Adopt a NON-TOXIC Lifestyle
Author: Susan Anderson
Be PRO-ACTIVE
The constant bombardment of toxic overload makes life stressful. It takes just
minutes of observation to notice that a significant number of the world’s popula-
tion is living a less than optimal lifestyle. Personal health and the health of the
environment have been on the decline. We are on a collision course that will
reap terrible consequences unless we begin to wake up and make some changes
in the way we approach life.
On the road of progress, we have made many advances in the fields of medicine
and technology, But, upon closer examination, we need to ask, what has been the
trade-off ? Let’s take a look at some of the recent statistics, to see how well we are doing
here in the US.
Back in 1961, a woman’s lifetime risk of getting breast cancer was 1 in 20, today it is 1 in 8.
The prevalence of pediatric asthma has increased dramatically since 1980, and now is
considered to be a national epidemic. Recent studies place the incidence of learning and
developmental disabilities as affecting one in six children under the age of 18. According
to the Centers for Disease Control the number of people with diabetes has more than
doubled in the last 20 years, with more type 2 diabetes being diagnosed in teenagers.
There are over 4.5 million cases of Alzheimer’s. One in seven of us are affected by arthritis.
A dramatic rise in both adult and childhood obesity, is now reaching staggering proportions.
In the last several years, a growing body of scientific evidence has indicated that the air
within homes and other buildings can be more seriously polluted than the outdoor air in
even the largest and most industrialized cities. Global warming is a reality. The list goes
on and on. So the next question should be: “If we are making such great progress,
why isn’t this reflected in our quality of life?”
Living in a sea of toxic soup is the cost we pay these days for the convenience of modern life.
Some of the deadly ingredients contributing to this include: toxic emotions leading to bitter
conflicts, heavy bombardment of chemicals in our environment, depletion of necessary
nutrients in our soils and food supplies, disturbances in the electromagnetic field creating
Geopathic Stress, and the degradation of the earth’s resources. Ask yourself--“Is the high
price worth the benefits we are reaping?”
We always have choices. We can continue down a road that leads to self-destruction, or
we can begin to recognize we have other options available which will enable us to live a
healthier life in better alignment with environmental practices beneficial to the earth.
This can be achieved by making the conscious decision to adopt a PRO-ACTIVE lifestyle.
While this will not eliminate all of the challenges that lie ahead, it is a starting point, facilitating
a movement toward a better world.
So what exactly does it take to adopt a PRO-ACTIVE lifestyle? Below is summarized some
of the new ingredients we can include to help lead us into non-toxic living.
Prevention:
Someone once said that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Making the decision
to live a life that is actively focused on what we can do to remain healthy on all levels is much
easier than trying to remediate the situation once things begin to break down. There are many
simple things we can do in the way of prevention. Safe Solutions for Non-Toxic Living class
provides information as well as ideas on ways to begin.
Responsibility
We need to be more diligent in accepting personal responsibility for ourselves and less willing to
hand over our personal power. We may have little or no control over the circumstances thrown
our way, but we always have control on how we choose to respond to them. Improvements in
personal health and in the environment, begin on the inside, then move outward in ripples,
affecting all we come in contact with.
Organics
Hippocrates said “Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.”, but not all foods are
created equal. If Hippocrates were making this statement for today’s society, I’m sure he would
interject the word organic in front of the word food. Choosing to incorporate organics into our
lifestyle not only benefits our health but also benefits the environment.
The term organic, refers in part to the practices and philosophy of the farmer to produce good,
nutrient rich food from healthy soils, with an emphasis on protecting the environment, while
adhering to strict standards. As organics becomes the fastest growing niche in the food market
industry, corporate America, has jumped in to claim their share of the pie.
