What the Supreme Court’s Decision about Health Care Means to Us
by Diana Zuckerman, PhD, president of the National Research Center for Women & Families
The term “Obamacare” began as an insult but now it is the name almost everyone uses to describe the healthcare reform law. Earlier this year, some of Mitt Romney’s critics called it RomneyCare, because it was, after all, a descendent of the healthcare program that Mitt Romney developed for Massachusetts. (An excellent program that Romney now says he opposes.)
But let’s forget the politics and call it what it is: the health care law that survived the Supreme Court. Continue reading →
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Posted in Children's Health, Men's Health, Women's Health
The Pollution Solution That Will Make Us All Sick
By Rich Bindell, senior writer and blogger at Food & Water Watch
The path to a green economy is dotted with many mirages. Eco-compensation is one of them. World Resources Institute (WRI) describes eco-compensation as if it’s a just reward to companies for providing sustainable solutions to environmental problems, but it really just encourages business as usual for big polluters. It doesn’t solve the problem of poor water quality. In fact, it allows companies to profit while they continue to compromise our resources. It’s market-based pollution trading. Continue reading →
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Posted in Climate Destabilization
Tagged climate change, climate destabilization, industrial food system
‘Safer’ alternatives to tanning?
By Deirdre Imus, president and founder of The Deirdre Imus Environmental Health Center at Hackensack University Medical Center
In the age of appearance-obsessed television shows like “Toddlers and Tiaras,” “Jersey Shore,” and the “Real Housewives,” all of which feature heavily tanned girls and women, it surprised me little that a mother would be arrested and charged with felony child endangerment for taking her five-year old daughter into a tanning booth with her at a New Jersey salon. Continue reading →
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Posted in Children's Health, Men's Health, Women's Health
Tagged healthy lifestyle
5 People Looking Out for Your Food
By Frances Beinecke, president of Natural Resources Defense Council
Today NRDC announces the winners of the 2012 Growing Green Awards. These awards celebrate the farmers, business owners, and bold thinkers who are transforming America’s food system. Each one of them has pioneered ways to produce food that nourishes our families and restores our water, air, and soil at the same time.
These leaders stand at the forefront of a movement that is sweeping the nation. This is the fourth year NRDC has hosted the Growing Green Awards and within that short time, there’s been an explosion of interest in healthy, sustainable food. Continue reading →
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Posted in Organic Food, Sustainable Farming
Tagged organic agriculture, organic food
GMO Crops in Crisis
by Marion Nestle, PhD, professor of nutrition, food studies, and public health at New York University
I was a member of the FDA Food Advisory Committee when the agency approved production of genetically modified foods in the early 1990s.
At the time, critics repeatedly warned that widespread planting of GM crops modified to resist Monsanto’s weed-killer, Roundup, were highly likely to select for “superweeds” that could withstand treatment with Roundup. Continue reading →
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Posted in Food Politics, Pesticides & GMOs
Tagged GMOs, industrial food system, pesticides
Top Finds for a Plastic-Free Baby Registry
By Alexa Napoleon, plastic-free crusader
Having a baby is an exciting time. However, for a first-time mom, the products available and the confusion about what they’re made of can be a bit overwhelming. Starting a baby registry can help organize your thoughts and outline what you need to be prepared, and, for a plastic-free wannabe, it gives you a chance to start anew, avoiding the plastic rut right from the start. Continue reading →
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Posted in Children's Health, Low-Impact Living
Tagged plastics
The Top Healthy-Cooking Secrets
By Deirdre Imus, president and founder of The Deirdre Imus Environmental Health Center at Hackensack University Medical Center
When it comes to fighting cancer, or heart disease, or the common cold, there are many variables that are outside your control, like what will happen next, how will it feel, and when it will get better. One of the few aspects of treatment that patients can manage is the food they put into their bodies. Eating healthily is always important, but it is paramount – almost vital – when illness strikes. Continue reading →
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Posted in Healthy Diet
Tagged healthy diet
Will better access to healthier foods reduce obesity?
by Marion Nestle, PhD, professor of nutrition, food studies, and public health at New York University
A question from a reader:
Q. I was wondering if you could comment on the recent article in the New York Times which questions the link between food deserts and obesity.
A. Sure. Happy to. The article talks about two recent studies finding no relationship between the types of foods children eat, what they weight, and the kinds of foods available within a mile and a half of their homes.
These finding seem counter-intuitive in light of current efforts to improve access to healthier foods in low-income communities. Continue reading →
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Posted in Food Politics, Healthy Diet
Family Farmers Fight Monsanto
By Margaret Riche, EcoCentric
According to many family farmers, there is an atmosphere of fear in rural America today. The threat of litigation looms, carried on the wind, by bird and by bee, in the form of Monsanto’s genetically engineered seeds. When these patent-protected drifters settle on a neighbor’s non-GE field, in effect contaminating their crops, unwitting farmers are suddenly at risk for legal retribution from the biotech giant. Continue reading →