Nourish Your Body
With Fabulous Homemade Food
Helping Children Make Good Food Choices
My guest today is Katherine Pryor, a good food advocate based in Seattle. While advocating for Farm to School funding in the state capitol one year, Katherine was impressed by the array of stories told by parents, teachers, and school administrators about how having farm to school programs and school gardens had changed kids’ eating practices. She wanted to write these stories from the kids’ perspectives, hoping to inspire schools and government agencies to support good food education. Her first children’s book, Sylvia’s Spinach, is being used to complement school garden curriculum and encourage young readers to try new foods. Her next book, Zora’s Zucchini, will be published in 2015. We’ll be talking about how you can help your kids make better food choices at home and when they are out in the world at school and with friends. Among other projects, Katherine has worked 
on a successful campaign to get Starbucks to commit to dBGH-free milk nationwide and worked with Health Care Without Harm’s Healthy Food in Health Care initiative, helping hospitals use their purchasing power to support local and sustainable food producers. In addition to writing, Katherine manages a statewide program to bring local and sustainable foods to Washington hospitals. www.katherinepryor.com
Binders in Cork Floors
Question from CZ Do you have any information about the kind of binder used in manufacturing cork floor tiles? ? I just learned that cork floor tiles are not solid cork but they're made from cork granules and a binder pressed together. I've been reading about cork...
Mobile Homes and MCS
Question from LL Goeckel I am looking at options for senior living without assisted care...what about mobile homes? What is the best overview and then what specifics would be important to evaluate ? Debra's Answer I'm going to leave this question to others to answer,...
Are There Flame Retardants in Dehumidifier Filters?
Question from Erin Hi Debra, I have a question about washable filters for portable dehumidifiers. What are the chances that the filters are treated with flame retardants or other chemicals? The companies I've contacted could not find a MSDS for the washable filters I...
Plastic in Toothpaste
From Debra Lynn Dadd I always love it when readers send me articles about toxic exposures I might not have seen. This one is about plastic in toothpaste. She thought it was leaching from the tube, but no...Crest and other brands of toothpaste actually put bits of...
Growing Organic in the City—Yes It’s Possible!
Today my guest is Dan Susman, director of Director Growing Cities. Growing Cities is the first documentary about urban farming across America.From rooftop farmers to backyard beekeepers, Americans are growing food like never before. Growing Cities tells the inspiring stories of these intrepid urban farmers, innovators, and everyday city-dwellers who are challenging the way this country grows and distributes its food. And that’s what we’re going to talk about today. Growing Cities been accepted by American Public Television to reach a guaranteed 80% of PBS markets, but the filmmakers are responsible to secure all funding for the broadcast, including all the editing and conforming the film to PBS standards. So they are reaching out through a Kickstarter program to raise $30,000 by July 9th.
Dan has lived, breathed, and eaten urban agriculture over the past three years making Growing Cities. He has visited countless urban farms and food projects across the country and worked with many leaders in the sustainable agriculture movement. He is also the co-founder of Truck Farm Omaha, an edible education project which teaches local youth about sustainable farming and healthy foods. www.growingcitiesmovie.com
A Truly All-Natural Carpet
My guest today is James Stinnett, founder of Earth Weave Carpet Mills. They are the premier North American manufacturer of all natural, non-toxic carpet, area rugs and padding—made using undyed, untreated wool on the face, along with hemp, cotton, jute and natural rubber for the backing materials. We’ll be talking about toxic chemicals in carpets as well as how Earth Weave makes their carpets and padding. James grew up in Dalton GA, the carpet capital of the world, then moved out west to Montana after receiving an Operations Management degree from Auburn University. There he started and ran a successful flooring company, Rocky Mountain Flooring. Inspired by his love of nature to make non-toxic carpet and rugs James returned to Dalton, GA with a passion for providing high quality, healthy, non-toxic products. His company, Earth Weave Carpet Mills, founded in 1996, is the first and only North American producer of truly healthy broadloom carpets. James oversees every aspect of the business ensuring the products he manufactures speak for themselves in quality and purity. After being in business for over 18 years Earth Weave has maintained a notable reputation for being North America’s premier manufacturer of non-toxic, natural carpeting products. www.earthweave.com
Cleaning Mitsubishi Splits air units
Question from CZ The Mitsubishi Split air conditioner unit in my bedroom has a terrible odor that the heating-cooling company has diagnosed as sweaty gym socks syndrome and says it needs spraying with a fungicide/mildew remover to coat the coils--and this solution...
Persistant Bioaccumulative Toxicants
Toxicologist Steven G. Gilbert, PhD, DABT, a regular guest who is helping us understand the toxicity of common chemicals we may be frequently exposed to. Dr. Gilbert is Director and Founder of the Institute of Neurotoxicology and author of A Small Dose of Toxicology- The Health Effects of Common Chemicals.
He received his Ph.D. in Toxicology in 1986 from the University of Rochester, Rochester, NY, is a Diplomat of American Board of Toxicology, and an Affiliate Professor in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences, University of Washington. His research has focused on neurobehavioral effects of low-level exposure to lead and mercury on the developing nervous system. Dr. Gilbert has an extensive website about toxicology called Toxipedia, which includes a suite of sites that put scientific information in the context of history, society, and culture. www.toxipedia.org
Kangen Water
Question from Genie Dillard I plan to get the water filter you recommend. But I wanted to ask you... There is a great deal of promotion on the Kangen water, in terms of preventing oxidation, lowering PH and creating "microclusters" that allow water and other nutrients...
