GMOs Are Not Just In Food Products

GMOs have known to mainly be in our food and beverages in the grocery store. Many well known victims to genetic modification are squash, corn, soy and many other similar fruits and vegetables. Well the last thing you would think about it GMOs in your home products, you don't ingest them, just use them. According to Natural Cures Not Medicine, this may be the case after all.

Beauty Care Products

Many beauty care products like deodorant sprays, lotions, and facial cleansers, contain GMO derivatives. Look out for denatured alcohol which is simply ethanol made from BT corn. Also be weary of creams made with soy protein isolates, or dehydrogenated soy ingredients as these are also likely GMO.

Cotton

Is that shirt that you have on right now Organic? GM cotton covers more than 15 million hectares on the planet is accounts for more than 70 percent of all cotton grown. Chances are that your cotton swabs and balls are also GM Cotton.

Ink

While soy ink is marketed as an alternative to petroleum based products it is made from GM soy beans. Soy ink is printed on a variety of items from newspapers to magazines. It is also readily absorbed through the skin.

Hand Sanitizer

Not only do hand sanitizers fuel the creation of antibiotic resistant super bugs but they also contain ethanol made from GM corn.

Gasoline

When you go to the pump and see those little stickers that are appearing everywhere that say “May Contain up to 10% ethanol” you can rest assured that it is not ethanol derived from organically grown corn. The idiotic government subsidies shoved into the horribly inefficient process of ethanol production are ending up as fumes in traffic that you and I are breathing in.

So now you know whether you are consuming or using, GM products should never be trusted and can come into your life without even knowing it at all.  Exposure to these products can leave a after effect. Remember to go organic, the safest route of all, as it doesn't contain harmful chemicals or GM product.

Yes on 522 Campaign Raises $3.5 Million in Cash and Pledges to Date; 66% of Washington State Voters Favor GMO Labeling Bill

With 66% of Washington State voters surveyed in favor of GMO labeling, the Yes on 522 campaign has raised more than $3.5 million in cash and pledges to date, and is set to withstand significant opposition and spending by biotech and mainstream food interests. 

by Steven Hoffman, on behalf of Yes on 522 to label GMOs in Washington State

Seattle, WA (August 8, 2013) - In what is becoming a major battleground in the campaign to label genetically engineered foods in the U.S., 66% of Washington State voters indicated they are in favor of I-522, the state initiative to label GMOs in foods, while just 22% oppose it. The GMO labeling bill will appear on the November statewide ballot and in early voting, after more than 350,000 signatures were submitted to the state legislature in January.

Also, a recent voter survey found that support in the state for GMO labeling is broad and deep, as significant majorities of Democrats, Independents and Republicans support labeling, as do majorities of every age group and every region of the state. And while overall support is at the two-thirds mark, 48 percent of respondents said they "strongly support" the Yes on 522 measure, while only 13% of voters are strongly in the No on 522 camp.

The findings are based on a survey of 1,200 likely voters conducted June 18-23 by GBA Strategies, Washington, DC. The survey used live dialers and reached voters on cell phones and landlines. The results are subject to a margin of error of plus-or-minus 2.8% at the 95% confidence level.

Bracing for the Opposition

Notably, the poll found that support for labeling could withstand a barrage of opposition attacks. After voters hear one message in favor of labeling and six messages against, support for I-522 holds at 64%, while opposition only increases to 29%, says the poll.

Does this mean that the Yes on 522 bill can withstand being outspent six to one and still achieve victory on Election Day? Yes, say campaign leaders, however, they assert that this assumption holds true only if the campaign continues to raise the resources it needs to mount an effective television, radio, Internet and social media campaign.

Additionally, those funds are needed now in order for the campaign to act this summer to reserve the best media placements for the fall at optimal rates.

______________________________

"The bottom line is that we will lose like we lost Prop. 37 if we don't step up and give I-522 the ammunition it needs to win the air war." 

