Organic: Choosing What Counts for Kids

I'm one of those people you could call "sporadically organic." I want to avoid feeding my kids pesticides and chemical fertilizers, of course, but I'm also baffled as to what really matters -- and how much of a premium I should really pay for that "organic" label.

The health blog in the New York Times has a nice little piece on "Five Easy Ways to Go Organic" that helps anxious parents hone in on the places where organic counts. Their five picks? Milk, potatoes, peanut butter, ketchup (!) and apples.

I was most surprised by this tidbit about the unassuming potato: "[C]ommercially-farmed potatoes are some of the most pesticide-contaminated vegetables. A 2006 U.S.D.A. test found 81 percent of potatoes tested still contained pesticides after being washed and peeled, and the potato has one of the the highest pesticide contents of 43 fruits and vegetables tested, according to the Environmental Working Group." Mmmm, blight-killer with those fries?

How Couples Argue Has Big Health Consequences

Image from New York Times

The New York Times has a fascinating article on the implications of how married couples argue. Even if couples consider themselves happy, and even if they fight infrequently, it appears that their style of disagreeing has a big impact on their health. In a recent study, the way couples argue turned out to be a greater risk factor for heart problems than whether they smoked or had high cholesterol!

The study was not about abusive relationships, but about the nuances of handling conflict. The most interesting thing to me is that bottling up emotions during a disagreement ("self-silencing," as the researchers call it) exacts a HUGE toll on a woman's health, but men who bottle up their emotions seem to suffer no ill consequences. (Honestly -- no pot shots here -- doesn't that explain a lot about the way men and women relate?) Where men seem to falter health-wise is in confrontations about control -- even when the man is the one who is making the controlling comments.

A great read. It will definitely make you think about how you handle conflict in your own relationships, even beyond your marriage.

No More Thumb-Twiddling Saturdays

A friend just turned me on to a great site for planning activities with kids. goCityKids.com provides an exhaustive events calendar for dozens of cities, including everything from service projects and museum exhibits to puppet shows and library storytimes. Even better, you can look up activities by indoor/outdoor, type of experience and your child’s age. Definitely sign up for the free weekly events e-mail, which comes on Thursdays.

We’ve lived in our neighborhood for five years, and I’ve just turned up several promising new playgrounds not far from us. Finally, the feeling that you can discover something new to do with the kids!

FDA Considers Ban on Cold Meds for Children Under 6

FDA safety experts are encouraging the agency to ban over-the-counter cough and cold remedies for children under the age of 6. The preliminary recommendation, which outside experts will review later this month, says children under the age of 2 should not be using decongestants, and those under 6 should not use antihistamines.

Between 2004 and 2005, more than 1,500 children under the age of two suffered serious side effects from using common cold medicines, according to a recent report from the CDC. The FDA report cites at least 54 deaths in children after taking decongestants, and 69 after taking antihistamines from 1969 to 2006, and says adverse effects are likely under-reported.

Our pediatrician has long told us cold medicines aren’t effective in little ones, a position backed by the American Academy of Pediatrics. Though I’m generally not a pusher, when you have a toddler stuffed up like a taut new handbag at 3 a.m., it has always seemed kinder (for all involved) to give a teensy squirt of tasty cherry liquid than to induce shrieking by forcing saline up her nose and attacking her with a tiny blue turkey baster. Never did I think that these common medications could be dangerous for my kids.

I can’t shake this quote from USA Today, referring to the 800-plus popular cold medications marketed for infants and children: "The basic question is, why should a product be so relentlessly marketed when it's not safe or effective?" said Dr. Joshua Sharfstein, Baltimore's health commissioner. "It does not make sense, in the absence of information, to say 'consult a physician,' because they do not have superhuman powers. They cannot make a product safe or effective."

Equally chilling, it turns out that hyrdrocodone, the ingredient that gives the narcotic Vicodin its kick, is used in some unapproved prescription cough syrups for children. The FDA has given manufacturers until the end of October to stop selling them.

Check out complete stories in the New York Times and USAToday.

Mama's Cookin' Up Something... Cold

Photo from Flickr

Frozen corn (right out of the bag) and cold black beans and rice have been the big culinary hits this week in my house. I have a friend whose boys devour raw broccoli like it's potato chips. Have I been wasting my time by actually COOKING for my kids? What weird food things tickle your kids' fancy?

They'd be happy to go to bed...

... but would they sleep?

I've been pondering this question as we entertain the idea of a bed for Zoe. She's been sleeping (if you can call it that) on her baby mattress on the floor of her room, since successfully overcoming her crib railing about a month ago.

Danish company Flexa offers scads of great combinations like this one for the ultimate playhouse/bed. I fell in love with this bed the moment I found it. It's exactly the kind of fanciful thing I'd like to think I'm "Fun Mom" enough to get my kid...

Upon further consideration, though, I don't know how you get a kid to go to sleep when her "quiet place" is a playground... and I don't relish the thought of all the neighborhood kids tromping all over Zoe's bed for the next 10 years.

Back to the drawing board. Oh well, "Fun Mom" was fun while she lasted.

