Eco Child’s Play

Okay ladies and gents. I’ve got a list of ingredients along with a teeny tiny blurb from reputable sources.

You pick the product. Yes, I want you to look at the chemicals and try to guess what product they come from.

Butyl Acetate: Oxford University recommends the use of safety glasses
Propyl Acetate: OSHA and the CDC recommend breathing support with this chemical
Ethyl Acetate: From OSHA;

* Signs and symptoms of exposure

1. Acute exposure: Ethyl acetate causes irritation, redness, and tearing of the eyes and irritation of the nose and throat. It is a defatting agent and may cause skin dryness after acute exposure. Sensitization of the lining of the nose may occur with symptoms of inflammation (swelling, runny nose, redness of lining).
2. Chronic exposure: Chronic exposure of the skin to ethyl acetate may cause dermatitis; no other systemic effects have been reported from chronic exposure to ethyl acetate.

Nitrocellulose: OSHA gives it a low toxicity rating but with Gun Cotton being it’s synonym it’s no surprise to find it’s rather explosive.
Isopropyl Alcohol: common, perhaps benign
Polyester Resin: Limited information available, but you can laminate your surfboard with it.
Camphor
Steralkonium Hectorite
Benzaphenone 1
Titanium Dioxide
Red #6
Iron Oxide
Ferric Ammonium
Ferrocyanide Red #7

Are you ready to guess? Do you think you know? After the jump is the big reveal.

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Halloween may be over, but that doesn’t mean the face paint is put away. Most children LOVE having their faces painted and will use any activity as an excuse to do so.

Make sure you are reading all the packaging and choosing safe products to put on your child’s skin. This Halloween, Wal-Mart sold a package of six make-up crayons for $1.00. There are two warnings on the package. One proclaims, “This product contains LEAD”, the other proclaims that they may be a choking hazard for children under 3.

Do they get bonus points for telling us there is lead in the face paint? The bigger question is who in the world would knowingly include a toxic substance in an item marketed toward children? And what kind of corporate responsibility allows their buyers to order such an item and stock it on the shelves? Just one more reason to NOT shop at Wal-Mart.

For an option you know is safe, use the following face paint recipe. Read the rest of this entry »

Editor’s Note: This year Green Options has made a special deal with one of our favorite sponsors, Kate’s Caring Gifts.  See below to get 20% off.

From Kate’s website: Kate’s Caring Gifts brings you the very best natural, organic, and ecologically sustainable products that you can find anywhere.  When Kate (yes, there really is a Kate) founded this company, she set out with the mission of finding products that she could feel good about offering to you.

While looking for the highest quality natural skin care, organic and fair trade foods, natural candles, and other great gifts, she sought ethical companies that treat workers fairly and manufacture using sustainable materials and methods.  Kate sought out products that promote good health as well as good and conscious living.

Since then, she has found some fantastic treasures crafted by independent companies and artists dedicated bringing you outstanding, earth friendly products at great prices.   In addition to offering these wonderful products to you, we create unique, fun, gift sets, making it easy to give great People and Earth Friendly gifts. Read the rest of this entry »

Ditch the prescription and pucker up!

This is going to be short, but it’s good and it matters. Balms with Benefits is the rockin-est thing to hit the shelves in ages. It’s a simple concept, you get a lip balm and add quality aromatherapy to it so that the loveliness on your lips cures what ails you.

I’m sure it’s been done before, but I doubt it’s been done like this. My kids and I got all eight flavors in the mail last week. They’re pretty. Don’t discount pretty, pretty matters. Alexander and Jane were immediately taken by the rainbow of colors, they removed each lid and sniffed.

And then the horrible happened. Alexander (age seven) said, “Mom, what’s PMS?”

*sigh*

So we had a little talk about why Mommy feels compelled to wash the windows every month while shrieking, “dont’ touch anything!”

Truth be told, I ditched the PMS tube, because without it I’d never clean up around here.

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Back to school fundraising hawking giftwrap, magazines and chocolate rubs against the grain of my eco, nutritional, and anti-consumption lifestyle…so what’s a financially strapped school to do?

Enter GreenRaising.com, an all-green gift hub of gorgeous recycled wrap, cool reusable bottles and bags, fair trade chocolate, green school supplies, soaps and lotions, even cleaning supplies!

