Warning to All New Moms! Arsenic Found in Leading Baby Food & Formula Brands

Plus Top 10 Tips for Preparing Your Own Healthy Organic Baby Food.                                                                                                                                                                            While arsenic is a food-system-wide problem*, a frightening new study has discovered that many popular baby foods test positive for arsenic, including a whopping 80% of infant formulas.   

Products were screened for over 130 toxins including heavy metals, BPA, pesticides and other contaminants with links to cancer and other health conditions in both humans and animals.

According to an article in USA Today, that’s not the only dangerous contaminate found.  Led by The Clean Label Project, a nonprofit advocating for transparent labeling tested about 530 baby food products, researchers performing the study found 65% of products tested positive for arsenic, 36% for lead, 58% for cadmium and 10% for acrylamide. All of these chemicals pose potential dangers to developing infants.

 

 

 

 

Leading physicians interviewed for the article claim that ingesting these chemicals can affect fine motor skills and cognition in developing bodies. That’s only the start.

Nearly 80% of infant formula samples tested positive for arsenic. The toxin is associated with developmental defects, cardiovascular disease, neurotoxicity, diabetes and even cancer, according to the World Health Organization. 

The Clean Label Project posted a list of products it tested, along with a star-rating grade informed by the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, on its website.

Note to reader, while some brands may have a 5-star rating by product type, not all of their products are best rated for purity and nutritional superiority, so it is important to study individual products as well as the overall brand rating. For example, while O for Baby Organics sweet potato baby food received the highest 5-star rating in all categories by The Clean Label Project, their Organic Summer Vegetables Baby Food received a 3 out of 5. Why?

Chemicals are part of our daily life. All living and inanimate matter is made up of chemicals and virtually every manufactured product involves the use of chemicals. Many chemicals can, when properly used, significantly contribute to the improvement of our quality of life, health and well-being. But other chemicals are highly hazardous and can negatively affect our health and environment when improperly managed. Heavy metal pollution and contamination can arise from many sources but often arises from metal purification processes, such as the smelting of copper and the preparation of nuclear fuels. The water run-off from these industries can result in contaminated soils.

Arsenic: A by-product of smelting for copper, lead, zinc, burning fossil fuels, or in the manufacturing of pesticides or as an animal feed additive. Experimental and human studies have shown that early childhood exposure to arsenic can increase the risk of impaired fetal growth, increased risk of cancer, neurotoxicity, and hormone disruption.

Cadmium: Cadmium is an extremely toxic metal that results from iron or other types of ores being mined, processed, or smelted and the nuclear industry. Studies have shown that it can have adverse effects on the heart and digestive system.

Lead: Lead can be emitted into the environment from industrial sources and contaminated sites. Mining, smelting, and refining activities have resulted in substantial increases in lead levels in the environment, especially near mining and smelting sites. Lead can affect almost every organ and system in your body. Children six years old and younger are most susceptible to the effects of lead. 

So which brands came out on top?

Two of the highest rated 5-star baby food cereals on the list included Happy Baby Oatmeal Organic Probiotic Baby Cereal and Beech-Nut Oatmeal Baby Cereal.

Come to think of it, with all this frightening news, one would think the smartest thing to do is to make your own organic baby food, and if you have the time, it certainly is a smart idea. One big advantage of preparing your own organic baby food is that typically organic ingredients are foods grown without chemical fertilizers or synthetic pesticides. However, the study found that certified organic baby food products tested to have over 2x the arsenic compared to conventional baby food. This makes us wonder if the organic vegetables one purchases also contain the same chemicals. I have written extensively about the variations in organic labeling of many foods and personal care products in this article Remind Me: Why Am I Buying Organic?

First – the merits of organic farming

1. Organic farming bans the use of toxic pesticides linked to certain cancers, ADHD, diabetes, Parkinson’s disease, obesity, autism, infertility, miscarriage, and other serious health problems.

2. Organic farming bans the use of genetically engineered organisms (GMOs). This technology has never been tested for long-term effects on human health.

3. Many nonorganic products contain high-fructose corn syrup, a highly processed ingredient that can contain mercury. This man-made sweetener has been linked to obesity and diabetes.

4. Organic bans the use of toxic artificial food dyes.

5. It is illegal for organic farmers to use human sewage sludge as a fertilizer for crops, something conventional farmers may do. This sludge is often laced with shampoo chemicals and heavy metals, and sometimes, even waste from funeral homes.

6. Organic chicken production bans the use of arsenic in chicken feed, something that is perfectly legal in conventional systems (arsenic is used because it makes chickens grow faster). This practice can lead to arsenic-laced chicken waste, which is sometimes used to fertilize food crop fields.

