The Tuesday Baby Link-Up : Week 35

Welcome to the Tuesday Baby Link Up!

Yesterday was a public holiday here in South Africa, and our family invited us to enjoy the long weekend at the beach. What a wonderful weekend we had, the weather was warm, almost summery, and it was so nice to get away.

Cloth VS Disposables : Which Are Healthier For Your Baby?

I remember back when I was a teenager, and not a very worldly one at that, I used to cover my ears in horror when my mother would recount stories of using cloth diapers with myself and my sisters. I remember thinking, how awful! Who wants to fiddle with baby pee and pooh and then try washing it out of the diapers to use them again and again on your baby? Surely that can't be sanitary?

I remember thinking that there is a reason I am living in the 21st century, and I may as well enjoy all the modern conveniences of disposables...

As I grew older and wiser I became more and more saddened by our 'throw-away' lifestyle and its impact on the earth. Disposable diapers are a huge contributor to our world's trash problem. It is estimated that 18 billion disposable diapers are thrown in landfills each year. There are many, many more ways in which disposables are taxing on the earth, for more information read my article, Lightening My Footprint with Cloth.

When I discovered I was pregnant I started researching my options in this department, and was overjoyed to find out that there are more convenient and attractive cloth options than the white terry cloth squares used on myself by my mother years ago. Cloth diapers have lately become rather fashionable. But, are they healthier?

Source: African Babies Don't Cry

Cloth diapers are made of natural fabrics, some more natural (unbleached bamboo) than others, which are so much better for your babies skin than the plastic and chemicals found in disposable diapers.

You will be shocked to find out exactly how many chemicals disposable diapers contain, and exactly how harmful they can be. Here are just a few:

• Dioxins: Most disposable diapers are bleached white with chlorine [and many cloth diapers too], resulting in by products called dioxins that leaches into the environment and the diapers. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), dioxins are among the most toxic chemicals known to science and are listed by the EPA as highly carcinogenic chemicals. According to the World Health Organization, exposure to dioxins may cause skin reactions and altered liver function, as well as impairments to the immune system, nervous system, endocrine system and reproductive functions. ¹
• Sodium Polyacrylate: Sodium polycarbonate is a super absorbent chemical compound that is used in the fillers of many disposable diapers. It is composed of cellulose processed from trees that is mixed with crystals of polyacrylate. This chemical absorbs fluids and creates surface tension in the lining of the diaper to bind fluids and prevent leakage. Sodium polyacrylate is often visible as small gel-like crystals on the skin of babies and is thought to be linked to skin irritations and respiratory problems. This chemical was removed from tampons due to toxic shock syndrome concerns. As it has only been used in diapers for the last two decades, there is not yet research on the long-term health effects of sodium polyacrylate on babies.² We do know, however, that in the short term it can cause allergic reactions, severe skin irritations, oozing blood from the perineum and scrotum, fever, vomiting, and staph infections. Sodium polyacrylate has killed children who ingested as little as five grams of the chemical, and it causes health issues in the workers who manufacture it. ³
• Tributyl-tin (TBT): Many disposable diapers contain a chemical called tributyl-tin (TBT). According to the EPA, this toxic pollutant is extremely harmful to aquatic (water) life and causes endocrine (hormonal) disruptions in aquatic organisms. TBT is a polluting chemical that does not degrade but remains in the environment and in our food chain. TBT is also an ingredient used in biocides to kill infecting organisms. Additionally, according to research published by the American Institute of Biological Sciences, tributyl-tin can trigger genes that promote the growth of fat cells, causing obesity in humans.⁴
• Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs): Disposable diapers frequently contain chemicals called volatile organic compounds (VOCs). These include chemicals such as ethylbenzene, toluene, xylene and dipentene. According to the EPA, VOCs can cause eye, nose and throat irritation, headaches, damage to the liver, kidney and central nervous system as well as cancers.

