruptors is likely partially responsible for the uprising in nearly every disease, especially cancer. They are also responsible for developmental problems and lower IQ's.
• If we eat and buy everything as organic as possible, we can reduce our risk of developing a disease and be much healthier overall.

What Does It Mean to Me
I will not make more of an effort to buy organically and use less plastic on a daily basis. Now that I see how it I have had it all laid out and explained to me, I can really see the problems all of these hormone disruptors are causing. I know that it will not be a dramatic change at one time but a gradual one. I will also try to inform others about this issue in hopes that they will change also.

Would I Recommend This Book?
I think this book has a lot of good information but it seemed really repetitive to me. It also seemed like the author was a little bias since she has had so many issues in her life being a DES daughter. It made the book feel like a therapy session in a way. Overall, I liked the information but could have done without her personal story in it. I can't necessarily say I would recommend this book but it wasn't the worst thing I've read either.

Eye Opener: Environmental Working Group

I went to the Environmental Working Group's Skin Deep Cosmetic Safety Database website and looked up some of the make-up I use on a daily basis. I was surprised to find that most of the make-up I use was rated between 3 and 5 on a scale of 0-10 (10 being the most hazardous). I will break down the two products I searched separately.

1.L'Oreal Bare Natural Gentle Mineral Powder, Nude Beige
This is the foundation that I use everyday. According to the database, it is given a 3/10 on the hazard scale. This was better than I expected since usually having the word "natural" in the name of the product is usually very misleading. There are about 48% other products that are safer than this one. The products used to make this foundation is known to cause developmental/reproductive toxicity and skin irriations. When the ingredients were broke down one by one, most were in the green (low) level with only a couple in the yellow (moderate) zone. Although the former is stated, there is a reported 87% data gap in the studies of the ingredients so it is hard to say whether the former is true. Even though there are still some problems with this foundation, I think I am mostly safe to continue using it compared to using the other products out there. I don't put foundation on daily either; I only usually wear it when my skin isn't very clear.

2. Revlon Colorstay Liquid Eye Pen Blackest Black 001
 This is a product I definitely use on a daily basis, sometimes more than once a day. It was rated a 5/10 on the hazard scale with about 70% of other eyeliners being safer which I wasn't too happy to see. Since this is something that is put around my eyes, I'm a little more worried about it as I don't want to be using something that could get into my system easier and potentially make me go blind. The data gap was a little less than the foundatoin at 76% but I still think it is kind of high. The ingredients in the product are known to cause: cancer, developmental/reproductive toxicity, allergies/immunotoxicity, use restrictions, and many other hazards. When the ingredients were broke down, about half were in the green (low) zone and half were in the yellow (moderate) zone.

Overall, I thought this was really interesting. I like that the website was able to suggest safer products as an alternative. We all hear about the animal testing that is done for make-up but we never really hear about the results. In the future, I will try to find the other products in the stores next time I need to buy more make-up.

Read 'n' Seed: Part 3 of Hormone Deception

In this portion of Hormone Deception, I ready pages 145 through 210 which included Chapters 8, 9, 10, and 11. These chapters discussed the effects of hormone disruptors on women in several different aspects.

Chapter 8: Women's Health
Berkson starts the chapter off by pointing out the many differences women have from men physically. Since women are smaller and have higher levels of estrogen, they are much more susceptible to they hormone disruptors they encounter. These have been found to cause the following problems

• endometriosis
• uterine fibroids
• benign breast disease
• premenstrual syndrome or PMS
• permenopausal problems
• endometrial polyps
• ovarian cysts
• infertility
• increases in breast and ovarian cancer

According to the book, approximately 80% of women in the United States reports having taken oral contraceptives at some point. Studies have shown that women who started taking birth control early in life or for a prolonged time have an increased chance of developing breast cancer at a earlier age. Adversely, once a woman reaches the age of her mid-forties, early use is shown to decrease the risk of developing breast cancer. Since there are so many women taking birth control that is excreted from their bodies into our water supply without proper water systems to filter out the estrogen, it is present in the water we use and drink on a daily basis. The fertility drugs that women are taking to combat the rising rate of infertility can possibly cause an increase in deformities and abnormalities in the children that are the product of them.

