i picked up some nice, yummy raw honey with the comb from the farmer's market today, and grabbed an informative brochure from the vendor. i read it when i got home, and it said something like "it's perfectly safe to eat the comb, and may have additional health benefits also." that's a little vague. i googled, but couldn't find any specific information about how the wax could be considered healthy. i don't think it's BAD for you, but does anyone have any details about how it would be beneficial? thanks!

almost.

I live in southeastern CT. The winters can be quite cold. This will be the first full winter living in this house. We have steam radiators, which I love.   I want to know your ways of utilizing the heat off of them.I have heard about putting some tin foil behind them to reflect the heat.  This ceramic piece even caught my eye.

 
Designer: Byung-seok You
As winter’s cold creeps in, we all revel in the little things to keep cozy. The Natural Wave is ceramic plate that fits over an old school radiator. The heated plate keeps your drinks and snacks warm without having to use additional power and energy like a microwave or oven. Pretty ingenious and if anything, it makes those old rusty radiators look a lot better.

Any suggestions, advice, tips, and/or crafty ideas welcome.
Thanks in advance,
Tina

( Background )

We've had two vets tell us that Obsidian will need to need to be on a special prescription diet to prevent further urinary tract problems. The only one that I know if is by Hill's Prescription Diet. Now, I have a couple issues with that. First off - Hill's was involved in the pet food recalls last year, with one of their prescription dry cat foods being specifically involved. Second - neither vet was able to find any crystals, blockages or stones in his urine, so why a special diet? Third - we have a female cat, Maya, who shares the same food as Obsidian (common bowl free-feeding), and she doesn't need a special diet (plus there's no real way for us to stop her from eating his food, or vice versa, as evidenced when we first adopted her...Obsidian would eat Maya's kitten food and she would eat his adult food). Fourth - we've been feeding Felidae and Innova EVO dry cat foods. Hill's seems to be a few steps down in the quality ladder, and a few floors down as far as being more natural.

So I guess my question is if there are any high-quality natural dry cat foods that are equivalent to what we've been feeding the felines (Felidae and Innova EVO) that would fulfill the special diet requirements AND be safe for Maya, who has no special diet requirements? I'm sorry if I'm making this sound more complicated than it is, but I'm bothered by basically having to go from feeding my cats organic chicken to Chicken McNuggets.

Can this more raw sugar be substituted for granulated sugar when baking? I want to make banana bread but can't find my white sugar. Any tips?

I checked our only library and they don't have any organic vegetable gardening books at all - just organic flower gardening. Does anyone know of any really good organic vegetable gardening websites that go into good detail and are very thorough? I'm new to some things since we moved from a dry area with seasons to a wet area with none, so I want something that lays it all out and explains well with lots of photos. I'm not looking for a community.

Thanks!

I LOOOVE honey. And I bought some organic honey from my grocer. I'd only had it a few days when I noticed it was starting to crystallize. I've seen this before and thought nothing of it. Just let it sit in a cup of hot water before use and no prob. But this morning, the honey looked almost completely solid. I tried the hot water thing, but it didn't work so well. I ended up nukin' it (I know... *grimace*). 

My question: is this normal? And what's the best way to warm it so it's smooth/liquid again?

Hi,
I'm really sorry I know I've asked here before but now that I have the MONEY to do it, I can't find the information! Also, the tags and memories didn't help either. :(

I'm looking to find someone who can do a Food Sensitivity/Allergy test on me. My normal allergist said they don't do food sensitivity tests as extensive as some natural / homeopathic type clinics do.

I really need an extensive test done of everything, wheats, fruits, everything.

Oh and I live in the Twin Cities. I found a place in Roseville last year but now I can't find the information again. :(

But if anyone has any experiences with food sensitivity testing I'd love to hear about it.

P.S.  Mods, can we please add a tag for Food Sensitivity or Food Allergy?  I think this is something that everyone can benefit from because I think it helps to remain healthier if you know what foods aren't helping your body and to avoid them.