Other chemicals often used in disposable diapers include dyes, fragrances, plastics and petrolatums. Adhesive chemicals are used in the sticky tabs to close the diapers and dyes are used to color and make the patterns and labels that mark diapers. Perfumes and fragrances are used in some disposable diapers to help mask odours.⁵

Certain dyes used to add color to disposable diapers have been shown to cause allergic reactions resulting in rashes. Repeated exposure to the dye can cause a long-term allergy. One study that looked at several babies who suffered from rashes found that the rashes only occurred in places where the skin was in direct contact with the dyed part of the diaper.⁶

One study from 1999 found that test rats exposed to emissions from disposable diapers experienced impaired breathing. Three brands of disposable diapers were used, and two of the three brands were observed to cause "reduced mid-expiratory airflow velocity, sensory irritation, and pulmonary irritation ... and the effects were generally larger during repeat exposures to these emissions." Study authors concluded, "The results demonstrate that some types of disposable diapers emit mixtures of chemicals that are toxic to the respiratory tract. Disposable diapers should be considered as one of the factors that might cause or exacerbate asthmatic conditions."⁷

Source: African Babies Don't Cry

 

Disposable diapers are choking hazards, The Consumer Product Safety Commission reports that an estimated 8,469 incidents involving disposable diapers occurred in the year 2,000 alone. One main risk is that disposable diapers come apart, leaving your baby at risk of choking on the parts of the diaper. The absorbent gel inside the diapers can also cause choking.  ⁸  Unless you are using small clips, cloth diapers are generally not a choking hazard at all.

Babies experience fewer incidences of diaper rash with cloth diapers. Parents are more likely to leave longer periods between disposable diapers because they keep babies dry even after urinating. However, the bacteria and ammonia present in the urine is sitting against your babies' skin, resulting in more frequent cases of diaper rash. The chemicals found in disposable diapers, mixed with urine and faeces also cause diaper rash.

Disposables restrict air flow, resulting in higher scrotal temperatures than in cloth; these high temperatures can impair fertility. ⁹ This may account for the rise in infertility in the last 25 years.

When it is all laid out like this, it is so simple to see exactly why, and how, cloth diapers are the better option for your child's health. Are you a cloth diaper user? What sold you on cloth diapers, their cuteness factor? How much better they are for your baby? Or how much money they save you? I'm a little of all three :)
 

---

1 Noreen Kassem, Chemicals in Disposable Diapers, citations in original ^↩
2 Chemicals in Disposable Diapers ^↩
3 Dionna Ford, Why We Chose Cloth Diapers, Part 2, citations in original^↩
4 Chemicals in Disposable Diapers^↩
5 Chemicals in Disposable Diapers^↩
6 Nick Thorp, Diapers, citations in original ^↩
7 Diapers^↩
8 Chemicals in Disposable Diapers^↩
9 Why We Chose Cloth Diapers^↩

Toddlers' Birthday Parties Made Healthy at Natural Parents Network

I have a post today at Natural Parents Network about Toddlers' Birthday Parties Made Healthy.

Recently, my son, Jesse, turned two. Jesse, however, is unlike most traditional toddlers — he has an awesomely healthy diet, eating only whole foods, high raw, and completely sugar- and dairy-free, so it took a bit of imagination to serve up treats that other toddlers would be happy to tuck into. Don't feel compelled to provide a mountain of treats, most of which will go half-eaten and tossed. A prettily laid out table, with attractive and colorful treats, will make any toddler happy. Continue reading at Natural Parents Network ››

The Tuesday Baby Link-Up : Week 34

Welcome to the Tuesday Baby Link Up!

Explore Your Parenting Through Poetry

By Lauren Wayne

What I love about poetry is how it allows us to view our lives through a different prism: one that breaks apart the pieces of our experience into rainbow colors and then focuses them with clarity that can be blinding in its insight. When I became a parent, it was natural — even necessary — to explore my new adventures (and misadventures) through the lens of poetry.

Did we dream you into existence, or was it more mundane?