Chapter 9: Breast Cancer
According to Berkson, 46,000 women are killed by breast cancer every year and is the number one cause of death for women between the ages of 32 and 52. Young women are more susceptible to the hormone receptors in their breasts since they are not fully developed and are more impressionable. Over half of all diagnosed breast cancers are estrogen sensitive. This means that higher estrogen levels will increase risk of developing breast cancer. There are other hormone disruptors may also affect the breasts such as through hormones such as thryoxine (made by the thyroid gland which affects the response of breast tissue to estrogen), prolactin (which is the hormone that produces milk in pregnancy), insulin (maintains blood-sugar levels in the body), and progesterone (regulates female cycles).

Chapter 10: Synthetic Hormones and Menopause
Hormone replacement therapy or (HRT) is typically administered to women going through menopause to attempt to lower the risk of various diseases associated with growing older such as osteoporosis and cardiovascular disease. Even though they may be beneficial, they can have very severe side effects since as close to the real hormone it is, it is still synthetic and foreign to the body. Even though it is believed that hormones in women are declining at this time, they are actually all over place from high to low. Therefore, adding more estrogen with HRT's and from the environment can cause problems such as breast cancer. There is no evidence that shows that HRT's may actually cause liver damage, cardiovascular problems, cancer, asthma, and may not be as beneficial in preventing osteoporosis as previously thought. The main point that Berkson is trying to make is that every woman is different; therefore, doctors should be more cautious of prescribing HRT's to them to prevent adverse affects.

Chapter 11: Other Health Problems
To shortly sum up this chapter, Berkson discusses how hormone disruptors have been shown to cause the rise in several other diseases such as allergies, autoimmune conditions (where the body attacks itself) thyroid and adrenal problems, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (which is what my boyfriend actually had so I found this to be interesting), diabetes, and higher levels of blood pressure.

It is easy to see how much these synthetic hormones are disrupting everyone. I think it explains why there as been a rise in so many of the diseases that are so common now. It is important to be aware of the risks along with the benefits associated with what we are around and putting in our body. I find all of this to be really disturbing, and it makes me feel like I am not safe doing anything.

New Blog Header

This is the new header for the blog that I created with Picnik. The picture of the daisies in the background was taken this past summer in my garden. I find the picture to be very soothing kind of contradicts the name of my blog (Green with Envi). I thought the font was kind of playful but serious at the same time and makes a statment. I think it is a fun addition to my blog.

Share and Voice: Plant a Tree with Avon

I was browsing the Avon website since someone sells it where I intern and came across this fundraiser. It is called hello green tomorrow and for just $1, Avon will plant 1 tree of the 1 million they plan to plant in the Atlantic Rainforest of South America. According to the site, 93% of the rainforest is now gone which is a major contributor to the global warming we are facing. I decided to skip my lunch and buy 3 trees instead to help restore the rainforest. It is such an easy way to contribute and make a difference!

Read 'n' Seed 3: Part 2 of Hormone Deception

For this portion, I have read about half of Part 2: How Hormone Disruptors May Affect You in the book which extends from pages 75-145. This included Chapter 5: In the Womb and at the Breast, Chapter 6: Children, and Chapter 7: Men's Reproductive Health. For this portion, I will be giving a summary of each chapter since so many different topics are covered.

