Green Parent Chicago

Baking in the Sun? Check out EWG's Skin Deep® Hall of Shame | 2012 Sunscreen Report

   

If you live in the U.S. you've probably seen your share of sun for the entire summer, with the heat and sun we're experiencing.

If you're stocking up on sunscreen for your daily outings, there's a quick way to find out how to decrease any toxic chemical exposure on your skin or your child's skin from sunblocks and sunscreens that are currently marketed as safe:

Read the Environmental Working Group's annual report on safe and unsafe sunblocks and sunscreens.

Top offenders include some of the most popular and well known children's sunblocks from Coppertone and Banana Boat. Why? These can contain the chemical oxybenzone, a hormone disruptor. 

Other ones to avoid include: those that contain "retinyl palmitate" or Vitamin A. But, isn't Vitamin A supposed to be good for us? Depends on where it's going, according to researchers at EWG. 

"Foods rich in vitamin A are good for the body. But applied to sun-exposed skin, this common sunscreen additive may speed the development of skin tumors and lesions, according to government studies. Why is vitamin A (shown as “retinyl palmitate” or “retinol palmitate” on labels) allowed in sunscreens made for use in the sun? Good question."

In addition, avoid powder sunblocks and sprays (both could be inhaled easily during application). 

See more quick tips from EWG and download their full report here.

-photo credit: Wikipedia

EarthTalk: Two years later, BP Disaster and the Gulf "back to normal?"

Dear EarthTalk: I’ve seen a lot of warm and fuzzy TV ads, some sponsored by BP Oil, urging me to vacation in the Gulf of Mexico. But are things really “back to normal?” -- Paul Shea, Dublin, OH

The Gulf of Mexico may be open for business and eager to attract tourists, but it’s still unclear whether or not marine and coastal ecosystems there are healthy two years after BP’s offshore drilling rig exploded 40 miles off the Louisiana coast, eventually releasing 205.8 million gallons of oil into the water column.

Five months after the April 2010 disaster the Obama administration released a detailed recovery plan, calling for spending up to $21 billion—most which would come from BP’s civil penalties—on clean-up and long-term ecosystem restoration. With much of this work—designed to complement the restorative powers of Mother Nature—well underway, some observers are pleased with the results so far.

“The natural recovery is far greater than what anybody hoped when it happened,” says James Morris, a University of South Carolina biologist and a member of the National Research Council committee tasked by Congress to assess the effects of the spill on the Gulf's ecosystem. “The fears of most people—that there would be a catastrophic collapse of the ecosystem in the Gulf—never materialized.”

“The fisheries have come back like gangbusters,” Morris reports. “One of the interesting findings was that after the oil spill, bait fish populations collapsed, and predator populations boomed. The reason was that there was no fishing pressure on the top predators because people stopped fishing after the spill. So the predator fish populations rebounded, and they grazed down their prey.”

Not everyone shares such a rosy view. The international environmental group Greenpeace reports: “Throughout the food chain, warning signs are accumulating. Dolphins are sick and dying. Important forage fish are plagued with gill and developmental damage. Deepwater species like snapper have been stricken with lesions and their reefs are losing biodiversity. Coastal communities are struggling with changes to the fisheries they rely upon. Hard-hit oyster reefs aren’t coming back and sport fish like speckled trout have disappeared from some of their traditional haunts.”

Still other observers argue that two years is not enough time to tell whether the region’s ecosystems will be severely damaged long term. “We really don’t know the effects the Deepwater Horizon spill had in the deep sea because we know little about the ecosystem processes there,” reports Gary Cherr, director of UC Davis’ Bodega Marine Laboratory and a lead author on a recently released paper published in the journal Bioscience. Cherr and his fellow researchers, including leading oceanographers, ecotoxicologists, and ecologists, conclude that scientists need more time to study how to contain damage from such accidents, especially given the trend to seek new sources of oil in off-shore regions around the U.S. and beyond.

