Sunscreen: Is it an enemy or a friend ?

Hello everyone, I would like to thank you for reading my posts and following my blog. Please feel free to share with your friends and family.  In this post, I will talk about my opinion about sunscreens and will recommend a homemade product that will replace the sunscreen you have which is most likely filled with harsh chemicals.  There will also be a giveaway ;) so please read until the end :)
More and more people are afraid of the sun and bathe themselves and their kids with sunscreen to protect their skin from cancer. However, cancer is on the rising so I don't think the sunscreen is helping !!!
More and more people are vitamin D deficient....just ask your friends and family and I can assure you a lot will have a deficiency.
We get our Vitamin D from the sun but when we lather our skin with sunscreen , we are not giving the sun a chance hence the deficiency, the depression , mood swings, irritability and anxiety. So get out in the sun and get your vitamin D from the source not from supplements. 

There are plenty of articles out there stating the harsh chemicals in the sunscreen so I ask you: Which one is more harmful? The sunscreen? or the sun?
In my opinion, and according to plenty of research and articles written about the subject the sunscreen is more harmful to the skin than the sun. 
As you all know me by now, I like to link articles to my blog because I do not claim to be an expert on anything. I research, use common sense and like to break it down in simpler terms to the people who follow me ( Thank you for the follow and support....there is a free giveaway, keep on reading LOL).
http://static.ewg.org/reports/2014/teensunscreen/pdf/EWG_teensunscreen_guide_2014.pdf
According to this guide choose sunscreen that has an SPF of 50 or below and avoid the following: fragrance, oxybenzone and vitamin A. 
There are articles stating the benefits of sunscreens and others stating the harm of sunscreens.  However, try to consider the motto I have been living by since I began my journey to healthy living:
"if you can't read it , don't eat it or put it on your skin."
The following are few tips to help you decide what to do when it comes to sunscreen and sun:

1. Get out in the sun more. If you are at work all day, eat your lunch outside or take a quick walk during your break. 
2. If you are going to be in the sun for a little bit and you are fully clothed , there is no need for sunscreen.
3. If you are going to be in the sun before 2:00 PM and for a period of time longer than 2 hours use a homemade sunscreen.
4. If you are going to be in the sun after 4:00 PM there is no need for sunscreen, the sun is not harmful.
5. Visit EWG and type in the name of your sunscreen , they will tell you how hazardous it is in case you bought a big case of sunscreens from Costco and you don't want to throw it away.
6. Make your own sunscreen or support small businesses on Etsy and buy homemade sunscreen if you don't have time to make your own. I have tried the sunscreen from Mama Dre's and it does work. My kids were in the sun all day and they didn't get burnt.  https://www.etsy.com/shop/MamaDres?ref=search_shop_redirect

Homemade sunscreens are the best in my opinion, however, you have to be aware that they do melt easily so you can just stick them in the cooler if you are on the beach or at the pool or your fridge when you come back home.  They are more oily so my advice to this is let your skin absorb it for few minutes before you get in the water. 
Here are the ingredients in Mama Dre's sunscreen stick :  coconut oil, beeswax, Shea butter, hemp oil, vitamin e, zinc oxide and vanilla. 
What is Zinc Oxide you say ? Well here it is http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zinc_oxide.
Zinc Oxide was used as a salve for eyes and open wounds in the Indian medicine, it was also used by others such as the Greeks, the Romans, etc.... So in my dictionary, this is safer than most of the ingredients available in the commercial sunscreens. 


NOW HERE IS THE GIVEAWAY

In order to continue to support small businesses I would like to send 10 of my followers homemade sunscreen sticks from Mama Dre's. Here are the rules in order to be entered in the giveaway:

• Like Healthy Mamas, Healthy Babies on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/HealthyMamasHealthyBabies?ref=hl
• Like Mama Dre's on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/mamadreslove?fref=ts
• Follow bzheathymama on Instagram http://instagram.com/bzhealthymama, repost a picture and comment with #bzhealthymamagiveaway
• Share this post on any social network and tag #bzhealthymama
• Comment on this post with your ideas, suggestions, thoughts etc....good or bad I love the criticism and the challenge but keep it respectful . Agree or disagree with the idea and content not the person :)

The winners will be selected on August 27, 2014 and will be sent an email.  Thank you so much for participating :)

All content provided on this blog is for informational purposes only. The owner of this blog makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this site or found by following any link on this site.