Chapter 5: In the Womb and at the Breast
In this chapter, Berkson discusses how hormone disruptors can still pass through the placenta and may inevitably cause developmental problems in the future. This is due to the fact that xenoestrogens (compounds that mock natural estrogens) are able to pass through barriers freely while natural estrogens are bound to proteins so they are not able to pass through to harm the unborn child. The fetus' are more susceptible to more dramatic effects from the hormone disruptors since they are not fully developed with a liver and kidneys to get rid of the toxins. It was found through testing on rats that if a hormone disrupts the day of conception that the gender is decided, this could eventually cause physical developmental problems.
Once the child is born, many mothers opt to breast feed their child as it is the most natural way and is typically known as the healthiest nutrition source for infants. Though this is still believed to be true compared to other forms of nutrition, such as formula, there are some drawbacks that many do not know. Many of the toxins in our body is stored in our fat. When a woman breastfeeds, she releases much of the stored toxins into the milk, which is found contain more chemicals than the FDA allows in infant formulas. Berkson goes on to discuss how to get rid of these toxins before becoming pregnant with a detox and also what kind of products not to use with bottle feeding.

Chapter 6: Children
Berkson discusses how children are more prone to hormone disruptor'\s since they are still developing in many ways. In recent studies, it has shown that childhood cancers, asthma, birth defects, ear infections, and hypospadias (a male developmental problem) have dramatically increased at least within the last 10 years. It has even been found that children are reaching puberty at a much younger age, specifically girls starting with breast development. This is probably due to the fact that children are more exposed to harmful chemicals while their body and brain are not fully developed. This is by them constantly playing in dirt, putting toys in their mouth, and not being as concerned with hygiene as adults. Another study conducted in Mexico was done on two groups of children; one growing up around around pesticides and one growing up free of chemicals. Over several years of the study, it was evident that the children growing up in an organic environment were much further developed mentally as opposed to the children growing up around pesticides. In other studies, there is evidence that the newer generations have experienced a downward shift in IQ scores also and an increase in the cases of ADHD. According go the book, the United States uses 80% of the worlds Ritalin. I think this statistic is outstanding and unacceptable. The conclusion of this chapter discusses ways to protect children from harmful chemicals through hygiene and their food consumption.

Chapter 7: Men's Reproductive Health
The topic that was most prevalent in this chapter was gender-bending. Gender-bending is the when hormone disruptors with much estrogen in them interfere with the natural development caused by natural hormones causing men to become more feminine. These chemicals even have the ability to reverse gender from male to female. This is becoming more and more common and has even been suggested to cause some homosexuality. Other problems it has caused is lower sperm count (which could lead to fertility issues), testicular cancer, and sex organ developmental issues. These chemicals, overall, are making everything more feminine with the overabundance of estrogen and xenoestrogens.

From this portion of the book that I have read, I think it is clear that there is a serious problem with the chemicals and synthetic hormones we use so widely. Only now are we starting to see the affects of these on our bodies and I think we all need to take action against their use just like with smoking. It would be in every one's best interest to avoid using plastic, eat organically, and be aware of the environment you are in. If we can start eliminating our need and use of plastic on a personal level, eventually it will lead to less production on a larger scale. Who knows, if we don't change something, maybe we'll start slowly losing the male gender.

Eye Opener: CSPI

For the eye-opener this week, I took the Score Your Diet quiz. Overall, I got an OK score that was just in the "Good" range but in some areas, I could use some improvement. My scores for the categories were the following:

• Health Score:   39
• Environmental Score:   -15
• Animal Welfare Score:   -7
• Grand Total Score:   17

I seemed to have scored the highest in vegetables and fruits. This didn't surprise me that much since I don't eat a lot of meat, fish, or dairy. Although I didn't eat as much as the recommended value, I still got a high score in those categories.

My lowest score food was cheese. This didn't surprise me either since cheese is pretty much it's own food group at my parents out. We actually have a drawer in our fridge with only cheese in it.  However, with a lot of cheese factories in my area (about 4 I believe), a lot of it is produced locally. I also do not eat nearly as much cheese when I am living in Duluth as compared to living with my parents.

The category that I need the most improvement in is environment category. This is likely from my consumption of cheese and beef, which was my second lowest score. Even though most of the beef I consume is from my local area, I realize that it still takes a toll on the environment. Decreasing my intake of both of these would greatly help the environment overall as well as my overall health considering these are both heavily saturated in fat much of the time (though I try to buy low-fat).