Organic Background Information:
Source: www.consumerreports.org
In 1990, the Organic Foods Production Act was passed by Congress as the base for an i
ndependent, public program. After years of debate, and a record 275,000 comments from
the public, the National Organic Program was launched in 2002.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture oversees the act, guided by the National Organic
Standards Board, a nongovernmental group that includes consumer advocates, farmers,
and food processors. The board also has authority for approving all allowable nonorganic
ingredients. Five percent of the ingredients in food labeled organic and 30 percent in “made
with organic ingredients” may be nonorganic.
Since 2002, there have been repeated assaults on the board's authority and on the standards
themselves from companies that want to reap the benefits of the organic label without the burden
of higher production costs. CU has been critical of both the Department of Agriculture and
Congress for bowing to industry pressures and has worked to thwart many of those assaults.
Recently an amendment was slipped into the agriculture appropriations bill at the last minute and
without opportunity for public input. The original law had barred the use of synthetic ingredients in
the nonorganic portion allowed in food with the organic label. A 2005 court ruling upheld that
standard, but the amendment to the appropriations bill overrode the court. That move to sidestep
the court's decision was engineered by the Organic Trade Association and supported by some of its
members, including General Mills, Horizon, Kraft, and Smucker's. Read entire article
So the Bottom line is: Improve your nutritional program which is the very foundation of good
health and investigate where you are purchasing your foods by following the money trail. My
recommendation: Buy/Support your local organic farmers!
Activism:
Our philosophy at Seeds for Change is to encourage people to become an activist in spreading
the word about adopting a PRO-ACTIVE lifestyle that will benefit their personal health and the
health of the environment. Let your voice be heard through the political arena, by contacting your
senators and congressmen. Stay on top of the issues, and support action campaigns your feel are
important. Many can be found online (example: http://organicconsumers.org/action.htm.) Join a local
action group working for a related cause. If there is not a local action group, consider starting one
yourself. Many small actions can yield big results.
Challenge your Paradigms
Many of us willingly stay snuggled in the security of our core beliefs or paradigms. They provide a
safety zone from which we can maintain comfort. But often these core beliefs are ones that we
just willingly accept, without much attention given to why they even exist. They are gifted to us by
our upbringing, our culture, our associations, and advertisers, to name a few.
Each of us will have times in our lives when because of circumstances, our beliefs will be challenged.
This is not a bad thing. Being able to think outside of the box, is what spurs change. Change is an
opportunity, which can provide new insights leading to expanded growth. So why not Take the
Challenge!
Start by identifying what your personal beliefs really are in regard to health, wellness, and the
environment. Then move into expansion and discovery. For those interested in getting a great,
out of the box, education in organics, I highly recommend Jeff Frank’s 2 Day Organic Course held
at The Nature Lyceum in Westhampton,New York. It is an experience creating life altering changes
for many. The class is taught by a number of professional who teach from the heart and speak
to the most important environmental issues of our times. Classes are offered monthly.
Testify & Teach
This can be considered a subdivision of Activism. Spread the word! This information is too important
to not do anything about. Share what you know with others…maybe it is tidbits of information that will
get someone else moving on their own journey, maybe it is recommending a book, a website, an
organization, a class, a product, a process you believe in or something you have done that has yielded
positive results. Word of mouth is the most effective technique available to help educate and promote
positive actions benefiting the environment and improving health.
Investigate
“The first duty of a man is the seeking after and the investigation of truth.”- Cicero
Finding your own truth is important to becoming a self- actualized individual. This requires work on
both the inner and outer levels. It also requires a commitment to keeping your own power instead of
mindlessly handing it over to someone else.
Here’s an example of a where a little detective work led me….
Product: Silk Soy Milk
Company: Dean Foods Company, White Wave division, oversees Horizon Organic milk,
the nation's largest organic dairy
Labeled: Organic with the USDA Organic Seal.
On the label: Silk Soymilk is third-party certified organic by QAI.
Well what does that mean? A call of inquiry to the company yields an “I don’t know” response. Asked
to have a call back with the information. Return call: the soybeans are sourced from China and Brazil.
Hmm, awfully far for a product to travel to be considered adhering to good environmental practices.
