Hello and good health to you!  It's spring, and the Creator's handiwork is so amazing.  This is becoming a monthly or biweekly newsletter (at least for subscribers) - so that you will not receive too much email!  We all have enough already!  This issue addresses safety at home this spring - in no particular order! 

First, Do you have a safe sunscreen?  I recommend two sunscreens which, unlike many you could buy, both avoid harsh chemicals and have NO nanoparticles small enough to enter your bloodstream.  Miessence's Reflect Balm is an organic sunscreen free of titanium dioxide.  www.naturetoyou.mionegroup.com/product/13430 .  Besides vitamin E, organic olive oil, betacarotene and other potent antioxidants, it uses only zinc oxide, considered the most nontoxic by Debra's List.  If 15 SPF is right for you, I recommend Miessence.  I also recommend Mexitan, which has green tea and other natural (not organic) ingredients but does have titanium dioxide.  While far better than nanoparticles and chemical ingredients in most sunscreens, few realize that this unstable ingredient usually stabilized by painting with aluminum, which is slightly irritating and was reprted to cause small changes in cells in contact with it.  Source:  www.dld123.com/q&a/index.php?cid=5820  For times when you need more than 15 SPF, this is an excellent product.   It is 15 or 30 SPF and considered safe around fish. www.greenboatstuff.com See the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics and the Skin Deep Report which ranks products for safety if you want to compare more options (1-2 is considered "safe".)  www.safecosmetics.org.  Next, avoid lead.  No amount is considered safe.  It's in garden hoses (and kids should never drink from one), cords, and in many soft, plastic toys.  A simple lead test kit from your local hardware store will be worth the peace of mind alone as you test dishware, bathtubs in some cases, and any surface you cannot be sure is lead-free.  Obtain an organic food priority list because some foods require far fewer pesticides even if grown in poor soil http://www.greenforchrist.com/Home_Page.html   Eat better snacks! A totally nutritious, organic food bar called "ACTIVE X" is just changing ownership.  I consider it the tastiest and healthiest organic live food bar.  This organic live food bar balances carbs with protein and it does not use date paste, or far worse, high fructose corn syrup, as a filler/sweetener.  I've been asking health food stores near me to carry them, and finally ordered them myself.  I ordered from the old SVP Nutritionals website www.svpnutritionals.com/index.html; but it no longedr works.  The price has decreased and Paypal eliminated, with new owner Greg Manos offering the same bars at smaller prices but in larger quantities.  There is also a new flavor, with more to come.  Pending their site update, I requested the new info & order form; prices are at 1.45/bar (16-128 bars) and 1.30 or less for larger orders.  Greg guaruntees an immediate turn-around for ordering this way, whereas it took about a month to hear from both Shania and Greg using the site's contact info!  (Plus I never got the last order I placed!)  Email me for the new Active X info & order form at green4christ (@sbcglobal.net) with your name (if a company), address, email and contact's name if you want this order form anytime soon & if I can send your info on to Greg.   Another bar I recommend is  larger (twice the bar at twice the price) - "The Organic Food Bar" - Protein flavor, sold online and at Whole Foods; it also has live food & everything I think should be in a bar.  At times I buy bars higher in carbs that rely on date paste, like Raw Revolution, but which have good, natural ingredients also.  I always balance these with cheese, eggs, or other protein snacks including Figure 8 from Arbonne, which I consider their finest product.
Avoid unsafe plastics - 3, 6, 7 including Teflon and styrofoam (linked to  chromosomal damage and possible cancer.  The WHO published health effects of substances including styrene 7,8 - oxide www.monographs.iarc.fr/ENG/Monographs/vol60/volume60.pdf   Styrofoam should never be used to heat food, even though your take-out is in those handy boxes.  New products and non-styrofoam liners are replacing styrofoam coffee cups, thankfully.  www.biodegradablestore.com   The safe ones have recycling numbers 1, 2, 4, or 5.  Only a few "7"s are safe; many of the rest are polycarbonates www.zrecs.blogspot.com/2007/07/z-report-bisphenol-in-polycarbonate.html or, some sites say, resins.  Parents, there is a great comparison of safe kiddie containers here:  www.zrecs.blogspot.com/2007/05/sippy-cup-showdown-safer-bpa-free-sippy.html .  For adults I like Kleen Kanteen despite it's one flaw: it's dentable!  Water in these just tastes so good!  www.Greenfeet.com has many lids, a few sizes and even a carrying case.  I considered a Brita self-filtering bottle but reviews say it doesn't work nealry as well as the larger Brita pitcher.  Speaking of water, filtered or spring water is highly recommended.  (Have you ever read your local water quality report?  Ours always included things like parasites and chemicals, and now I know to look for more issues.  Also, if you do not have whole house filtration, consider Rainshow'r or Enviro in baths, showers, etc. and Pur Plus for faucets.  I keep a cupful of filtered water on the bathroom sink so I am not rinsing my face with chlorinated water.
OK - a really tough question:  "Is there a Nontoxic Dishwashing Detergent that Works?"  Dishwashing detergents are said to be the most problematic of the “green” cleaners, since many streak or do not clean well; but thankfully a blog called “Emerald City” documented some trial and error to find their favorites, which include:  Ecover Dishwasher Tablets (cheaper on Amazon), Planet Automatic (found at Whole Foods and HFS), and Shaklee’s Get Clean (Concentrate.)  At last!!!  Wow, they also linked to some DIY *green cleaning ideas. www.care2.com/greenliving/make-your-own-non-toxic-cleaning-kit.html   This helps you make a basic kit.  Additionally, they reviewed Shaklee’s “Get Clean” line, which they said is expensive; but they do recommend Get Clean Basic H2 Organic Super Cleaning Concentrate.  I have found no ingredients listed for the H2, only for the previous (Basic H) which had undesirable ingredients – see  www.time4more.com/Downloads/English/Files/Basic-H_MSDS.pdf  . Personally, I see a red flag whenever a company does not publish its ingredients.  My own recommendations are: DIY recipes, Bon Ami (at Ace hardware) scouring powder, and MiEnviron’s BIOPURE Probiotic Household Cleaning Concentrate (which I sell and personally use) at https://naturetoyou.mionegroup.com/product/16303 .  All are at low cost, and recipes cost only pennies to make.  The new Chlorox green brands sold at Walmart will be discussed soon but with a great price, so far they only seem to have one problem:  petroleum ingredients in at least some of them.  Still, quite an improvement (if only intended to give Chlorox a good name, it still helps everyone who does nbot shop at health food stores!)  More next time on which ingredients to avoid and cleaners you can make cheaply and easily.

