In our dream life, we’re the kind of person who can be showered, dressed and ready in 15 minutes. Our lifelong enslavement to the blow dryer prevented that dream from coming true. Recently, however, we’ve (pardon the pun) cut the cord on that relationship and it made us wonder if there were other ways we could rethink our grooming habits to make them more eco-friendly…
- Cut out the blow dryer: Rethink your hair style so that air drying’s an option. We splurged on a pricey hair procedure called the Brazilian Blowout. What we paid out in cash we’ve more than made up for in time and energy saved (no more 45 minute blow outs to tax our patience and the power grid).
- Shorten your showers: Do you really need to take a half hour hot shower? Use a timer, take a Navy shower or install a pause button so you can turn off the water while you soap up or lather your hair. You might also consider showering less often, especially in the winter when the water will rinse off the natural oils that keep your skin and hair from drying out.
- Hair removal: Pamper yourself with a real shave; use a real razor and tub soap instead of foam and eliminate the need for disposable razors, have your legs waxed or wax them yourself. I use a old fashioned safety razor, blades have cost me about .75 a year!
- It’s that time: Yes, even the most intimate grooming rituals can been greened.
- Nails: Instead of polish, try having your nails buffed to a high sheen. It’s healthier for you and for the environment.
- Toothpaste: Try a natural toothpaste like Tom’s or go the simplest route and try baking soda.
- Change your grooming products: Instead of chemically laden products, try organic ones, including organic makeup; instead of pricey creams and masques, look into products you can make from the ingredients in your refrigerator or pantry. Look at the ingredients in your shampoo and conditioner.
Here’s a link to my articles on Going Green with cosmetics and beauty care products, and my recommendations.
Also, here is my recipe for skin cleanser; it’s all natural, no chemicals, doesn’t strip your skin of essential oils and leaves it moist (honey is a humectant, it draws moisture to your skin.) The baking soda is both a fruit acid and an exfolient.
Millie’s Skin Cleanser
3 cup water
2 cups baking soda
1/2 teaspoon almond oil
2 drops lavender essential oil
1 ½ cup honey
1 Tbsp. Dr. Bonners Almond liquid soap
1/2 teaspoon vegetable glycerin
1 teaspoon ascorbic acid powder
1 teaspoon Salicylic acid
3 Tablespoons Xantham gum
On low heat, combing all ingredients except honey. Remove from heat and let cool. Add honey. Apply to the skin like a soap and rinse off with tepid water.
[image: Helga's Lobster Stew's Flickr with a Creative Commons License]
Filed under: Food and it's Impact on Our Health
Oh, Happy Day!!!
ScienceDaily (Nov. 12, 2009) — The "chocolate cure" for emotional stress is getting new support from a clinical trial published online in ACS’ Journal of Proteome Research. It found that eating about an ounce and a half of dark chocolate a day for two weeks reduced levels of stress hormones in the bodies of people feeling highly stressed. Everyone’s favorite treat also partially corrected other stress-related biochemical imbalances.
Sunil Kochhar and colleagues note growing scientific evidence that antioxidants and other beneficial substances in dark chocolate may reduce risk factors for heart disease and other physical conditions. Studies also suggest that chocolate may ease emotional stress. Until now, however, there was little evidence from research in humans on exactly how chocolate might have those stress-busting effects.
In the study, scientists identified reductions in stress hormones and other stress-related biochemical changes in volunteers who rated themselves as highly stressed and ate dark chocolate for two weeks. "The study provides strong evidence that a daily consumption of 40 grams [1.4 ounces] during a period of 2 weeks is sufficient to modify the metabolism of healthy human volunteers," the scientists say.
