One of the more complicated green living decisions in our household each year is choosing sunscreen. That might sound a bit ridiculous but based on a lot of recent research, making a choice can be quite difficult. Here’s why: Sunscreen contains toxins that can be harmful when absorbed through your skin; your sunscreen is likely to be much less effective than the SPF rating leads you to believe; chances are it won’t protect you from harmful UVA rays; and the higher the SPF you choose the more time you’re probably going to spend in the sun slathered in a false sense of security.

These are the findings of Environmental Working Group’s (EWG) fourth annual review of sunscreen. For this year’s report they analyzed 500 sunscreens, including all of the major brands, and rated them according to their safety and effectiveness.  EWG isn’t trying to scare us away from sunscreen (although that might be your first reaction) their goal is to help us choose our sunscreen very carefully. 

Potentially hazardous oxybenzone is an ingredient in about 60% of the sunscreens tested. It’s a hormone-disruptor that gets absorbed into your body through your skin. About 41% of sunscreens tested also contain a form of vitamin A called retinyl palmitate (a compound that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration found could promote the development of skin cancer because of the way it reacts with sunlight.)

Studies show that on average we only apply about a quarter of the amount we should to get the SPF protection promised and we don’t reapply often enough to sustain protection. Even if you apply and reapply as directed your brand still may not protect you against UVA radiation, the sunlight that doesn’t cause burns but still damages your skin.

And finally, studies have also shown that those who choose sunscreen with a really high SPF rating spend a lot longer in the sun than those who sport products with a lower SPF.

Before you stress out over what to slather on this summer remember that there are plenty of ways to stay safe in the sun, with and without sunscreen. 

Cover up with clothing and a hat to protect your skin from the sun. (Sunscreen should never be your first or only line of defense against the sun.) MEC has a great selection of sun shirts that block 98% of UV rays and eliminate the effort of applying sunscreen. 

Search EWG’s database of sunscreens to find a safe and effective brand of sunscreen. EWG has slotted brands into three categories: green for recommend, yellow for caution and red for avoid.  The database also provides a UVA and UVB protection rating and rates how well the sunscreen holds up in the sun.  

I searched some of the most common brands around and found that Coppertone Water Babies (the pink bottle) offers excellent UVB protection, good UVA protection, excellent stability (doesn’t breakdown in the sun) and has a moderate toxicity rating of 3, just one point out of the “recommend” zone. Be sure to buy the cream, not the aerosol. This is by far the easiest sunscreen to find and is great for people of all ages (not just kids).

My best find yet is the Badger Sunscreen Face Stick. It offers good UVB coverage, excellent UVA protection, excellent stability and a low toxicity rating of 1. (Check your local health food store for this brand).

I recently read that the average adult uses nine personal care products each day which combined contain about 120 chemicals. If you’d like to reduce the number of chemicals in your life choosing more natural versions of these everyday products is your best route.  

A case in point is shaving. It’s something that most men do on a daily basis and hardly give a second thought but it is worth thinking about if you’re using conventional shaving products.  

Conventional shaving creams usually contain synthetic chemicals that could be carcinogenic, hormone disrupting and at the very least irritating. The synthetic fragrance alone could cause reproductive problems, as do the preservatives (called parabens).  Some studies have also linked these chemicals to liver and kidney tumours. Using warm water to prep your skin for shaving opens your pores, making it easier for these toxins to penetrate your skin and build up in your body over time.

My top pick for a non-toxic eco-friendly shave is shaving soap, along with a shaving brush. Forget the perception that using old fashioned shaving soap takes more time. It takes all of ten seconds to create a thick creamy lather in the soap dish and it’s quick and easy to apply. The rest is the same: Shave. Rinse. Go about your day.

Olivier shaving soap is a great choice. It’s truly natural (made with olive oil, cocoa butter, beeswax and fragrant oil), costs $9.95 and lasts practically forever. Their soaps are hand-made in small batches at their soapery in Ste. Anne de Kent, New Brunswick. 

The chemicals in conventional shaving products aren’t the only un-green aspect of the daily ritual. Half a billion razors and all that packaging get tossed out by Canadians each year. Here are a few things you can do to ensure you’re not adding to the pile:

Choose reusable razors instead of disposable razors and buy good quality blades so they last longer. To extend the life of your blade consider buying an EverBlade, a razor blade stand designed to repel rust and corrosion from the blade. Electric razors are a good alternative too (buy the corded kind) and there is always a straight razor but you’ll need nerves of steel until you get the hang of it.

With Father’s Day just around the corner consider giving one of these eco options as a gift this year. 

