Eco-Chick · The modern girl's guide to living green & fabulous.

Breast Cancer Awareness: Go Green to Really Go Pink

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by Stephanie Rogers · 10/19/10

We’re surrounded by endocrine-disrupting compounds at every turn, not to mention countless pesticides and other environmental toxins. Could all this chemical crap have ties to rising rates of breast cancer in women around the world? In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the Breast Cancer Fund is highlighting its 2010 State of the Evidence report on how the disease is linked to all kinds of toxic substances, and you can’t afford not to read it.

A long string of recent studies cited in the report have linked breast cancer to everything from seemingly omnipresent BPA to air pollution. “Recent data demonstrate that early exposure to BPA leads to abnormalities in mammary tissue development that are observable even during gestation and are maintained into adulthood,” reads one sobering paragraph.

It’s easy to get lost in doom and gloom when the evidence is so overwhelming. For me, as someone who has struggled with hormone-related health problems associated with higher risk of cancer, the data can be downright frightening: who knew that sunscreen is often estrogenic?

Read the report. Get angry. Pass this information on to every woman you know. Then, take action. Don’t just go pink for a single month – go green for life. Your life. Ditch products packed with unpronounceable ingredients and go for natural alternatives. Stop consuming hormonally modified foods.

If you’re a regular Eco Chick reader, chances are you’re already doing a lot of positive things – in particular, reducing your exposure to toxic substances in personal care products and household products from cosmetics to cleaners. It can seem like an insurmountable challenge when you’re first starting out, but it gets easier – stick with it.

And there are plenty of other things you can do to lower your risk of developing breast cancer, even if you have a family history of the disease. The American Cancer Society recommends regular exercise, a healthy body weight and low consumption of alcoholic beverages as important ways to be proactive.

Want more tips? Check out the Breast Cancer Fund’s Twitter feed, which offers up simple ways to beat breast cancer in 140 characters or less.

Photo by Anthony Cain
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BPA, breast cancer, Cancer, Pollution, Toxins

Abercrombie and Fitch (Deservedly) Earns Green Teens’ Wrath with Mall Protest

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by Starre Vartan · 09/28/10

Abercrombie and Fitch has long walked the ‘adored by teens, hated by adults’ line, what with controversies sparked by their scantily-clad (and strangely hairless) models and ugly-people-need-not-apply hiring practices. But now they’ve pissed off the kids, and they’re fighting back with 70′s-style in-person protests (hey, 70′s is totally IN) of the ubiquitous mall retailer.

Teens Turning Green, an advocacy group made up of young folks who want to get toxic ingredients out of the products that tend to litter young-people’s bathrooms is going after A&F’s new scent, Fierce, which the company instructs its employees to spray in and around their stores, and of course, to wear themselves when they work. Teens Turning Green has sent a letter and video (see below) to A&F’s headquarters to no response, so now they’re taking to the streets (or the mall pedestrian walkway).

According to a press release from the group, “The issue is the spraying of the store’s signature fragrance “Fierce” in and around all A&F’s, a product that has been found to contain endocrine disrupting chemicals and cause allergies, headaches, wheezing and impacts male sperm count. The student protesters want to draw attention to a letter they are sending to the store’s national headquarters to demand a halt to spraying the store’s employees and customers , and also to the Safe Cosmetics Act of 2010 introduced this year to reform the regulatory policy on cosmetics (first time in 70 years). Hundreds of organizations have signed the letter, representing over a million and a half people.”
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abercrombie and fitch, asthma, chemicals, health, perfume, Teens, Toxins

Human Ingredients T-Shirt: Fascinating and Disturbing

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by Starre Vartan · 01/13/10

This thought-provoking tee isn’t organic, but it is available on American Apparel stock shirts, so at least you can choose a fair-trade option. I think this is totally genius, and includes all the heavy metals that have worked their way into the bodies of every human being on the planet- like it or not. These heavy metals are known disease-causers and are pumped into the air and water by coal- and oil-burning power plants, garbage incineration, plastic-production plants and others- and are distributed planet-wide.

eco fashion, Fair Trade, health, heavy metals, Toxins

Healthy Child Healthy World: Creating a Cleaner, Greener, Safer Home

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by Kimberly Jordan Allen · 06/03/09

Healthy Child, Healthy World is an organization founded by Nancy and Jim Chuda. After losing their daughter, Collette, to a non-hereditary form of cancer, the Chuda’s decided to dedicate their lives to environmental safety and children’s health. Healthy Child, Healthy World, (formally the CHEC, the Children’s Environmental Health Coalition,) serves to inform, educate and promote environmentally conscious practices in all aspects of our lives. Healthy Child’s new paperback book Healthy Child Healthy World: Creating a Cleaner, Greener, Safter Home, has just been released in paperback and is receiving high praise.

Healthy Child has always been friendly and responsive whenever I contacted them. As a new mom and a writer I tend to do a lot of research and Healthy Child and its affiliates have come through every time. On a few occasions I received responses from the CEO himself. Even in his busy day managing a large organization, being a new father, and writing a book he took the time to answer questions and be available. Healthy Child is truly passionate about what they do. They have worked to initiate legislative change, they have lobbied politicians, and they have become one of the leading resources for eco-friendly families. So, I may be a bit biased about this new book, but I really enjoyed it and found it useful. This is resource you can come back to again and again.

Chistopher Gavigan, the CEO/Executive Director of Healthy Child, has written a guide for families that is more important today than ever. Gavigan addresses issues that need to be discussed, such as: what to do with the harmful products in our homes while we “go green”; why antibacterials are a no-no; why bright blue yogurt is bad; avoiding the word “fragrance” at all costs; how hair dyes contain lead; whether to binky or not to binky; which toys to freecycle; how to avoid electromagnetic overload; which are the best veggies for a kid’s garden (one of my favorite sections!;) and generally, how to do it all in a cool, calm and collected way.

Another item worthy of note: the back of the book features a lengthy summary of organizations and companies specializing in everything environmentally friendly. From sunscreen to biodegradeable dishware; to home water testing and non-toxic art supplies, there is a book, website, or phone number listed in reference to just about everything.

The tone of Healthy Child Healthy World is not alarmist or negative, but full of tips, guides (many that can be photocopied and put into one’s wallet,) and resources for all things eco-savvy. These days, before running out to acquire things they don’t need, many parents are thinking about health, the environment, and creating a minimal footprint. Healthy Child offers an excellent how-to manual for creating a healthy, toxin-free home.

health, kids, resources, Toxins

Toxin-Free Kid's Tea Party!

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by Danelle Brown · 11/10/08

The team at Green Toys™ Inc. has a lot to celebrate. They announced that in their first year as an environmentally friendly toy company, they have been honored with these major awards:

This classic yet innovative toy company turns recycled plastic milk containers into eco-friendly children’s toys that do not contain phthalates or Bispenol-A (BPA) , and meet FDA food contact standards. So as the weather grows colder, you can enjoy a nice little tea party with your child, relative or little friend and not have to worry about a little one digesting leached BPA during simple innocent playtime.

Green Toys products can be found in this recycled packaging (reminiscent of those fun 1980’s toys from my childhood memories) at 2,000 retail and online stores in the US and Canada. If you pick up one of their kitchen or tea sets for a child, there are several  kid friendly teas and snacks that can compliment your party.

BPA, kids, Tea, Toxins