frunchymama.com- fashionably crunchy earth friendly parenting

Thursday, December 14, 2006

Seeking Frunchperts

Frunchymama is seeking "Frunchperts". Frunchperts will be our resident "experts" on a topic. We are using the term "expert" loosely, and are defining it as anyone who has a bit of knowledge about any specific topic on Frunchymama. Our Frunchperts must also be willing to dig deeper for information if necessary and be enthusiastic about their position. We will consider everyone who is interested, so please don't be intimidated if you think that you aren't qualified - as long as you are interested and willing to work and learn, go ahead and apply!

We would love to have a Frunchpert for just about every forum on Frunchymama.com. These volunteers will responsible for initiating new and interesting topics on their forum, as well as linking to news stories and other pertinent information. They will also be the "go-to" person for questions about their topic, and will overall help keep their forum active and interesting.

To show our appreciation for the Frunchperts, we will also be setting up a link specifically for the volunteers to include a short biography and an active (non-competitive) weblink. This will be particularly beneficial to those who are in certain fields that pertain to Frunchymama!

If you are interested in volunteering to be a Frunchpert, please email info@frunchymama.com or PM admin or admin2 with your interest. Include:
-- your username
-- what forum(s) you are interested in
-- why you are interested in a particular forum
-- any background you have in that area or field

This will be an ongoing process, and we are asking for a minimum 6 month commitment to the Frunchpert position.

The available forums are:
Babywearing
Baby Foods
Breastfeeding
Diapering
Discipline
Parenting
Schools and Education
Vaccination
Meal Planning and Nutrition
Raw Foods
Traditional Foods
Vegetarian
DIY Arts, Crafts and Hobbies
DIY Baby and Childrens Projects
Cleaning
Composting
Frugal Living
Gardening
Organization
Pets
Recycling
Current Events and News
Politics and Activism
Taking Care of the Earth
Fashion and Style
Fitness and Wellness
Haircare
Skincare
Vitamins and Supplements
Weight Loss
Alternative Medical Treatments
Balancing and Nutritional Remedies
Creative Arts Therapies
Energy Therapy
Mind-Body Healing
Miscellaneous Remedies and Treatments
Fertility
Personal Care Products
Pregnancy
Relationships
WAHM Talk


Thanks!

Monday, December 11, 2006

"No Antibiotics for Ear Infections!"

My sons pediatrician used this phrase on a recent trip to his office. He said that in the past, they would have given antibiotics at the first sign of an ear infection but nowadays they are more reluctant to dole out the Rx for those over age 2. YAY!
I was relieved, as we are an "antibiotics must be absolutely necessary" family, to learn that ear infections are moving over to the "not necessary" list.
This story on MSN discusses more on the topic.

OK. Whew. Good. But now what? How can we help our children fight this infection?

Some tips and things to check out~ as always check with your dr. first.
1. Water Water Water. Make sure your child is well hydrated!
2. Vitamins are always a great way to boost the immune system and allow for a healthy environment that is not conducive to harmful bacteria. Start with a Multi if your child is not already taking one. Don't skimp and do your research as not all vitamins are created equal!

Now on to Ear Specific "Natural Remedies" (in no particular order)
1. Garlic Oil dropped into the ear is a favorite of many.
2. Zinc, Vitamin C and Ecinacea ~ start at first signs of illness.
3. Heat Compress- if you do not have a store bought one, fill a tube sock with a cup of rice and heat in the microwave for about a minute. Test temperature before use.
4. Colloidial Silver dropped in the ear is said to reduce swelling and relieve pain.
5. Sweet Oil- drop in the ear and cover with a cotton ball. Can also be warmed.
6. Crying Child? Try a hairdryer on low (not too close!) for a little bit of warming and drying of the ear. The sound also works as white noise to calm.
7. Ear candling ~ though this would not work so well with a young child!
8. Neti Pot or Syringe. Cleaning out and hydrating the nasal passages can relieve pain and pressure thus lessening the ear infection pain.
9. Eliminate Dairy. Some believe that allergens in food can trigger ear infections.
10. Homeopathy~ here is a nifty page to help determine which homeopathic remedy could be used.

