while I fry an organic egg...

So we started the official 6 month pre-conception detox on Monday, and I've been wanting to blog about it but feeling overwhelmed about where to start and therefore have been doing nothing... so I thought I'd do a super-fast, while I fry an egg post to get started. It's all about baby-steps. I might end up doing a bunch of mini-posts, since I seem to be much better at micro-blogging on twitter these days at the expense of my real blog...
so here's my tip-of-the-day.

When preparing for conception, and during pregnancy and breastfeeding it is essential to maintain good supplies of iron. A lot of iron supplements aren't easily absorbed and/or make you constipated... thankfully I've found one that works beautifully, it's called Spatone, and it's simply spa water from Wales (from the spa in the picture) that's naturally very high in iron. One small sachet can be taken in water or juice, and is safe for kids over 2 years old. Pregnant women can get enough iron by taking two sachets a day. I love that it is so simple and natural, and it comes from a company that I have used and trusted for a long time, Martin & Pleasance, which also makes Rescue Remedy, a wonderful combination of Bach Flower Remedies that helped me through my law exams and helped my husband with his fear of flying!

Iron is essential to the body for many reasons, not least of which is that it helps carry oxygen around your body! Pregnant women need at least twice as much iron as the rest of us, and growing children need a lot of iron too. I would not hesitate to recommend Spatone to anyone and everyone! Stay tuned for more info on what supplements I'm using to support my body during my mindful period of pre-conception health optimization!

p.s. I actually fried an egg, ate it, fried another egg, ate that too, and I'm still going... so much for short posts...

p.p.s I have no association with Spatone or Martin and Pleasance whatsover, however if they want to send me some free stuff to review I won't complain! ;-)

One Angry Organic Mama!

My husband said to me last night, you don't sound like yourself in your blogposts, you sound so angry! I'm generally a very peaceful, calm, loving person. But the things that have been coming through my inbox over the last few days have got me pretty fired up! The latest is a story that was broken by the Environmental Working Group (EWG) when they were sent a leaked memo from a meeting that suggested that Coke, Del Monte, and other food and chemical lobbyist were plotting to deceive the American public about the safety of Bisphenol A (BPA).

For more info, read EWG's article: "Coca-Cola and Del Monte Caught in Plot to Deceive Moms and Minorities Over Dangers of BPA" or read the actual BPA Joint Trade Association Minutes from Meeting on Communications Strategy. This is smoking-gun kinda stuff reminiscent of some of the memos that came out in litigation against Tobacco companies... they know that they have no chance of getting a real scientist to stand-up and support the "benefits" of BPA, so they are looking for a "pregnant young mother who would be willing to speak around the country about the benefits of BPA.” They also want to target minorities and the poor, who can't afford to buy fresh food that doesn't use BPA in it's packaging, and they want to befriend "people that are able to manipulate the legislative process." Seriously. If you are half as outraged as I am, let's tell Coke and Del Monte that the world will not stand by and let them pull the wool over our eyes.

P.S. Great work Lyndsey Layton of the Washington Post for bring this to the attention of the world's mass media, and Nena Baker from the Huffington Post for bringing it to the Attention of the blogosphere. EWG has a great blog called Enviroblog, which posts regularly on environmental connections to public health... check it out :-)

No More Tears... until baby grows up and gets cancer!

I have a whole stack of new posts in the works, but in the meantime, I'm going to "borrow" this one below from The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, which is a fantastic non-profit. See the original post for more links and footnotes, and a chance to tell Johnson & Johnson what you think!

"Last month the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics and partner organizations released a report revealing that dozens of popular bath products for babies and kids contain at least two hazardous contaminants: 1,4-dioxane and formaldehyde.

Both of these chemicals cause cancer in animals, and formaldehyde is also known to cause skin rashes in people who are sensitive to the chemical. Parents around the world were particularly infuriated that Johnson’s Baby Shampoo, the iconic brand that many hospitals send home with new babies, contained both of these contaminants – neither of which are listed on ingredient labels.

The story was covered across the United States, around the world and online. Concerned moms called Johnson & Johnson – and then blogged about the company’s dismissive response.

Of the report, J&J said, “The trace levels of certain compounds found by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics can result from processes that make our products gentle for babies and safe from bacteria growth,”2 and the Campaign should stop “alarming” parents.

We think parents have a right to know if the products they buy for their babies contain hazardous chemicals linked to cancer and skin rashes. Other companies are making safe and gentle baby products without hazardous chemicals.3 Instead of playing defense, J&J should live up to its promises of purity and be the safest, most responsible company it can be."

If you're as infuriated as I am about all this, then don't forget to click here to tell Johnson & Johnson that it is not ok to put carcinogens and irritants in baby products!