Many Cleaning Products Said To Contain Toxins

Household cleaning products may contain toxic substances linked to health problems such as asthma, allergic reactions, and cancer, according to a new report by the Environmental Working Group.

The environmental group rated more than 2,000 household cleaners - from laundry soaps and stain removers to bathroom cleaners and floor care products. Products are graded A to F based on the safety of the ingredients and how well the maker discloses those ingredients.

Vegan Daily News highly recommends this as an outstanding, unbiased resource for finding the greenest cleaning products!  For example, EWG rates 49 different glass cleaners…only 3 warrant a grade “A”, while almost half fail with an “F”.

Eat Canned Foods Sparingly

The chemical is bisphenol-A, or BPA, a synthetic estrogen better known for leaching into foods from plastics. While the the chemical and food industries continue to stand behind the safety of low-dose BPA exposure, many consumer and health advocates are worried enough by independent scientific studies to warn people to avoid exposure whenever possible. 

Chemicals like BPA are known as “endocrine disruptors” because they mimic the body’s hormones; because hormones trigger biological responses at minute concentrations, the thinking goes, so might these synthetic cousins. Exposure to BPA has been linked, primarily in lab animal studies, to a range of possible health problems ranging from obesity to infertility.

If you must eat canned foods, try to get brands like Eden Foods that do not use BPA in can linings.

Three Reasons To Rethink That Diet Coke

A fascinating article – Artificially Sweetened Beverages Cause for Concern – recently published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), suggests that artificial sweeteners are far from risk-free.

1. Our body gets confused by artificial sweeteners – the dissociation between sweet taste and calorie intake may put the regulatory system that controls hunger and body weight out of sync, thus sabotaging weight loss plans. 

2. We’re “Infantilizing” our taste sense – Artificial sweeteners are a hundredfold sweeter than sucrose (table sugar). By getting ourselves used to so much sweet, normal sweet flavors, of fruit for example, become bland and so do other healthful foods such as grains and vegetables, thus reducing our willingness to consume them and ultimately the quality of our diet.

3. Long term effects unclear – while there have been many studies on artificial sweeteners and disease such cancer, very few focused on long term weight gain. 

American Kids Downing More Diet Drinks

The number of U.S. children who drink sugar-free beverages has doubled in the past decade, a new study finds - though the health implications of the trend, if any, are unclear. However, animal research has raised some potential concerns. For instance, animals fed artificial sweeteners have shown weight gain - suggesting there could be some effect on metabolism. Before anyone can make widespread recommendations that kids should have diet drinks instead of sugary versions, she said there should be studies into the possible effects on weight and health.

Buttered Popcorn Flavoring Linked To Alzheimer's Disease

The flavorant, diacetyl, that a adds buttery taste to foods and a smooth feel to beverages may also trigger Alzheimer’s disease, new studies suggest.  The flavorant already is linked to lung damage in people who work in microwave popcorn factories. This led many microwave popcorn makers to stop using diacetyl in their products. But now other workers exposed to diacetyl - and possibly consumers as well - face this new risk.

Phthalate Chemicals In Nail Polish, Hair Sprays Tied To Raised Diabetes Risk In Women

Phthalates are chemicals which are often found in personal care products, adhesives, electronics, products used to manufacture cars, toys, packaging and even some coatings for medications.  They are considered “endocrine-disrupting” because they can alter normal regulation of certain mechanisms in the body, including hormone regulation.

The researchers found that women with the highest concentrations of two types of phthalates were nearly two times more likely to have diabetes compared to women with the least amounts of these chemicals.

The BPA Derivative In Your Dental Fillings

Materials that dentists now use to fill most cavities are made with derivatives of bisphenol-A, the controversial endocrine-disrupting chemical used in a wide range of plastic products, including polycarbonate water bottles and canned food linings.  Over the past decade, the BPA derivative known as Bis-GMA has been the predominant dental filler, going into the mouths of some 100 million Americans a year, according to one expert.  And now a study in the journal Pediatrics is linking Bis-GMA fillings to negative behavioral outcomes in children.  

Another reason to brush and floss!  And include plenty of these veggies to help out!

Top 10 Food Additives To Avoid

There are over 300 chemicals used in processed foods today!  These manmade chemicals are seen as foreign to our bodies, which often results in a number of implications to our health and wellbeing.  The best defense is a good offense…so arm yourself with this knowledge and stay away from these additives!