Green Options

Tough economic times have caused one school in Ireland to ask students to bring their own toilet paper. Parents received the following request last week from principal Catherine O’Neill:

Dear parent, from time to time we will request your daughter to bring in a toilet roll to her class teacher. These rolls will be specifically for your daughter’s class and will be dispensed by the class teacher. We would also request that your daughter has tissues in her sack at all times.

Unless you are lucky enough to send your child to a school with organic lunches and a farm to school program, you probably pack your child’s lunch. We’ve reviewed numerous lunch boxes and lunch systems, but in the end, I usually just grab random items and throw then together in my hurried mornings.  Despite my haphazard lunch packing routines, I am really excited about the Munchgear Soup to Nuts Kit (so are my kids who are fighting over who gets to use it tomorrow.

The Munchgear Soup to Nuts Kit made by Citizenpip (such a cute name) is an “everything in one kit” that, in my opinion, provides more flexibility and durability than a Laptop Lunch. The Soup to Nuts Kit includes:

1 insulated lunch bag with nametag and carabiner that easily attaches to a backpack
1 stainless steel water bottle and insulated food jar
4 BPA-free airtight food containers
1 stainless steel fork + spoon set
5 100% cotton napkins

The Body Toxic: How the Hazardous Chemistry of Everyday Things Threatens Our Health and Well-being is one of those books that freak me out…sometimes I just don’t want to know.  In reality, we need to know about all of the chemicals of modern industry and how to protect our families.  Knowing is the first step to making informed decisions, which is probably one reason you are a reader of Eco Child’s Play.

Publishers Weekly describes The Body Toxic:

This is a chilling look at the questionable safety of nearly everything we store food in, drink from, wear, walk on, rest on and drive. Chemicals used to make everything from water-repellant jackets and flame retardants to unbreakable plastics used for food storage are building up in our bodies and the environment with possible far-reaching consequences, says journalist Baker. She focuses on endocrine disruptors that alter hormone levels, even in fetuses. Individual chapters consider the weed killer atrazine; phthalates found in many cosmetics; and perfluorooctanoic acid, used in nonstick and stain-repellant coatings. Lab studies have linked these chemicals to cancer, diabetes, obesity and attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder, among other problems. Baker blasts both Democrats and Republicans in Congress for the toothless Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976, which leaves testing and reporting results to the manufacturer. But the companies rely on skilled public relations firms to attack scientists who raise safety concerns. The current pro-business administration also takes some licks from Baker. Although she offers suggestions for reducing exposure to these chemicals, No place—and no one—is immune.

Icebreaker’s Bodyfit line has long been loved by outdoor enthusiasts, and now children can benefit from the company’s eco-friendly New Zealand wool garments. Icebreaker’s kids’ line features no itch fabric that “smells better, feels better, warms better, and breathes better”.  This line is perfect for active sports and everyday use. Beyond great fabric, Icebreaker features two unique features for kids:  “baa code” and “re-imagined packaging”.

Have you ever wanted to meet the sheep that was shorn for your clothes?  Just enter the “baa code” on your label into the Icebreaker website to meet where your sheep lives.

With most of the things you buy, you’re told little or nothing about how they’re made. Icebreaker is different.

We have a deep commitment to animal welfare, the welfare of the people who work with us, and the environment. And we have nothing to hide.

Your unique Baacode will let you see the living conditions of the high country sheep that produced the merino fibre in your Icebreaker garment, meet the farmers who are custodians of this astonishing landscape, and follow every step of the supply chain. We’re sure you’ll find the experience as inspiring as we do. Enjoy your journey back to the source.

Michelle Obama made an appearance on Sesame Street touting the benefits of healthy eating and gardening.

Who knew Big Bird was a Republican?

The Dutch have been fighting rising seas longer than any nation in the western world. Much of the country lies below sea level, including the capital city of Amsterdam. Traditionally, dikes and concrete barriers have been used to hold back the sea, but now the Netherlands is changing course in its flood control efforts due to climate change. The Dutch are embracing natural flood plains for rivers and mangrove swamps in lieu of levees.