With the guidance of my Chinese doc, I've gone on many diets to get rid of the yeast in my body. I have done real well at getting rid of it with his herbs and a strict diet, saunas, etc. But it sneaks back up when I don't have that discipline that it needs. With the introduction of sugar, wheat or wine, I watch for signs and I usually get them. It shows up in itchy, stingy toes and a coated tongue. I usually get a few clues prior to that time, too. 

So....in addition to eating raw garlic, what are your best clues for a maintenance program to minimize yeast in the body? Looking for your best tips. Checked the archives and nothing directly responds to the question. It does not show up vaginally. 

Thanks.

Everyone in my family is sick, so I made dinner with the goal of cramming them full of vitamins and infection-fighting garlic goodness. Most everything in this recipe came from a roadside farm market.

Flu Season Soup

• 1 lb dry white beans
• 3 tbsp. olive oil
• 8 large garlic cloves, minced
• 1 onion, chopped
• double handful of chopped greens: chard, kale, beet, turnip, collard...
• 8 cups broth or stock
• 3 medium tomatoes, diced
• 1 butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cubed
• bay leaf
• 1 tsp. chopped rosemary
• Salt and pepper to taste

Soak beans (overnight or quick-soak). Simmer gently until tender, 1 1/2 hours or so.

In a large (LARGE!) pot saute onion and garlic in olive oil until soft and fragrant. Add everything else and simmer until squash is tender, about 20 minutes. Serve with crusty bread or cornbread.

Serves 8. If you don't have 8 people to feed, freeze half and haul it out when everyone gets sick again.

What is the alternative to SLS-containing bubble bath? It never dawned on me that my kiddo's bubble bath might be harmful, and then today I checked the label and saw sodium laurel sulfate. I don't want him to go without bubbles, so can anyone tell me what I can use instead of regular ol' bubble bath? Brand names appreciated :)

TIA!

I just saw an ad that on Tuesday Oprah is doing an undercover investigation with Lisa Ling on "Where does our food come from?"  The topics are going to be what is cage free, what is free range, if products that say they are free range or cage free really are, and there was a little clip where they were discussing animals that are raised for consumption being caged.

There's been discussions on here before about these issues and I figured some people might want a heads up so they can watch and be more informed.  i know I'll be tuning in. 

There was a post similiar to this a while ago.

I jsut moved house, So not really a new area but new shower. But for some reason my hair has become so greasy and heavy. In the last week its become quite gross and I have been in my new place for a week. Yes I do use product but even on teh days after I wash its still greasy. Is there anything I can do to my shower head to filter out a lot of gunk that might be coming through, also what can I use to help it and give it back a little more of its health.

NB: That shampoo and Con I have been using had never given me these issues.

I have very thick hair, and I have sensitive skin. I also use the naturestyle hair dye (but I havent for at least a month and nothing that will kill the colour please). Its also fairly long. 


Ta in advnace

hi all,

i'm a new member, though i was a member before, over a year ago. i tend to be pretty "natural living"-minded; i eat fresh, organic food 90% of the time, recycle and conserve like as much as possible, buy locally, etc. i have, however, a terrible addiction to sugar, especially the nasty, processed kind. i constantly crave candy, cookies, etc. when i do indulge the cravings, i DO try to eat "natural" candy and what-not, but sometimes it just comes down to a bag of m&ms. i do not drink regular soda at all, and only drink diet soda rarely, so that really isn't an issue. the short of it is that, truthfully, i probably don't eat nearly as much sugar as most people, but i'm really sensitive to it - it gives me terrible stomach aches and i am starting to believe that it is a source of my increasing anxiety issues.

have any of you cut sugar from your diet? i'm not interested in cutting fruit and bread carbs from my diet, as i eat lots of healthy fruits and breads in moderation; i am, however, desperate to cut my addiction to processed sugar, and am having a really impossible time staying on the wagon. any tips? you'd think that the stomach aches and anxiety would lead me to easily say no so these horrible foods, but alas...

i'm open to cleanses, fasts, total diet changes, or whatever. i also exercise regularly and am working on losing about 15 pounds, if that makes a difference.

thanks! i'm glad to be a part of this community again.