Know Your Ingredients!  Is the Price on This One Too High?
This series of articles helps you know your ingredients.  No consumer can afford to use formaldehyde, no matter how it lowers the price of what they buy.  Besides irritating your skin, formaldehyde is reported to cause cancer and damage your central nervous system.  Dr. Thomas Conner, Ph. D. at the University of Texas-Houston School of Public Health, found significant risks from several preservatives which release or break down into formaldehyde, including diazonidinyl urea (which I have seen in many products!)  To follow up the last topic posted, the way to avoid parabens (hormone disrupters among other health concerns) you avoid any ingredient that ends with "-paraben."  In short, you take a risk if you do not know your ingredients.  I'm more likely to trust shea butter and ivory soap than 99% of the items on a typical store shelf.  New "green" products are coming out, so before paying higher prices you can check for toxins here: www.naturetoyou.mionegroup.com/glossary & click "toxic ingredients."  There is a shot list as well as the university of Akron database (20,000 toxins listed.)  Some clues:  you will likely find SLS in any sudsy product - so look for "SLS-free" & (ideally of course an organic certification on the label!)

**I want to inject a personal note here at the end.  Currently a family member has an inoperable brain tumor.  He is young and this was unexpected.   It has put their future and his job at risk, and there has been discomfort and anguish, although both he and my sister have shown great faith and gone forward bravely.  Not only am I asking for prayer for his healing, but also for their journey as they venture to find out how natural remedies and foods can help him heal (along with medical treatment.)  There is no telling which factors may have caused his condition, as there are many possible causes including genetic, and there were many harmful substances he was exposed to on the job; but my quest to find and share the best health possible has become even more meaningful and heartfelt.