When you open yourself up to writing poetry, you open yourself to reexamining and memorializing what was meaningful to you, even the hard moments.

Feeling you leave in a gush of pain and red, in the blackest and loneliest part of the night … Why were we led all that way, and never to see your face?

Poetry gives a voice to the sublime stories you want to retell and re-envision.

You slipped out to our surprise, … a flashing red-purple, wriggling in the water, and finally hauled in, turning it around and catching us in your net

And it elevates the everyday into song.

You sleep beside us for the waking together sun bright you point out and smile.

I've been writing poetry for years — handmade diaries from junior high glittering with stanzas in pink and green ink, earnest fountain-pen scrawls on random pieces of notepaper from college. But nothing has inspired me more than parenting — this wild, enlightening, exhausting, wonderful journey.

What can I learn in two years together (almost three)? What have you changed in me except everything?

Even if you don't consider yourself A Poet, even if you've never written (or read!) a poem in your life, I encourage you — I urge you — to pick up a pen or sit at a keyboard and give it a try. Consider an image, or a moment, and take a walk into your imagination. Describe it, feel it, relive it, and find the meaning for yourself that you can now share with others. As parents, all our writing opportunities are limited and hurried, but a poem is short — and therefore a possibility for an unexpected interlude.

One-handed now, lap filled, breast claimed, you furtively search for the letters, the keys, the strain to capture your thoughts in the dark.

If you'd like some direction, I have a whole month's worth of parenting-poetry prompts from my recent Weekly Parenting Poetry Workshop here. The workshop is over for now, but you can free verse it (so to speak). The writers who came alongside for the workshop didn't consider themselves poets — but look what they created.

Who knew a heart could stretch farther than even the body around it that housed you each in succession? Who knew love could flow out and envelop so big a group — bigger — and never grow anything but thicker, like the blood joining us all together?

Flex your pen, find your voice, and explore your parenting through poetry.  

You can purchase Lauren Wayne's Poetry of a Hobo Mama: The First Three Years at Amazon in hard copy or as an e-book. And for a limited time, Poetry of a Hobo Mama is available as part of the Mindful Parenting eBundle, 20+ gentle parenting resources for one incredible price of $24.95. Buy your copy today, because the bundle with Lauren's book and many others will be available only until June 10.

Lauren Wayne lives and writes in the Pacific Northwestern USA, with her husband, Sam, and their two sweet boys: six-year-old Mikko and two-year-old Alrik. She has been writing and publishing poetry for twenty years, but parenting has added even more inspiration. Lauren blogs at Hobo Mama about natural and attachment parenting, and gives a behind-the-scenes look at writing at LaurenWayne.com. She co-hosts the monthly Carnival of Natural Parenting and is a cofounder of Natural Parents Network, a site that brings together attachment parents interested in a natural lifestyle.  

Photo credits: Author

The Tuesday Baby Link-Up : Week 33

Welcome to the Tuesday Baby Link Up!

If you haven't already, be sure to check out The Mindful Parenting eBundle sale! It is loaded with fantastic parenting resources at an amazing price.

Other exciting news is that I have managed to find water kefir grains for sale in South Africa, so now I can make coconut kefir - will report on how fabulous it is soon :)

GIVEAWAY: The Body Ecology Diet by Donna Gates Book Review {01/07;SA}

Hay House South Africa are offering the chance for TWO readers to each win a copy of Donna Gates's book, The Body Ecology Diet! Read to the end for entry details.

I was so excited to read the recently revised first and most popular of Donna Gates's book, The Body Ecology Diet. It is based on her health philosophy which she has built her booming health empire on, and I have heard so many good things about it from many people I admire and respect, including David Wolfe! 

Nutritionist Donna Gates's explains that all life originally began as or from bacteria, and yet we since the days of Louis Pasteur we have viewed bacteria as the enemy and have created a modern medicine system based on fighting these bacteria. The result? People with poor or non existent inner ecosystems - which are SO essential for digestion, nutrient absorption, our immune system and more!