The owner of bzhealthymama.blogspot.com will not be liable for any errors or omissions in this information nor for the availability of this information. The owner will not be liable for any losses, injuries, or damages from the display or use of this information.

ORGANIC VS CONVENTIONAL? TIPS THAT MAY HELP YOU CHOOSE

Long time ago, fruits and vegetables were referred to by their names rather than organic or non organic because humans practiced traditional farming or forest gardening. 
Then the pesticides and harmful fertilizers were introduced and of course we got greedy and we didn't care about our well being and began mass production and mass harming of fruits and vegetables. 
Therefore, we have to differentiate between fruits and veggies grown the "old fashion" way and the ones sprayed with tons of chemicals nowadays. 
The ones treated with chemicals and harmful substances look pretty and they have a nice color but their taste is horrible.... you don't believe me?? Please try it for yourself!
Try an organic strawberry and a non organic one .... Taste the difference? They look, smell and taste different.
According to this article : http://livefreelivenatural.com/scientists-reviewed-343-studies-see-organic-food-better-heres-found/
Organic produce contain more antioxidants and more nutrients per serving hence the body needs less servings per meal. This piece of information argues the fact that organic produce is more expensive than conventional.  In addition, conventional fruits and vegetables contain pesticides residue that is harmful to the body...so in my opinion, always choose organic.

However, some people may not be able to afford it so here are few tips:

1. Visit your farmers market, check with them if they grow their produce organically and buy from them....their fruits and vegetables cost less.
2. Grow your own. Even if you don't have time you can grow the herbs such as mint, oregano, thyme in pots. I am growing my green onions from the white bulb in a mug in my kitchen. 
3. When you are at the grocery store, make sure to check the "clearance" section usually where they put the items that are about to expire.  You may be able to find some ripe organic bananas or sweet bell peppers etc....
4. Go to Costco or Sam's club if you are a member. Costco has a lot of organic produce such as strawberries, apples, spinach, spring mix, carrots etc.... Sam's club has less of a selection but they do carry sometimes organic blueberries, raspberries, etc...
5. Pick the organic fruits and vegetables that are in season in your area and indulge... For example: oranges are in season during the fall and winter so eat more oranges then; watermelons are in season during the summer so eat accordingly. Back in the day, people ate what was growing on trees,  so what was in season.
6. Reduce buying junk such as sugary cereal, soda, cookies, candies etc... so you are able to afford to buy most of your produce organic. A 24 pack of Pepsi or coca-cola is 9.99 in the US in most stores, for 9.99 you can buy a stalk of organic celery, a large bag of organic potatoes, and 2-3 heads of romaine lettuce. 
7. Finally, refer to the dirty dozen plus and clean 15 list by EWG. https://donate.ewg.org/images/2014_Shopper_Guide_to_Pesticides_in_Produce.pdf

The dirty dozen are the fruits and vegetables that have the most pesticide residue and should always be bought organic are:

• Apples
• Strawberries
• Potatoes
• Celery
• Tomatoes
• Snap Peas
• Spinach
• Cucumbers
• Sweet bell peppers
• Grapes
• Nectarines
• Peaches
• Hot peppers
• Kale
• Collards

I would like to thank all who follow and believe in my blog :) Please subscribe to my mailing list and invite your friends and family. 
Please feel free to share my blog with your friends and family. I would also love to hear from you , so please write me comments as I learn from each one of you :)

Follow me on Instagram http://instagram.com/bzhealthymama and tmblr: bzhealthymama; Facebook: Healthy Mamas, Healthy Babies https://www.facebook.com/HealthyMamasHealthyBabies?ref=hl

All content provided on this blog is for informational purposes only. The owner of this blog makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this site or found by following any link on this site.

The owner of bzhealthymama.blogspot.com will not be liable for any errors or omissions in this information nor for the availability of this information. The owner will not be liable for any losses, injuries, or damages from the display or use of this information.