Packing a Waste-Free, Plastic-Free Lunch

When I posted earlier this year about avoiding plastic food containers and packaging due to the potential leaching of harmful chemicals, a few people asked about packing school lunches.

Well, it's time to start thinking about that seemingly endless parade of school lunches, and of what to pack them in.

Last fall, I purchased a stainless steel PlanetBox for my daughter, and a year later I am still a big fan. The PlanetBox is a bento-style lunchbox with four compartments. (The company recently started selling a version with three, larger compartments). It works perfectly for us. I usually fill two of the compartments with fruits or vegetables, one with a halved hard-boiled egg and the largest one with a sandwich. I purchased a carry bag that accommodates an ice-pack, so everything stays fresh.

Her lunch is completely waste-free, there is nothing to throw away. The lunchbox is easy to clean.  I wash it by hand but it is advertised as being dishwasher-safe. My daughter likes the cute magnets that you can purchase to decorate the PlanetBox. And I love the fact that after one full year of use (including lunches for summer camp) it is still in perfect condition. The price does reflect the quality of the product; I paid $60 for the lunchbox and carry bag.

If this style of lunchbox doesn't work for you, there are still a myriad of options available. Reuseit.com is a wonderful source of products for packing a waste-free lunch. They have a wide selection of stainless steel containers. I have several of the LunchBots containers; they are great for packing sandwiches and otherwise replacing plastic bags. Whole Foods in East Liberty is selling some To-Go Ware stainless steel food carriers that look nice and functional.

Pack reusable utensils, and a reusable water bottle or insulated bottle, and you'll be doing your part to reduce the 67 pounds of lunch waste that the average American school-aged child throws away every year.

Mattresses: Conventional vs. Organic

I'm in the process of choosing a mattress for my daughter's new bed and updating the research that I did five years ago when my husband and I purchased a new mattress. What I'm finding confirms the reasons we chose an organic latex mattress back then and why we will be purchasing an organic mattress now.

Most conventional mattresses are constructed of materials that can off-gas and otherwise degrade, releasing volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and toxic dust that we then breathe, absorb through our skin, and even ingest during the hours we spend sleeping.

Conventional cotton used to make mattresses may be contaminated with pesticide and insecticide residues. It also is treated during the production process with chemicals, some of which are very toxic. These include formaldehyde, dioxins and heavy metals.

Formaldehyde is also used in some mattresses to make the adhesives that hold the mattress together. Formaldehyde is a known carcinogen that has been linked to asthma, as well as lung, nose and throat cancer.

Most conventional mattresses contain polyurethane (PU) foam. There is nothing good to be said about PU foam. It is a petroleum-based material that emits VOCs linked to respiratory problems and skin irritation. Memory-foam mattresses contain a host of troubling materials--one lab analysis revealed that one model of this type of mattress emitted 61 chemicals, including the carcinogens benzene and naphthalene.

In addition, PU foam is extremely flammable and thus, in order to meet federal safety standards, manufacturers must take measures to make it resistant to flames. They do this by using toxic flame retardants or barrier fabrics, which also may contain harmful chemicals.

Many conventional mattresses manufactured prior to 2004 used PDBEs as flame retardants. The use of these substances was banned or phased out by industry as the evidence of their toxicity mounted. They are developmental neurotoxins as well as potent thyroid disruptors. PDBEs accumulate and persist in our bodies. They are still found in women's breast milk and the bodies of polar bears in the Arctic.

There is no way to know what manufacturers are using today to meet federal regulations regulating the flammability of mattresses. Major mattress companies refuse to disclose this information, claiming that their materials are protected as proprietary trade secrets.

This article cites an industry spokesperson who says that most of the manufacturers now use fire-resistant barrier fabrics. Some of these are made of melamine-formaldehyde resin; as these fibers degrade they release formaldehyde. Others are made of modacrylic fiber, which contains antimony oxide, another known carcinogen. Still other barrier fabrics used in mattresses are cotton bonded with boric acid (which some object to as it is also used as roach poison) and rayon treated with silica (tiny fragments of glass or clay).