“The deep sea is not a dead zone. It’s not a desert. There’s a lot of life down there,” adds Cherr. “Unfortunately it’s not until a disaster happens that we try to piece together the impacts. That’s difficult to do when you don’t have a complete—or even partial—understanding of the ecosystem.”

CONTACTS: James Morris, ww2.biol.sc.edu/~morris; Greenpeace, www.greenpeace.org; Bioscience paper, www.aibs.org/bioscience-press-releases/resources/Peterson.pdf.

EarthTalk® is written and edited by Roddy Scheer and Doug Moss and is a registered trademark of E - The Environmental Magazine ( www.emagazine.com). Send questions to: earthtalk@emagazine.com. Subscribe: www.emagazine.com/subscribe. Free Trial Issue: www.emagazine.com/trial.

Little Locavores: Supermoms Against Superbugs

Greetings everyone,

Two years ago, I wrote about the clear and present danger presented by the over use of antibiotics in the livestock industry in The Morality of Meat. Children dead within days of being exposed to Methicillin Resistant Staph (or MRSA), the development of superbugs resistant to our antibiotics - it scares the shit out of me.

Despite all the attention to childhood obesity, I firmly believe that this is the number one public health crisis in America. We need to change the hearts and minds of our government and our populace, to demonstrate the importance of keeping our antibiotics safe and effective for our children when they need them.

Because of my advocacy in this area, I was selected to be a “Supermom” for an event called Supermoms Against Superbugs. Today, Thor, Mike, my mom and I travel to DC to participate tomorrow in a day of advocacy in Washington, D.C. We will celebrate and unite moms and dads across America to preserve the effectiveness of antibiotics for their children and families.

Organized by The Pew Campaign on Human Health and Industrial Farming, in partnership with the American Academy of Pediatrics, our goal is to encourage the White House and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to reduce antibiotic overuse in food animal production—a practice that breeds drug-resistant bacteria that can make us sick.

I will be joined by chefs, pediatricians, farmers, and everyday moms who have a particular interest in this issue.  Some raise food animals without the routine use of antibiotics, some serve meats raised without antibiotics in their restaurants and homes, some work on the frontlines treating a growing number of children with antibiotic-resistant infections, and some have personal stories to share about how antibiotic resistance has impacted their lives.

WHAT CAN YOU DO? PARTICIPATE VIRTUALLY WITH ME!

 I hope you will join me by participating virtually! No planes, trains, or automobiles required, just a computer with an Internet connection, a smart phone, or a tablet.

Here are some things you can do:

·Visit Supermoms Against Superbugsto learn more about the event, including bios on all of the Supermoms and a list of virtual actions you can take on May 15.

-Take action NOW and urge FDA to strengthen measures to end overuse of antibiotics on industrial farms.

-Follow us on Facebook and Twitter as we prepare for our trip and take Washington by storm!

Thank you for your support!

-Melissa Graham is a former attorney, chef, and, head spear of award-winning Purple Asparagus, trying to live sustainably in Chicago.

EarthTalk: Safe Alternatives to Artificial Food Colorings and Dyes

Dear EarthTalk: Ever since the red dye #2 scare in the 1970s I’ve been wary of using food colorings or buying food that appears to contain them. Are there natural and healthy food colorings? -- Nancy McFarlane, Methuen, MA

Many of us are still wary of food dyes because of reports about links between red dye #2 and cancer in the 1970s. While red dye #2 was subsequently banned from products sold in the United States, many health-conscious consumers continue to avoid foods with other artificial colors or dyes—even though the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) still considers them safe for human consumption.