Talking about environmental practices, what are the standards for growing soybeans in China and
Brazil, anyway? Here is an excerpt from an article on organicconsumers.org:
“…So organic consumers continue to buy their products, while remaining in the dark about who
produced them and where they were produced. For example, people who buy the top-selling soy
milk Silk, don¹t know that Silk is actually owned by Dean Foods, the $10 billion dairy conglomerate
notorious for bottom line business practices such as injecting their cows with bovine growth hormone
and paying the lowest prices possible to dairy farmers. They also don¹t know that many of the soy
beans in Silk are likely coming in from China and Brazil rather than the U.S. or North America.
What about the organic standards in China? Are they the same as here? There has been a lot
of criticism that Chinese organic products are not really organic. But certainly the most incontestable
fact about Chinese organics is that the workers are paid nearly nothing for their work. It is slave labor.”
Next question…what do I know about Dean Foods? (Dean Foods Company Profile) A little digging
shows the main shareholders are Microsoft, GE, Philip Morris, Citigroup, Pfizer, ExxonMobil,
Coca Cola, Wal-Mart, PepsiCo, Home Depot. Interesting!
Further exploration showed The Cornucopia Institute, one of the nation’s most aggressive organic
watchdog groups, filed a formal legal complaint (8/10/06) against Horizon, alleging a well-financed
campaign to greenwash milk produced at factory farms that fail to meet USDA regulatory standards.
The complaint and call for a thorough investigation was filed with the USDA’s Office of Compliance.
The Organic Consumers Association as a result of the failing grade given by the Cornucopia Institute
called for a boycott of Horizon (Silk Soy Milk) and Aurora Organic for continuing to sell milk and
dairy products labeled as USDA Organic, even though most or all of their milk is coming from
factory farm feedlots where the animals have been brought in from conventional farms and are
kept in intensive confinement, with little or no access to pasture.
Whew! Who know that one little phone call about the label would yield such an informative journey!
Now I am not suggesting that we do this with everything, common sense still needs to come into play,
BUT if there is a product that you must use daily, that you are expecting to play a major role in your
personal health and/or that you support because of your commitment to good environmental practices,
then you might want to look into the situation a bit deeper.
Also, just because someone has said it is so, it is not always the case. Fabrication, deceptive studies,
and white washing are not beneath the ethical and business practices of some. My teenage daughter
and I were in a discussion the other day about something. Her outraged response to me was, “Mom, t
he government wouldn’t lie.” I told her- “Do your homework before you invest in that kind of belief.”
Vote with your $$$’s
Money talks. Business listens when money talks. Especially when it involves how much their bottom
line is affected. Use your cash to support what you believe in. Some of the simple solutions: Buy
from the small local businessman struggling to make a difference, make donations to the organization
whose work you support, think about the business, ethical, and environmental practices supported
by the merchants/retailers you frequent, and try to remain congruent. It is not always easy, convenient,
or financially discounted, but in the end we either pay now or pay later!
Educate Yourself
Education isn’t something you receive, but rather-- it is something you achieve. This comes from
some of the items mentioned above, particularly when we challenge our typical way of thinking and
begin the process of investigation. Sources where we receive our information should be varied and
not dependent on only what the mainstream news resources want to feed us. The alternative news
media provides the other side of the coin, as well as topics of information that are excluded from
mainstream coverage.
Our job then is to sift through and find our own truth. There are some great websites dedicated to
just this type of thing. Other sources that provide a good basis for education seekers: World
Watch Magazine, ACRES newspaper, Mother Earth Journal, Union of Concerned Scientists, and
the Environmental Working Group.
In addition attend classes and workshops focusing on the varied topics relating to improving personal
health and environmental practices. Talk with people who are knowledgeable and experienced in these
areas but may be taking a new twist on things. Seek out the visionaries to discuss and exchange views.
So why not start today? Topple over that box, crawl out and look at the world with your brand new set of
eyes! Before you know it, you will not just be adopting but instead living a PRO-ACTIVE lifestyle.