I love the smell of fresh-cut grass but don’t care for all that goes along with it: the noise, the exhaust fumes, the smell of spilled gasoline.

 Gas-powered mowers pollute way beyond their worth. An hour of mowing with a traditional gas-powered mower pollutes as much as driving 320 kilometers in a typical car. So throughout the mowing season obsessive mowers could be polluting the equivalent of a 4,000 km road trip while never leaving the yard. Environment Canada estimates emissions from off-road engines (lawn mowers included) make up about 9% of Canada’s total greenhouse gas emissions. On top of this, millions of gallons of gas are spilled each year by owners refilling their mowers.

Mowing may be a necessary evil but there are less evil ways to cut the grass. A goat would be my preferred but for all sorts of practical reasons that solution doesn’t suit our household (or neighbourhood).

For several years we used a reel mower – one of those old-fashioned-looking push mowers. The new versions are much lighter than the tank I recall in the corner of our basement when I was little. A reel mower is great for biceps, and offers a practical solution for nice flat lawns that aren’t too big. They’re quiet enough for early morning mowing and don’t pollute. Ours however became too much work for our large bumpy yard. Based on observation (I don’t mow, I garden) lawn mowing as an athletic workout for my husband lost its charm after five summers of pushing.

Figuring we needed a new, but still eco-friendly, way to mow he did a little research on rechargeable mowers and last month came home with an Earthwise cordless electric mower. Electric mowers are great for many reasons. They’re quieter than gas-powered mowers, reduce pollution from mowing by about 90% and use only as much power as a toaster. Over the summer an electric mower will use roughly $5 worth of power.

I was inspired to give ours a try and was impressed. What I love about this new mower is that it’s easy to start; you just insert a key and pull a lever (no yanking on a cord). I found it heavy but not too heavy to push comfortably (ours has a 20” cutting path so is on the bigger side). It cut easily through thick grass and mulches the clippings so they’re left to nourish the lawn. Best of all I wasn’t walking through a path of smog that is typical for gas-powered mowers.

The battery lasts an hour, which is about enough mowing for me and recharges overnight. If you’re in the market for a mower there are several cordless options to choose from. We bought ours at Kent Building Supplies but Home Depot carries several brands too. If you’d prefer to try a reel mower they’re easy to find. I have even noticed a few promoted in hardware store flyers recently.

Have you ever read the warning label on a tube of toothpaste? Are you alarmed that toothpaste even has a warning label? I’ll guess that few people have bothered to read the safe use instructions on the package, including not swallowing the toothpaste and, on some popular brands, “Recommended for adults and children over 12 years.”  Why should we all be concerned about this? Because most people haven’t a clue what’s in toothpaste and digging up a list of ingredients takes more than a little effort.   

You might be surprised to discover that conventional toothpaste contains the artificial sweetener Saccharin. Health Canada banned the use of Saccharin in food 30 years ago due to animal studies that linked consumption to an increased risk of bladder cancer. (They are currently rethinking that ban, due to heavy lobbying from the diet-food industry, but many scientists continue to recommend against lifting the ban.) Most brands also contain Triclosan as an antibacterial agent. The EPA considers Triclosan a pesticide and part of a class of chemicals that is thought to cause cancer in humans. Most whitening toothpaste also contains lye, considered a poison by the FDA  

Then there is the controversy around fluoride. It’s not that fluoride is bad it’s just that we may be getting too much of it. When you combine toothpaste, fluoridated drinking water in some communities (not Rothesay or Quispamsis) and the consumption of all sorts of processed foods that are made with municipal water that is fluoridated, some health experts are worried that we’re ingesting too much fluoride. It builds up in our bones and among other things is linked to increasing rates of bone cancer in young boys. 

Children under the age of two shouldn’t use toothpaste with fluoride and all children should be supervised while brushing to prevent swallowing. Not that it helps. The commercial brands for kids are formulated to taste just like candy and putting a toothbrush spread with children’s toothpaste in a child’s mouth is like giving them a lollypop and telling them not to swallow. 

Now that you know some ingredients you might like to avoid, there are several alternatives to conventional drug store toothpaste, including options for children. Tom’s of Maine gets a good rating since it’s saccharin-free, Triclosan-free and offers several options without fluoride, as do Natures Gate, Jason and Green Beaver (made in Canada). All carry a great variety of flavours. My children won’t budge from Tom’s of Maine Apricot and I prefer Nature’s Gate Fennel.   These brands are more expensive than convention brands but keep in mind you only need a small amount to do the job. For a little extra whitening power (minus the lye) keep a little pot of baking soda by the sink and brush with that a few times a week. Combined with proper flossing you won’t be compromising your dental health for the sake of overall wellness.   

