My Natural Bathroom!

"There's Lead in Your Lipstick" is a new book hitting top sellers lists quickly and leaving me on a library hold list for longer than I'm used to waiting. It's a great book, and the thing I'm most excited for is the resulting awareness of the public in regards to the chemical toxicity of mainstream make up and hygiene products. I haven't read the whole thing yet, and I don't agree with everything she writes, but it prompted me to write you a list of things I use every morning. Make that, every morning that I actually will myself to get in the shower.

Yes to Cucumbers shampoo and Yes to Carrots conditioner:
I'm a strong believer that your hair is healthier if you don't wash it every day or even every two days, so I get by using shampoo probably once a week and just rinsing with water in between. When I do think my roots need a scrub, and it'll take more than baking soda solution or soap bar, I reach for these products because they are a mix good of decent ingredients and excellent result. Some natural shampoos and conditioners I've used are garbage and I don't think it's worth the effort if they don't have any effect. You can find them in any Shoppers Drug Mart.

Soap Works simple bar soap:
I switch between varieties - I like them all. Right now I'm using their pine tar and I have a bar of chamomile in the shower too. They made good honest soaps, cold-pressed method I believe and they're cheap as heck. You can buy them at Quarter Master or the Bulk Barn.

Homemade tinted moisturizer:
For this concoction I simply saved an old pot from a night cream and filled it with a brew of: face cream, sunscreen and a few pumps of foundation. It doesn't give me a lot of coverage but I don't really need it. I'm particularly prone to sun burning right now (if it weren't snowing) because I'm pregnant, so even though I love my vitamin D, I put a little SPF on the face for good measure.

Lavera Intense Volume mascara:
It was a miracle to find a 100% chemical-free mascara that actually works. It is organic, vegan & cruelty free with no parabens, petrochemicals or toxic chemicals.

JASON Sea Fresh toothpaste:
I'm addicted to this product, I'll never switch to anything else (OK fine, I sometimes use Weleda Calendula toothpaste and Hakeem's herbal). It tastes so good, cleans so well and has great ingredients.

Lastly,

Green Beaver Wild Yam deodorant:
I'm going to go out on a limb and say that Green Beaver is the best company on the planet. Honestly, they're from Ontario, they made amazing things that work and use all natural ingredients. This deodorant is my recommendation for anyone who wants to get away from cancer-causing ingredients living under their arms. Buy one today!

The Homeopathic "Flu Shot"

Homeopathic medicine is something that deserves the following caution:

I don't understand as much as I'd like. I know that it's safe, I know that it works. Beyond that, I'm only attempting to be right.

The way I've been taught it, the premise of homeopathic medicine is the philosophy "like cures like". Some one, long ago, realized that things that cause symptoms (poison ivy causing a rash, for example) when diluted and taken as a small dose, can actually cure that symptom. It isn't really the same science as vaccinations that cause your body to react and then learn, this is on so much of a smaller scale that there's no way it could prompt your body's immune response. Rather the energies work to eliminate the symptom. (For more on my beliefs and struggles with energy medicine - request a blog about it!)

Certain ingredients (bee pollen, ragweed, tree bark) are put into a series of dilutions, are tapped when they decant, and are packaged as small pellets (there are liquids and others available) that you take under the tongue as various frequencies. For example, if I noticed bruising from an injury I might take 4 pellets of Arnica Montana, 30c (the potency), every 2 hours until I notice the bruising going down. I use a preparation called Traumeel on Calvin's foot inflammation after he plays hockey and I used other remedies when I was suffering from tooth pain. One that I know of, Acetea Ramosa (probably the wrong spelling, sorry) , can help induce labour in someone past their due date and even help with the pains of it.

Homeopathics are safe in every situation I can think of, including during pregnancy, and for young children. They don't interact with other medicines. And they work every time I've used them. The reason why they haven't received more attention is that there are no major companies backing them up with research and promotion dollars. Talk to anyone who has used them and they'll promote them for free.

One homeopathic remedy that really gets my attention is Influenzium. It is, more or less, an alternative to the flu shot. Depending on your preparation, you can take either one tube per week for six weeks and it will cover you for the entire winter season, or you can receive a one-time dose from a homeopathic professional, and it will also cover you for the season.

Today, the health food store I work full-time at is offering the flu dose for free from 11am to 3pm to anyone who wants it. A hospital in my home city that forces its workers to get the flu shot in order to work has recently recognized this method as a legitimate alternative and will allow their employees to work if they have chosen this route instead.

So if you don't want the flu, and you don't want the flu shot, try the homeopathic flu dose!