Top Ten Tips for Delicious & Nutritious Homemade Organic Baby Food

1. Start with local, seasonal, organically grown produce.

2. Know the difference between 100% Organic & Organic. If the product is labeled “100 percent organic” it means that, by law, there are no synthetic ingredients. Also, production processes must meet organic standards and must have been independently verified by accredited inspectors. If the label says, simply, “organic,” no less than 95 % of the ingredients must have been organically produced.

3. After pitting and peeling fruits and vegetables preserve the maximum vitamins and minerals by steaming, baking, or broiling. At first, puree – we love this blender -or mash food thoroughly. You may also add breastmilk or formula to the puree, both to give it a thinner consistency and to make the flavor more familiar to your baby.

4. Only portion out what you think your baby will eat and refrigerate or freeze the rest.

5. Spoon into Wee Sprout trays or ice cube trays. Cover. Place in freezer 8-10 hours or overnight. Remove cubes from trays, place in a storage container or freezer bag, and return immediately to the freezer.

6. Try not to feed your child the same similarly textured food for long periods of time. Otherwise, you’ll lose an opportunity to introduce a variety of flavors and textures. We found some great ideas in this baby food cookbook,  201 Organic Baby Food Purees.

7. Wait until your child is 1-year old to introduce honey, dairy, eggs, strawberries, tomatoes, citrus, and nuts.

8. Beets, carrots, turnips, spinach and other greens can all contain nitrates. Nitrites are converted to nitrates when ingested and can cause anemia.

9. Know the shelf life of fresh organic food. Here is a helpful chart. 

10. In the refrigerator, it is recommended that fresh pureed homemade baby food be stored no longer than 48 hours (many food safety authorities say that 72 hour is fine).

If you are making your own baby food and have tips to share, please comment below and let us know your favorites and be sure to subscribe to our email newsletter on our homepage for more smart tips on living a healthy and natural lifestyle. 

 

 

from
https://www.greenscenegal.com/warning-to-all-new-moms-arsenic-found-in-leading-baby-food-formula-brands/

Protect Your Home From Water Contamination – Part 1

As a living organism on planet Earth I require fresh water to stay alive.   And because I’m a duly registered citizen of the United States, when I need water, all I have to do is turn on my tap and out flows clear water to drink.

While I consider myself extremely lucky that water is so easily accessible as compared to others in this world, I have been making one important assumption that may not be entirely accurate.

I’ve assumed I am drinking, cooking, and showering in clean water.

Since the United States has a national program in place for maintaining clean water through the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and because most health issues from water diseases like diarrhea come from 3rd world countries, you might think that water quality is an issue confined strictly to developing nations.

Think again.

You only have to look at the recent crisis in Flint Michigan to realize that this is, we don’t always get water that meet the EPA’s clean drinking water standards.

So in Part1  week’s Green Scene Gal article I wanted to create more of an urgency and an awareness of the issues and offer some completely doable solutions you can take to protect your family from water contamination.

Flint: the tip of the iceberg?

In 2014, when the city council of Flint in central-Michigan made the choice to change its water source from their own Sewerage Department water to the nearby Flint River they probably never thought they’d become the poster-child example of how poorly government can manage natural resources.  As of this writing (2017), Flint’s water supply continues to show unhealthy levels of lead

Unfortunately, Flint Michigan is by-no-means an outlier.  In fact according to a 2016 CNN report, the U.S. still has over 5,300 U.S. Water Systems current in violation of the EPA lead contamination guidelines!

A combination of corroded water pipes, intense corporate lobbying against regulating groundwater contamination, inadequate testing, and inaction by local politicians as well as federal and state regulators have produced an environment where the safety of our drinking water is in serious jeopardy.

And it’s not just lead.

Other chemicals like PFASs, widely used in manufacturing and known to adversely affect your bodies cholesterol and hormone regulation (2), or pesticides like neonicotinoids (3) which affect your cognitive functionality brain, have been found at unsafe levels at the tap in many areas of the United States.

While there’s most likely no immediate danger to having a drink out of the faucet in most parts of the U.S., our family has some major concerned about the long-term effects of the water that comes out of the tap.

So how should you protect yourself and family?

Testing At The Source

Before running out and buying a year’s-worth of water bottles or a whole-home water filter system, you’ll need a reliable method of testing your home’s water for contaminants.  While this is an absolute must for households on well-water, I highly encourage you to test your water even if you get your water from a public water supplier.

If you live in the United States, the water from your faucet comes from two places, either a well or a Water treatment facility.  The methodology for testing will be different depending on which one you have.

Water Supplier Testing

About 85% of the population relies on water from water treatment facilities.  These treatment plant can be large or small, but as long as they supply at least 25 people, they need to comply with regulations outlined in the Federal Safe Drinking Water Act (FSDWA).  As part of these guideline, the water will need to be tested regularly and be accessible to the public in the form of a Consumer Confidence Report. You should be able to get a copy of this report by calling the number on your water bills. If there are any potentially harmful contaminants in the water, the water supplier will have to issue a public alert.