Antibacterial Soaps Don't Wash

Moms know that the fight against germs is futile, but, valiantly, we try…. As it turns out, one weapon in the arsenal may be a dud. The LA Times’ “Healthy Skeptic” reports that consumer antibacterial soaps don’t contain enough Triclosan to be any more effective than regular soap:

[Researchers at the University of Michigan School of Public Health] recently surveyed 27 separate studies that investigated the effectiveness of soaps containing triclosan. Some studies looked at rates of infectious diseases; others measured levels of bacteria that lingered on hands after washing. [They] found no evidence that antibacterial soaps prevent more illnesses or remove more germs than regular soap.

Though the jury is still out on whether antibacterials contribute to creating drug-resistant "Super Bugs," that's a pretty unsettling prospect that is another mark against antibacterial soaps in my book...

Here’s the full article.

No Mouth!

Once upon a time, way back in June, Moms only had to worry about choking hazards and drug-resistant germ strains when Baby gnawed on a toy. Ah, the quaint olden days…

Now every week seems to bring news of another recall of Chinese-manufactured toys slathered in lead paint or dotted with dangerous mini-magnets that can become intestinal perforation hazards. (Even as I was writing this, FOUR more lead paint toy recalls were announced!) And, if that’s not enough, New Zealand announced this week that it’s investigating Chinese clothing imports, after extremely high levels of formaldehyde (not only generally gross, but also a carcinogen) were found in some randomly tested items.

As I survey our toy-strewn family room, I wonder which lead-laced toys still lurk -- especially among those not produced by major manufacturers with their in-house test labs and valuable brand names to uphold.

“No mouth, no mouth,” I bark at my 22-month-old, with increasing urgency, “No mouth!”

Some moms I know are gathering up any painted plastic toys made in China and rationing their children’s access to them. My mother-in-law recently chose a plastic tub toy made in Denmark for our toddler, reasoning that it would be safe.

The Atlanta Journal Constitution points out that some parents are turning to organic toys as a safe alternative, and old fashioned toys like rag dolls and wooden cars. Treehugger.com has a guide to greening your child’s toy box.

On NPR last week, Dr. Jerome Paulson, a pediatrician at the National Children's Medical Center in Washington, D.C., said acute lead poisoning probably isn’t a risk for most kids. But he theorized that for a generation of American children, IQ, attention span and behavior could be affected in subtle ways: “The risk for any one child from any one toy is pretty low, but from a public health standpoint, tens of thousands of kids individually exposed means that for society as a whole, there may be a lot of kids who sustain a little bit of damage.”

(Of course, how would we distinguish this from the effect of cell phones and video games, I wonder?)

Maybe it’s time to let kids go back to eating dirt… all of a sudden, that doesn’t seem like such a bad thing.

Just for the record, here's the daunting list of toy recalls so far this summer based on lead or magnet concerns:

Martin Designs Inc. Recalls SpongeBob SquarePants Character Address Books and Journals Due to Violation of Lead Paint Standard– Aug 22

Thomas and Friends, Curious George and Other Spinning Tops and Tin Pails Recalled By Schylling Associates Due To Violation of Lead Paint Standard – Aug 22

Children’s Charm Bracelets Sold by Buy-Rite Recalled Due to Risk of Lead Exposure – Aug 22

Children’s Metal Jewelry Recalled by TOBY N.Y.C. Due to Risk of Lead Exposure – Aug 22

Hampton Direct Recalls Magnetic Toy Train Sets Due to Lead Exposure Risk – Aug 22

Additional Reports of Magnets Detaching from Polly Pocket Play Sets Prompts Expanded Recall by Mattel – Aug 14

Mattel Recalls Doggie Day Care Magnetic Toys Due to Magnets Coming Loose – Aug 14

Mattel Recalls Barbie and Tanner™ Magnetic Toys Due to Magnets Coming Loose – Aug 14

Mattel Recalls Batman and One Piece Magnetic Action Figure Sets Due To Magnets Coming Loose – Aug 14

Mattel Recalls “Sarge” Die Cast Toy Cars Due To Violation of Lead Safety Standard – Aug 14

Fisher-Price Recalls Licensed Character Toys Due To Lead Poisoning Hazard – Aug 2

Children's Earrings Sold at Wal-Mart Stores in Florida Recalled by Uncas Manufacturing Co. Due to Lead Poisoning Hazard – July 17

Serious Intestinal Injury Prompts Kipp Brothers Recall of Mag Stix Magnetic Building Sets – July 5

Children's Metal Jewelry Recalled by Future Industries Due to Lead Poisoning Hazard – July 5

Children's Necklaces Recalled by GeoCentral Due to Lead Poisoning Hazard – June 19

RC2 Corp. Recalls Various Thomas & Friends Wooden Railway Toys Due to Lead Poisoning Hazard – June 13

Using your noodle

Image from Toyspalsh.com

My friend Keelin just showed me an ingenious use of the “Wacky Noodle” pool toy. When her daughter no longer needed a bed rail, she put a Wacky Noodle under the fitted sheet at the edge of her bed to act as a “speed bump” of sorts, keeping her little one from rolling out of bed at night.

