Here’s a statistic that may be hard to believe: There were more than 6.9 billion subscriptions for cell phones around the world in 2014, yet only 4.5 billion people have access to working toilets. While the estimated 3.5 billion people without toilets are at risk for health problems, so are the 6.9 billion with cell phones.
For many women, the beauty of a manicure and pedicure comes at a terrible price. Although those who are on the receiving end of these beauty treatments face some health risks, the price is mostly paid by those who provide these salon services, and the cost can include devastating health problems and even death. In addition, the women often are forced to work excessively long hours, without pay during training, and below minimum wage once they are hired.
For decades we’ve been told to eat less cholesterol and saturated fat because they can cause or contribute to heart disease. Recently, however, these recommendations have been thrown out the window by some experts while the so-called real culprit—carbohydrates—are tossed to the lions. So, are cholesterol and saturated fat your friends while whole-grain bagels and organic quinoa are your enemies? Before you decide to make burgers and steaks a regular part of your diet or become distressed because you are a vegetarian or vegan, let’s take a closer look at what is being reported.
The publicity and interest in “going green” has increased awareness to serious environmental issues surrounding global warming. However, genetically modified organisms (GMOs)—also called genetically modified foods or GM foods—are another significant environmental issue that has disappeared in the shadows lately. What Are GMOs? Genetically modified organisms are created by taking genes from organisms such as bacteria, viruses or animals and inserting them into other, often unrelated, species. GM food refers to any food product containing or is derived from GMOs.
Today’s seriously deceptive food marketing means that reading front labels and nutritional labels isn’t enough. To avoid choosing seriously deceiving “healthy foods,” consumers need to be aware of culprits listed in the ingredients. My son and I found this out the hard way a few months ago when we were at a local health foods store. I had to tell him that a food company was trying to mislead consumers and that in fact, the word GMO circled with a red slash across it didn’t actually mean that a food was GMO-free.
I'm an avid label reader. In fact, I was given the nickname "Inspector Label" many years ago because of my passion for calling out harmful ingredients lurking in our foods (and because it would take me three hours to walk through a grocery store because I had to read every label onevery single product I was interested in buying!). In fact, that's what prompted me to write our book, Unjunk Your Junk Food, Healthy Alternatives to Conventional Snacks.
Nail polish is a luxury that some women can't live without. While some choose to glam it up in today's world, it's a kind of tribal decoration that undoubtedly once carried a lot more significance than we give it credit for. However those natural dyes and resins our ancestors once used to color themselves with have been replaced by harsh chemicals. Think your nail polish is safe and just a harmless indulgence? Guess again. Check out some of these ingredients that could be in your favorite nail polish.
Last year I was invited to an editor's summit in New Mexico hosted by Heel Inc. While out for dinner one night, I was sitting next to two people I had just met hours earlier, Suzy and Sam Cohen (Suzy is America's Pharmacist and a best selling author and Sam is her amazing husband, a chiropractor and president of her company). The waiter took our orders, and when my meal arrived I reached into my purse and pulled out a tiny salt shaker that I carry around with me because I refuse to eat bleached white table salt. My salt shaker had high quality, air-dried sea salt which contained 75+ minerals. When I looked over at Suzy, she had a huge smile on her face, and not a moment later, pulled out her own tiny salt shaker that contained the same salt as mine! As you can imagine, we became instant friends.