But a 2010 analysis of past research on links between food dyes and health by the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) found compelling evidence that ingestion of artificial dyes can contribute to hyperactivity, restlessness and attention problems in some children—particularly those with ADHD. “What’s more, the studies suggested that removing dyes from those children’s diet was a quarter to half as effective in reducing those symptoms as giving the kids Ritalin or other stimulants,” reports Nancy Cordes, CBS News’ Consumer Safety Correspondent. “In other words, certain kids with ADHD might not need drugs if the artificial dyes were removed from their diets.” Several commonly used artificial food dyes are suspected carcinogens as well.

While it might be impossible to prevent your children from eating anything with artificial dye, you can do your part by shopping at Whole Foods or Trader Joe’s—both chains have banned products that use artificial dyes and carry all-natural food coloring for home cooking and baking projects.

One brand to look for is India Tree, which makes a line of food coloring derived from vegetable colorants. The company’s “Nature’s Colors Natural Decorating Colors” contain no corn syrup or synthetic dyes, and are highly recommended for coloring icing in rich jewel tones or soft pastels.

Another company specializing in natural (as well as organic) food colors is Nature’s Flavors, whose products are widely used commercially in ice cream, baked goods, frosting, dairy products, syrups, sauces, beverages and even hair colors. The company recently began to sell their products to consumers, as well, through retail stores. They use a variety of plant materials, including beets, turmeric root, annatto seeds, purple carrot, purple cabbage, gardenia flowers, hibiscus flowers and grape skin. “Our natural food colors are made from plants and contain powerful antioxidants, which help the body repair itself from the effects of oxidation,” claims Nature’s Flavors. “Using natural or organic food colors may actually help the brain and slow down the effects of aging.”

Another leading maker of all-natural food coloring is Chefmaster, whose products can be found at Whole Foods and other natural and high end food retailers, as well as on amazon.com and elsewhere online.

CSPI would like the FDA to ban eight of the most common artificial dyes, or at least affix a warning label to products that contain them: “Warning: The artificial coloring in this food causes hyperactivity and behavioral problems in some children.” In the meantime, concerned eaters should stick with products, stores and restaurants that use natural ingredients.

CONTACTS: India Tree, www.indiatree.com; Nature’s Flavors, www.naturesflavors.com; CSPI’s “Food Dyes: A Rainbow of Risks,” www.cspinet.org/new/pdf/food-dyes-rainbow-of-risks.pdf.

EarthTalk® is written and edited by Roddy Scheer and Doug Moss and is a registered trademark of E -The Environmental Magazine ( www.emagazine.com). Send questions to: earthtalk@emagazine.com. Subscribe: www.emagazine.com/subscribe. Free Trial Issue: www.emagazine.com/trial.

-photo credit: Hemera Collection

EarthTalk: A Look At the Dramatic Rise In U.S. Asthma Cases

Dear EarthTalk: Is it true that asthma rates in the U.S. have doubled in the last three decades? What's behind this troubling trend and what can we do to reverse it? -- Patrick, via e-mail

Asthma is on the rise across the U.S., doubling since the 1980s. According to the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), most people who develop asthma likely have a genetic predisposition but also probably experienced “critical environmental exposures during the first years of life.” Asthma rates are highest in urban areas where auto and industrial emissions make for difficult breathing. But air quality in U.S. cities has improved in the last few decades, leaving researchers puzzled as to what’s behind the trend.

One theory is that better hygiene in developed countries means that Westerners have less exposure to bacteria, viruses and parasites, altering our immune response with the result being increased risk for allergic diseases like asthma. Indeed, Western asthma rates are 50 times higher than in rural Africa. While this “hygiene hypothesis” may be part of the story, researchers believe that there are also other factors.

Some studies have shown a correlation between asthma and obesity, though a direct link is hard to prove. Other research has shown that psychological stress can trigger asthma attacks in those already predisposed. Dr. Harold Nelson, professor of medicine at the National Jewish Health in Denver, explained in a 2009 New York Times blog post that increased acetaminophen (i.e. Tylenol) use in young children, exposure to household cleaning sprays, and lack of Vitamin D also likely contribute to rising asthma rates. But how?