What a clever idea! (And so much easier to make the bed over a noodle than a guard rail.)

I also stumbled across this: Poolcenter.com offers bulk noodles to local civic organizations to assist with fitting child car seats. Who knew!

So dry off your noodle and put it to good use, for goodness sake.

In the News: Young minds and bodies

Time.com: Hooked on McDonald's at Age 3
A new study shows that children as young as three rate identical food items as tasting better when they come out of a McDonald's bag rather than a plain paper bag, scary evidence of how brands co-opt little minds. (A whopping 77% said the fries in the McDonald's bag were better.) McDonald's, of course, points out that it only advertises its "healthy" Happy Meals (with white meat nuggets, apple slices and lowfat milk) in ads aimed at kids. If you ask me, the idea that McDonald's cares about kids' health is a joke as long as it continues to use trans fats in its foods -- including, incidentally, the chicken nuggets. (Check out the fries, too.)

Time.com: Baby Einsteins: Not So Smart After All
Not only do "Baby Einstein" or "Brainy Baby" videos fail to make babies into geniuses, a new study shows they may actually be harming language development. Researchers at the University of Washington found that for every hour daily spent watching baby videos, babies scored about 10% lower on language skills than kids who didn't watch the videos. A scary finding is that by the time they are two, almost 90% of kids are spending TWO TO THREE HOURS in front of a TV daily. I rely on at least 30 minutes of TV a day with my kids -- I don't think I'd ever manage to get dinner on the table without help from Blue or Little Bear. And on hard days with the kids, they might get a video so I can gather my sanity... I'd rather not feel guilty about it, but I do all the time.

LA Times: Hearing loss may foretell infant deaths, study says
I just came across this fascinating article that suggests routine newborn hearing screenings may help identify infants at risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. A study shows a striking and curious connection between a unique pattern of hearing loss (detected in routine infant hearing tests at hospitals) and SIDs. Researchers believe that the inner ear may have a role in respiratory control, and that it's possible some infants suffer damage to these systems during delivery. Wouldn't it be amazing if doctors could soon prevent these tragedies?

Golly g!

Image from Body + Soul

All of a sudden, gDiapers seem to be everywhere. Just a few days after I read about the eco-friendly, flushable diapers in Body + Soul Magazine, a friend saw them on a green living program and sent me the site.

The little wrap pants that go over the disposable liners are so darned tootin’ CUTE** that I almost wished Zoe wasn’t close to potty training. (** Oh, yeah, and the cause so worthy. I forgot that part. But did I mention the pants are capital-C cute?)

Then I pulled out the calculator: For the size diaper Zoe is wearing now, we pay $30 for 200 Huggies (15 cents each). The gDiapers are 128 for $52 (40 cents each), but there's also the cost of the wrap-pants and special fabric liners... Seventh Generation disposable diapers, which are chlorine-free and made of wood pulp, are $42 for 160 in Zoe's current size (30 cents each).

Over a child’s diaper lifetime (about 5,000 diapers, I hear – though it seems like a heck of a lot more to me), that’s $750 for regular disposables, $1,500 for Seventh Generation, and more than $2,000 for gDiapers.

So saving the world doesn't come cheap... Time for potty training, Zoe!

(Speaking of the worthy cause part: Watch Dr. Heidi Cullen from The Weather Channel on ABC talking about the environmental impact of disposable diapers.)

Additional note: The Green Guide has a helpful, sane report on diaper options, including the benefits and drawbacks of disposables, eco-disposables and flushables.

Where are the part-time professional jobs for Mommies?

Ah, that’s a trick question, because, for the most part, they don’t exist. At least not in a way that compensates women fairly and allows them to continue growing their careers.

The New York Times Select has a fantastic op-ed by Judith Warner today exploring this sad truth. No surprise to hear that the Europeans are ahead of Americans on this social issue:

In Europe, significant steps have been made to make part-time work a livable reality for those who seek it. Denying fair pay and benefits to part-time workers is now illegal. Parents in Sweden have the right to work a six-hour day at prorated pay until their children turn 8 years old. Similar legislation helps working parents in France, Austria, and Belgium and any employee in Germany and the Netherlands who wants to cut back.

I especially like Warner’s observation that “the American model of work-it-out-for-yourself employment is Darwinian.” As I noted in my blog about my part-time work experience, success in negotiating a part-time position is, largely, dependent on your luck at having a child when you are already well-established in a workplace with sympathetic managers. How many women can pull that off?

And even this “ideal” arrangement has its drawbacks, as Warner notes:

None of this creates a perfect world. Feminists have long been leery of part-time work policies, which tend to be disproportionately used by women, mommy-tracking them and placing them at an economic disadvantage within their marriages and in society.

Warner reports that Senator Edward Kennedy and Representative Carolyn Maloney are trying to build consensus for draft legislation that would at least give (all) workers “the right” to request flexible work schedules, but with no obligation for employers to honor that request. It doesn't seem like much, but I suppose it's more than what exists now, when many people are probably afraid to even ask.

Here’s the inside link to Warner’s full op-ed. Well worth the read.