The Body Ecology Diet is all about balance, getting your body and specifically the microorganisms present in your gut, back into balance, which is essential for the daily functioning of your body. It shows you how to restore your inner ecosystem your body needs to function optimally, and to eliminate and control all those symptoms that rob your life of joy, Body Ecology claims to increase your mental awareness and concentration span, increase your energy and get to your optimum muscle to fat ratio.

I enjoyed reading this book immensely. The title is a bit misleading, as I generally avoid 'fad diet' type books, but The Body Ecology Diet is indeed a well-researched and supported way of life, there is nothing 'fad diet' about it. Donna Gates has spent years researching and studying in the modalities of modern medicine, Chinese medicine and Naturopathy and is a respected author on the topic of Candida overgrowth, probiotics and cultured vegetables. 

I was diagnosed with Candidiasis years ago by a local Naturopath, and I duly cut out sugar and followed a typical 'Candida diet'. I definitely started to feel better, but still carry some of the symptoms today, and I think that Donna really has something different to offer than your average 'Candida diet'. This difference is the quality of research Donna did before writing her book, and her practice as a health consultant helping tons of people overcome Candida and more. Also, her emphasis on cultured vegetables, good quality fats, and the extent in which she recommends going to reduce your sugar and carbohydrate intake makes complete sense to me after my studies in nutrition. 

I found this book really easy to read, easy to use, easy to refer back to recipes and important chapters and it contains lovely charts and infographics. It includes recipes, menu's and shopping lists, and I can recommend it for anyone that suffers with fatigue, general weariness, a poor immune-system and lingering symptoms of any sort.


There is even fantastic and very large online community of support available for followers of The Body Ecology Diet.

You should read this book if...

• You suspect or know you have candidiasis (CRC), chronic fatigue syndrome, cancer, AIDS, or other immune-system deficiencies. 
• You have known or suspected food allergies or frequent digestive problems. 
• You have frequent skin rashes, constipation, or PMS. 
• You are bothered by headaches, or muscle or joint pains. 
• You always seem to be tired, nervous, or depressed, or your memory seems to be poor. 
• You are sensitive to tobacco, perfume or other chemical odours. 
• You have taken birth-control pills. 
• You have been plagued and frustrated by symptoms that persist no matter what you do to get rid of them. 
• You have a history of drug use, including extensive use of antibiotics or illegal drugs.
• You want to ensure the health of your children and other loved ones. 
• You want to prevent major disease that doesn't manifest until years after the seeds have been sown: cancer, AIDS, heart disease. 

BUY IT!

You can purchase your own copy of The Body Ecology Diet online from Hay House South Africa for R 185.95.

WIN IT!

For your own chance to win one of two copies of The Body Ecology Diet, enter by leaving a comment and using the Rafflecopter system below. The winner will receive all three products. Contest is open to SOUTH AFRICA ONLY.   

MANDATORY ENTRY: Visit the Hay House South Africa website and leave a comment here telling me the title of one of their books / products that you would like to read / watch / listen too! You must enter your name and email address in the Rafflecopter entry system for your entry to count, after leaving a comment on this blog post.

Leave a valid email address so I can contact you if you win. Email addresses in Rafflecopter are not made publicly visible. Please leave the same valid email address in your mandatory comment so I can verify entries. You may leave it like this: christine [at] africanbabiesdontcry.com to foil spambots.

BONUS ENTRIES:

See the Rafflecopter entry system for bonus entries to increase your chance of winning after completing the mandatory entry. All bonus entries are entered directly into Rafflecopter. Give it a try, and email or leave a comment if you have any questions!

Contest closes 1 July 2013 at 11:59 p.m. (GMT+2)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

GMO's In South Africa {Jesse's First Show of Activism}

Last weekend Jesse had a great time on what he considered a rather enthusiastic walk, where there was lots of shouting and singing and even two ladies playing the drums (the best part!) Jesse wore his red shirt proudly - because he was happy to be snap with the rest of us, and he danced and sang with glee - thinking, I'm sure, that we should do this every weekend!