Pediatricians recommend against giving young children aspirin today, given the increased risk of Reye’s syndrome, so many parents now use acetaminophen to relieve pain and reduce fever. But acetaminophen lowers levels of the antioxidant glutathione, resulting in an increased asthma risk. A 2008 study found that use of acetaminophen in the first year of life was associated with a 46 percent increase in the prevalence of asthma symptoms among a study group of 200,000 six- and seven-year-olds.

In regard to household cleaners, frequent inhaling of the spray mist from glass cleaners and air fresheners among other products irritates the lungs and increases the risk of developing asthma. A 2007 study found that European adults who used spray cleaners four days a week faced double the risk of developing asthma symptoms, while weekly use of cleaners increased the risk by 50 percent.

The link between Vitamin D deficiency and asthma comes from several studies on the topic over the last decade showing that low levels of Vitamin D in pregnant mothers result in more asthma in offspring. Those who spend lots of time indoors are particularly vulnerable to Vitamin D deficiency, as exposure to sunlight increases the body’s ability to produce the important nutrient.

Dr. Nelson says that people can take steps to lower their exposure to these “new” asthma risk factors. For one, forego spray cleaners and air fresheners for liquids and pump sprays that don’t produce a fine mist. Pregnant women might consider Vitamin D supplements. And parents should discuss pain relievers with their doctor and consider alternating different types so kids don’t get overexposed to any particular one.

CONTACTS: EDF, www.edf.org/health/air/asthma; “New Risks Linked to Asthma Rise” (New York Times, 2/12/09), well.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/02/12/new-risk-factors-linked-to-asthma-rise.

EarthTalk® is written and edited by Roddy Scheer and Doug Moss and is a registered trademark of E - The Environmental Magazine (www.emagazine.com). Send questions to: earthtalk@emagazine.com. Subscribe: www.emagazine.com/subscribe. Free Trial Issue: www.emagazine.com/trial.

Taste and Learn at Garfield Park Conservatory's Tropical Treat Nights

For two evenings this month, the Garfield Park Conservatory will welcome visitors to taste and learn about the naturally sweet tropical plants that have given us history's favorite flavors.

On Wednesday, February 8 and Wednesday, February 15 from 3 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. fact and flavor stations will be staffed by educators throughout the Conservatory featuring displays about chocolate, chicle, vanilla, cinnamon, chewing gum, banana and more.

Additional activities for kids include:

•Interactive Tropical Tunes by children's music performer Sandy Lucas. Sandy will lead an interactive sing-n-dance-n-jam along concert in Horticulture Hall

•Hands-on activities, including homemade paper ukuleles, tissue paper leis, Valentine’s day cards and more

•Soil Digging Station and “Sweet Read” Book Nook in the Elizabeth Morse Genius Children’s Garden

In addition, a special chocolate-tasting lounge, free to members and $5 for visitors will be available in the Community Room during event hours with a self-guided chocolate “taste test” quest, self-serve hot cocoa bar, candy-themed board games, a drawing to win a sweet-themed gift basket and more.

•Sweet Talks at the Conservatory Series will be held in conjunction with Tropical Treat Nights, featuring  talks highlighting the botany, chemistry and cultural history of some of the sweetest plants. Pre-registration online is encouraged to reserve your spot for this series of talks. The $5 suggested donation per talk will be collected at the door (the talks are free for GPCA Members).

-photo credit, onezzzart, flickr

Ten Strikes Against Nuclear Power

In the aftermath of Japan’s Fukushima nuclear reactor crisis, some countries, like Germany, have responded with due caution, pulling the plug on several nuclear power plants, and calling their nuclear energy programs into question.

Here in the US, the Obama administration’s response to the crisis has been less encouraging.

A week after the disaster, with brave work crews still risking their lives in Japan to bring the situation under control, Energy Secretary Steven Chu affirmed in congressional testimony that the president’s request for $36 billion in appropriations for the nuclear loan guarantee program remains on the table.