In my life, the last thing to go green was my hair. Chemically-speaking I was taking much better care of my lawn than I was my own hair…which probably sounds ridiculous but the truth is that for the longest time I ignored the fact that covering up my grey hair was a toxic habit.  

I doubt anyone would be truly surprised that hair colour is toxic. Almost all hair colourant (temporary, semi-permanent, and permanent), contains a laundry list of petrochemicals and other toxins. In particular hair dye contains ammonia and p-Phenylenediamine (PPD for short) and although there are concerns associated with both of these chemicals it appears that PPD is the most worrisome. PPD is on Health Canada’s “Hot List” (Health Canada’s term, not mine) a list of prohibited and restricted cosmetic ingredients and as such manufacturers are required to list warnings on both the inside and the outside of the packaging. 

There is a lot of research to back up worries about hair dye. A number of studies link higher instances of multiple myeloma and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma to prolonged use of hair dye, particularly deeper colours. According to another study, those who use permanent hair dye are twice as likely to develop bladder cancer as those who don’t and yet another study links long-term use of hair dye with ovarian cancer. Allergic reactions to PPD are also well documented.

Permanent dye is more toxic than semi-permanent and darker tints are more toxic than lighter tints. If you’re someone who lightens their hair you still need to worry, just not as much.

The truly green thing to do would be to let my hair go grey at its own pace. But since I’m not ready for that I went looking for a less toxic dye that wouldn’t keep me up at night with worry and would keep my hair its previously natural colour.

I have found two salon brands that are ammonia-free with lower concentrations of PPD. So far I have tried a Schwarkopf product called Essensity that has no odor and covers my grey just fine. Next I’ll try Aveda hair colour. They offer a range of products that are 93% to 99% plant-based.

If you prefer the do-it-yourself kits, experiment with some alternatives to mainstream brands that contain lower concentration of the worst chemicals. Try a less-toxic brand like Herbatint permanent or semi-permanent hair dye. Both are ammonia-free, the permanent has low concentrations of PPD and the semi-permanent is PPD-free. Naturcolor is another brand to look for.

Then there is always henna. Made from the leaves of a desert shrub you can’t get more natural and non-toxic than that.

For years health care practitioners have been telling us that if we ate less meat we’d all be a lot healthier. The average North American eats twice as much meat today as we did fifty years ago and it’s taking a toll on our collective health. It's no wonder that our voracious appetite for meat is taking a toll on the environment too. The environmental impact of meat production (we’re talking mostly the large factory farms) is so extensive that the Union of Concerned Scientists suggests that the best thing you can do for the environment is to eat less meat.

To put it in perspective, the Canada Food Guide says a serving of meat (or fish or poultry) should be about 2.5 to 3 oz. and as little as 1 oz. for a child. A quick search of local restaurant websites shows a lot of 8 oz. and 10 oz. steaks on menus, a serving that could feed a family of four.

What does that mean for the environment?

According to a UN study, the mass production of meat today accounts for 18% of green house gas emissions world wide. That’s more than the combined emissions from planes, trains and automobiles.

Deforestation to create pasture land and to grow crops to feed livestock is another issue. An acre of trees disappears every eight seconds (including rain forest) to create pasture and crop land. Since trees absorb carbon dioxide the impact on global warming is significant.

Factory farms, the source of most meat, pollute a lot. Manure run off can seep into waterways, a problem that is thought to be behind the deadly E. coli outbreak in Walkerton several years ago that killed six people.

If E. coli in our drinking water worries you consider this: 50% of antibiotics used in Canada are fed to livestock. Cramped quarters in factory farms means diseases are rampant so live stock is fed a steady diet of antibiotics to keep the animals from getting ill.

I could go on and on (ethical issues surrounding the treatment of animals on factory farms, pollution from meat processing plants) but suffice to say that cutting back even a bit on meat consumption could help the earth in many ways. (If Americans ate 10% less meat there would be enough grain left over to feed 60 million people. So in simplified terms there really is a solution to world hunger.)

If reducing the amount of meat you consume poses a challenge in your household here are a few tips to get you started:

• Look for organic or naturally-raised meat. Livestock fed a natural, organic diet are happier, healthier and more nutritious. To find local producers check out these websites: http://www.acornorganic.org/index.html, http://kuinshoeve.ca/, http://www.buylocalnb.ca/local%2Dfood/.  
• Reduce the portion size when you do eat meat and load up on more whole grains and vegetables. 
• Try eating one less meat-based meal each week. Substitute meat alternatives like beans for the meat in some of your favourite recipes.  
• Visit my blog for kid-friendly vegetarian recipes that are quick and easy, like Moroccan chickpea stew and black bean fajitas.