                                               - David Bronner, Yes on 522 Finance Chair

______________________________

A similar measure in California in 2012 also enjoyed more than 60% support early in the campaign, but lost by less than 3 percentage points after an onslaught of ads by Prop. 37 opponents, who spent $46 million with heavy donations from the biotech, agribusiness and mainstream food sectors.

But proponents of the GMO labeling bill say things may be different now in the Evergreen state. To date, the Yes on 522 campaign has raised more than $2.5 million with another $1 million in hard pledges committed, and has spent less than $350,000.

Industry Leaders Top “Yes on 522” Donor List

Major Yes on 522 donors include: Dr. Bonner’s Magic Soaps ($700,000); Mercola.com Health Resources ($200,000); Organic Consumers Fund ($380,000); Presence Marketing/Dynamic Presence ($200,000) and Presence founder Bill Weiland ($50,000); Center for Food Safety Action Fund ($100,000); Nature’s Path Foods USA Inc. ($100,000); Annie’s Inc. ($50,000); PCC Natural Markets ($50,000); Mark Squire, cofounder of Good Earth Grocery ($50,000); Karen Swift, cofounder of the BioSafety Alliance ($35,000); Clif Bar & Co. ($25,000); Boulder Brands ($25,000); UNFI ($25,000); Lundberg Family Farms ($25,000); Stonyfield Farm ($20,000); Turtle Mountain ($15,000); Amy’s Kitchen ($12,500); and Freeland Foods/Go Raw ($10,000). There are a total of 628 donors to Yes on 522 to date. For a complete list of donors, click here.

GMA Provides Cover for “No on 522” Donors

However, the “No on 522” campaign committee, which opposes GMO labeling, has reported raising nearly $1 million to date from just five pro-biotech interests, including major pesticide companies, and mainstream food companies via the Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA). The GMA - a trade group representing mainstream food producers - has so far donated $472,500 to defeat Yes on 522; Monsanto has donated $242,156.25 to date; followed by DuPont Pioneer ($171,281.25), Bayer Cropscience ($29,531.25), and Dow Agrosciences LLC ($29,531.25). To see the list of No on 522 donors, click here.

Notable, too, is that the “No on 522” group has committed about $110,000 to retain Santa Monica, CA-based Winner & Mandabach Campaigns, which has a track record of three big and recent wins in Washington. Brad Shannon, political writer for the Daily Olympian in Olympia, WA, said on July 14 that Winner & Mandabach has a “track record of winning high stakes campaigns.”

“A Shot at Winning”

“Nobody is calling it ‘Little GMO’ after California’s ‘Big GMO’ yet, but Initiative 522 in Washington State looks like it is on the same track as the Golden State’s ill-fated Proposition 37. Except it has a shot at winning,” reported Dan Flynn on July 16 in Food Safety News.

“The ‘Yes’ campaign is stressing the public’s right to know what is in their food, while generally staying away from claims that GMOs are unsafe to eat,” Flynn wrote. “The ‘No’ campaign will tell Evergreen State voters such labeling will just increase food costs without any benefit basis. Those were familiar refrains in the ‘Big GMO’ campaign,” he said.

In a letter to donors, Yes on 522 finance committee member David Bronner wrote, “Key in-state endorsements continue to line up, including Washington Conservation Voters, Washington Nurses Association, and prominent fishing companies and organizations. Key alliances are being built with wheat farmer, apple grower and salmon fishery spokespeople, and earned media continues to go our way. A perfect storm is brewing with the GMO wheat contamination compromising Washington wheat exports, and imminent FDA approval of GMO salmon galvanizing the fishing sector.

“The Yes on 522 campaign is night and day better than Prop. 37, as we've all collectively learned and improved our game,” Bronner continued. “But the bottom line is that we will lose like we lost Prop. 37 if we don't step up and give I-522 the ammunition it needs to win the air war. Armchair hemming, hawing, complaining or otherwise being complacent about the amazing efforts and progress we are making as a movement is no excuse for not stepping up now in Washington when it counts,” Bronner urged donors.

