what's in your toiletry bag?

ever wonder what, exactly, is in your favvy shampoo, antisperspirant, lotion or other toiletries? ever wonder if there’s something in there that might (gasp!) not be in your best interest? while you're probably not surprised by ingredients such as petroleum – what about lead; mercury; or my personal gag-o-rama, cow and/or human placenta? (you think i kid?)

Enter skin deep, the environmental working group’s database of cosmetic safety.

according the website, “major gaps in public health laws allow cosmetics companies to use almost any ingredient they choose in everything from sunscreen and mascara to deodorant and baby shampoo, with no restrictions and no requirement for safety testing….”

skin deep allows you to search by company and product type and/or name and gives a 0-10 score (with 0 being best and a 10 meaning you might as well be drinking the run-off water from a nuclear plant). in addition, entries include other information such as packaging ingredients, ingredient concerns, ingredient breakdowns, and disease and toxicity concerns.

one of the best features is the “what not to buy” button at the top right. if nothing else, steer clear of these nasties. some are just flippin’ scary, not to mention downtown ewww-sville.

and, take note! just because it’s organic or natural doesn’t mean its all that safe (believe me, i have a few beloved cosmetics that will be making a quick exit from my daily routine… pout).

check it out… unless, of course, you really love the way cow after-birth makes your hair shine.

moooooooo....

lohas

so i spent a few days attending lohas (lifestyles of health and sustainability) conference this week. even though lou reed was a no-show at his meditation session (bummer!), there were a lot of great sessions going on.

one of my favs was a panel discussion regarding the sustainability of, well, sustainability with the fab-u-lous danny seo; mother jones publisher jay harris; food activist and author deborah madison; and david barber, founder of the blue hill restaurants (which emphasize the use of local, seasonal ingredients) in new york state.

i also really enjoyed john rooks' (dwell creative) perspectives regarding marketing in this space (sorry, it’s, you know, my job). and jan bruce of body+soul magazine was interesting (when she finally started getting down to the nitty-gritty).

and gary hirshberg, ceo of stonyfield farm, was just wonderful. not only was his discussion on the future enlightening, but stonyfield is a perfect example of how eco-effectiveness and economy can go hand in hand. and their marketing tactics are just way cool!

then there was joel makower, author of greenbiz.com, among other things. i liked his session on the future of green business, but walked out of it with more questions than answers. and, perhaps, that was the point.

last one, and this was just for poops and giggles, was a session on reaching the next generation through entertainment – specifically, through live music events. while the folks from reverb were interesting and its great to see so many bands that are greening their tours, i’ll be honest and say it felt a tad too promotional to be of any great value. tom feeqel, from live earth, was fascinating. while I didn’t walk away with information i can directly use, it was cool to see all that they’re doing to prep for this worldwide concert (which will include a spinal tap reunion… great promo video).

a few of the major talking points throughout the conference was the need for transparency and authenticity. companies must be open about what they’re not doing, as much as being open about they they are – lest they lose credibility (this lohas population is smart… it does its research… and it calls “foul” when necessary). and “green” is becoming such a generic term that it is quickly losing its meaning (if it hasn't already). I mean, if wal-mart can be considered green, then who can’t? and how “green” is green enough? lots of questions that made my head spin (then again, perhaps it was the organic wine and acai liqueur tastings :)

anyhoo, all in all, it was a really enjoyable conference… hippie, without too much dippie. just how i like it.

well hung

as a follow-up to my post a few weeks ago regarding saving energy, not to mention moolah, by giving your clothes dryer a break, well, i finally have my outdoor clothes dryer up and -- even though we ran into a few snafus (the web site never mentioned anything about pouring concrete!) -- it's now up and it's gllllooorrrioussss!

i can get a entire load up in one hanging, it can easily be taken out and put away, and (well, thanks to the recent warm, windy days) it didn't take any longer for the clothes to dry than if i'd tossed em in the dryer (we'll see if/how that changes come winter).

if you don't have a back yard (or don't feel like pouring concrete -- sheesh!), there are smaller and more compact versions of my dryer...

btw... the clothes smell great and -- even better -- there's something wonderfully peaceful about taking a few minutes, out in the sunshine, to listen to the birds while hanging laundry...

granted, i feel like my grandmother but at least my skirt isn't pulled up under my armpits so i've got that goin' for me, which is nice...

gunga galunga... gunga, gunga-galunga

meatless mondays

i know... i know... some of you will jump all over me about this... but - really - this is not a animal-hugging concept... actually, meatless monday is a national health campaign that's working to help americans prevent heart disease, stroke, diabetes and cancer -- four of the leading causes of preventable death in this country.

in association with johns hopkins school of public health, meatless monday's goal is to help americans reduce consumption of saturated fat 15% by 2010, which works out to elimnating saturated fat from the diet once a week. this is consistent with recommendations from the US dept. of health and human services, the US dept. of agriculture, and the american heart association.

really, it's not as tough as most people have convinced themselves it is... and, to top it off, the website also has some pretty tasty-looking recipes and menu suggestions -- making it even easier to take better care of yourself!

of course, an nationwide reduction in the amount of meat raised and transported also has a great effect on our environment, too... so everybody wins!

seriously, it's only one day a week... try it for a month, and let me know how it goes for you!