Green Options

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I interviewed a friend of mine who works in public health about breastfeeding being baby’s first natural immunization, in the hopes of sorting out perceptions and realities when it comes to germs, diseases, and vaccines from a ‘green’ perspective…

AJ: We’ve all heard doctors explain how breast milk protects newborns via antibodies, proteins and immune cells, but rather than deep dive into the science of secretory IgA molecules, I’m going to ask a simple ‘Earth mom’ question…Is breastfeeding enough of a ‘human vaccine?’

R: ‘Breast is best’ to boost immunity from infections, reduce respiratory illnesses…But breastfeeding ONLY offers limited protection from serious diseases like measles, pneumonia, and whooping cough.

Breastfeeding works synergistically with immunizations, boosting the levels of protection against disease to actually increase the protection your baby gets. ALL ingredients in vaccines serve a purpose, whether it’s triggering a child’s immune response, or keeping them germ free. Even though we’ve eradicated some diseases in this country before, our mobile society makes it easy to have them come right back over on a plane…‘Herd protection’ only goes so far.

Contrary to popular opinion, bicycling can potentially damage the environment due to the increased longevity of people engaged in physical activity, says Karl Ulrich, a Wharton Business School professor.

Ulrich argues that the greatest environmental peril society may face is the looming prospect of slowing the aging process, and bicycling potentially contributes to slowing aging.

Put simply, Ulrich says there is an underlying conflict between human-powered transportation, longevity, and environmental impact, which needs to be highlighted as the world seeks to find [...]

Sorry, Popeye. Your tin can of spinach just can’t compete with the brawny nutritional wallop from a bunch of fresh greens from a local farmers’ market or home garden.

Too bad Popeye didn’t know Angie Tagtow, an environmental nutritionist based in Iowa and a leading advocate championing public access to fresh, affordable, sustainably raised food. “Local food is a dream team blend of nutrients and health benefits,” explains Tagtow. “Food’s nutrient value starts to decrease right after it is harvested. Local food is picked and then quickly eaten at the peak of ripeness. It’s thereby fresh, tastes great and packs a more nutritious punch than what might be shipped and processed 1,500 miles away.”

Local, fresh spinach would have also gifted Popeye with a decent long-term health insurance plan.

Join Chic for a Cause : Stop the Spray ~ Our Body, Our Decision   

What? A fashion fundraiser to grow awareness about opposing the harmful effects of the aerial spraying of pesticides. When? May 30, 2008 Where? Muse Studios, 224 6th St. San Francisco, CA 94103 Time? 6-9 pm Admission? $10 Why? To stop the “Light Brown Apple Moth program” which is really a toxin dump on California! 

Last fall a pesticide was dumped on Californians that included ingredients that are carcinogens, mutagens as well as other toxic chemicals in microcapsules that reach deep lung tissue. Soon after spraying in 2007, 600 plus reports of illness were recorded such as respiratory distress, nausea and vomiting, as well as serious skin irritations. Now the spray is back and we need to take a stand! Sign the petition, participate in events if possible, and please help educate others.

Perhaps encouraged after their recent success in hosting the European Union and Latin American and Caribbean Summit, the office of Peru’s President, Alan Garcia Peréz, announced last week that Peru would bid to host the 2016 Summer Olympics. Never mind that the application deadline was in September of last year.

Critics of the plan emerged quickly, and Peru’s prime minister was equally fast to label the critics as “the same ones that some time ago said Peru couldn’t host the EU-LAC summit and were pessimistic when it was announced.” Peru’s current infrastructure does raise numerous doubts about how successful the Olympics could be in Peru. Lima would no doubt host the lion’s share of events, while Cuzco, Trujillo, Arequipa, and others cities might play a part as well. Traffic problems, environmental and social issues, and financial difficulties could all make the Olympics a disastrous and harmful event for Peru. But, also, despite what the critics might say, the move to bid for the Olympics might have been a brilliant and ingenious action thought up by President Alan Garcia’s staff.