How to Contribute to Yes on 522

To contribute to support the Yes on 522 campaign, visit Yeson522.com or contact Steven Hoffman, steve@compassnatural.com, tel 303.807.1042. Hoffman, director of Compass Natural Marketing, is working to raise funds and awareness in the natural, organic and sustainable products industry on behalf of the campaign.

This article originally appeared in the July 2013 Newsletter published by Presence Marketing / Dynamic Presence. Copyright 2013.

14-year-old Debates GMOs with Condescending TV Host

A Canadian television host’s attempts to school a 14-year-old girl did not quite go according to plan.

Kevin O’Leary, the co-host of the popular CBC business news program “The Lang and O’Leary Exchange,” must have thought he had laid the perfect trap for teen anti-GMO activist Rachel Parent.

The problem for O’Leary is that Parent, the founder of the pro-GMO labeling group Kids Right to Know, proved to be no pushover.

After a spirited debate on whether Canadian and US governments should rely on health studies conducted by genetically modified seed makers such as Monsanto, and the question of whether possible health benefits of GMO crops outweighed environmental concerns, O’Leary seemed to concede that the marketplace trend was heading toward transparency.

Throughout last week's interview, an incredulous O’Leary pressed his contention that Parent had been co-opted by anti-GMO groups, rather than having arrived at her conclusions independently.

The clip of the debate between Parent and O’Leary quickly went viral, and has been viewed on YouTube more than 300,000 times.

DIY: How to Make Your Own Tinctures from Herbs at Home

Many people who take an active role in their own health and well being also tend towards naturally sourced nutritional supplements and remedies for minor ailments, such as taking a cup of chamomile tea to alleviate insomnia, or a peppermint infusion to soothe an upset stomach. In addition to serving as drinkable herbal delights, tinctures can be effective remedies for a variety of issues. Read on to take a look at what they are, and how to make them.

What is a Tincture?

A tincture is a type of herbal preparation in which the alkaloids, glycosides, minerals, and essential oils of a plant are extracted into a solvent. The liquids that are most often used as solvents are high-proof alcohols such as vodka or brandy, or occasionally apple cider vinegar or even vegetable glycerin. The latter are sometimes used for children’s preparations, or by those who abstain from alcohol of any kind, but they’re not as effective at drawing the medicinal components from the plants.

In terms of efficacy, a single dose of a tincture has the same effect as a cup of herbal tea: it’s just concentrated, and absorbed more easily into your body via the alcohol (or other solvent). Some of these tinctures have medicinal properties, while others may have nutritional benefits.

What you’ll need:

• High-proof alcohol (at least 80 proof). If you’re in the United States and have access to Everclear, use that. Otherwise, vodka or brandy works well.
• Alternative to alcohol if necessary: high quality apple cider vinegar. Organic, if you can find it.
• An herb of your choice: fresh or dried
• A pint jar (16oz) with a tight-fitting lid
• Small, dark glass bottles for storing the tinctures. Cobalt or amber glass are great, and should have tight-fitting screw-on or snap-down lids.
• A fine strainer
• Fine cheesecloth or muslin
• A bowl or glass measuring cup with a spout
• A small funnel

How to Make a Tincture

It’s incredibly easy to make your own tinctures: you literally just need to soak plant matter in a menstruum (solvent) for a few weeks so all of its “good stuff” can be absorbed into the liquid. While vodka is usually the best choice, you can use brandy instead. Remember that regardless of the that alcohol is chosen, it has to be at least 80-proof (namely, 40% alcohol) to prevent any mildewing of the plant material in the bottle. 100-proof (50% alcohol) is better, if you can get your hands on it. This high-proof alcohol acts as a preservative, and if you store your tinctures in a cool, dark place, they can have a shelf life of 7-10 years.

If you’re using fresh herbs, chop them up a bit or bruise them with a mortar and pestle. You’ll be putting enough of the fresh herb to fill your jar about 3/4 full, but don’t pack it in too tightly: it should fill the jar well, but be loose enough to move around. The reason you should leave a bit of head room in the jar is that you need to cover the plant matter completely with the alcohol—no part of the plants should be exposed to the air. You’ll fill the jar with alcohol to the spot where the lid ring begins, and then screw the lid on tightly.