There’s no way US taxpayers should underwrite construction of new nuclear power plants in this country. While it’s certainly true that our energy needs require a diversity of solutions, nuclear power shouldn’t be in the mix. Solar, wind, and geothermal power, combined with energy efficiency, can overcome our reliance on fossil fuels, provide energy security, and mitigate the climate crisis. Nuclear power may be low-carbon, but it is not clean energy.

Here are the top 10 reasons why we shouldn’t build any more nuclear reactors:

1) Nuclear waste – The waste from nuclear power plants is toxic for humans and the planet for more than 100,000 years. It's untenable now to secure and store all of the waste from the plants that exist. With nuclear proponents saying we need as many as 3,000 more plants (some say it’s more like 17,00) to scale up to meet the climate challenge, nuclear waste containment is unthinkable.

2) Nuclear proliferation – In discussing the proliferation issue, Al Gore said, "During my eight years in the White House, every nuclear weapons proliferation issue we dealt with was connected to a nuclear reactor program." Iran   and North Korea are reminding us of this every day. We can't develop a domestic nuclear energy program without confronting proliferation in other countries.

3) National Security – Nuclear reactors represent a clear national security risk, and an attractive target for terrorists.

4) Accidents – Forget terrorism for a moment, and remember that accidents – human error or natural disasters – can wreak havoc at a nuclear power plant site. The Chernobyl disaster forced the evacuation and resettlement of nearly 400,000 people, with thousands poisoned by radiation.

5) Cancer – There are growing concerns that living near even accident-free nuclear plants increases the risk for childhood leukemia and other cancers. One Texas study found increased cancer rates in north central Texas since a nuclear power plant was established in 1990, and a recent German study found childhood leukemia clusters near several nuclear power sites in Europe.

6) Not enough sites – Nuclear plants must locate near a source of water for cooling, and there aren't enough worldwide locations safe from droughts, flooding, hurricanes, earthquakes, or other disasters that could trigger an accident. Over 24 nuclear plants are at risk of shutting down this year because of drought in the Southeast.

7)Not enough uranium – Even if we could find enough sites for a new generation of nuclear plants, we're running out of the uranium necessary to power them. Scientists in both the US and UK have shown that if nuclear power were expanded to provide all the world's electricity, our uranium would be depleted in ten years.

8) Costs – Some types of energy production experience decreasing costs to scale. Like computers and cell phones, when you make more solar panels, costs come down. Nuclear power, however, will experience increasing costs to scale. Due to dwindling sites and uranium resources, each successive new nuclear power plant will see its costs rise.

9) Private sector unwilling to finance – Due to all of the above, the private sector has largely taken a pass on the financial risks of nuclear power, leading the industry to seek taxpayer loan guarantees from Congress instead.

And finally, even if all of the above didn't exist, nuclear power still can't be a climate solution because there is …

10) No time -- We have the next ten years to mount a global effort against climate change. It simply isn't possible to build enough new plants in ten years.

Solar power, wind power, geothermal, and aggressive energy efficiency are climate solutions that are safer, cheaper, faster, more secure, and less wasteful than nuclear power.

With so many strikes against nuclear power, we should challenge our candidates for higher office to remove it from the table as a climate solution, and turn our energies toward the technologies and strategies that can truly make a difference.

-Adapted from a speech by Alisa Gravitz, executive director of Green America. 
An expanded version of this editorial can be found at www.greenamerica.org/go/tenstrikes.

-photo credit: Topato, flickr

New Trees Exhibit Opens This Weekend At Nature Museum

A new hands-on exhibit focused on forests is set to open Saturday at The Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum and run until January 30, 2011.

In "Exploring Trees Inside and Out", children can touch bark, smell cedar, cinnamon and maple, crawl inside a giant log, experience a tree as a habitat for living things, become a forest creature in a real-time animated blue-screen flying experience, climb through the inside of a tree and slide into a pile of leaves.

