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ASK
ECOGIRL'S THEME:
Nurturing Eco-Aligned Health and Medicine
(including Avoiding Toxics)
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For your convenience, I've gathered
my Ask EcoGirl print columns into themes, often with additional
information.
NOTE: This COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL is
AVAILABLE FOR SYNDICATION, CUSTOMIZATION &
REPRINT!
FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT
ECOGIRL, including how she can appear in your publication,
see the main EcoGirl
page.
- Standing
Up to Stop Fluoridation (April 2013)
- Unfortunately, the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors recently
took another step towards fluoridating our precious local water
supply, even after many community members waited hours on a
workday to speak against it. Certainly, the proponent claims for
community water fluoridation (CWF) seem appealing, and I think
many folks wish that it actually were an easy remedy for community
dental health. However, that's not what the science shows, and
it's vital that we be willing to look beneath the PR claims. And
if we want CWF stopped, we're going to need to build a much
larger public outcry against it, and within the next few months.
Otherwise, we'll be the ones paying the price -- in our health,
environment, and pocketbooks. Learn more of the key facts, with
citations, in this column.
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- Should
We Fluoridate Our Water? (February 2013)
- Over the past few years, a controversy has been brewing in
Sonoma County over the proposed addition of fluoride to the water
supply for most of our homes, schools, businesses, and
restaurants. This issue is coming before the Board of Supervisors
again in the next month or two. But isn't fluoride a good thing?
The well-meaning proponents do make appealing claims of public
dental health benefits, especially for lower-income people.
Unfortunately, though, these claims don't match the facts. This
isn't the quick fix some want it to be! In this article, EcoGirl
outlines what she sees as the core problems with fluoridation, and
hopes that this helps Sonoma County reject it and pursue more
sensible solutions. (This online version also includes additional
supporting data and source links.)
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- Greening
Medicine (April 2010)
- With illness and health care costs weighing on us all, EcoGirl
offers additional specific ways that we can use environmental
knowledge to help heal both people and the planet, as both
patients and health care providers.
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- Eco-Remedies
for Our Health Care Crisis (March 2010)
- The health care crisis is such a timely topic right now. Yet,
amidst all the passionate debates, the environmental dimension is
still largely being ignored, even with the clear evidence linking
our high illness rates and exposure to environmental pollutants
and everyday toxics. However, by turning and seeing how our
actions in the world are harming our own health, we can find true
solutions that significantly reduce both illness and costs,
lightening the load on us all.
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- Detoxing
Our Products & Our World (April 2011)
- How can we truly protect ourselves from the multiple toxics
permeating our products, bodies, and world, given the overwhelming
evidence that they're threatening both our health and the planet?
This column describes some key resources to avoid toxics in our
personal lives, as well as two approaches being taken to stop
toxics at their source, Green Chemistry and California's Green
Chemistry Initiative.
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- Detoxing
Cookware (March 2011)
- A reader asks how to avoid the toxic PFCs used to make
nonstick pans and other consumer products. "What are our
options?", she wonders. "Those nonstick pans are so useful!" This
month's column describes the issues with PFCs, what products
they're in, and how to help reduce our exposure by buying
healthier cookware and more.
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- Taming
Our Tiny Ant Friends (December 2008)
- Ant invasions can tempt one to use poisons. But studies show
that toxics are no more effective than household cleansers!
Instead of putting your family at risk, follow this three-tiered
approach for addressing your visiting ant armies.
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- "Dear Patricia -- I just read your article, "Taming Our Tiny
Ant Friends." I think it's just great that you write these
articles, and always with such conscious respect for the earth,
and in this case, all those amazing little ants."
Patrice Ryan
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- Vote
Yes on Prop. 37 for Labeling of GMO Foods (October 2012)
- As expected, the GMO manufacturers have been spending millions
of advertising dollars to try to talk voters out of our right to
know if GMOs are in our foods. Don't be distracted by their
deceptions! The truth is that California Proposition 37 is not
complicated or expensive. It will just offer consumers the same
right to choose that's enjoyed by people in nearly 50 countries
around the world -- 40% of the world's population. People have
worked for years to finally give us this opportunity in the U.S.