The rest of us knew why we were there, to show our support for the anti-GMO movement and to rise against the Monsanto wave washing the earth and particularly Africa.

Maize is a staple food in South Africa, and, horrifically, Monsanto already controls half of the maize seed market, and completely controls the cotton and soya market. Monsanto is one of the most powerful players in the seed business today, but originally made its mark as a chemical giant with strong links to the US army. Monsanto is responsible for the deadly Agent Orange and RoundUp to boot. The reason they have become such a large player in the seed market is because Monsanto was allowed to patent genetically modified seeds which has given them enormous power over farmers.

Listen to this! 

Monsanto has produced crop seed which genetically modified to withstand onslaught by herbicides, in particular their RoundUp - this allows farmers to lower their needed manpower as they can now do aerial sprays of RoundUp killing all the weeds and the crops are unaffected... 

South Africa is now at the complete mercy of Monsanto who decides what kind of seed to make available and at what price. Monsanto has complete rule over GM maize and 77% of maize grown in South Africa is now genetically modified. Monsanto's control over this market has resulted in seed prices rising by over 45% in the last 5 years... the price that farmers has received for their maize has remained the same...

Sound like Monsanto are up to no good? Yeah, I think so too!  

So What Are GMO's?

Genetically modified (GM) foods are derived from organisms whose genetic material (DNA) has been modified by scientists. Currently available GM foods are mostly plant based, but in future GM foods derived from animals are likely to appear on the marketplace. Most GM crops have been modified to increase yield, through the introduction of resistance to plant diseases or improved nutritional content.

All GM foods should be assessed before being allowed on the market. FAO/WHO Codex guidelines exist for risk analysis of GM food, however are these guidelines sufficient?

What I, as a mother, am MOST worried about:

The effects on human health: GM foods have not been proven safe, the organs of rats who ate GM potatoes showed signs of chronic wasting, and female rats fed a diet of herbicide-resistant soybeans gave birth to stunted and sterile pups.

Increased allergies: Allergies are at an all time high in the human races history, thanks to the way our food is currently grown and prepared, between added hormones in meat products, pasturisation of dairy products, processing and the addition of sugar to nearly everything consumed nowadays. It is possible that the addition of foreign genes to food items will cause allergies not even thought of yet.

Many may argue that GM foods have their place, as there are thousands dying from hunger everyday... I agree that this issue needs to be addressed by governments and corporate giants alike - but at the moment the world produces enough food to feed 12 billion people, there are only 7 billion people on the earth and yet 1 billion of them go hungry. The solution is not to produce more food, the solution is end poverty through education, training, job building etc.

Loss of effectiveness of pesticides: Mosquito's in some countries eventually became resistant to the now banned DDT pesticide. Now while I am opposed to pesticides on the whole, the reason I am worried about a loss in effectiveness of pesticides is that scientists will continue to make stronger and stronger chemical concoctions, trying to rid crops of pests, and endangering the lives of everything that inhabits the earth at the same time.

The risk of cross pollination: It is likely that GM crops will cross pollinate with other nearby crops, eventually making all seed available genetically modified!?!!! It is a possibility that no natural corn may be available in 50 (or even less) years time!?!!! What choice will out children and grandchildren have then???

Seed patents do not allow seed to be collected by farmers and re-sown. Poor farmers rely on seed collection, and Monsanto patents will ruin them.

GM foods are regulated, but poorely. Some food suppliers have undertaken to label their products, but many are using this as a marketing ploy, and not committed to providing adequate information.

For me, this is something that science should NOT play with! We are upsetting the delicate balance of nature, illustrated by the Monarch butterflies in America - nearby cotton fields are growing GM cotton seed, with pesticide already in them to kill larvae, the pollen from this cotton travels to the Monarch butterflies where it threatens their caterpillars... Butterfly effect indeed!

