Happy Nails

There's nothing quite like getting a manicure. Whether you have a standing appointment every Saturday or reserve it for a special occasion, it leaves you feeling beautiful and totally together (until you decide not to wait those last two minutes under the dryer and go for your keys, smudging at least two nails in the process).

When I get a manicure and the color I've chosen is absolutely spot on, the coating is perfectly even and not a smudge to be found, I leave the salon on top of the world. I've actually caught myself in meetings, completely oblivious to my surroundings, holding my hand out and admiring my own manicure....the way the light makes the nail shimmer, my sublime choice of color....please tell me I'm not the only one!

But, what I didn't know until recently, is that beautiful color just might be the bearer of much evil! As is the theme with most of my posts, you can imagine how upset I was when I started reading about what was actually in that beautiful, glossy coat bejeweling my digits! Of course I never pretended to assume nail polish was a health product, but what I didn't know is that it potentially contained a cocktail of very harmful chemicals! And, like your skin, your nail bed absorbs anything that's on it directly into your blood stream.

When I started to really think about it, I realized how many times in one month I was wearing nail polish and wondered just what kind of chemicals we were talking about. I did a little research and found out. Let me start with some of the biggest offenders:

Toluene: This is a nervous system toxin that helps nail polish go on smoothly. It's also used as an octane booster in gasoline. It can cause eye irritation, headaches, dizziness, nausea and, in high exposure situations, liver and kidney damage and possibly birth defects.
Formaldehyde: I think we all have a pretty healthy negative association with this chemical...but if for some reason it doesn't conjure images of pickled animals in jars.....it's a known carcinogen and in low doses can irritate the nose, throat and skin.
Dibutyl phthalate (DBP): A phthalate which adds flexibility and a moisturizing sheen to the polish, and helps dissolve other cosmetic ingredients. DBP is a reproductive and developmental toxin that has been linked to feminizing effects in baby boys.

It turns out the industry has acted responsibly and most major brands have removed many of these harmful ingredients. A few years back OPI nail polish was identified as being one of the most toxic brands on the market and was pressured by The Campaign For Safer Cosmetics to remove DBP and reformulate their product to use safer chemicals. OPI was already making safer products for the European market in compliance with EU law (which had banned DBP years before), but was resistant to making the change for the US. After enough pressure though, they announced they were removing DBP from their products.

The great news is today OPI offers polish free of DBP, toluene and formaldehyde. Almost all major brands now offer polishes that are free of the 'toxic trio'. But you should always check the label to make sure.

There are also brands on the market which are not only free of the 'toxic trio' but are also water based, which means they are made up primarily of water instead of other chemicals. That means when the nail polish dries there are way less chemical vapors let out into the air. Some good brands are: Suncoat, Zoya, Priti NYC, Acquarella and Safe Nail Polish.

Honestly, once I started researching this topic, I found there is no easy solution. Although most products are free of the 'toxic trio', and some are water based and try to use less chemicals, it seems the general consensus is that nail polish, any way you paint it, is not the best thing to be wearing. No matter what, there are going to be some chemicals in it that will either absorb into your skin, or evaporate into the air. We've all noticed the overwhelmingly chemical smell in the air at our favorite nail salon, and there definitely is a reason for that. But, what we can do is always make sure we buy polish that is free of the 'toxic trio' and try and support brands that are taking steps to provide cosmetics without a cost to our health.

There are also a number of salons popping up that offer not only less toxic nail polish options, but organic and chemical free nail polish removers, cuticle treatments, lotions, and waxes. Here are some quick links to salons in a city near you:
LA
http://www.ecovian.com/s/losangeles/nail-salons

San Francisco
http://www.ecovian.com/s/sanfrancisco/nail-salons

New York
http://www.ecovian.com/s/newyork/nail-salons

San Jose
http://www.ecovian.com/s/sanjose/nail-salons

Portland
http://www.ecovian.com/s/portland-or/nail-salons

Unfortunately the FDA is pretty lax at regulating what chemicals go into our cosmetics. The European Union has outlawed many chemicals that the U.S. currently allows. You can participate in urging the FDA to get more serious about the safety of our cosmetics by signing this petition at The Campaign For Safer Cosmetics. Another great site is Skin Deep, where you can get information and health safety ratings on almost all beauty products.

In the end, it's not easy, but it seems the best solution is to take a little time and research the products you are buying. Change is possible, as seen by the positive steps OPI took and the result of the rest of the industry following suit.

Here's to happy, polished and safe nails for all of us!

The Not-So-Sweet Side of Chocolate

Just wanted to re-post a link to an important article about slave labor in the cocoa industry...If anyone has anymore info on this pls don't hesitate to share!

