Safe sunscreen for babies and kids

Posted on by June 11, 2011

Dealing with sunscreen with wriggly, wiggly, wiggle worms has got to be one of my least favorite parts of summer. I fully believe in the importance of children spending time outdoors, both in sports and in unstructured free exploration. But in order to protect children’s delicate skin, and our own, we have to make sure we are using safe, effective sun protection. Most kids get between 50% and 80% of their lifetime sun exposure before age 18. Sunscreen is one easy way to make sure they are protected.

How to find the right sunscreen.

  1. Avoid oxybenzone. Oxybenzone is a synthetic chemical often used in some big name sunscreens. Oxybenzone is an endocrine disruptor and is also associated with photoallergic reactions. It is absorbed easily through the skin, making it even more harmful for kids and babies who are more susceptible to chemical exposure due to their size.
  2. Decide what you are comfortable with regarding the controversial topic of nano particles of titanium or zinc oxide. I don’t think there is a right answer here. Some believe that nano particles are more easily absorbed and might then cause cell damage.
  3. Avoid synthetic fragrance, parabens, propylene glycol, and dioxanes. Always check ingredients and if you are unsure about anything, Skin Deep is a great place to see information on individual ingredients as well as brands.
  4. Our top pick for sunscreen is California Baby No Fragrance SPF 30+ Lotion. Safemama has a great cheat sheet of safe sunscreens that might be worth a try too.

Basic Sun Safety for Babies and Kids:

  1. Infants under 6 months old should always be kept in the shade whenever possible. Dress in lightweight, tightly-woven clothing and a hat that covers the head and ears and shades the face.
  2. Older children should stay out of direct sun when the sun is most intense, usually between 10am-4pm. Kids should also wear hats and protective clothing when possible.
  3. Slather on the sunscreen 30 minutes before going outside. Studies have shown that most people do not use enough in the first place and then don’t reapply often enough- about every 2 hours.
  4. Make your own shade with a big umbrella or sun shade.
  5. Use common sense.

Yes, I know chasing after toddlers with a babe in arms after only a few hours sleep does not always lend itself to remembering to bring the hats, sunscreen, towels, diapers, etc., etc. Before the season of pools, parks, and playdates gets underway try to get a list together of everything you need before you need to leave the house. Or better yet, stash a big bag full of essentials in the car, then you just need to grab your stainless steel water bottles, kids, keys and go! Have a sunburn-free summer!

Sunday Bloody Sunday

Posted on by October 2, 2012

“I cant believe the news today
Oh, I cant close my eyes and make it go away
How long…
How long must we sing this song?
How long? how long…

cause tonight…we can be as one
Tonight…”

-U2

What is it about Sundays? There are many days called, “Bloody Sunday,” although the most well-known was in Ireland. And Tiananmen Square, another well-known incident, was also on a Sunday. I suppose I might say that there are so many violent acts in the world’s history that many would occur on a Sunday, but if you google “violent incidents on Sunday” you will get 2,200,000 hits. Monday also has an equal amount, but every other day is less, some far less. Interesting…

This past June 4 marked the twentieth anniversary of the student protests at Tiananmen Square in Beijing, China that ended in violence. Check out these amazing photos collected by boston.com’s The Big Picture – events leading up to the June 4, in the midst of the violence, and some photos from the present day.

A young girl grabs the candle from her father to join the crowd at Victoria Park, Hong Kong on June 4th, 2009. The next generation remembering it even after 20 years. (© Y. C. William Wang)

What does this have to do with parenting, the environment, living green?

Nothing and everything.

Parenting: This is the world we are giving to our children. Do we want them growing up in a violent world? I can say with perfect conviction that no sane person does. What can we do? We have a responsibility to raise our kids with compassion for others. Children have an innate capacity for compassion, we just have to help it develop.

The Environment & Living Green: Violence is often brought on by a lack of resources, natural and human. As we continue to consume more and more of these resources without paying attention to developing alternatives, we will continue to see violence. We need to make choices that lessen our impact on the natural world while teaching our children the same.

As the oft quoted Gandhi said, “Be the change you want to see in the world.”

What change would you like to see? What are you going to do about it?

What can we do about Bisphenol-A?

Posted on by March 5, 2013

What can we do about Bisphenol-A? First and foremost we have to be smart enough to not fall for the scare tactics and guilt trips the canned food industry are intent on unleashing on us.

“I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the waters to create many ripples.”
~Mother Teresa

In this case I think our anonymous leak of the industry minutes cast the stone and mamas are making the ripples! Since the first story ran, so many bloggers are voicing their opinions and taking their stands. Bloggers that are often called “mommy bloggers” have power beyond compare all united by a fierce love for the children and the need to protect them. For myself, I know that I would walk to the ends of the earth and back for my children. I am sure that every last one of the mamas blogging to expose the truth about the harm BPA has, is, and will continue to do to our little ones if nothing is done will tell you the same thing.

So what can we do?

Continue to make ripples! Let’s spread this message far and wide. I spoke with several friends about this today, hoping that they can start looking at their everyday choices and look and see where they can start to avoid BPA, hoping that they will talk to their friends and family about doing the very same thing, and hoping that we can start sending the message to the industry that we will not be silenced by scare tactics, we will not be swayed by an industry spokesperson no matter how cute and pregnant she may be, and we will not sit idly by while the FDA continues to try to convince us that BPA is safe using faulty studies. We can make a difference, now we need to stand up and fight. Who is ready to take this on?