Author: Susan Anderson
Be PRO-ACTIVE
The constant bombardment of toxic overload makes life stressful. It takes just
minutes of observation to notice that a significant number of the world’s popula-
tion is living a less than optimal lifestyle. Personal health and the health of the
environment have been on the decline. We are on a collision course that will
reap terrible consequences unless we begin to wake up and make some changes
in the way we approach life.
On the road of progress, we have made many advances in the fields of medicine
and technology, But, upon closer examination, we need to ask, what has been the
trade-off ? Let’s take a look at some of the recent statistics, to see how well we are doing
here in the US.
Back in 1961, a woman’s lifetime risk of getting breast cancer was 1 in 20, today it is 1 in 8.
The prevalence of pediatric asthma has increased dramatically since 1980, and now is
considered to be a national epidemic. Recent studies place the incidence of learning and
developmental disabilities as affecting one in six children under the age of 18. According
to the Centers for Disease Control the number of people with diabetes has more than
doubled in the last 20 years, with more type 2 diabetes being diagnosed in teenagers.
There are over 4.5 million cases of Alzheimer’s. One in seven of us are affected by arthritis.
A dramatic rise in both adult and childhood obesity, is now reaching staggering proportions.
In the last several years, a growing body of scientific evidence has indicated that the air
within homes and other buildings can be more seriously polluted than the outdoor air in
even the largest and most industrialized cities. Global warming is a reality. The list goes
on and on. So the next question should be: “If we are making such great progress,
why isn’t this reflected in our quality of life?”
Living in a sea of toxic soup is the cost we pay these days for the convenience of modern life.
Some of the deadly ingredients contributing to this include: toxic emotions leading to bitter
conflicts, heavy bombardment of chemicals in our environment, depletion of necessary
nutrients in our soils and food supplies, disturbances in the electromagnetic field creating
Geopathic Stress, and the degradation of the earth’s resources. Ask yourself--“Is the high
price worth the benefits we are reaping?”
We always have choices. We can continue down a road that leads to self-destruction, or
we can begin to recognize we have other options available which will enable us to live a
healthier life in better alignment with environmental practices beneficial to the earth.
This can be achieved by making the conscious decision to adopt a PRO-ACTIVE lifestyle.
While this will not eliminate all of the challenges that lie ahead, it is a starting point, facilitating
a movement toward a better world.
So what exactly does it take to adopt a PRO-ACTIVE lifestyle? Below is summarized some
of the new ingredients we can include to help lead us into non-toxic living.
Prevention:
Someone once said that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Making the decision
to live a life that is actively focused on what we can do to remain healthy on all levels is much
easier than trying to remediate the situation once things begin to break down. There are many
simple things we can do in the way of prevention. Safe Solutions for Non-Toxic Living class
provides information as well as ideas on ways to begin.
Responsibility
We need to be more diligent in accepting personal responsibility for ourselves and less willing to
hand over our personal power. We may have little or no control over the circumstances thrown
our way, but we always have control on how we choose to respond to them. Improvements in
personal health and in the environment, begin on the inside, then move outward in ripples,
affecting all we come in contact with.
Organics
Hippocrates said “Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.”, but not all foods are
created equal. If Hippocrates were making this statement for today’s society, I’m sure he would
interject the word organic in front of the word food. Choosing to incorporate organics into our
lifestyle not only benefits our health but also benefits the environment.
The term organic, refers in part to the practices and philosophy of the farmer to produce good,
nutrient rich food from healthy soils, with an emphasis on protecting the environment, while
adhering to strict standards. As organics becomes the fastest growing niche in the food market
industry, corporate America, has jumped in to claim their share of the pie.
Organic Background Information:
Source: www.consumerreports.org
In 1990, the Organic Foods Production Act was passed by Congress as the base for an i
ndependent, public program. After years of debate, and a record 275,000 comments from
the public, the National Organic Program was launched in 2002.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture oversees the act, guided by the National Organic
Standards Board, a nongovernmental group that includes consumer advocates, farmers,
and food processors. The board also has authority for approving all allowable nonorganic
ingredients. Five percent of the ingredients in food labeled organic and 30 percent in “made
with organic ingredients” may be nonorganic.
