Turn your Red Hot Summer Green – Dana M. Lee, MPH
Georgia summer brings more skin, fast growing grass and blazing sunrays. To help ensure you have a green summer, check out these eco-friendly seasonal must have products that help preserve the environment!
Want to keep unwanted hair under control? Consider the environmental effects of disposable razors – most, sadly, are made of non recyclable plastic which fills our landfills (Note: according to the EPA up to 2 billion disposable razors are deposited into a landfill annually), pollute our soil, effect groundwater and emit unnecessary pollutants. To make your shaving practices more eco-friendly choose razors that are made from recycled materials, reusable razors with a long lifespan or those that can be powered by renewable energy. A few great options are:
- Recycline’s Preserve Razor Recyclable – the handle is made from completely of recycled materials (the majority from old Stonyfield Farms organic yogurt cups). The company even encourages users to return used razors (postage paid!!) to the company for recycling. You can order from the company website http://www.preserveproducts.com or http://www.amazon.com.
- For men who enjoy the ease of an electric shaver and have light growth but who are eco-conscious, Sol-Shaver is a solution. Powered by the sun and no need to purchase cartridges regularly – this shaver provides a safe shave for all. You can find this razor at www.stuffjunction.com.
- For the more daring – to get the greenest shave – use a straight razor – causes no waste and uses no power. You will need to practice to ensure a safe shave and keep it sharpened for the best results. Straight razors may be found in many beauty supply stores and of course online at www.amazon.com.
Mowing your lawn definitely helps you with your health but could be detrimental to our air quality. Consider a using a push reel lawn mower that limits damage to your grass blades preventing disease and giving a healthier appearance. The added benefit is you get a better workout and carbon footprint. Here are a few options:
- The Helix EcoMower® is a new model just out this year that seems to address most of users’ checklist – its super light at 23lbs, self sharpens, provides toolless assembly and even adjusts to 3.5″ – this is often 1 to 1 ½ inch greater span then most mowers.
- Fiskars Momentum Reel Lawn Mower is advertised as the World’s Most Advanced Reel Mower since its patented design and technology makes it easier to push with more power almost twice than other mowers and a self sharpening system. This mower adjusts to 4 in so is better for the more temperamental lawns.
- Brill Razorcut 33 Push Reel Lawn Mower is very lightweight at 15.2 lbs and super easy to handle so it works best in lower maintenance yards. In addition, it’s important to note that cutting height maxes at 1.8 inches.
- Visit www.ecomowers and www.pushreelmowers.com for additional details and to purchase any of these models.
Knowing how to best protect our skin, especially during this season, is so very important to limit our risks for skin cancer. I encourage you to read the Environmental Working Group’s 2011 Sunscreen Guide – it was extremely informative – I was shocked to find out sunscreen manufactures have not been required to maintain FDA standards. You can find the full report on their website – http://www.ewg.org/. The best protection seems to be hats and t-shirts not sunscreen. Because of so much conflicting information out there about sunscreens we may be harming our skin more by assuming a false sense of security and staying outside longer because we are wearing sunscreen or using sunscreens with vitamin A (retinyl palmitate). This ingredient is found in about one-third of all sunscreens – so check the label. When sun bathers use these sunscreens you can increase the development of skin tumors according to the NIH National Toxicology Program. The best sunscreen products provide protection without toxic ingredients that absorb into skin are mineral sunscreens. The EWP just posted additional reviews so take a look and have a safe, GREEN summer!!
Hear more tips and about fabulous GREEN products when I host my Grant Park JOC Tuesday at 11:30 on June 12th, July 10th & August 7th.