I really liked this eye-opener as it made me think about what goes into producing the food. When I think about what I eat, it is usually in terms of fat, calories, and how it affects my body directly. The animal welfare and environmental factors also affect my body in the long run and that is also something I need to remember when choosing what to eat.

Share and Voice: EMF Detectors

While I was browsing the internet for new and different types of green products, I found the Electromagnetic Field detector. Curious as to what the purpose of it was, I read the description. According to the website Green Home, the EPA believes that EMF's around places of high-voltage (such as power lines and cell phone towers) have the potential to have damaging effects including cancer. Although they are unsure as of now since it isn't easy to prove and it hasn't been until recent years that these high-voltage areas were around, they suggest that we all take precautions.

This is why the EMF detector may be a beneficial tool to have in your home to protect yourself and your family. It is able to detect the strength and range of these emissions so you are better able to limit your exposure to them.

I thought this was an interesting topic. It somewhat reminds me of my read 'n' seed book in that it discusses the effects of chemicals later on in life without immediate damage. I think it is another thing we need to be aware of in our environment. It is common to look at a skyline these days and see multiple towers and power lines.

Reflection: Weeks 1-4

The first 4 weeks of this class has taught me a lot about how the human race impacts the planet. Everything on this planet, living or nonliving, has some sort of place. I have realized that I need to make a much better effort in going green because my actions do make a difference. Hopefully, others around me will follow in my efforts to save the planet and our resources. The following are some activities that I have learned about in this class.

Bagley Outdoor Classroom
While getting a tour of the the greenest building on campus, it gave me a lot of inspiration as to how I will think about building my own house in the future keeping the green concept in mind. Also while here, I learned through the star wars activity that it is important to keep all parts and individuals of a community in mind and that it we shouldn't take advantage of the seemingly innumerable resources until it is too late and they scarce.

Ecological Footprint Quiz
After taking this quiz, I realized how wasteful I am with my resources. It also brought up issues that I never would have considered such as traveling or how much meat I eat produced by mass production. It really made me feel fortunate and sad that I am able to live like that and others cannot and I do it so carelessly.

Rewriting the Science
Watching this video made me realize even more than I already knew that much of the government is run by the influence of money. It is sad that they are withholding information that could potentially help us reverse or stop the damages we are causing. It has taught me to not believe everything I read or hear even if it is  from a seemingly reliable source.

Collectively, I have learned that it isn't too late to start making a change in my behavior and every little bit helps. I will now start trying harder to implement the three magic R's... reduce, reuse, recycle!

Share And Voice: Eco-friendly Wedding Favors

This week I was walking around Michael's looking for items for my portfolio and for a wedding I am in this weekend. I happened to have stumbled upon these I Do! Green Recycled Favor Boxes and I thought they were really neat! I think most of us are at the age where a lot of friends, or maybe even us, are getting married. I know I'm always looking for new ideas for the future and creative ways to decorate (ok, so maybe I didn't just happen to stumble into the wedding section) .

When my friend got married this summer and we went back the next day to clean up, we found that there were several of her favor boxes filled with candy left behind only to be thrown out and put to waste. I think this is pretty common for most weddings so why not try to be as eco-friendly as possible if you insist on having favor boxes. They are pretty cute too! There are a lot of other styles as well. Hopefully, this will set a good example for all of our guests to follow in the future.

Read 'n' Seed: Part 1 of 4 of Hormone Deception

For the first part of Hormone Deception, I read the first 75 pages which amounted to be 4 chapters that would conclude part 1 of the book.

