Spring Clean Your Home Naturally With Lemon!!

It's that time of year again, time to clean your living space. Using harsh chemicals can contaminate your home with toxins, defeating the purpose of all that dusting, washing, scrubbing and polishing. Exposure to these harsh chemicals can also have adverse effects on the health of your family. Some household cleaners can cause mild irritation, and they have also been linked to asthma and cancer. Every year thousands of children are poisoned by ordinary household cleaners. Not only do they make thousands of children ill each year, they also pollute our air and water, pack landfills and contaminate water sources.

Luckily there is an alternative provided by nature that is simple, easy to use and disinfects naturally and that is LEMON! Lemons are natural disinfectants with a wonderful smell that people associate with cleanliness. >You can use a lemon to remove stains from counter tops and cutting boards. Slice a lemon and pour the juice onto the stain. Let the lemon sit for awhile and wipe clean. For granite or marble surfaces try club soda instead. > Dip a sliced lemon in salt and use that to scrub copper-bottomed pots and pans. This trick will also help to dissolve soap and hard water stains in sinks. > Drop a whole lemon into your garbage disposal and turn it on to eliminate odors and bacteria. > You can also use lemon to brighten your whites and give them a fresh smell. Add 1/2 cup of lemon juice to the rinse cycle and volia!

Tips on How to Get Rid of Bugs Naturally

Here are a few simple tricks to get rid of those pesky bugs that munch on your plants. The are easy to make and are earth friendly.

1.) To Get Rid Of Ants: To get rid of ants, spray their routes with apple cider vinegar. This will cover up their pheromone tracks, which are invisible, so that they can not find their way back to their foraging sites. Mix together equal parts of baking soda and powdered sugar and mix thoroughly. Place the mixture into a salt shaker and sprinkle the mixture directly onto ant hills and trails. Into the areas where ants invade, shake diatomaceous earth. When the ants climb over the earth, their bodies become desiccated.

2.) To Get Rid of Aphids: Believe it or not, many aphids and mites can be eliminated by a strong blast from a hose. This blast breaks and dislodges their sucking mouth parts. Also, aphids are drawn to the color yellow. If you set a yellow pan of soapy water near the infested plants, the aphids will enter the water and die. Also, if you buy the larvae of ladydird beetles and release them into your garden, they will eat hundreds of aphids in one day.

3.) To Get Rid of Grasshoppers: On cabbage worms, loopers and grasshoppers sprinkle non self-rising white flower in the early morning when your plants are covered with dew. This will cause the pests to petrify. Rinse plants off the next day.


4.) To Get Rid of Beetles: Early in the morning, and armed with a bucket of warm, soapy water, take a long-handled spoon and gently whack the flower that is infested with the beetles. The beetles will drop straight down into the suds. One of the beetle's biggest enemies is the spined soldier bug which you may purchase from a nursery. Release them into the garden and let them take control.

For those spots in your home that get cleaned only occasionally The Maids offers 3 non-toxic recipes for wall cleaning, window cleaning and oven cleaning.

~*~ Most of us do not wash walls on a regular basis, but over time dirt and grime build up on walls. Take a closer look at your walls, and if they need some cleaning, here is an easy method to use...

1 quart warm water

1/4 cup white vinegar

2 tablespoons biodegradable liquid soap ( such as castile)

2 sift cloths

First start by removing excess dust from the walls by using a towel wrapped around the head of a broom. Then mix the above ingredients in a clean bucket. Wash the walls from the botton up to prevent streaks. Use a clean, soft cloth to dry as thoroughly as you can to prevent mildew! For oily stains, make a paste of 1/4 cup baking soda to 1 to 2 tablespoons water. Pat the mixture on the stain with a damp sponge. Let it dry then brush away with a soft dry cloth.

~*~ To keep your oven working its best, it is wise to keep it clean. Avoid the harsh chemicals that are associated with conventional oven cleaners with this following recipe...

1/2 cup salt

1/4 cup washing soda

1 box baking soda

Scant 1/4 cup water

3/4 cup white vinegar

10 drops thyme essential oil

10 drops lemon grass oil

Preheat your oven to 250 degrees for 15 minutes. Turn off and keep door open. Combine the salt, washing soda,and baking soda with just enough water to make a paste. Spread the paste over the walls with a sponge and let sit for 20 to 30 minutes. In a spray bottle combine the vinegar and oils and shake. Spritz the walls with this mixture and wipe clean.

~*~ To make windows shine use this following recipe...

2 tablespoons white vinegar

2 quarts water

2 small buckets

Lint-free cloths

Fill each bucket with a quart of warm water. Mix vinegar and water in one of the buckets and shake gently to mix. Start at the top of the window and work down using this solution with a clean cloth. Rinse with warm clean water from the other bucket. Wipe off any excess water with a squeegee.

Are Breast Cancer and the Enviroment Related?

Women today are more likely to develop breast cancer than any previous generation. Hard to believe despite the decades-old war on cancer. It is well known that risk factors such as early menarche, later menopause, childlessness and delayed childbearing are established, but these established risk factors do not account for all breast cancer cases. Does the enviroment play a part?

