johncsnider

As you know, I took my journey to removing beauty toxins in baby steps starting with what I use most: moisturizer . I now have more and more skin to cover with moisturizer and it all gets absorbed through my skin into my bloodstream which passes nutrients (and toxins!) to my baby. What can you not live without? My lips have always been pale and I like to tint them. Most of my lip color enters my mouth which seems like a gross place for traditional lipsticks filled with lead and other nasty chemicals. I found that I like Hemp Organics lipstick but it is rather pricey to have collection of colors. I use it sometimes but not often because my older daughters are always going through my purse and I don't want them wasting this lipstick! Instead I discovered that my local target has a lot of  rather natural tinted lip glosses/balms that really perk my lips up. Then I discovered that I could order them cheaper online at Vitacost  (disclosure: we both get a referral bonus if you buy using

image: www.care2.org It is widely published that pregnant women should stay clear of cleaning products so the chemicals released into the air and put on the skin do not harm the unborn child.  Most women shout for joy and gladly hand over the task of housekeeping to their partners.  That it what I did when I was pregnant with my oldest child.  But I was on that holistic mission and learning more and more about why I didn't even want my husband exposed to those toxins . It was really hard for me to part with Mr. Scrubbing Bubbles and his effortless bathtub cleaning. This whole holistic journey was a lot for me so I needed to start with baby steps. I started by replacing the most used products with products that were safer.  The first item that I changed was the dish soap since my hands were in it all day long.  After a long experimentation period, my beloved Dawn was replaced with Seventh Generation dish soap. I was blown away by the price differences of everything.  It seemed that

image: http://theherbwoman.com The "Glucose Tolerance" test is normally given between 24 and 28 weeks for   diabetes and similar conditions. It is given earlier for higher risk patients (including me with baby #3 since #2 was so big thanks to my husband's tall genetics -- I passed!).  Sometimes seemingly healthy moms develop gestational diabetes, a type of diabetes that seems to appear only while they are pregnant.  It can be controlled with diet and exercise but these moms must be closely controlled by their caregivers to ensure that the baby remains healthy. These women are also at a much higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes later in life so it is good to make some lifestyle and diet changes that carry on well after pregnancy. I consider this test to be very important and informational. The test is done by giving the mom a drink high in glucose (a type of sugar) then testing her blood one hour later. Normally caregivers give a pre-made orange drink that tastes li

Here is the stereotype: Back in the old days, women used midwives and almost always gave birth at home (true).  Then modern medicine came along in the 20th century and doctors provided a supposedly healthier way of giving birth in hospitals. Now we are in the 21st century and only crazy hippies would use a midwife so they could give birth at home without medical support.  THIS IS SO WRONG!  GET THIS OUT OF YOUR HEAD NOW! Don't get too comfy with your OB. One of the most common things that I hear from women is that they love their pre-pregnancy OBGYN so they stick with that care provider because they feel comfortable.  Or they know one friend who just gave birth with an OB so they use that doctor.  Although this makes sense to these moms, I challenge all of you pregnant moms to look at the data and hear the birth stories of women on both sides of the caregiving spectrum. Lower your chances of a cesarean by using a midwife! The World Health Organization says that the cesarean rate sh

Get your mind out of the gutter, I am not talking about THAT kind of lubrication!  I am talking about your skin! If you take care of your body during pregnancy, you can look awesome afterwards! I believe that the female body comes in all shapes and sizes so don't get me wrong.  I also believe that women should be proud of their bodies and if that means showing off some skin then why not (it must be my European blood talking). During pregnancy, your skin is stretching and making amazing (seemingly strange) changes. Many women find that their skin never goes back to its original state although it can.  Maybe the skin is extra stretched or it has stretch marks from the skin stretching too fast. There are four factors that cause the women's skin to change: Genetics -- The good news here is that more and more each day, it is being proven that we can change our genetics by diet and lifestyle!  So don't blame genetics too much as you stuff you face during pregnancy! Hydration -