Eco Pregnancy and Baby

The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) released a new report this week announcing unexpected and unacceptable levels of the pesticide atrazine found in the water supply of the United States’ Southern and Midwest states. You can read all about it and find out if your state’s water is affected in the NRDC’s report Poisoning the Well. The gist:

The toxicity associated with atrazine has been documented extensively. The adverse reproductive effects of atrazine have been seen in amphibians, mammals, and humans-even at low levels of exposure. Concentrations as low as 0.1 ppb have been shown to alter the development of sex characteristics in male frogs. When exposure coincides with the development of the brain and reproductive organs, that timing may be even more critical than the dose. Also of great concern is the potential for atrazine to act synergistically with other pesticides to increase their toxic effects.

Here’s how to limit your exposure to atrazine in the water:

• Get a good Home Water Filter. One good one is the Watts WP5-50 Premier Five-Stage Manifold Reverse Osmosis Water Treatment System.

• And take filtered water with you wherever you go in a safe container such as the Klean Kanteen Stainless Steel Water Bottles.

For more info on water filters, check out the NRDC’s Guide to Choosing the Right Filter. The NRDC suggests you first find out what’s in your water. Ask your water utility company for a copy of their annual water quality report. “In many cities, healthy adults can drink tap water without cause for concern. However, pregnant women, young children, the elderly and people with compromised immune systems are particularly vulnerable to some contaminants in tap water,” says the NRDC.

You can also contact NSF International, a nonprofit public health and safety group that tests and certifies home water-treatment devices. Or contact the Water Quality Association at 630-505-0160 or www.wqa.org.

Tags: atrazine in water, pregnant, Water Quality

Endangered Species "Lemur Leaf Frog" Stroller

An eco-friendly baby stroller is one of the biggest purchases environmentally savvy parents make, second to the environmentally safe crib. So when I found the Endangered Species stroller from Baby Planet featured in one of the national parenting magazines, I couldn’t wait to check it out.

First, this eco baby stroller has a great ergonomic design to ensure your comfort as well as your baby’s. It’s also disigned with state-of-the-art technology. They’re safe, really cute, and easy to use. In fact, this stroller won a JPMA Innovation award for design.

What makes it green? They recycle. Yep, you can trade your old stroller in (or the one your sister gave you) when you buy a new one from Baby Planet. It’s all part of Baby Planet’s “mission to protect and restore the planet.”

Each stroller focuses on a specific endangered animal. They got together with the Wildlife Conservation Society to create these strollers to focus attention on the plight of Endangered Species. This is great for raising consumer awareness of endangered species. But Baby Planet also makes a yearly cash contribution to the Wildlife Conservation Society and donates $5 from each stroller sold.

On the practical side, Baby Planet eco strollers come with all the stylish features. Check it out.

Have you tried this stroller? Tell us what you think of it.

You know you should stay away from toxic pesticides when you’re pregnant, but this is the time of year when house and garden pests are pestier than ever. Here’s how to manage them without harming yourself, your baby, or the environment. 

NATURAL PESTICIDES IN THE HOUSE

• Properly caulk and seal doors, windows, sinks, and showers.
• Keep your kitchen free of crumbs, including underneath the sink and refrigerator.
• To route out roaches, lightly dust the area they frequent with boric acid.
• To give ants the axe, mix a cup of sugar with 3 cups of water and 4 teaspoons of boric acid. Put it in a jar, wrap the jar with masking tape, drizzle some of the mixture on the side of the jar, and poke several small holes in the top. Leave the jar(s) out for the ants to find and carry back to their ant colonies.
• Stop crawling bugs in their tracks with a nontoxic sticky product like Tanglefoot.

NONTOXIC PEST CONTROL IN THE YARD

• Light attracts insects, so keep outdoor lights turned off at night.
• Keep the area close to your house free of rocks, ground litter, firewood, and piles of trash– they serve as a welcome mat for roaches, scorpions, centipedes. While you’re at it, trim back trees and bushes close to the house so bugs won’t use tham as ladders to your windows.
• To get rid of ant piles in your yard, pour hot, soapy water down the entrance to the ant hills.
• For aphids and other plant destroying insects, try a mixture of Ivory Soap, water, and vegetable oil. (Watch Joe Lamp’l, author of “Over the Fence,”  in the video below to see it in action.)

When you’re pregnant, your suscreen doesn’t just have to protect your skin from UV rays, it should be free of toxic chemicals that can affect your growing fetus. Do you know which ones are double safe?