We all know that swapping out old incandescent light bulbs for compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) is one painless way to reduce your annual power bill. (Lights account for about 5% of overall household power use). CFLs use 75 percent less energy than their incandescent counterparts and last up to 10 times longer. When you do the light bulb math each CFL bulb can prevent more than 450 pounds of greenhouse gas emissions. And depending on electrical rates you could save about $80 in energy costs over the life of the bulb.

If you’re going to make this worthwhile investment (and it is an investment, considering the cost) you’ll want to ensure each bulb lasts a good long time.

A friend was complaining recently that CFL bulbs in his home weren’t lasting nearly as long as they were supposed to. We were noticing the same thing so I did some research and discovered a few tips to help extend the life of your pricey bulbs:

• In fixtures on a dimmer switch use dimmable CFLs (should be stated on the packaging). Dimmers shorten the life of regular CFLs.

• CFLs are best in areas where they’re likely to be on for 15 minutes at a time or longer. Using them in places where they’ll be turned on and off frequently (like closets and bathrooms) will shorten their life.
• For totally enclosed fixtures buy bulbs that state clearly on that packaging that they’re designed for this use.

• If the bulb has been used according to the manufacturer’s instructions and still burns out early you may be eligible for a refund or a replacement. Energy Star certified bulbs carry at least a two-year warranty (covering manufacturer defects). The catch is that you need to save your receipts and contact the manufacturer directly.

Something else you need to know about CFL bulbs is that they all contain mercury. As a result they’re considered household hazardous waste and cannot go in the regular trash. Spent bulbs can be taken to the Crane Mountain Household Hazardous Waste Facility (Saturday mornings) or to convenient drop-off boxes at Home Depot. The mercury is recycled into new bulbs.

Because of the mercury you should be careful where you use the bulbs. Basically anywhere with a higher risk of breakage is not a good spot for a CFL (ex. lamps in children’s rooms or table lamps in high traffic areas).

If you break a bulb you should open a window, leave the room and close the door, turn off the air exchange system and go looking for a glass screw top jar and a roll of duct tape. After 15 minutes you can go back in (wearing gloves), put the glass fragments in the jar and use the tape to pick up the tiny bits. Put the tape in the jar too and use a damp cloth to wipe the area. Put the cloth in the jar, screw on the lid and take it to the Household Hazardous Waste Facility.

This is the ultra-conservative clean up method suggested by Energy Star. Apparently the overall the health risk is minimal (each bulb contains just a fraction of the mercury contained in a silver filling).

If you’re anything like us you have a kitchen junk drawer full of spent batteries (or batteries you think are worn out but you really can’t remember where they came from or how long they’ve been in there.) I had been ignoring these batteries until, over Christmas, my brother-in-law asked me what should be done with them. (It was a timely question - 40% of annual battery sales happen during the holidays.) 

Since it is estimated that your average individual tosses about eight single use batteries a year, having a drawer full isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It means that you haven’t been putting them in the trash.

Batteries don’t belong in the landfill. Whether they’re single use alkaline (AA, AAA, C, D), lithium, button style or rechargeable batteries, there is a safe place for each of these and it isn’t your household trash. Even though many manufacturers of single use batteries say they should simply be tossed when worn out (which isn’t true) all batteries need to be handled with care. Some are at the very least caustic while others contain heavy metals and other toxic stuff. All can be recycled to varying degrees so it’s important to help them get into their proper recycling stream.

For a one-stop drop off you can take everything (rechargeable batteries, single use alkaline batteries, cell phones, CD Players, MP3 Players, CDs, Portable DVD Players) to Future Shop and look for the Greentec drop box.

As another option, the Rechargeable Battery Recycling Corporation (established by battery manufacturers) operates a free rechargeable battery and cell phone collection program. In our area look for drop off boxes at The Source, Canadian Tire, Home Depot, Future Shop and Staples. Along with the common household rechargeable batteries you can drop off worn out rechargeable batteries from power tools, digital cameras, cellular and cordless phones, laptops, MP3 players and any other rechargeable that won’t hold a charge any longer. Visit their website (www.call2recycle.org ) for a complete listing of local drop off locations.

Now that you know how to dispose of batteries safely, you might want to consider changing your battery habits. A great place to start is to ban single use batteries from your life (except for your smoke detectors) and switch to rechargeable batteries wherever possible. A standard rechargeable battery can replace up to 300 single use batteries.

And one more tip, before you buy something that is battery operated consider other options. Think about it…do you really need a battery powered toothbrush or a battery powered milk frother?