Cracking the Egg Industry

In light of the recent Easter holiday, I would like to pay tribute to one of it's major stars...no, not Jesus,...the next most important player...the egg. Remember the tagline from the campaign put out by the egg industry in the 90's, 'The incredible, edible egg'? The campaign that brought the public back from it's all encompassing fear of the egg and it's heart-stopping cholesterol levels? They did a fantastic job, the idea of the egg as a killer is a thing of the past.

Now it's touted as a pumped up protein vehicle delivering your body all of the nutrition it could possibly need! Truth be told eggs are a fantastic source of protein, vitamins, minerals and omega 3 fatty acid. They are easy, delicious and affordable. And if you are a vegetarian or infrequent meat eater they are your go-to source for protein.

Eggs are incredible, but, unfortunately the egg producers responsible for delivering those 'farm fresh' eggs to our local supermarkets are not incredible at all. The egg industry is fraught with factory farms that practice inhumane egg production.

The two most common ways to house hens are in battery cages or Cage-Free. Battery cages are truly a horrible life for a hen. They are placed in a small cage with 5-11 other hens, they can't spread their wings and often have their feet or heads and necks caught in the cage wires and die a slow death, being trampled, clawed and pecked by their cage mates and unable to reach food or water.

They become sick and stressed losing their feathers and sustaining injuries that don't heal. In order to keep the hens laying eggs beyond their natural cycle, they are starved of food and water for up to two weeks to induce molting. Often the dead birds remain in the cage with the live birds for weeks before an employee removes them.

An undercover video and report has recently been released showing a true look at the conditions and abuses of two of the largest egg producers in the country, Rose Acre Farms and Rembrandt Enterprises. I encourage you to watch this video, it isn't the most pleasant thing to see but it's worth watching. I think it is truly important for consumers to understand the reality behind the products they are buying.

Cage-Free is a term most of us are used to hearing and offers many of us some comfort when we make our egg purchase. But unfortunately this term doesn't truly mean the chicken's life is comfortable. The factory farms often get their hens from hatcheries where the male chicks are routinely discarded without being killed and the hen's are de-beaked, a painful mutilation where a portion of their beaks are cut off. Also Cage-Free means they are not in cages but are still crammed in large hen houses with no access to the out-doors. Here's a great link describing the basic differences between battery cages and cage-free.

Regardless of your position on animal welfare in the factory farming industry,
I would hazard a guess that no one would like to eat an egg that has rolled past, or perhaps over, the carcass of a dead bird (as seen in this picture taken from a video on the Humane Society website).

This image is just so contrary to the images we have of happy hens in front of a red farm house. And personally, I prescribe to the belief that because my food is energy, and it has come from a live animal or plant, it contains the energy of it's creator. If the bird that laid my egg lived a life full of pain and fear I honestly have to question if that effected the quality of the egg that I am putting in my body.

It's very challenging to truly know what you are getting when you buy your food. The messages on the packaging can be incredibly misleading. Here is a link though that can help you to decipher the different call outs on egg packaging, from 'Cage Free' to 'Natural'.

Don't forget too that the egg industry is no different than any other, and is looking to make a profit. This article is over a year old but is pretty disturbing. It discusses an allegation that the United Egg Producers were price fixing eggs by creating bogus animal welfare certification standards that allowed them to charge more for their product by misleading customers into thinking the product was more ethical than it really was.

Also, if you watched the video, you may choose not to purchase eggs from Rose Acre Farms until they make some changes. Here's a list of some of their brands to avoid. In the meantime many large companies like Mc Donalds and I-HOP are being pressured to switch to Cage-Free eggs. A cage-free life is by no means a good life for a chicken, but at least it's a step in the right direction and is better than a battery cage. You can call or write to any of these companies urging them to make the switch to Cage-Free eggs.

I believe humanely produced eggs are out there. I think it just requires a little bit of research. Go to your local farmers market and ask the farmers questions directly. Find out if they sell to local grocery stores if you aren't able to make it to the farmer's market. You can also ask if they supply to any local restaurants in your area.

I go to the Santa Monica farmer's market on the weekend to purchase my eggs. I buy from two different farms who sell there, Lily's Eggs & Healthy Family Farms and pay $4.25 - $4.50 for a dozen. This is a bit pricey, but I would rather pay more and eat less to keep smaller farms who are treating their animals with compassion in business, and provide myself with good karma food!

And if all of this hasn't convinced you yet, check out this site that lists the many benefits of eggs from pasture raised hens as opposed to factory farm confined hens!

This was a long post, but I feel it's an important one (aren't they all ;). Egg laying hen's are some of the most abused animals in the factory farming industry. I think this can change if we do a little research and as always, speak and vote with our dollars.

So, here's to healthier eggs and happier healthier hens!

Enjoy!