Unless your children attend a really cool school with organic, farm to school lunches, you probably pack your child’s lunch each day. That’s a good thing, when considering how clean cafeteria trays are compared to toilet seats. It’s a shocker, but it’s true.
According to a study conducted by NSF International, cafeteria trays contain more germs than toilet seats!
Germ Stop reports on the NSF findings:

– Drinking water fountain spigots had the highest amount of bacteria on the tested surfaces — 2.7 million bacterial cells per square inch.

– A cafeteria tray had more than 10 times as many germs as a toilet seat (33,800 bacterial cells per square inch vs. 3,200 bacterial cells per square inch).

– A student’s hand had 1,500 bacterial cells per square inch.

– Commonly cleaned areas, such as desks and doorknobs had fewer germs (19 bacterial cells per square inch and 5 bacterial cells per square inch respectively), while computer keyboards and ear phones had significantly more at 260 bacterial cells per square inch and 740 bacterial cells per square inch, respectively.

One of the perks of being a mommy blogger is getting great new organic beauty products to try on my family. We recently tested Original Sprout “Worry-Free Luxury” Natural & Organic Family Collection.  These products smell wonderful and are free of “added hormone disruptors, parabens, petroleum oils, phthalates, dioxanes from sulfates, formaldehyde, & propylene glycol.”

Do you know about PhytoEstrogens?  PhytoEstrogens are called “dietary estrogens“, because they come from food sources, such as soybeans. They are often promoted for consumption in menopausal women for bone density, but there is concern that over exposure to PhytoEstrogens increases the risk of breast cancer and causes fertility issues.  Original Sprout explains:

Working as estrogen mimics, phytoestrogens may either have the same effects as estrogen or block estrogen’s effects. Which effect the phytoestrogen produces can depend on the dose of the phytoestrogen. The phytoestrogen can act like estrogen at low doses but block estrogen at high doses. Estrogen activates a family of proteins called estrogen receptors. Recent studies have shown that phytoestrogens interact more with some members of the estrogen receptor family, but more information is needed about how these receptors work, especially in breast cancer. Finally, phytoestrogens acting as estrogen mimics may affect the production and/or the breakdown of estrogen by the body, as well as the levels of estrogen carried in the bloodstream.

Phytoestrogens - acting differently from estrogen - may affect communication pathways between cells, prevent the formation of blood vessels to tumors or alter processes involved in the processing of DNA for cell multiplication. Which of these effects occur is unknown. It is very possible that more than one of them may be working. Also, the effects in various parts of the body may be different. from Phytoestrogens and Breast Cancer.

The metal water bottle market has exploded, and consumers are still riling after Sigg’s deception regarding BPA in their aluminum bottle lining.  Recently, I was sent another BPA-free, stainless steel water bottle to try, which my son adores.  The Kid Basix SafeSporter combines sports bottle with aesthetics to create a unique bottle.

Born out of the movement to eliminate plastic water bottles, the SafeSporter’s limited plastic parts do not contain BPA or phthalates.

Why go with stainless steel bottles from Kid Basix when so many BPA-free plastic bottles are available now? We can give you 300 billion reasons. That’s the approximate number of plastic water bottles discarded around the world every year. Enough to power 12 million cars for an entire year. And that’s just the water bottles! It doesn’t include all the plastic bottles used for sodas, sports drinks, fruit juices and the like. All told, the plastic bottles we throw away each year would reach to the moon and back – 1500 times. So using reusable stainless steel bottles makes sense on every level: personal, local and global.

This is actually the second time we have had the pleasure of reviewing Inca Kids‘ products, and we are pleased to see their fair trade, Peruvian line expanding.  My son and I are in love with the super soft, uber adorable scarf from “Casa Betania”. Adorned with cars, this scarf is sure to please any little one and fair trade discerning parent.  Made from alpaca and acrylic yarns, this scarf is not itchy and carefully crafted by women in Peru. Casa Betania:

Started as a way to assist women with lack of emotional and financial support in some of the most unprivileged areas in Lima.
On December 4, 1990 they started making jute cartridge pouches,  then they learned to embroider and sew, some women brought their tools, also fixed the schedule from 2 to 7 p.m. and wages. The group that started with 7 women, grew into a group of 23 women selling their products to churches. Cáritas of France donated 2 sewing machines and libraries as well a provided some financial support.