Use your spending power! This is huge and speaks loud and clear what we are willing to pull out our wallets for and what needs to be pulled from the shelves. We did it with baby bottles, now let’s continue on…

10 Ways to Avoid BPA:

  1. Buy fresh, frozen, dried, or glass jarred foods and beverages. (No cans and no polycarbonate or #7 plastic)
  2. Use glass bottles, dishes, and food storage containers for you and baby.
  3. Avoid PVC in plastic, look for the #3 symbol in the recycling triangle.
  4. Check your infant formula, most metal cans are lined with BPA.
  5. Choose your toys carefully, look for wooden or organic fabrics.
  6. Do not microwave any plastic food containers or dishes you might have.
  7. Minimize leaching from old, plastic dishes, bottles, or containers by discarding scratched items and handwashing as the harsh detergents of the dishwasher can cause more chemicals to leach into your food.
  8. Start drinking filtered tap water, instead of bottled (it’s ofetn tap water anyway!) Stainless steel water bottles are great for on the go.
  9. Check with your dentist to make sure any fillings are BPA-free.
  10. Avoid using plastic wrap for food storage and make sure to never put it in the microwave.

Now, although there may not be a way to completely avoid BPA, there are ways to minimize our exposure. The most precautions shuld be especially taken with the most vulnerable of us all, children and pregnant women.

There is some good news that has come out of this already. The California State Senate passed the Toxics-Free Babies and Toddlers Act on June 2, which will ban BPA from food and drink containers for children under three. Also the House Committee of Energy and Commerce has been investigting BPA’s safety and has asked the FDA to do the same. The Committee is also putting some pressure on the Chairman of the North American Metal Packaging Alliance, Inc. (NAMPA). One can only hope something significant will come from this.

If you live in California, consider contacting your state senators and speak to them about how important the Toxics-Free Babies and Toddlers Act is to you.

If your representative is on the Committee of Energy Commerce, consider contacting them with your support in their efforts to investigate the safety of Bisphenol-A and continue to keep the issue in the forefront.

Above all else, write letters/e-mails, make phone calls, talk in person to friends, family, legislators, and industry to show just how many ripples we can make.

A man’s work is from sun to sun, but a mother’s work is never done.
~Author Unknown

Bisphenol-A Manufacturers Using Fear, Not Science

Posted on by February 29, 2012

Recently a group of manufacturers and industry groups held a meeting to discuss their concerns about Bisphenol-A. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and The Washington Post obtained the internal notes from this private meeting. The now infamous meeting minutes have been widely circulating on blogs, on twitter, not because there was action taken to reduce the use of Bisphenol-A in products such as soda cans, canned food, and other metal cans and lids, but due to the outrage over the manufacturers ideas on how to use scare tactics and encourage MORE consumption of BPA by those most vulnerable to it’s adverse health effects.

Seriously.

Scare Tactics

The group came up with campaigns for young parents like, “Do you want to have access to baby food anymore?” Because we so obviously need BPA to feed our babies. Inciting fear is one method that is often used when there is no science, no fact, behind the claims being made. I loved this quote pulled from the meeting minutes:

“The committee doubts obtaining a scientific spokesperson is attainable”

Now, I wonder why that would be true… because the science is clear. The latest research links the chemical to breast cancer, testicular cancer, diabetes, hyperactivity, heart disease, low sperm count, miscarriage and other reproductive problems. It is an endocrine disruptor. It is not good for anyone, but especially pregnant women and babies! The two studies cited by the FDA when attempting to assure the public that BPA is safe were performed by the chemical industry trade group.

The group also wants to highlight the added cost of going BPA-free. While this may be true in a lot of circumstances, would you really jeopardize your baby’s health (and your own) over a few dollars? And really, it is often just a few dollars if that. There is also often a very good reason to spend more money on fewer products (fair trade, no pesticides, locally-made, no toxic chemicals). And in some cases, you will actually be saving money (e.g. making your own baby food, instead of buying jarred). The industry has also refused to look at the alternatives being developed, instead wasting their money on this campaign.

When Fear Doesn’t Work, Find Your “Holy Grail” Spokesperson

The other big idea the group came up with: find a young, pregnant woman to travel the country consuming a chemical with known adverse health effects, particularly to her unborn baby, and speaking about the benefits of BPA. One huge problem I have with this, is that they will be purposefully harming a helpless infant that has absolutely no say in the matter. It is true that there might not be any birth defects apparent at birth, it is later down the road that the effects will be made clear.

Seriously. It makes me sad.

So how do we avoid BPA? The sad truth is that the vast majority of us (93%) already have BPA in us. Now we just need to try to minimize our exposure and that of our children.

If you have a tip for avoiding BPA please leave it in the comments. We’ll discuss more ideas tomorrow and how to effect change…

In the meantime, check out what these fellow mamas have to say:

Sommer @ Green & Clean Mom

Jenn Savedge @ MNN- Mother Nature Network

Alicia @ The Soft Landing Blog

Jennifer @ The Smart Mama

SafeMama

Katy @ Non-Toxic Kids

Not a mama, but excellent article:

Fast Company