This fabulous one stop portal imparts an earth-friendly message, while helping financially strapped schools and youth organizations with socially responsible spending. (um, could our government sign up?) Read the rest of this entry »

Kiss My Face was actually the first natural beauty company I ever tried.  It is a company I have known and trusted for twenty years, so I was excited to see they had introduced a kids collection. These products are free of artificial colors, fragrances, parabens, and SLS.  They are not tested on animals and contain natural ingredients such as tea tree oil, aloe, nettles, and burdock root. Each product features an endangered species, so children can learn about animals while they practice good hygiene habits.

My family has tested out seven of the nine new Kiss My Face Kids Collection.  The following product reviews combine my daughter’s and my own perspectives:

• Kiss My Face Kids Shampoo & Bodywash:  This product is very sudsy, which kids enjoy, and the bottle makes it very easy for children to use themselves promoting their independence.  My son, who has very sensitive skin, is able to tolerate this product, and my daughter was the one who discovered you squeeze the bottle to get the soap out.

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Teenage Girls Exposed to Hormone Altering Chemicals During Critical Development of Reproductive System

A new study on teenagers and toxic chemicals was released by the Environmental Working Group (EWG), and it has some very disturbing implications. Laboratory tests revealed that adolescent girls across America are contaminated with chemicals commonly used in cosmetics and body care products. The study of 20 teens found an average of 13 different hormone-altering chemicals in their bodies.

The laboratory tests found 16 chemicals from 4 different chemical families - phthalates, triclosan, parabens, and musks - in the blood and urine samples of the girls. Studies have linked these chemicals to potential health effects, including cancer and hormone disruption. This work represents the first focused look at exposure data for parabens in teens, and indicates that young women are widely exposed to this common class of cosmetic preservatives, with methylparaben and propylparaben detected in every single girl tested.

Every single girl tested had detectable levels of toxic cosmetics chemicals in their blood or urine!

How is this possible? Read the rest of this entry »

As Moms we spend an incredible amount of time to ensure health and safety for our children.  Are we doing the same thing for ourselves?  Afterall, leading by example is the best thing we can do.  This has left me in search of new products for home and body.   I recently received 15 samples of Alima Pure Cosmetics and I’m in love.  Read the rest of this entry »

There are inevitable things in life and a chance that your child will suffer from burns, scrapes and colds are one of them. And when it comes to remedies for those, the homeopathic or natural remedies are far few and in between. Well, Théra Wise Natural Therapeutic Ointments are the natural and earth friendly alternatives for more conventional over the counter medications. Théra Wise offers everything from Vaporizing decongestant rubs for stuffy noses to Natural Skin healing ointment. Using ingredients like Calendula and Organic Chamomile; it’s gentler to your child as well as to the planet.

According to Yasuko Brander, the spokesperson for the company:

Théra Wise products have been receiving great feedback from consumers who have been looking for natural alternatives to petroleum based ointments. Théra Wise® products can best be described as clean, natural plant therapy ointments.

Our aim is to pioneer a new direction for OTC (Over the counter) therapeutic ointments, combining modern science with time tested “body friendly” natural bio-active plant ingredients low impact manufacturing processes, and environmental sensitivity.  

Here are some of the Natural remedies that replaces more conventional OTC medications:

VpR Natural Vaporizing Decongestant Rub: My significant other loves to slather on Vicks when he gets a cold, and quite frankly; I can’t stand the smell. Well the decongestant rub is the perfect middle ground for both of us. He gets that minty freshness that he’s totally addicted to and I get natural clean Eucalyptus nirvana instead of a headache. Contains following ingredients: Eucalyptus Leaf Oil, White Pine Oil, Peppermint Oil, Camphor Oil, Asian Berry Wax, Organic Rose Hip Seed Oil. Much much better than Vicks. Read the rest of this entry »

HolyMolyToysRUs I’m super dee duper excited that you are now marketing to my child’s eco conscious side.

Cuz, ya know, kids need new stuff all the time.

Sorry folks, I’ll try and regain my composure now. I just wanted to start this post off with an appropriate amount of ridiculousness. I get that Toys R Us is trying to get on the green bandwagon. They’ve sent out a press release that includes this:

Toys”R”Us stores nationwide are now offering customers another way to go “green” with a new line of “R”Us branded reusable bags in a variety of eye-catching styles and colors.

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