1. what are your thoughts on silica powder in cosmetics?

i have acne prone/sensitive skin and am weary about putting anything on my face.

2. do you guys have any foundation recommendations? again, something that wont make me break out and is nice to my skin.

thanks!

This is not really a question, I just wanted to share an interesting observation.
I fasted yesterday for the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur - I didn't do a dry fast, had tea and a bit of broth in the afternoon. The interesting thing is that I never actually got hungry. I had some food in the evening, but not really because i was all that starving.
I think i was eating so much crap before that my body was like oh god, thanks.  Amazing.  Definitely makes me wonder about the rest of my diet.

:)

happy friday

Hello all,

Has anyone ever dealt with a very persistantly itchy and allergic wasp sting? Any favorite remedies? I was stung multiple times on my ankle last week and my ankle is still INSANELY ITCHY not to mention really swollen, inflamed, and gross looking. I've never had such a reaction before!
I initially tried cortisone cream which didn't seem to make much difference and yesterday in desperation I started using Arnica gel which seems to help a bit for a short amount of time, at this point I just want the thing to heal and go away already.

Thanks everyone!

Long-time lurker, first time poster.
So, I skimmed your memories briefly, BUT, I couldn't really find what I was looking for.
So here goes, my amigos.
I was wondering, do you guys know where to find, like sweat-shop free, organic cotton, and for anyone reading this in Australia, preferably Australian made clothing, and in particular black, skinny leg jeans? The other clothes I'm not really fussed about what they look like; black and white singlets, t-shirts and long sleeved shirts are all great, but I can't  seem to find black, skinny leg jeans, and as a teen, I need black, skinny leg jeans. 
Also, everything I do find on the internet is made in America, and it's like, duuuuude, freighting that stuff from there to here is a gigantic carbon footprint. I've looked this up quickly via google, but never really found what I was looking for, and I've searched quickly for other LJ communities, but you guys are the only one that might fit the bill.
Thanks in advance.
xD

I looked in the memories but didn't find what I was looking for.

For the last couple weeks my shoulders and neck, especially my right shoulder, have been trying to kill me. I've had 2 professional massages this week, and the second time (only on Wednesday) he did lots of deep work, which helped, but I can feel the muscles in my shoulders starting to tighten up again for no apparent reason. I've had my share of back/neck pain for my age (20), but never anything quite like this.

( things I've tried for it, and whininiess )

*frustrated*

So, does anyone know of any natural, healthy muscle relaxers and/or pain relievers? Preferably muscle relaxers though, because when the muscles are relaxed the pain goes away. Preferably budget friendly, although I'll take any suggestions at this point.

I looked in the memories but I didn't find anything. I am looking to buy a natural mattress for my daughter. I can't spend like a billion dollars, does anybody know of a good place to find something? Also any links for eco-friendly, healthy furniture would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

Hi, I just joined this community! I have a question that I really didn't see in the tags/archives. I posted this question on the curly hair community and was referred here.

I have naturally curly hair, and anyone who knows anything about curly hair, is that you have to put something on it after it's washed to help define the curl and maintain the frizzies.

Here's the problem: the small fortune I've spent on a wide array of products over the years have never really worked for long. My hair seems to become "immune" to products fairly quickly, even with rotating what I use after any given shower. But here's the bigger problem: I also have dandruff, which all of these products seem to irritate even further. Doing an ACV rinse is great, until I have to style my hair afterwards. I then get itchies and flakes soon thereafter.

So, has anyone ever made their own hair styling products? If so, what would you recommend? I'm just really starting to believe there's nothing out there that will tame my hair and not irritate my dandruff. Tonight, I did just try a quick mix of sea salt and water in a spritz bottle, and it worked okay, but it's still a bit frizzier than I'd like.

Any suggestions/recommendations would be greatly appreciated!