Read 'n' Seed : 2nd Quarter of "Exposed"

Recap of 1st part:
So in the 1st quarter of the book the author mainly talked about the political points dealing with the toxic chemicals.  Also, how Europe is the main leader worldwide in going green in their industry.  The United States is lagging behind in Step forward to think ecologically.


2nd Quarter:
 The 2nd part of the book mainly focuses on all the chemicals in everyday products and all the different effects.  From certain lipstick to being carcinogenic to plastics causing infertility and male reproduction malfunctions.
There is a whole chapter devoted to Phthalates, which is a chemical that makes plastic flexible.  The stuff is in virtually everything around is and is linked to a lot of health problems going on in the U.S. today!


Conflicts:
This is an interesting book but it is hard to focus on it when I'm reading.  He uses a lot of really big words all the time and it makes it hard to just relax and read it.  But I'm trucking through!  Hopefully it gets a little more interesting, or at least he starts talking in layman's terms!

Pam

Share and Voice: UMD Smoking Policy Forum

So, I decided to go to the forum,  I saw a few others there and was really proud of everything everyone in my class had to say.  Go ASHLEY!... she even got an applause from everyone. 
What I said: 
I stated that I am an ex-smoker but still have an occasional social cigarette in the appropriate setting.  I also stated I am in favor of a 100% smoke-free campus, but believe it needs to be enforced and not just based on honest, because honestly thats not working.  I then asked how anyone thinks that a designated smoking area is actually designated, because although the smokers (if they actually stay in their "area") may be in a place, but that doesn't mean the smoke is actually going to stay there.  And the fact that if people are standing outside smoking, or sitting in their cars smoking they are then coming into class, giving off 3rd hand smoke.  Which in recent years has also been proven harmful!


Conflicts:
One guy was making it very obvious that he thought it was his "right" to smoke.  Well with his right to smoke he is affecting other peoples right to NOT smoke, so he can go find a secluded are with an ashtray somewhere and smoke, where he's not gonna make everyone else breathe it in, thats what I think.

I had to leave a little early so if anyone could update me on what happened all in all that would be great!

Pam

Eco Chic Lifestyle Change: Week Four

My SMART Goal:

I will only eat 1 Four oz. serving of Red meat per week (seven days.)

Challenges:

This weekend I went to the cities for a wedding.  When I chose my meal 2 months ago I signed up for Filet Mignon.  So when my waitress came I asked her if I could change to vegetable ravioli.  That was hard because when my brother got his beef tenderloin I was VERY jealous haha.  But the vegetable ravioli was delicious.

My Serving for the week:

On Sunday morning I ate 2 pieces of bacon.  Even though that is probably one of the most processed red meats you can find it was DELICIOUS, and in extreme moderation I feel okay about it.... then I had a bite of my friend's cheeseburger at lunch.  So I doubt that is over 4 oz.

Upcoming week:

I hope to keep up the good work!

Pam


Blogged for the Eco-Chic Lifestyle Change Week 4 hosted by Amy@Eco-Chic with Amy.

Eye Opener: Environmental Working Group

AAAAAAHHHHH!
So I chose to do my evaluation on my foundation.  I use Bareminerals, which is a product of Bare Escentuals. Thinking that I would finally get a good report on something I do in my life, I was so wrong. 
This is how the company describes the product:
"It began with Bare Escentuals' introduction of our bareMinerals SPF 15 Foundation. Made from 100% pure bareMinerals it’s free of preservatives, oil, fragrance, talc and other skin irritants. Millions of women who discovered bareMinerals have fallen in love with the look of beautifully bare skin. With bareMinerals, your search for the perfect foundation is over."
 So when I see this description I would have never guessed the results the Environmental Working Group gave me. 
This product contains ingredients that have been linked to Cancer, Developmental and Reproductive Toxicity, Allergens and immunotoxicity, along with a bunch of other crazy problems. 
I am pretty disappointed in how this site is laid out, and I kinda feel like I'm to dumb to actually process everything it says.  But the gist of it is that my foundation, on a scale of 1-10 has a score of 3 for being hazardous for these side effects.  3 might not seem like a big number but I don't know why I would put something with ANY sort of risk on my face.  I will definitely be shopping for some new foundation.

<------ apparently NOT!

Pam