Of course, avoiding harmful materials is of paramount importance when shopping for a child's or baby's mattress. A report released in November of last year found that 72% of the crib mattresses sold in the U.S. contained one or more chemicals of concern, such as antimony, polyurethane, vinyl, other volatile organic compounds, and undisclosed flame retardants.

Wool is naturally fire-resistant. An organic mattress can meet federal fire safety regulations without the use of chemical flame retardants if it is properly constructed using wool.

If you are in the market for a new mattress or shopping for an infant's or child's mattress, there are many sources of safer alternatives to conventional mattresses that you might want to consider. We bought our organic latex mattress at the Organic Mattress Store in Hellertown, PA. We took a side trip there on a trip to Philadelphia; it is about 1 1/2 hours away.

I was happy to discover that an organic mattress store recently opened in Pittsburgh: the Natural Sleep Shop in Cranberry. This store carries the Savvy Rest line of organic mattresses and crib mattresses.

An organic mattress will almost certainly cost more than a conventional mattress. However, a natural latex mattress will also last longer than a conventional mattress. We were told that ours should last 20-25 years. When I considered that we spend 8 hours a day breathing and otherwise absorbing whatever is being released from our mattress, it made sense to me to go organic.

Buying and Storing Produce, Without Plastic

You're taking your reusable grocery bags to the store, right? But what do you do with your produce? I confess that I still use those plastic produce bags for a lot of my produce--way too many of them. I admire the people who just throw their produce into their carts or right into their reusable grocery bags. I'm sure that that is the right thing to do, but, as a bit of a germophobe, I can't quite get myself to do this with all of my fruits and vegetables. And sometimes it is just more practical to use a bag when I am buying many pieces of a certain item.

However, I have committed to kicking the plastic bag habit, thereby eliminating the waste as well as another instance in which our food comes into contact with plastic. That's why I am ordering reusable cotton bags to use at the store. I found two sources with both organic and non-organic cotton options. I've ordered many items from Reuseit.com and have been very happy with their service and the products I've received. The site has this selection of reusable produce bags. Ecobags also has a good selection of cotton produce bags. Of course, it would also be a big improvement to simply bring plastic produce bags back to the store and reuse them.

Finally, here is a great guide from the Berkley Farmers' Markets on how to store fruits and vegetables without plastic.

What's in That Bottle of Olive Oil?

By Kevan

Recent research shows that two of the most adulterated foods sold are honey (which I wrote about in an earlier post) and olive oil. Olive oil is far more valuable than most other oils, and is costly and time-consuming to produce. Thus, it is often adulterated with cheaper oils, chemically manipulated or mislabeled. For example, many bottles on store shelves labeled "extra-virgin olive oil" do not in fact contain extra-virgin olive oil. These bottles contain oil cut with lower-grade or cheaper oils, or artificial colors. Some bottles contain oil manipulated to disguise rancidity.

In a recent book, Extra Virginity:  The Sublime and Scandalous World of Olive Oil, author Tom Mueller writes that one Italian olive oil producer estimates that 50% of the olive oil sold in the U.S. is adulterated in some way.

Why should we be troubled by this? Good, fresh olive oil is a wonderfully healthy fat, as Mueller puts it, "a cocktail of 200+ beneficial ingredients." It has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Bad or rancid oil loses those properties; it is full of free radicals and impurities. Furthermore, cheap oils, such as soybean, or some seed and nut oils, are extremely unhealthy. They are highly inflammatory, high in omega-6 fatty acids.

So, what can we do to avoid these adulterated olive oils and ensure that what we are buying is actually fresh, healthy olive oil? Mueller has posted this very informative guide to buying olive oil. He recommends finding a store where you can taste oils before you buy (see below). If that is not a possibility, he has many other tips about what to look for. Mueller notes that bitterness and pungency are usually indicators of an oil's healthful antioxidants and anti-inflammatories. He advises to, above all, seek out freshness. I found this helpful article about recognizing rancidity in olive oil. The author claims that most people in the U.S. are actually accustomed to the flavor of rancid olive oil.

