Nourish Your Body
With Fabulous Homemade Food
Toxic Free Replacement for Down
Question from Suzanne Hi Debra, I am a vegan, but also care about living toxic free. So many vegan alternatives are made from petroleum. Yes, they are not made from animals, but it seems there is little concern about the toxicity of these vegan alternatives. I don’t...
Ceiling Fan Blades
Question from Stacey Hi Debra, I would like to purchase some ceiling fans for my home. It seems a lot of the blades are made of ABS plastic, or plywood/wood veneer. Are either of these okay to purchase, or would you recommend finding a fan made with solid wood blades?...
Drylock Masonry Waterproofer for Sealing Basement
Question from Bonnie Johnson Hi Debra, My basement walls are concrete and need to be washed down for mildew and then painted with drylock. I hear it is very toxic. Even being out of the house for a week I am fearful. Is there any other basement paint/sealer that is...
Eco-Leather is Toxic to the Environment
Still on my search for a toxic free office chair, I was browsing yet another site and found quite a few covered with “eco-leather.” So I had to find out what it is. I’m not sure I can give you a definitive answer since I’ve found several explanations. This seems to be...
Are There Any Nontoxic Wedge Pillows?
Question from Barry
Hi Debra,
I just want to write to inform you of what has recently transpired (at least somewhat of a surprise to me) and perhaps ask a question.
I’m a caregiver for my mother. I brought her home from Life Care Center (where she had been “rehabbing” from breaking two bones on January 1 of this year) on April 29.
Due to an unbelievably complicated set of events, she is on a PEG (feeding) tube, and at this time I do not see evidence it is going away soon.
When she is getting 4 cans, that is 13 hours and 20 minutes. We both prefer for most of that time to be while she is sleeping, overnight. That way she can be disconnected from “that pole” more during the day, when she might want to go somewhere and do something without “that pole”. (She can’t stand or walk for very long, but she does make brief trips through the house for various things.)
She was laying flat, overnight, while feeding. I was aware of some warnings about don’t feed people while laying flat. I had — at that time — presumed that it was because a lot of people can’t eat right before bed, and if they lay down having recently eaten, various stomach problems, acid reflux, whatever, might develop. And, she didn’t have that.
But, early in August, I discovered that indeed, I don’t want Mom to feed while laying flat, because there is a risk that she may aspirate, whether she had ever had that problem occur yet or not!
I was talking about getting a hospital-like bed, so that bed frame itself could raise the upper body to about 30 degrees. But, she really didn’t want to.
As I was doing research, I found an article that was quite intriguing to me. The URL is: www.killerculture.com/articles-written-by-syd/health-conditions/heads-up-the-way-you-are-sleeping-may-be-killing-you/#.VfbtQHUViko
Reading that article, I know about gravity, and can affirm that many things talked about regarding that is true! I was convinced enough that I decided I also wanted to sleep with my upper body around 30 degrees, and I also got the ortho bed wedge so my legs/feet would also be raised!
Washing Out Flame Retardants
Question from Karen Hi Debra, I have recently been doing a lot of research on flame retardants and removing flame retardants from my family's lives as much as possible. I can't seem to find an answer as to whether washing clothes in a washing machine removes any flame...
Detox Your Dentures
My guests today are Merinne Mesku and Melissa Mesku, sisters and co-founders of Pure Cure Dental Technology, LLC, the first company to address the toxins and allergens in dentures. Their flagship product, Pure Cure Denture Detox, reduces the residual toxic and allergenic substances that have been shown to leach from dentures and into the mouth. Merinne Mesku, CEO, graduated summa cum laude from Loma Linda University School of Dentistry and is a practicing Registered Dental Hygienist. Melissa Mesku is a writer, editor and designer with a degree in Environmental Science from UC Berkeley. The two sisters founded the small family company after their father, an award winning dental technician, was diagnosed with demyelinating toxic neuropathy from working with denture chemicals. In 2010, the company became the first to offer denture detoxification as a dental lab service. Since then, they’ve become the leading provider of information for the general public on denture toxicity and offer their research findings via their Free Report on Denture Toxicity. www.purecuretechnology.com | www.denturedetox.com
Natural Laundry and Sensitive Skin Care From the Days of Yore
My guest today is Kim Mendes, Founder of Yoreganics, a small family business that makes laundry and skin products based on “revisiting simple, like the days of yore, when Mother Nature’s ingredients were used to heal our bodies naturally.” We’ll be talking about Kim’s philosophy and her products and how she, as a mother, decided she had to “take charge to become an advocate for myself and my family.” Her lighthearted blog is filled with humor and poetry. www.yoreganics.com
Wondering How We Came to Have All These Toxic Chemicals? Here’s the History…
My guest today is Richard Heinberg, Senior Fellow of Post Carbon Institute. I invited him to be a guest after watching his wonderful video 300 Years of Fossil Fuels in 300 Seconds (1.3 million views). The fact is that while there are toxic substances in the natural world and some poisons have been in use for centuries, the overwhelming presences of toxic chemicals we experience today is the result of widespread use of fossil fuels. But an end is in sight, because we’re running out of fossil fuels. Imagining life after fossil fuels is also imagining a life without most of the toxic chemicals we use today. We’ll be talking about the fossil fuel and toxic chemical connection and where we can go from here. Richard is the author of 12 award-winning books, including six on the subject of fossil fuel depletion. He has written for Nature Journal, Reuters, and Wall Street Journal, and has delivered hundreds of lectures on energy and climate issues to audiences around the world. His current book project, due out early next year, is Our Renewable Future, an exploration of how our economy and our daily lives will change as we phase out fossil fuels and adapt to wind and solar energy. www.postcarbon.org
From Nature With Love
Make your own personal care products with these premium quality organic, natural and essential personal care ingredients used in skin care, hair care, aromatherapy, massage, spa, herbalism and soap making applications. They also offer packaging, natural bath...