Since World War II, breast cancer incidences have risen. Many people feel the rise is because that is when industry began pumping out pesticides, plastics, solvents and other chemicals that leave residues in our soil, water and air. Studies in labs show that these chemicals can cause tumors in breasts, hasten their growth, or leave mammary glands more susceptible to carcinogens.

It is interesting to note that breast cancer rates declined in the United States between the years of 2003 and 2004, which is attributed to women forgoing hormone replacement therapy after a study reported that it can cause breast cancer. The goal is to find ways to have the disease not to develop at all, and if we are to genuially hope to defeat the disease, one must look at all factors- enviroment included.

~Silent Spring Institute

Consumers and Toxic Chemicals

It's is time to become more serious about shielding consumers from toxic chemicals. Common- sense controls on chemicals used in everyday products merit everyone's support. Industrial chemicals are widely used in everyday products like furniture, food packaging, personal care products and toys. These chemicals, can and do, leach out and enter our bodies, putting our health at risk.

> The plastic hardener bisphenol-A, commonly used in baby bottles and canned food lining, is an endrocrine disruptor and can cause neurological damage, especially in young children. A study done in 2011 found BPA in the bodies of 96% of pregnant women. Campbell soups have promised to remove their BPA lined soup cans, but gives no time frame for it's elimination and replacement.

> Phthalates, a plastic softener commonly found in air fresheners and plastic school binders, has been linked to birth defects and is found in the bodies of 99% of pregnant women.

> Testing by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has found more than 212 industrial chemicals in the bodies of most Americans, including at least 6 known carcinogens and dozens that have been linked to cancer, birth defects and other adverse health effects.

> As consumers we rely on the manufactures to both adequately test the chemicals in their products and label accordingly. It is astounding to note that in the last 35 years, only 200 of the 80,000 chemicals currently used in commerce have been tested for their threat to human health and also to the enviroment. So, we can safely say that the vast majority of chemicals on the market today remain untested!!! That is frightening!!!

> How can this happen? The Toxic Substance Control Act is completely ineffective in preventing large companies to test their chemicals before they are used in consumer products. What needs to take place is the passing of the Safe Chemicals Act which would ensure that chemical manufacturers would provide the EPA with minimum test data for all the chemicals they produce. We urge you all to support this important public health legislation.

Oh Those Winter Blues!!!

Winter is in full force and we find ourselves combatting the lessening of light that we experience during the winter months. So how do we beat the winter blues? We know we can not beat them , so let's join them by embracing these 5 ways to prevent the blues from coming on and to get yourself back to normal if they are already there.

a.) Excercise: Excercise is a great way to not only relieve stress, it also is important to staying healthy and maintaining your weight. Excercise will increase your energy level and your mood.

b.) Eat A Healthy Diet: What you eat has an affect on not only your mood, but on your energy level as well. Try to include a lot of complex carbohydrates into your diet, such as whole wheat breads, brown rice, veggies and fruit. These healthy foods provide your mind and body with nutrients, as well as, help to stabilize your blood sugar and energy levels. Try to avoid processed foods that are devoid of nutrients and zap your energy. Don't forget the importance of keeping hydrayted.

c.) Get Some Sun: Vitamin D improves your mood. Similar to excercise, exposure to sunlight releases neurotransmitters in the brain that affect mood. Get outdoors as often as you can. Get as much sunlight into your home as possible. Read by a sunny window.

d.) Relax: Set some time aside to simply relax. Try to spend a few minutes a day doing nothing. Read a good book, sleep in, go to bed early and possibly try meditation excercises or yoga.

e.) Have Something to Look Forward to: Winter can seem endless and having something to look forward to can lift anyone's mood. Plan a trip, a day at the spa, go out for lunch or plan a special day with your loved ones.

What to Eat To Prevent Colds and Flu

Here's a list of what to eat and drink to help prevent colds and the flu this winter season :

1.) Drink Green Tea: Eating fruits and veggies are one of the best ways to keep germs at bay this winter, as well as drinking green tea. Green tea is the best food source of catechins, which are plant compounds that halt oxidative damage to cells. If you flavor it with fresh pomegranate or ginger, you will add an extra anti-inflammatory nutrient punch!

2.) Make Some Chili: If your chili contains ingredients like garlic, onions, pasta, mushrooms or veggies, you have added immune boosting ingredients that will give you the comfort you crave during chilly winter months.

3.) Use Lots Of Spices: Some immune-supportative spices include tumeric and ginger. Try adding a pinch of cayenne to soups or stir-fries. These spices are traditionally used in cooking to get one's blood flowing and to promote healthy circulation.

4.) Include a lot of Vitamin C and Healthy Fats into Your Diet: Vitamin C is an extra cold-fighting antioxidant and nuts, like cashews, provide your body with healthy fats.

5.) Protect Yourself with Nutient Rich Foods: You can strenghthen immune cells by eating foods that are nutrient-rich and full of antioxidants like mushrooms. red bell pepper, sweet potatoes, pumpkin, garlic, beans, nuts and whole grains.