Since 2002, there have been repeated assaults on the board's authority and on the standards
themselves from companies that want to reap the benefits of the organic label without the burden
of higher production costs. CU has been critical of both the Department of Agriculture and
Congress for bowing to industry pressures and has worked to thwart many of those assaults.
Recently an amendment was slipped into the agriculture appropriations bill at the last minute and
without opportunity for public input. The original law had barred the use of synthetic ingredients in
the nonorganic portion allowed in food with the organic label. A 2005 court ruling upheld that
standard, but the amendment to the appropriations bill overrode the court. That move to sidestep
the court's decision was engineered by the Organic Trade Association and supported by some of its
members, including General Mills, Horizon, Kraft, and Smucker's. Read entire article
So the Bottom line is: Improve your nutritional program which is the very foundation of good
health and investigate where you are purchasing your foods by following the money trail. My
recommendation: Buy/Support your local organic farmers!
Activism:
Our philosophy at Seeds for Change is to encourage people to become an activist in spreading
the word about adopting a PRO-ACTIVE lifestyle that will benefit their personal health and the
health of the environment. Let your voice be heard through the political arena, by contacting your
senators and congressmen. Stay on top of the issues, and support action campaigns your feel are
important. Many can be found online (example: http://organicconsumers.org/action.htm.) Join a local
action group working for a related cause. If there is not a local action group, consider starting one
yourself. Many small actions can yield big results.
Challenge your Paradigms
Many of us willingly stay snuggled in the security of our core beliefs or paradigms. They provide a
safety zone from which we can maintain comfort. But often these core beliefs are ones that we
just willingly accept, without much attention given to why they even exist. They are gifted to us by
our upbringing, our culture, our associations, and advertisers, to name a few.
Each of us will have times in our lives when because of circumstances, our beliefs will be challenged.
This is not a bad thing. Being able to think outside of the box, is what spurs change. Change is an
opportunity, which can provide new insights leading to expanded growth. So why not Take the
Challenge!
Start by identifying what your personal beliefs really are in regard to health, wellness, and the
environment. Then move into expansion and discovery. For those interested in getting a great,
out of the box, education in organics, I highly recommend Jeff Frank’s 2 Day Organic Course held
at The Nature Lyceum in Westhampton,New York. It is an experience creating life altering changes
for many. The class is taught by a number of professional who teach from the heart and speak
to the most important environmental issues of our times. Classes are offered monthly.
Testify & Teach
This can be considered a subdivision of Activism. Spread the word! This information is too important
to not do anything about. Share what you know with others…maybe it is tidbits of information that will
get someone else moving on their own journey, maybe it is recommending a book, a website, an
organization, a class, a product, a process you believe in or something you have done that has yielded
positive results. Word of mouth is the most effective technique available to help educate and promote
positive actions benefiting the environment and improving health.
Investigate
“The first duty of a man is the seeking after and the investigation of truth.”- Cicero
Finding your own truth is important to becoming a self- actualized individual. This requires work on
both the inner and outer levels. It also requires a commitment to keeping your own power instead of
mindlessly handing it over to someone else.
Here’s an example of a where a little detective work led me….
Product: Silk Soy Milk
Company: Dean Foods Company, White Wave division, oversees Horizon Organic milk,
the nation's largest organic dairy
Labeled: Organic with the USDA Organic Seal.
On the label: Silk Soymilk is third-party certified organic by QAI.
Well what does that mean? A call of inquiry to the company yields an “I don’t know” response. Asked
to have a call back with the information. Return call: the soybeans are sourced from China and Brazil.
Hmm, awfully far for a product to travel to be considered adhering to good environmental practices.