For dried herbs, you’ll fill your pint jar halfway, and then fill with alcohol the same way you did with fresh plants. The reason you have to use less dry root than fresh is that the vodka/brandy/etc. will partially re-constitute the plant matter, causing it to swell up: you need to leave some room for this to happen. Be sure to stir the dried root well to ensure that it absorbs the liquid.

Generally, the ratio of fresh herbs to alcohol is 1:2 (so 1 part plant to 2 parts alcohol), and the ratio of dried herbs to alcohol is 1:4 or 1: 5, but there will always be exceptions to this: be sure to do thorough research on the herb you’ll be tincturing before you begin so you have a good idea of what the required ratio is.

Label your jars and date them, and then let them steep in a cool, dark, dry place. During the first week, give the jar a little shake every day to swish the alcohol around the plant matter and move it around a little bit. You’ll then let it just sit in that cupboard (or other appropriate place of your choosing) for another 5 weeks, so it’ll steep for 6 weeks in total.

After it has steeped for several weeks, line a fine-mesh strainer with a layer or two of muslin or cheesecloth, and then hold that over your bowl or measuring cup. Pour the tincture over the cloth so that it strains well, pressing gently on the herbs to squeeze out the liquid. You can even gather the sides of the cloth and twist it to really squish out every last drop. Compost the used plant matter, and wash out the cloth to be used again another time.

Now, you’ll use the funnel to decant the tincture into your little glass bottles (preferably the kind with droppers), filling them close to the top. Label each bottle with the herb used, as well as the date decanted, and then store them away from direct sunlight.

If you’d like to watch a demonstration on how to create tinctures, Mountain Rose Herbs has put together a video that takes you through every step. You can watch it here.

IMPORTANT: Before You Make Anything…

Please keep in mind that people react to tinctures in different ways, and what works well for one person might not work well for another. Tinctures are not guaranteed to ailments, nor is it a good idea to mix and match them without having a thorough knowledge of contraindications and such. If you’re feeling ill, it’s important to go to a healthcare professional (be that a physician, naturopath, or herbalist) to get their advice before attempting to self-diagnose and/or self-medicate. Herbs have medicinal properties that may have different effects on those who take them, so it’s vital that you ensure that you know what it is you’re treating before you make/take anything.

Additionally, it’s of the highest importance that you know exactly what plant you’re using if you decide to make a tincture for your own use. Going out and foraging for leaves and twigs that bear a vague resemblance to the plant you’re aiming to use can be incredibly harmful, so unless you have total certainty about the plant you’re using, don’t use it. When in doubt, it’s better to err on the side of caution and pick up a tincture from a retailer instead.

[via Inhabitat]

A Green Summer Vacation

For those concerned with the future of the environment  every summer brings new challenges. If you truly want to be a responsible traveler here are the some ideas and facts to help you achieve your goal.

Which Transport is Greener?

We love to fly to get to our destination. It’s comfortable and takes a shorter while but it is also the means of transportation with the highest carbon footprint. If you can’t avoid flying consider compensating by buying carbon offsets and choose green lodging for your vacation. Carbon offsets can be bought along with your plane ticket. The money goes to organizations like Terrapass who uses it to build wind farms or other sustainable energy projects.

The Truth about Green Lodging

In spite of what you may think choosing sustainable vacation accommodation does not mean you will have to pay more money. The large majority of hotel administrators know that good sustainable practices are saving them money so in turn, you, the customer will pay less too.

When looking for green lodging , look for hotels that have the Blue Flag or Green key sign. These are earned after a realistic scrutiny from the profile organizations, which make sure they continue the good practices even after they obtaining the green certificate.

Acting Responsible at your Destination

Once you arrived to a resort there are a lot of things that can help you keep your staying green. Consider simple things like taking with you solar sources of energy for your gadgets, using the bedding and towels for several days before asking the hotel personnel to change it and bringing your own toiletries so you will save a bit of landfill by not using small hotel shampoo and shower gel bottles.