Sources for olive oil in Pittsburgh:

• California Olive Oil Connection at the Farmers' Market Coop of East Liberty. This merchant dispenses its oils from bulk containers into reusable bottles. The oil is certified extra virgin by the California Olive Oil Council; a certifying body that Mueller says provides a certain level of confidence that the oil is properly made.
• Olio Fresca Olive Oil Company at the Pittsburgh Public Market. The last time I visited the Public Market this merchant had many olive oils available for tasting.
• Finally, the much-loved Strip District institution Pennsylvania Macaroni Co., better known as Penn Mac, has a mind-boggling selection of olive oils. If you track down the olive oil buyer or other knowledgeable employee, you should be able to garner plenty of information to help you choose a great olive oil.

Keeping Pests Off Your Pets, Safely

Recently I blogged about alternatives to DEET insect repellents for kids and adults. For those of you with pets that go outside, summer and fall are also flea season. The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) has some great online resources to help you avoid toxic flea-control chemicals.


Flea collars and sprays often contain chemicals that can harm pets and people, especially children. In particular, 2 very toxic chemicals, tetrachlorvinphos (TCVP) and propoxur, are found in some flea collars. Both of these chemicals are found in products marketed for cats and dogs. Both of them can poison pets and may cause long-term health consequences in humans. Propoxur is known to cause cancer in humans, and the EPA classifies TCVP as a possible human carcinogen. In addition, TCVP and other chemicals in the same family, known as organophosphates, are also suspected of being linked to neurodevelopmental problems in children.


To control fleas, the NRDC suggests starting with chemical-free methods and moving on to lower-risk chemical products only if necessary. Articles posted here and here contain suggestions about what you can do to approach the problem of flea-control.


If you find yourself needing a chemical flea or tick treatment, the NRDC has put together a very useful products directory. They checked the ingredients in more than one hundred flea and tick products and found that many contain toxic chemicals that can poison pets and harm people. The directory sorts the products into one of three potential risk levels. You can use it to look up a product you are considering or to search for a less toxic options. You can also print out this concise pocket guide to help you choose safer products.

Love It: An Effective, Safe Deodorant

Yesterday was the first day of summer and it hit 92 degrees. I thought it might be a good time to post about an all-natural deodorant that works really well for me, even in this weather.

When I started the process of replacing conventional personal care products with cleaner, greener ones, one of the first things I looked for was an effective natural deodorant. Like most people, I use this product every day and it stays on my skin all day. Conventional deodorants and antiperspirants contain a cocktail of ingredients that I wanted to avoid.  First and foremost on the list are the aluminum compounds used to plug sweat ducts to stop  the flow of sweat. Aluminum is a neurotoxin; small amounts are absorbed by the skin. The science on the health effects of aluminum salts in antiperspirants is conflicting. For example, there are no conclusive studies establishing a causal link between the use of antiperspirants and breast cancer. However, some studies have suggested that there is a relationship between the use of these products and breast cancer, and also that aluminum compounds can cause estrogen-like effects in breast tissue. Thus, the National Cancer Institute has determined that additional research is needed to investigate the relationship between antiperspirants and breast cancer. Further, conventional deodorants/antiperspirants can contain a whole additional slew of problematic ingredients, including BHT, synthetic fragrances and penetration enhancers, such as propylene glycol, that facilitate the skin's absorption of all that bad stuff.

So, I tried many different deodorants with cleaner ingredients, but couldn't find one that worked well for me. Let's just say that they didn't neutralize odors as well as one might hope. Last year, though, at an event sponsored by Women for a Healthy Environment, I asked natural beauty expert Jessa Blades if she could recommend a non-toxic deodorant that actually worked. Yes! she said:  Soapwalla's Deodorant Cream. She was right, this is a great product. It uses clays, baking soda and vegetable powders to absorb moisture, and organic essential oils to inhibit bacteria.