This time of year the green living talk is all about home energy audits and the things we’re doing to keep the heat in and those insidious cold drafts out. We’re working harder than ever to keep our homes snug and tight, all the while oblivious to what our efficiency efforts are doing to the quality of our indoor air. That’s why this time of year more than any other we need to be aware of what we’re breathing at home.

Indoor air pollution is a concern these days because our homes are much tighter than they were in the past and they’re filled with more synthetic items, including air fresheners, cleaning products, upholstered furniture, carpets, fabricated wood items, scented beauty products and scented petroleum-based candles. These synthetics off-gas – meaning they emit volatile organic compounds (VOCs) – that are all toxic to varying degrees. It is estimated that indoor air is about five times more polluted than outdoor air. (And that comparison isn’t based on fresh country air it’s based on the air quality in your average city.) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency ranks indoor air pollution as one of the top five environmental risks to people’s health.

In warm weather it’s easy to open the windows to let a breeze flush out bad air. You probably don’t want to do that on a cool January day so here are a few alternatives to help keep your indoor air healthier this winter. Most are common sense but it's still good to be reminded...

Choose eco-friendly cleaning supplies that are less toxic than conventional products. Look for those with the EcoLogo certification so you don’t have to decipher labels. Better yet, switch to vinegar and baking soda for most of your cleaning needs.

Ensure your stove top is properly vented (especially if you have a gas stove) and avoid cooking with Teflon coated pans since they emit toxic fumes when used at high temperatures.

If you’re painting choose low VOC or zero-VOC paints. Home Depot, Home Hardware and Benjamin Moore all carry lines of these eco-friendly paints that make a newly painted room livable and much healthier.

Avoid room fresheners, especially those that plug in. The chemical fragrances used in these are highly toxic.

Buy fragrance-free beauty products and avoid all aerosols (you inhale all of those tiny spray particles).

Choose soy or beeswax candles rather than regular candles, which are made from petroleum products. And go the unscented route since artificial fragrances are toxic in their own right.

If you heat with a wood stove or wood insert ensure the chimney is properly cleaned annually.

Incorporate house plants into your home decorating - they help to clean the air by absorbing toxins. Spider plants, philodendrons, mums, peace lilies, gerbera daisies and English ivy are some of the best. You need about one plant for every 100 square feet of living space in your home to really take advantage of the benefits.

Being aware of indoor air quality and the simple things you can do to improve it are the first steps to breathing easier this winter.

While doing a little reading last week I came across a great catchphrase: “watching your waste line”. The term was definitely coined with this time of year in mind, the season during which 25% more waste is generated compared to other times of the year. But all of the gift giving and busyness isn’t an excuse to put things in the trash that are supposed to go elsewhere, like the recycling or compost bins, or in the reuse pile.

Much like its counterpart on the weight loss side of things, minimizing trash during the Holidays is a lot about awareness and willpower. With some helpful tips and a bit of gumption you can hit a waste-less goal and not crimp your Holiday cheer.

·        Are you still gift hunting? Some of the greenest gifts are a blessing for the last-minute shopper. Consider gift cards for favourite stores, gift certificates for restaurants, tickets to movies, performances and sporting events, memberships to museums. Whatever you choose put it in an envelope with a pretty bow and you’ll earn yourself some carbon credits.

·        Still have wrapping to finish? You must have last year’s gift bags in the basement somewhere. If not, consider newsprint, children’s craft paper (your kids can help decorate it), generic gift bags or simply a bow. Remember wrapping paper is not recyclable.

·        When you head out for a big grocery order, don’t forget to grab your stash of reusable bags. Keep a mini reusable bag in your purse or pocket for all shopping. My favourite, the Envirosax, makes a great stocking stuffer.

·        If you’re going to resort to disposable plates for a holiday gathering buy paper plates and make certain they go in the compost, not the garbage. Shoppers Drug Mart carries a line of disposable dinnerware that is compostable and sturdy.

·        Be diligent about composting in general. It’s just as easy to put food scraps and paper napkins in the green bin under the sink as it is to throw them in the garbage.

·        Don’t take a holiday from recycling. Sorting for the blue bin alone can reduce your household waste by almost half. Sort all of the wrapping stuff on Christmas morning so boxboard and other recyclables (and reusables) don’t stray into the trash.

·        Turn out the lights, including the outside decorations, before you go to bed.

·        Looking ahead to next year, save gift bags, tissue paper and bows. Save your favourite Christmas cards too. We repurpose ours into postcard-style Holiday notes or cut them up for gift tags. They’re great for children’s crafts too.

I wish you a Holiday filled with the simple pleasures that can’t be bought.