What are we missing? Do you have any tried-and-true remedies to share???

Sunday, December 10, 2006

Trans-Fats

Trans Fat. We all know its bad. We all know we shouldnt eat it but when it is being served at restaurants its just so hard to say no. Sometimes though, simply choosing your restaurant can make all the difference.

So how do the chains weigh in?

McDonalds is ready for a trans-fat fight.
Although they did switch to trans-fat free cooking oil in Denmark, there was nothing on their site to suggest making changes in the USA. This article even mentions that McDonalds is "not yet prepared to announce a national rollout."

Hmm.

VS.

Kentucky Fried Chicken said it would stop using the oils.
Wendy's will also join in cutting fat and has switched to zero trans fat oil.
Burger King will begin testing trans-fat free oils.
Arby's will no longer use trans-fat on their french fries.
Taco Bell will convert to a new zero grams trans-fat canola oil.

Trans-fat milestones include:

BanTransFats sued Kraft in 2003 to eliminate trans-fats from oreos.
Result: Kraft eliminated trans fat from Oreos and reduced or eliminated it in about 650 other products. Click here and here for information.The Oreo lawsuit had a huge "domino" effect. The publicity that the lawsuit received created public awareness about the trans fat issue and triggered an avalanche of events including the FDA labeling rule.

NYC bans trans-fats!
NEW YORK, Dec. 5 (UPI) -- New York City's board of health voted unanimously Tuesday to cut sharply the amount of artificial trans fats in restaurant food.

More on NYC banning:
The phase out of artificial trans fat in restaurant foods will happen in two stages. First, restaurants will have until July 1, 2007, to make sure that all oils, shortening and margarine containing artificial trans fat used for frying or for spreads have less than 0.5 grams of trans fat per serving. Oils and shortening used to deep fry yeast dough and cake batter are not included in the first deadline.
The second deadline is July 1, 2008. By that date, all foods must have less than 0.5 grams of trans fat per serving if they have any artificial trans fat. Packaged foods served in the manufacturer's original packaging are exempt.

Ok. Wait. Packaged foods are exempt? Seriously? Shouldn't it either be banned to serve this stuff or not? Double Hmmm.

So what do you think? Is it the governments responsibility to ban these fatty foods.. or is it our responsibility to eat healthfully and stay away from the junk?

Friday, December 01, 2006

TV and Natural Parenting

While watching Gilmore Girls the other day I was floored that not only did one of the characters, Liz (Luke's sister), have a home birth with a doula ~ but they named their daughter "Doula"! It came as such a surprise that something so natural and normal was FINALLY on television!

Why is it that the natural lifestyle is so rarely portrayed on television?

Why are there no TV mothers who cloth diaper? Why are there no TV mothers who question convenience items and disposable products? Is this representative of our generation or is it just because the wahms (who generally are the ones making the reuseable items) can not afford product placements the way walmart and huggies can?

Why does it take movies such as "Super Size Me" and "An Inconvenient Truth" to raise awareness about such crucial topics as health and global awareness? Aren't these topics that should be discussed so much more often on television as well and brought into mainstream consciousness?

I've been struggling to come up with more examples of the medium of television being used to influence consumers to reuse.. recycle.. reinvent.. and coming up pretty emptyhanded.

Have I ever seen a baby carried in a sling on television? Have I ever seen a mom make their own baby food? Don't we all wonder where exactly Emma was while Rachel was sitting at the coffee shop or hanging out at Monicas?!

What values are we really teaching on television to our kids, our community, and ourselves?

More importantly- how can we change them? How can we see cloth diapers on TV babies? How can we hear TV moms and dads discussing the pros and cons of vaccination? When will we see a cosleeper or an amby hanging in a new TV parents house?

Isn't it our time?