Part one of the book was an introduction of the topic of how "hormone disrupters" can affect our natural hormones in our body. The author, Lindsay Berkson, writes this book as a daughter of a mother who was injected with DES while pregnant to prevent from having a miscarriage. Years later, this man-made hormone meant to act as an estrogen boost was found to be of no benefit and to cause many ill results later. From this, Berkson has faced several female problems throughout her entire life which has caused her to research the affects of man-made hormones and chemicals that we face on a a daily basis. She points out the fact that companies only test chemicals for their immediate effects on animals and do not follow-up with the results that appear later in life. Also, even though the harmful results appear on animals, companies do not regard them being equivalent enough to humans so it is dismissed. We face several toxins in the air we breathe, water we drink, and food we eat on a daily basis which may be the reason for more cancers, developmental problems, and fertility issues.

Most of the terminology presented in this book, such as the endocrine system, estrogen, progesterone, etc. were already things I have heard of from taking several classes in anatomy and biology. I wasn't, however, aware of the chemicals and toxins that we are faced with everyday such as phytoestrogens, xenoestrogens, phthalates, alkyphenolic compounds, and persistent organic pollutants. I had also never previous heard about DES and its affects which surprised me.

I think that learning about how the chemicals are disrupting our natural hormones and the endocrine system is very beneficial. Our country and others make so many products (mostly out of vinyl and plastic) for the simple convenience of living. We seldom look at the long term affects of all of these chemicals in our bodies. It is clear that there is some sort of problem in the environment we live in with more and more people having body illnesses each year. Publicly showing the results of these chemicals could help save future generations lives. It is time to know what we are putting into our bodies and to change it for us, our future children, and for the planet.

Eye Opener: Ecological Footprint

For my eye opener, I chose to take the ecological footprint quiz. I was somewhat surprised by my results. According to the quiz, if everyone in the world lived the way I do, we would need 4.2 earths and its resources to survive. I think this is a lot but thought it was a somewhat fair assessment for the following reasons.

First, I was not brought up on a family that recycles or uses paper bags at the grocery store. That being said, I was never pushed to recycle until I started to attend school at UMD and living in Duluth. Although it wasn't easy for me to do, I slowly have started to recycle more and more but I know that I should make more of an effort. After moving to Rochester for a short time and realizing that it is NOT a landlord's responsibility to provide recycling, it was a real eye opener for me to see how great Duluth is and how much of an effort the city makes to make our world a better place. I also learned this in my community health class but it wasn't until I moved that I truly realized it.

Also, I thought the assessment was fair because when it asked about my meat consumption, I noticed that my family and I do a pretty good job at eating locally and not consuming too much. It is very rare for me to eat meat several times during the week. When it comes to my family, we purchase a cow from a local county fair for it to be butchered and processed. We also have a lot of gardens in the area so we eat a lot of our other food locally as well.

This quiz brought up several aspects of my overall resource consumption that I otherwise wouldn't have thought of. I showed me ways that I can improve and showed me other ways that I am doing my part. I thought it was a great experience.

Share and Voice: Environment-Friendly Plates

For my first Share and Voice, I chose to discuss a product that I brought to Health 4000 this week and what I will be bringing to our class on Monday for snack. The product is environment-friendly paper plates.

These Sweet Table plates come in packs of 20 and were bought at a local grocery store in Duluth (Super One Foods) for just over $3.00 each. This company also makes other picnic products such as bowls and cups. Although you can likely get a value pack of regular paper plates for cheaper, these are much better for the environment for the following reasons.

1. They are 100% biodegradable.
2. They are created with a natural substance, sugar cane pulp, which is typically considered a waste product from sugar cane harvesting.
3. They can be composted in 90 days and recycled like other paper products.
4. In terms of use, they are freezer and microwave safe as well as water and oil resistant. Therefore, you won't have to worry about doubling up on plates since nothing will leak through them! This cuts down on the use of materials.

Overall, I think these are a great alternative to the plastic and styrofoam dinnerware we use for occasions like this. Although they are made in China and consume a lot energy to get to the United States, I feel that continuing to use products like this will benefit our society by cutting down on the use of products that harm our planet such as the aforementioned plastic and styrofoam.