Two caveats:  (1) when I first started using the Deodorant Cream, I developed red bumps under my arms and stopped using it for a while. Apparently this is a not uncommon reaction, for many people it seems to be a reaction to the baking soda. I tried it again when I ran out of the deodorant I was using and have never had a problem since. I just try to remember not to use it right after shaving. Also, Rebecca, Soapwalla's owner will make a baking soda-free version if the baking soda causes a reaction. (2) At $12 plus $4 shipping, it is somewhat pricey. However, it lasts a long time and for a product that is so effective and so pure, I'm willing to pay the price.

Finally, given that everybody's body chemistry is different and people react to different ingredients, it is possible that Soapwalla's Deodorant Cream won't work for you. Thus, I am listing a couple of other cleaner, greener choices that have received rave reviews on various sites:

• Bubble & Bee Pit Putty Deodorant Creams:  This company is serious about the safety of the ingredients is uses. Many of its products are USDA certified 100% organic.
• Lavanila The Healthy Deodorant: I've used and liked this product a lot. It contains no petrochemicals, phthalates, propylene glycol, sulfates or parabens. I purchased the vanilla coconut scent at Sephora.

I would love to hear from anyone who has found a "clean" deodorant that works for them.

Bugs Be Gone

It's mosquito and tick season--time to take steps to ward off bites. The repellent DEET is very effective at keeping mosquitoes, ticks and other insects at bay. However, it is a neurotoxin which, as shown in Duke University Medical Center studies, affects brain cells. Further, it is absorbed quickly through the skin and enters the bloodstream. Commercial DEET repellents are often formulated with the solvent ethanol, which increases the amount of DEET absorbed through the skin.

As with all potentially harmful chemicals in the environment, children are at increased risk for subtle brain changes caused by DEET.  Their skin more readily absorbs chemicals and chemicals pose more of a threat to their developing nervous systems.

The author of the Duke University studies had this to say:  

The take home message is to be safe and cautious when using insecticides. Never use insect repellents on infants, and be wary of using them on children in general. Never combine insecticides with each other or use them with other medications. Even so simple a drug as an antihistamine could interact with DEET to cause toxic side effects . . . Until we have more data on potential interactions in humans, safe is better than sorry.

I do want to acknowledge that many government agencies and health organizations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, maintain that DEET in concentrations of up to 30% is safe for kids over 2 months of age. (Although, see the lengthy list of precautions the EPA requires on DEET product labels.) If I were traveling to an area where dangerous insect-borne diseases were prevalent I would weigh the benefits and risks of DEET and other chemical repellents. But here in western PA, I choose not to apply this potentially harmful insecticide to my child's skin.

To protect my family from mosquitoes and ticks I take the following measures:

• Wearing long pants and long-sleeved shirts when hiking or in the woods; tucking pants into socks. Not wearing bright colors.
• Performing a full body "tick check" upon returning home from anywhere that might be infested with ticks, including our backyard.
• Checking clothes for ticks upon returning home.
• We don't use scented products (perfumes, soaps, deodorants, etc.), but these should be avoided as they can attract insects.
• Botanical insect repellents: I found a natural repellent that works well on my kid, who is a mosquito magnet. All Terrain Kid's Herbal Armor uses six natural oils to repel insects. Because natural repellents work due to the scent of the oils, they do need to be reapplied more frequently than chemical repellents. This one works for about two hours and then needs to be reapplied.
• I also plan to try another repellent, Bite Blocker, that I've read good things about. It contains soybean oil and geranium oil; a 2002 study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found that it provided 1.5 hours of protection from mosquito bites.
• Finally, I have been using these wonderful Bug Out! candles on our deck in the evening to keep away mosquitoes. I've tried the original and geranium scents. These are GMO-free soy wax candles that use essential oils to repel bugs. I found them at Whole Foods in East Liberty; they have the 20 oz. tin for 16.99 and the 2 lb. tub for 21.99.