A study of about 1,000 brand-name sunscreen products discovered that 4 out of 5 contain toxic chemicals that may pose health hazards or don’t adequately protect skin from the sun’s damaging rays — or both! Some of the leading brands like Neutrogena, Coppertone, and Banana Boat ranked near the bottom of the safety list.

Don’t wait around for the FDA to get around to setting updated sunscreen standards (currently 30 years old). While companies remain free to claim protections they can’t deliver, you are free to protect your health and your baby’s health by avoid potentially toxic products.

To find out which sunscreens rank the most safe and effective, check out the EWG’s comprehensive sunscreen guide.

Here are the top 10:

1. Soleo Organics Sunscreen – Organic chemical free sunscreen SPF 30+
2. Soleo/Wyland Sunscreen – Organic chemical free sunscreen SPF 30+
3. Soleo/Atlantis – Resort Organic chemical free sunscreen SPF 30+
4. Keys Soap – Solar Rx Cosmetic Sunblock, SPF 30 zinc
5. California Baby Sunblock Stick – SPF 30+
6. California Baby – Sunblock Stick Everyday/year-Round, SPF 30+
7. Badger Sunscreen, SPF 30
8. Purple Prairie – Botanicals Sun Stick spf 30
9. Marie Veronique Organics – Creme de Jour Tinted, SPF 30
10. Marie Veronique Organics – Creme de Jour – 22.8% zinc oxide

Tags: pregnancy safe sunscreen, safe sunblock for baby

What should you eat when you’re pregnant? Just ask Frances Largeman-Roth, RD, the senior Food & Nutrition editor at Health magazine, where she works on healthy recipes, food trends, weight loss issues, and the latest nutrition research. She’s the author of the brand new book Feed the Belly: The Pregnant Mom’s Healthy Eating Guide (Sourcebooks, Inc., May 1, 2009).*

Actually, I just asked her for you, and here’s what she says about pregnancy nutrition:

Q. Momma munchies – Why do pregnant women get them and how can they satisfy their inevitable cravings in a healthful way that also meets their green goals?

A. Researchers still don’t know why pregnancy brings on all sorts of food cravings and aversions. Some scientists think that cravings are simply learned behaviors (if you’re expected to crave ice cream, you probably will), while others believe we crave foods that are rich in the nutrients we need for a healthy pregnancy. Most women (85 percent of us) do experience cravings during pregnancy.

I encourage women to indulge their cravings! That’s why I created the recipes in the book. They all help satisfy the biggest cravings that women experience: sweet, meaty, salty/savory, spicy, and thirst-quenching. I took typical comfort foods like meatloaf and mac and cheese, and bumped up their nutritional value. It’s always best to cook your own food when you can, because that let’s you control the amount of fat and salt, and you can also use the healthiest organic and local ingredients.

If you can’t cook up something healthy to feed your craving for something less than healthy — say salt and vinegar potato chips — just buy a small bag and savor each bite.

Q. Other than fish marinated in mercury, what foods should women limit or avoid during pregnancy?

A. Here’s my list of the top 10 things to avoid. The raw milk, cheese, and lunch meats are on the list due to the risk of the listeria. Listeria is a foodborne illness that can cross the placenta and lead to miscarriage. It’s tough not eating deli sandwiches, but why risk it! I found that not being able to eat so many sandwiches got me to eat more salads.

1. Alcohol.
2. Tobacco (weed, too!).
3. Caffeine; limit it as much as possible. That includes energy drinks that contain natural forms of caffeine, like guarana, yerba mate, or ginseng.
4. Unpasteurized (raw) milk, juice, and other beverages.
5. Unpasteurized soft cheeses, such as Brie, Camembert, blue cheese, feta, and queso fresco.
6. Processed meats, such as lunch meat, hot dogs (unless they’re steaming hot), lox, meat spreads, and pâté.
7. Raw foods, including meat, fish (sushi), shellfish, eggs (sorry, that includes raw cookie dough), and sprouts (including alfalfa, mung, clover, and radish).
8. Fish high in mercury (cooked or uncooked), such as swordfish, tilefish, king mackerel, and shark.
9. Herbal supplements.
10. Artificial sweeteners (unless you’re diabetic).

Q. Even with the best of intentions, who doesn’t want to throw the rules out the window at the end of the third trimester. We’re tired of waiting and we want to wallow in chocolate, or wine, or whatever. Any advice?

A. It’s so hard at the end, especially if you’ve been really good about eating healthy. There’s actually nothing wrong with eating chocolate! In fact, researchers have found that expecting moms who eat chocolate daily actually have happier babies. And it appears that the theobromine (a phytochemical in chocolate) may help reduce your risk of preeclampsia.