Talking about environmental practices, what are the standards for growing soybeans in China and
Brazil, anyway? Here is an excerpt from an article on organicconsumers.org:
“…So organic consumers continue to buy their products, while remaining in the dark about who
produced them and where they were produced. For example, people who buy the top-selling soy
milk Silk, don¹t know that Silk is actually owned by Dean Foods, the $10 billion dairy conglomerate
notorious for bottom line business practices such as injecting their cows with bovine growth hormone
and paying the lowest prices possible to dairy farmers. They also don¹t know that many of the soy
beans in Silk are likely coming in from China and Brazil rather than the U.S. or North America.
What about the organic standards in China? Are they the same as here? There has been a lot
of criticism that Chinese organic products are not really organic. But certainly the most incontestable
fact about Chinese organics is that the workers are paid nearly nothing for their work. It is slave labor.”
Next question…what do I know about Dean Foods? (Dean Foods Company Profile) A little digging
shows the main shareholders are Microsoft, GE, Philip Morris, Citigroup, Pfizer, ExxonMobil,
Coca Cola, Wal-Mart, PepsiCo, Home Depot. Interesting!
Further exploration showed The Cornucopia Institute, one of the nation’s most aggressive organic
watchdog groups, filed a formal legal complaint (8/10/06) against Horizon, alleging a well-financed
campaign to greenwash milk produced at factory farms that fail to meet USDA regulatory standards.
The complaint and call for a thorough investigation was filed with the USDA’s Office of Compliance.
The Organic Consumers Association as a result of the failing grade given by the Cornucopia Institute
called for a boycott of Horizon (Silk Soy Milk) and Aurora Organic for continuing to sell milk and
dairy products labeled as USDA Organic, even though most or all of their milk is coming from
factory farm feedlots where the animals have been brought in from conventional farms and are
kept in intensive confinement, with little or no access to pasture.
Whew! Who know that one little phone call about the label would yield such an informative journey!
Now I am not suggesting that we do this with everything, common sense still needs to come into play,
BUT if there is a product that you must use daily, that you are expecting to play a major role in your
personal health and/or that you support because of your commitment to good environmental practices,
then you might want to look into the situation a bit deeper.
Also, just because someone has said it is so, it is not always the case. Fabrication, deceptive studies,
and white washing are not beneath the ethical and business practices of some. My teenage daughter
and I were in a discussion the other day about something. Her outraged response to me was, “Mom, t
he government wouldn’t lie.” I told her- “Do your homework before you invest in that kind of belief.”
Vote with your $$$’s
Money talks. Business listens when money talks. Especially when it involves how much their bottom
line is affected. Use your cash to support what you believe in. Some of the simple solutions: Buy
from the small local businessman struggling to make a difference, make donations to the organization
whose work you support, think about the business, ethical, and environmental practices supported
by the merchants/retailers you frequent, and try to remain congruent. It is not always easy, convenient,
or financially discounted, but in the end we either pay now or pay later!
Educate Yourself
Education isn’t something you receive, but rather-- it is something you achieve. This comes from
some of the items mentioned above, particularly when we challenge our typical way of thinking and
begin the process of investigation. Sources where we receive our information should be varied and
not dependent on only what the mainstream news resources want to feed us. The alternative news
media provides the other side of the coin, as well as topics of information that are excluded from
mainstream coverage.
Our job then is to sift through and find our own truth. There are some great websites dedicated to
just this type of thing. Other sources that provide a good basis for education seekers: World
Watch Magazine, ACRES newspaper, Mother Earth Journal, Union of Concerned Scientists, and
the Environmental Working Group.
In addition attend classes and workshops focusing on the varied topics relating to improving personal
health and environmental practices. Talk with people who are knowledgeable and experienced in these
areas but may be taking a new twist on things. Seek out the visionaries to discuss and exchange views.
So why not start today? Topple over that box, crawl out and look at the world with your brand new set of
eyes! Before you know it, you will not just be adopting but instead living a PRO-ACTIVE lifestyle.