Another sustainable practice you can use is to be a responsible shopper. Encourage the local artisan industry and buy local made souvenirs instead of random things you can buy anywhere else.

Treating the Ocean the Responsible Way

A lot of people consider vacationing near the ocean the ideal getaway. However tempting such a vacation looks like you must keep in mind that you increase the carbon footprint of the area with every day you spend there.  You can be a green traveler in case you remember to do simple things that have a huge impact on the ocean.

Avoid buying souvenirs from the sea. Sea urchins, sea stars and sea shells are not washed ashore but rather taken from the reef in the tropical areas. Keep the water clean and avoid leaving in any type of residue. Eat local marine base cuisine and avoid cruises and boat parties which have a huge carbon footprint.

[via The New Ecologist]

Certain Summer Fruits Can Lower Your Heart Attack Risk

Thousands of research studies over the past decade have heralded the critical importance of eating a diet filled with flavonoids from a variety of brightly colored vegetables and fruits to help prevent and even treat many chronic illnesses. Most plants and fruits rely on flavonoid compounds for protection against the environment and to propagate and flourish. These same properties support human health by altering genetic expression and specifically targeting essential metabolic processes to ward off diseases such as cancer, dementia and the most prevalent killer of men and women, cardiovascular disease.

Anthocyanins from Eating Berries Dramatically Reduces Heart Attack Risk in Women

Researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health developed a study to analyze a specific sub-class of flavonoids, called anthocyanins, that has been shown to help dilate arteries, counter the buildup of plaque and provide other cardiovascular benefits. Publishing in the journal Circulation, the scientists found that women who ate at least three servings of blueberries and strawberries per week had significantly fewer heart attacks. Blueberries and strawberries contain high levels of anthocyanins that have shown cardiovascular benefits in past research studies.

Lead study author, Dr. Eric Rimm noted “Blueberries and strawberries can easily be incorporated into what women eat every week… this simple dietary change could have a significant impact on prevention efforts.” The researchers developed a cohort of 93,600 women nurses, aged between 25 and 42 who completed dietary questionnaires every four years for a period of 18 years.

Eat Three to Five Servings of Fresh Berries Daily to Benefit from Lowered Risk of Heart Attack

Over the course of the study review period, 405 women experienced a heart attack. The study team found that women who consumed the most blueberries and strawberries had a 32-percent reduction in their risk of heart attack as compared to women who ate the berries once a month or less. Interestingly, the results did not change in women who otherwise ate a diet rich in other fruits and vegetables, providing solid proof that the flavonoids provided by the berries were responsible for the heart attack risk reduction benefits.

The study authors concluded “We have shown that even at an early age, eating more of these fruits may reduce risk of a heart attack later in life.” The study results were independent of other risk factors, such as age, high blood pressure, family history of heart attack, body mass, exercise, smoking, caffeine or alcohol intake. While this study was conducting using a large sampling of women, eating between 3 and 5 servings of fresh berries each week can dramatically lower heart attack risk for men and women alike.

 [by John Phillip via Live in the Now]

Organic vs. Natural: They're Not The Same!

There's a lot of confusion out there about the distinction between organic and natural, and we think it's a shame, because the differences can be huge! The first thing you should understand is that, except for meat, "natural" doesn't have a set, strictly defined or regulated definition, while "organic" does.

When you see the word "natural" on food packaging, it can mean any number of different things, depending on where in the US you are, who the food manufacturer is and what store is carrying the product. In fact, you might be surprised to learn what can be considered "natural."

But the term "organic" is strictly defined in the US by uniform, federal regulations. "Organic" means the food or fiber bearing the label was made with a set of farming and production practices defined and regulated, in great detail, by the USDA.

When you see "organic" on a product label or packaging, you can be assured that the organic product was made without the use of toxic, persistent pesticides, GMOs, antibiotics or artificial growth hormones.

[via Stonyfield]