As far as wine goes, talk to your doctor. My Ob/Gyn actually advised me to have a glass of wine during the last week or so of pregnancy — especially during early labor!

Q. Feed the Belly is such a great book title. How did you come up with it?

A. The health and development of your growing baby is so dependent on what you eat when you’re pregnant, so you have to feed your belly right!

Q. Would you share one of your irresistible green and healthy recipes for moms-to-be?

A. There’s something about fresh figs that just gets me. Maybe it’s because I remember my mother telling me stories about she and my father devouring them on their honeymoon in Italy, or maybe it’s their rich, meaty, and voluptuous texture. Either way, they are something to behold, but they’re only in season from mid-summer to early fall. This salad is delicious with fresh or dried figs.

Momma Must-Have: Figs are total nutrition stars. Packed with calcium, fiber, and potassium, they’re an indulgent way to stay healthy.

Warm Fig Salad with Pecans

6 fresh or dried figs
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1½ tablespoons white-wine vinegar
1 shallot, minced
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
8 cups organic salad greens
½ cup pecans
1. Preheat oven to 350ºF.
2. In a small bowl, toss figs with ½ tablespoon olive oil. Place on a baking
sheet and bake for 10 minutes. R emove from oven and cool.
3. While the figs are baking, whisk together the remaining olive oil,
vinegar, shallot, salt, and pepper in a bowl.
4. Slice cooled figs in half lengthwise. Place salad greens in a large
serving bowl, and add the dressing, figs, and pecans, and toss.
Divide salad onto 4 plates and serve.

Calories 253; Fat 17.5g (Sat 2g, Mono 5g, Poly 1g); Cholesterol 0 mg; Protein 4 g;
Carbohydrate 23 g; Sugars 9 g; Fiber 6 g; Iron 1 mg; Sodium 160 mg; Calcium 30 mg

~~

*For more information about Frances and Feed the Belly, please visit: www.franceslargemanroth.com.

If you’re pregnant, thinking about getting pregnant, or just had a baby and are breastfeeding, no doubt you’re concerned about the mercury in fish (or you should be).

As both a health writer and eco-writer, I can tell you the decision you have to make about whether or not to eat fish when you’re pregnant is really a tough one. On the one hand, fish is one of the healthiest foods you can eat. It provides high quality protein and the essential fatty acids you and your baby need for growth and development. But industrial pollution in the oceans contaminates fish with mercury, which poses a major health threat, especially to a developing fetus.

Unfortunately, new research indicates the problem is only going to get worse. We can expect a 50 percent spike in the Pacific Ocean’s mercury level by the year 2050, that is, if the world’s coal industry continues along its current path. This dire prediction comes from a landmark study on Mercury in Aquatic Ecosystems, published May, 2009, by scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey.

So should pregnant women eat fish?

The answer to that question depends on who you ask. Because fish contains both essential nutrition for health and toxic mercury that can harm fetal brain and nervous system development, The American Pregnancy Association recommends moderate intake of the types of fish deemed “safer” based on the the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) list. (See the safer to least safe types of fish below.) Although the FDA emphasizes the health properties of fish, the EPA urges much more caution. And here’s what the NRDC advises for pregnant women and young children:

Children under six, as well as women who are pregnant or planning to become pregnant, are the most vulnerable to mercury’s harmful effects. They should restrict or eliminate certain fish from their diet, including ahi or bigeye tuna, tilefish, swordfish, shark, king mackerel, marlin, orange roughy and fish caught in any waters that are subject to a mercury advisory. Women with elevated mercury levels should ideally begin avoiding or restricting their consumption of mercury-laden fish as much as a year before they become pregnant.

Here’s the fish recommendations for pregnant women, from the NRDC. For personalized advice based on your weight, check out the NRDC’s mercury thermometer.

NRDC Fish safety list for pregnant women

LEAST MERCURY – Enjoy these fish:
Anchovies, Butterfish, Catfish, Clam, Crab (Domestic), Crawfish/Crayfish, Croaker (Atlantic), Flounder, Haddock (Atlantic), Hake, Herring, Mackerel (N. Atlantic, Chub), Mullet, Oyster, Perch (Ocean), Plaice, Pollock, Salmon (Canned), Salmon (Fresh), Sardine, Scallop,Shad (American), Shrimp, Sole (Pacific), Squid (Calamari), Tilapia, Trout (Freshwater), Whitefish, Whiting