Organizers hope the 9-foot tall, 2,500 square foot exhibit will inspire children to understand the important role trees play in nature and ways they can help protect and conserve trees in their own neighborhoods and cities.

The exhibit is free with museum admission and is sponsored by Doubletree Hotels and the Arbor Day Foundation.

 

My Toxic Baby screening: The Green Mama Hosts a Movie Night

Green Parent Chicago is pleased to co-sponsor with The Green Mama and friends, the upcoming May 14 screening of "My Toxic Baby" by Min Sook Lee.

Filmmaker Lee describes the documentary as a personal essay that examines her search as a new mom for "safe, sane and affordable ways" to raise her child in a world "embedded with toxic threats."

Appetizers will be provided by Bleeding Heart Bakery, Gourmet Gorilla and Great Taste Café. Babysitting will be provided by Little Green Tree House at $10 per child for those who reserve a spot ahead of time. Space is limited. 

Where: Flourish Studios 3020 N. Lincoln

When: Friday, May 14th, 6 p.m.to 8 p.m.

Cost: Free* but space is limited.

RSVP is required. Email info [at] thegreenmama [dot] com or call 773.299.8502

http://www.thegreenmama.com/events/movie

Future Food: Chicago Chefs Premiere New Series on Planet Green

"Future Food" debuted Tuesday on the Planet Green network and follows chefs Homaru Cantu and Ben Roche as they set out on weekly quests to create dishes in new ways using innovative and advanced technology in the kitchen of their Fulton Market restaurant MOTO.

A recent screening event at MOTO unveiled the Chicago-based series featuring the "molecular gastronomists" who meld science with haute cuisine.

 

The restaurant regularly features edible menus, made from various grains. On this occasion the menu tasted like a very well seasoned corn tortilla with a food based print.

One of the tastes of the night (below) was a s''mores bomb, with a liquid graham cracker center covered in chocolate with a marshmallow wick.

 

Cantu and Roche (above) chef and executive pastry chef respectively, are likable enough both on-screen and off, which adds to the appeal of the show, with no over-sized egos apparent and good friendly chemistry.

A youthful kitchen staff keeps the show's vibe hip. The first episode shows the pair embarking on a mission to somehow address the problem of overfishing by creating dishes that taste like fish, but have no fish in them.

This premise sounded like a green start, and left me wondering if the two might try vegan versions of fish-tasting foods molded into traditional seafood dishes. But as the episode wears on, we see the chefs create a mock tuna dish from chicken. Mock scallops made from tofu and mock sushi made from watermelon both fail taste tests by shoppers (who presumably know their seafood) at Mitsuwa Marketplace, the Japanese super mall and market in Arlington Heights.

During the kitchen tour portion of the evening, a member of the kitchen staff (below) prepared a vegan "cigar" for a member of Oprah Winfrey's staff with edible ashes served in an ashtray. The standard version being passed consisted of pulled pork wrapped in an edible paper, which I found myself reaching for a second and third serving of earlier in the night.

 

Using an array of vacuum equipment, liquid nitrogen and other items (beakers, test tubes and pipettes) more commonly found in high school science labs than restaurant kitchens, Cantu and Roche create stylistically appealing and tasty dishes in disguise.

While there is no doubt Cantu and Roche have an inventive and appealing range of ideas for food, there was little talk, in the first episode at least, of how MOTO deals with kitchen waste, or whether the restaurant makes a consistent effort to incorporate local, seasonal or organic ingredients in their dishes, though the show is based on the idea that the chefs will attempt to tackle environmental food issues.

Later episodes appear to touch on sustainability a bit more, with discussion of Cantu's experiments in food packaging and cooking with weeds. Pairing actions like these with the fun and fast paced missions would give the show more staying power and less reliance on novelty.

-Christine