Let's make sure it succeeds. Read this column for the key
information to know -- and share it with your friends!
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- Stand
Up for GMO Labeling (September 2012)
- Coming soon, Californians will have a unique and precious
opportunity to stand up for our right to know when our foods
contain experimental and hazardous GMOs (aka Genetically Modified
Organisms). These hidden materials are shown to harm our health,
environment, farms, and communities. Over 40 other countries have
GMO labeling. So why don't we? Plus labeling in California will
likely open the door to better protections across the U.S. But
standing in the way of labeling is expected to be a serious GMO
manufacturer propaganda onslaught. To keep this from working, we
all need to educate/innoculate ourselves and others on this
essential topic! To learn what you can do, read this handy summary
and share it with others -- especially in California. This is a
key moment on a vital issue!
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- Standing
Up for the EPA (January 2012)
- Some presidential candidates have said that they'd abolish the
EPA, citing supposed benefits to voters. EcoGirl looks deeper and
confirms that the facts just don't support these arguments, making
this proposal indeed harmful to our health and shared well-being.
This article can help you know the facts for yourself and to
inform others, so that we can together stand up for the value of
an even stronger EPA.
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- Remaking
the EPA (May 2009)
- For many years, it has seemed that the EPA has put corporate
interests over its mission to protect the environment. Will
President Obama's EPA really be any better?, asks a skeptical
reader. EcoGirl says that real improvement is possible, if we
help. And this is a key action for us to take. Because, by
encouraging current efforts to restore the EPA's vital functions,
we'll help improve our prospects on a wide variety of
environmental and health issues.
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ALSO SEE
* THEME: Bringing
Eco-Wisdom into our Government, Politics, and Voting
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- * THEME: Enjoying
Ecological Food & Agriculture (including Organics and
GMOs)
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- * THEME: Creating
an Eco-Healthy Household (including Less-toxic Housecleaning, Pet
Care, and Pest Control)
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- * Your specific issue of interest in EcoGirl's
Theme Page Index
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Return to EcoGirl's
Theme Page Index.
MY ASK ECOGIRL
BOOKLETS
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- I'm delighted to offer you my Ask EcoGirl booklets,
"Healthier Housecleaning" and "Detoxing Your Life." These
unique, handy, and cheerful resources bring together key
information you need to create a healthier home for your family
and the planet. They make a great gift, and quantity discounts and
wholesale prices are available. Plus all sales support my
eco-healing community work. Tell a friend! Find out more at
www.askecogirl.info/booklets.html.
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MORE OF MY PRINT ARTICLES
* My Next
STEP newsletter, which has lots of information on
toxics and alternatives, plus government and community-level
actions. "It's your handy guide to less-toxic living."
Look up topics of interest in the The Next STEP
index
of articles. -
- * North Bay Bohemian. I also wrote several articles on
these topics for the Bohemian's Green
Zone column.
* I also cover these topics on my Facebook
page and blog.
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STAYING
CONNECTED
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- Ask EcoGirl is written by Patricia Dines, Author of
The Organic Guides, and Editor and Lead Writer for The
Next STEP newsletter, which gently educates readers about
toxics and alternatives. For more information about my work for
the planet, see www.patriciadines.info.
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Sign up for my low-volume writing announcement list (1-3
emails a month), to get emails when my new print articles are
published, at www.patriciadines.info/EList.
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- Connect via Facebook, to show your support for my work,
and get inspiring and useful eco-info in your Newsfeed www.facebook.com/AskEcoGirl.
Explore and sign up for my blog at www.patriciadines.info/LTEblog.
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- I hope that you find this information useful. I welcome
your throughts and feedback! (You can email me at info
[at] askecogirl.info.)
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- Editors: Please contact me if you'd like to publish any of
these articles in your periodical, or discuss an article that
I might write for you.
This entire website is (c)
Patricia Dines, 1998-2013. All rights reserved.
Page last updated 4/4/13
www.AskEcoGirl.info/AEThemeEcoHealthToxics.html