MODERATE MERCURY – Eat 6 servings or less per month:
Bass (Striped, Black), Carp, Cod (Alaskan), Croaker (White Pacific), Halibut (Atlantic), Halibut (Pacific), Jacksmelt, (Silverside), Lobster, Mahi Mahi, Monkfish, Perch (Freshwater), Sablefish, Skate, Snapper, Tuna (Canned chunk light), Tuna (Skipjack), Weakfish (Sea Trout)

HIGH MERCURY – Eat 3 servings or less per month:

Bluefish, Grouper, Mackerel (Spanish, Gulf), Sea Bass (Chilean), Tuna (Canned Albacore), Tuna (Yellowfin)

HIGHEST MERCURY – Avoid eating:

Mackerel (King), Marlin, Orange Roughy, Shark, Swordfish, Tilefish, Tuna, (Bigeye, Ahi)

Tags: environment, green pregnancy, mercury in fish, whole foods

If you’re a pregnant mom just catching up with what’s happening on a national level to protect you from toxic chemicals, watch this video. Then go to the source and sign the declaration at kidsafechemicals.org. Why?

According to the Environmental Working Group (EWG), the current law regulating toxic chemicals in the United States was passed in 1976. Since then, we’ve added 20,000 new chemicals mom’s and unborn babies have to contend with. The EWG says that means babies are born pre-polluted with 300 industrial chemicals in their bodies when they enter the world. This video and the declaration is our chance to do one easy little thing to help change that.

We are morally outraged by a national chemical policy that allows 100’s of toxic industrial chemicals in kids’ bodies. The Declaration is our way of saying: Enough Is Enough. Because it’s just not right. You know it. We know it. Let’s be sure our elected officials in Washington DC know it, too.

Tags: environment, toxic chemicals, Water Quality

Did you know May 2009 is the second ever Pregnancy Awareness Month (PAM)? Right, I know, you’re already aware! Still, the honoring your pregnant nature officially and en mass has it’s benefits.

PAM founder and holistic lifestyle expert Anna Getty’s goal is to empower pregnant women with information, “how to” ideas and inspiration through four key initiatives – education, exercise, nutrition & wellness and nurture.

My life was altered not only by the birth of my daughter, but by the experience and choices I made as I prepared my body, mind and spirit to become pregnant and the incredible inward journey of pregnancy itself. In PAM we have adopted the tagline: “Motherhood begins now,” and I really believe that. I took that message to heart before I actually became pregnant as a way to prepare my mind, body and household for this fabulous moment of creativity, and my life literally turned upside down, for the better.”

To help you celebrate PAM, you can register to win tons of incredible prizes over at the official PAM website: pregnancyawarenessmonth.com. Go get’em, girl!

Check out this brief video with Anna demonstrating a great prenatal and postnatal yoga pose.

Tags: green pregnancy, prenatal yoga, shopping

If you’re pregnant for the first time, you’re probably thinking about all the cool mom things you’ll be doing — like entering to win mom contests like the one over at The Whole Story (Whole Foods blog). They’re celebrating Mother’s Day 2009 by giving away $100 gift cards and a really cool FEED 100 bag. All you have to do to enter is post your comments on their blog by midnight Wednesday, May 6.

Who wouldn’t want (need) the extra money to shop at Whole Foods? But what I really like is the shopping bag. The FEED 100 reusable bag is made of organic cotton and natural burlap, made with a commitment to fair treatment of workers, livable wages, overtime pay and safe, clean working environments.

The best part? Each bag purchased provides 100 nutritious meals to hungry school age children in Rwanda through the United Nation World Food Program’s School Feeding Program.

Feed the world, and all that. Go enter!

Tags: contest, green gifts, shopping, whole foods

Mother’s Day is almost here! So make plans now to pamper yourself. I know you’re busy, but who deserves it more than a mama to be? And remember, you’re pampering for two, now. So here are a few suggestions.

1. Eat something umami. Not because it’s good for you. Do it because the word sounds like ‘ooh mommy’ and it makes you say mmmm. Umami is the fifth taste (after sweet, sour, salty, and bitter. It turns out, our taste buds think foods that contain L-glutamate are yummy in a soothing kind of way. Umami foods include parmesan cheese, chicken, shitaki mushrooms, sweet potatoes, and truffles.
2. Take a nap. A 30-minute snooze is much more than an indulgence, it’s a prenatal necessity.  You need it to grow a healthy baby, and for your own healthy heart and mind. So when your body says sleep, listen.
3. Relax in the bath. Choose soothing bath and body products made with green ingredients — organic lavender, yarrow, thyme, peppermint, rosemary, salts and essential oils (like the products pictured here). Soon enough you won’t have the luxury of time for a really relaxing bath, so savor the moments. ‘Nuff said?

Tags: eco-moms, green gifts, green pregnancy