It is also possible for you to check the safety history of the water system in your area with the Safe Drinking Water Information System database. This database is run by the US Environmental Protection Agency and you will simply need to click on your state and county. You can then choose your water system from the list provided and the results will show any recent reports of contaminants in the system.

It is important to note that these federal standards will not be applied to private wells. If your water supply is from a private well, read on…

Well Water Testing

As federal standards do not apply to well water, it is up to you whether or not you test your water.

If you are going to have the water tested, you should look for a lab on the EPA listing. Your state extension service or local health department should also be able to advise you on which tests you should have done based on your location.

The annual test that you complete will also measure all of the total solids dissolved in the water. However, it will generally not tell you which solids they are or the amount in the water. This is why it is recommended that you test your water every 3 years for manganese, iron, sulfate and chloride. You should also consider annual checks for radon, copper, lead and other substances.

If you live in an agricultural area, you should test your water for common pesticides. Additionally, if you live where oil and gas are drilled, you need to test for chemicals such as methane, bromide, ethane, total petroleum hydrocarbons and barium. Regardless of where you live, you should have your well water tested every year for coliform bacteria, pH, nitrates and inorganic salts.  These tests are particularly important if your well is fairly new or you have recently had it repaired.

Testing From The Tap?

While public water suppliers in the U.S. are required to test and provide access to the water quality they produce at their facilities, these tests won’t always capture the quality of the water to your home after it passes through the underground pipes to your home.

This was the underlying cause of the crisis in Flint where the water treatment facility tests the water plant tests came back OK from the water treatment plant, it was actually a combination of a oxidization agents in the new water that rusted the old lead-based pipes that created the contamination.

While there’s plenty of reliable test data at a water treatment facility,

If you have specific concerns such as nitrate or lead contamination this is not a bad idea. Nitrate is a chemical that is found in animal manure, synthetic fertilizers and sewage. It is possible for the water from your tap to be contaminated on route from the treatment plant to your home.

If you want to test your water, you should contact your local water agency and ask if they will complete the test for you. It is also possible to contact your county health department for testing. Country health departments will generally only conduct tests for certain contaminants such as lead and nitrate and will generally charge a fee for the test.

If you are unable to get the water supplier or health departments to test your water, you can have the test completed by a state-certified lab. The EPA has a listing of certified labs that can test water for you and you will need to find one within your area. The lab will generally have recommendations of the tests that should be carried out depending on where you live and if you have specific concerns.

The lab will also instruct you about how to collect a sample of the water and you may be provided with sterile containers to use. The lab may require you to get first-draw water or the water which comes from your tap when you first turn it on in the morning. For certain tests, you may have to get a sample of water after it has run for a set amount of time.

It is important that you choose a lab close to you because you may have to deliver the sample to the lab. The water sample may also need to be kept on ice depending on the tests that will be carried out. The water may also have to be tested 24 to 30 hours after it has been collected.

The costs of these tests can vary from $30 to $500 depending on the number of tests and screens being done. You could also use a home kit to test the water yourself. The primary problem with these tests is that they are unable to test for everything and are not as accurate as lab tests. However, these tests are able to detect lead, bacteria, arsenic and pesticides while only costing between $10 and $165.

Testing Tap Water For Copper And Lead

You should consider testing your tap water for lead if you have brass faucets or lead pipes, and likewise for copper if you have any copper pipes.

Copper pipes are easy to determine as they will be brown and the same color as an old penny.

It is generally harder to determine if your pipes are lead, but you should be able to determine this with the help of a plumber. Lead pipes are usually gray in color and will generally be found in homes that were built before the 1980’s. However, it is important to note that some older homes will have galvanized steel pipes which are also gray. Galvanized steel pipes will generally have magnetic and threaded joints while lead pipes are not magnetic and will have a bulb fitting over the receiving pipe.

When measuring water contaminants, it will be one by the number of particles present in a billion water particles. Lead can be very dangerous to children at 15 parts per billion. It is recommended that all lead pipes are replaced immediately.

Copper is not as toxic as lead, but can be very harmful if found in high concentrations. This is generally an issue if the water is acidic. In these cases, the copper from the pipe could dissolve and enter the water which sits in the pipes.

Testing your water annually is the only way that you will be able to definitively determine if you have a problem with copper. You may need to have a neutralizing system in place to make the water less acidic depending on the level of copper and the water pH level. You may also need to replace all of your copper piping.