What is your stance on GMO's now that you know what they are and what part Monsanto plays in all of this?

For further reading visit the African Centre for Biosafety 

:: Mindful Parenting eBundle Sale! ::

I am so excited to bring the Mindful Parenting eBundle Sale to my readers! I am an info junkie - as are most parents now days, am I right? And this bundle is jam-packed with resources from trusted and respected authors, I am diving right in and can't wait to read them all!

The Mindful Parenting eBundle contains more than 22 carefully selected e-products by renowned authors. Some of these products are only available as a standalone through this bundle! This bundle sale is a one-time opportunity, available only from May 28 to June 10, 2013.

This is a handpicked selection of e-books, workshops, e-magazines, and audio, with themes such as creativity and play, peaceful guidance, mindfulness for mothers, children and food, self-care and relaxation, and more.

22 eProducts with a total value of over $274 USD. That’s approximately $1.13 per eProduct! There are 3 resources for stress relief for parents, 6 peaceful guidance tools, 5 creative play resources, 3 motherhood resources, plus bonus resources and a freebie!

Check out the list of contributors:

1. Parenting for Social Change by Teresa Graham Brett
2. A Unique 7-Step Parenting Tool: Sleep talking by Marcy Axness
3. Relaxation Meditation, audio by Amy Phoenix of Presence Parenting
4. Newbie's Guide to Positive Parenting by Rebecca Eanes of Positive Parents
5. Issue three of the Play Grow Learn magazine by Christie Burnett of Childhood 101
6. Getting Back on Track! Why We Explode and What We Can Do About it, audio by Genevieve Simperingham of Peaceful Parent Institute
7. Stress Relief for parents, audio by Genevieve Simperingham of Peaceful Parent Institute
8. Creative Play Workshop, email course by Gina Kimmel of Connecting Family and Seoul and Katherine Lockett of Creative Playhouse
9. Mindset for Moms by Jamie Martin
10. Moods of Motherhood by Lucy Pearce of Dreaming Aloud
11. 42 Rules for Divorcing with Kids by Melinda Roberts
12. Mommy Overwhelm by Laura Schuerwegen of Authentic Parenting
13. Nurturing Creativity, Guide for Busy Parents by Renee Tougas of Tougas Café
14. The Playful Family by Shawn Ledington Fink
15. Poetry of a Hobo Mama by Lauren Wayne of Hobo Mama
16. Encouraging Words for Kids by Kelly Bartlett of Parenting From Scratch
17. Raising a Creative Kid by Jillian Riley of A Mom With a Lesson Plan
18. Children and Food by Tara Wagner of The Organic Sister
19. Coming of Age, audio by DeAnna L'Am
20. The Parenting Primer, A Guide to Positive Parenting in the First Six Years by Michelle Carchrae of The Parent Vortex
21. API Live! Teleseminar Series: “8 Principles of Attachment Parenting” by Attachment Parenting International

Plus a lovely freebie by Jennifer Saleem of Hybrid Rasta Mama: The Mindful Mothering Challenge.

This bundle is available for 14 days only from MAY 28 to JUNE 10.

After that, these products will never be sold together again at this price!

Disclosure: Mindful Nurturing links are affiliate links.

The Tuesday Baby Link-Up : Week 32

Welcome to the Tuesday Baby Link Up!

What a wonderful, busy, warm weekend we had. On Saturday we took part in the Durban March Against Monsanto - Jesse's first show of activism :) We then visited Dovehouse Organics in Howick which also has a lovely restaurant - although we didn't stay for dinner, and we all tasted Kombucha for the first time - Jess loved it!

I am taking part in amazing life coaching sessions with Jennifer Jimenez of Lets Dance Together, and I just love her - she is so calm, serene and bubbly all at the same time, just inspiring! At the moment she has an offer running where you can get a complimentary Vision Based Dream Building 7 Day Program! Head over here to sign up!