Project: Green Living

So, you have your reusable shopping bags now, you’re headed to the market in your fancy new hybrid car and you and the kids are wearing organic cotton t-shirts that you washed in organic, biodegradable laundry detergent in your high efficiency washing machine. Are you missing anything Ms. Green? Well, that depends on whether or not you’re buying as much locally grown foods as you can.

It’s fantastic that you’ve made some changes, especially the choice to ditch the plastic and paper and use reusable bags, but you can go one step further quite simply and begin to purchase food from stores that bring in locally grown products.

Here’s five good reasons why you should:

1. Less fuel for transportation and cost cutting by eliminating the middle man.

2. Locally grown is usually organic which has less negative environmental impact than conventional farming.

3. You are supporting local business, which stimulates your direct economy

4. You are taking away from the large conventional farmers and contributing to the small farmers.

5. Your produce will be far fresher which translates to healthier, tastier food and a reduction of spoilage.

It’s really great to do our part in helping the planet. It’s unfortunate that it took us so long to realize the harm that we are causing on our planet, but thankfully people are taking steps in the right direction. When you made the simple decision to switch from plastic bags to reusable shopping bags, you contributed to saving sea turtles, whales, birds, and other marine life as well as reduced your city’s money spent on dealing with excessive plastic bags. It’s estimated that it costs city governments as much as seventeen cents per bag to clean up the bags that litter our streets and suburbs.

When we do our part to help the planet, we benefit so much more! Visit your local markets that support local farming as well as farmer’s markets. It’s a great green change!

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Studies show that more than adults, children are extremely vulnerable to chemicals used in foods. They tend to eat more pesticides then adults because they are inclined to eat more in ratio of their body weight. Children are usually picky about what they like to eat and favor some foods over others which results in a higher level of accumulation of one particular type of pesticide. They bear the full brunt of its harmful effects in the absence of fully developed detoxification system the chemicals keep collecting in their small bodies. It is argued that the main cause of pesticide related cancer is the toxins accumulated during childhood.

There is no denying the superiority of organically grown food over conventionally grown. It does not only taste much better but it’s also better for the environment and our health. Parents are becoming more aware of the benefits of organic products vs. synthetic and since they want what’s best for their children, and have started turning towards the former. Food children prefer like peanut butter and ketchup has also starting to be made organically by some manufacturers.

It’s not only food habits that have changed. Products like shampoos and soaps used by children have also started coming with 100% organic labels. These products are used regularly and are absorbed by the skin in some cases. If made with harsh chemicals they can wreak havoc with a child’s sensitive hair and skin.
Parents must ensure that not only should they feed their children organic, but also teach them its importance so they can make healthy choices.

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