Next Steps

In the next article we’ll cover

from
https://www.greenscenegal.com/protect-your-home-from-water-contamination-part-1/

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Sauteed Garlic Dandelion Greens Recipe

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Cinnamon Health Benefits – The Superfood in Your Spice Cabinet

If you’re like our family, you most likely have a bottle of cinnamon spice in the cupboard – and it’s probably close to empty.  We seem to go through the spice (and cinnamon essential oil) like we go through a box a Kleenex!   Used for centuries in traditional Eastern medicine, this common kitchen spice isn’t just a delicious addition to the kids French toast or a topping on your chai tea — it has a range of impressive health benefits as well.

So what’s so great about cinnamon anyway?

To answer that question, let’s find out a little more about the where it comes from…

A tropical plant

When used as a spice, cinnamon is usually available as a stick or in powdered form. There are actually a few different tree species that are used to make cinnamon, all of them related to each other. Ceylon cinnamon, often called “true” cinnamon, is mainly grown in Sri Lanka while cassia is the variety of cinnamon that is more commonly found in grocery stores and spice cabinets; it’s grown in East and Southeast Asia. Both types need a hot, tropical climate in order to thrive.

While it can be cultivated from the bark of mature trees, most cinnamon today is cultivated from the bark of younger trees, at least two years old before being cut down and covered with soil. New shoots sprout out like a bush, and are then harvested and used to make cinnamon. The inner bark of the shoots is peeled off, dried in the sun, and naturally curled into the cinnamon sticks you see in your cabinet.

Harvesting the Cinnamon Bark

Antioxidants galore

Antioxidants are powerful free-radical-fighting components of many of our favorite healthy foods. They’re more commonly referred to when discussing “super foods” like açai or maqui berry, but they’re actually abundant in cinnamon as well! Just one teaspoon of cinnamon has the same amount of antioxidants as a half cup of blueberries, which are famous for being antioxidant powerhouses.

Heart and brain health

Researchers recently found that diets rich in spices like cinnamon and turmeric allowed people to eat fatty meals without experiencing many of the negative side effects. Chemicals called triglycerides usually increase after fatty meals and are known to cause hart disease. These spices reduced those triglycerides by about 30%. Pretty impressive, right?

A NIH study also found that cinnamon makes a substance called sodium benzoate, which helps protect neurons and improve motor function. This may help prevent Parkinson’s disease. Cinnamon actually improves the function of your brain.

Tummy troubles

There’s evidence that cinnamon helps to ease digestive discomfort. In fact, this has been one of its main uses in traditional medicine. In Ayurvedic medicine, for example, cinnamon is used to balance the digestive system.

Blood sugar regulation

Cinnamon has a positive effect on blood glucose levels. This can be useful for people with diabetes as well as folks who just want to make sure their blood sugar levels remain balanced.

One important thing to note is that different types of cinnamon can have different effects on blood glucose. Cassia cinnamon, which is most often found in stores, has the most evidence behind its effect on blood sugar. This leads me to my next point…

Ceylon cinnamon vs. Cassia cinnamon

The cinnamon that you buy in the store is usually cassia cinnamon. Ceylon, on the other hand, is often referred to as “true” cinnamon; it primarily grows in Sri Lanka and isn’t common in the U.S.

It’s not entirely accurate to call ceylon “true” cinnamon. These two spices are very closely related, and are both in the cinnamon family. They offer many of the same health benefits, and both have been used in traditional medicine for centuries. Cassia is one of the 50 fundamental herbs of traditional Chinese medicine.

These two types of cinnamon have slightly different flavors and chemical compositions. Ceylon has less of a strong taste than cassia, which is perhaps why it’s less common as a food spice.

Cinnamon as an essential oil

Cinnamon essential oil naturally occurs in cinnamon trees, and is extracted by pounding the bark, macerating it in sea water and then distilling the result. The cozy scent of cinnamon comes from the compound cinnamaldehyde.

Cinnamon essential oil is usually not consumed, although some people use a drop in hot water or tea to help soothe the throat. More often, it’s used for topical or aromatic purposes. For example, it can help soothe aching joints or can be added to a room spray for a naturally calming effect. This is a strong oil that can irritate the skin, so it needs to be diluted properly before use — most applications require just a drop or two.

Cinnamon essential oil is often made from ceylon cinnamon, but you can find cassia essential oil as well. Both have their benefits!

Summary

If its familiar spicy taste wasn’t enough to draw you in, maybe knowing more about these amazing health benefits will convince you to incorporate more cinnamon into your diet.

If you’ve been neglecting Cinnamon, there’s plenty of great recipes out there so you won’t have a problem incorporating more of this spice into your culinary routine, and since it’s also available as an essential oil it’s super-easy to simply add a drop to your morning coffee, or toss the spice into that  cup of winter-time hot cocoa to make it even more comforting and cozy.

Cheers!

 

from
http://www.greenscenegal.com/cinnamon-health-benefits-the-superfood-in-your-spice-cabinet/

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