As a person who desires to live life as natural as possible, you may have never considered having to face a hospital emergency room. Or, if the thought had crossed your mind, perhaps, it gave you a little shudder and you promptly suppressed it.

I want to share with you that, if prepared; a hospital emergency department does not need to be as intimidating as it sounds. Nor do doctors need to appear as the scary monster in the closet.

If you start today making a couple of lists, and keeping them in your purse or wallet, that will help tremendously if the occasion ever arises.

• Make a list of anything you take on a daily basis. That would include prescription drugs, vitamins, food supplements, or herbal remedies. If you drink 10 cups of nettles tea a day, that is something to make note of. If you occasionally drink a cup of nettles tea, it is not.
• Have a list of your doctors and their phone numbers. A short list of known allergies, past surgeries, or any pertinent medical interventions would also be appropriate. I’m not recommending that you keep a copy of your medical file with you at all times; just a few notes. Also, keep a copy of your insurance card in your wallet.
• “Bring an open mind,” said Ray Lucas, MD, Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine at The George Washington University. Since most emergency room visits are not for true medical emergencies, you cannot expect to be taken straight back. Bring a book in case you have to wait.

What else might you need to know? The doctor is a caring individual. He does not have a hidden agenda. Your best bet is to communicate with him. “The emergency physician has to make complex medical decisions often with little or no information,” said Lucas. “The quality of the decision,” he continued, “is correlated on the quality of the information on which it is based.” In layman’s terms, he is saying that he makes his decisions based on what you tell him, and test results; he has nothing more to go by. Also, you should be prepared to tell your story over and over again—to the nurse, to the doctor, to a consulting doctor, and, if it is a teaching hospital, a few more times still.

“By nature, the emergency physician likes to rule out serious causes of your complaint even if he or she cannot make a definitive diagnosis,” said Lucas. So, if he orders tests that you question, speak up and ask what he is looking for in those tests. Do not be afraid to ask questions. The doctor should be happy to explain everything to you, including any risks or side effects. With open communication, the two of you will better plan a course of action for your care. If you think you will not remember what the doctor tells you, write it down. In fact, write down everything that they do and every medication they give you. You may need the information when you follow up with your family practitioner. If you do not know how to spell something, ask. The nurse will be happy to help you.

And what about us natural health types? Should we tell the doctor that we took Echinacea/goldenseal tincture and garlic pills for the past three days? “Yes, you should,” said Lucas. “Many doctors don’t specifically ask, and most patients don’t consider them medications, so it is often a lost piece of information.” Many doctors are educated in the most common herbal remedies, like valerian for sleep; but if he doesn’t know, he may want to look it up if he suspects some type of side effect.

If you face an emergency, these tips will help. Hopefully, you won’t need to use them.

Photo by capturedbychelsea

We just finally created an Official Facebook page, for a long time we had been using our Networked Blogs page over at Facebook, but decided to create a “real” page. So if you are on Facebook, you can help us out by just a click of the mouse…

Thanks!

It’s been a while since we have done a roundup here at NHE. So we did some digging and found a few interesting finds from around the natural health world on the web…

Enjoy!

• How to recycle flip-flops
• Finding natural corn
• The story of bottled water
• Pros and cons of antibiotics
• How to green your car with a reusable air filter
• A look at stainless-steel water bottles
• The benefits of wild-blueberries
• Remodeling your bathroom the green way
• Plant plastics coming to Walmart!
• Dance your way to health
• What foods to eat and what to avoid

And these are a few of the blog carnivals that NHE has been featured in…

Made from Scratch, Cats, Eco, Homestead, Summer, Organic, Eco

Cast iron is one of the best materials you can use for cooking. Cast iron cookware is sturdy and gets your food cooked all the way through. One of the down sides to using a piece of cast iron cookware, is it doesn’t come with a non-stick coating. In order to create a non-stick coating, you’ll need to do it yourself. This process is called “seasoning.” It’s not really a big deal, just follow a few simple steps. Let’s say that you have an older piece of cast iron cookware. You may not remember if it was seasoned properly. You’ll might need to be refreshed on how to season an old cast iron skillet. The process is the same as it is for a brand new cast iron skillet. However, you’ll need to wash it and buff out any rough spots first.

Get It Clean

You’ll want to wash the skillet in hot water and little bit of mild dish washing liquid. (Too much dish washing liquid and your food will take on soap flavor!) Even if the skillet is clean, it may have been sitting for a while since it was last used. It might be holding on to some stuck on or burnt on food. It’s best to make sure the skillet is fresh. After washing the skillet, pat it dry using a clean dish towel. The skillet should not be totally dry at this point. Set the cast iron skillet on the stove over a medium heat. It is important to dry the skillet over heat so the water does not seep into the cast iron and create rust. In about three to five minutes the rest of the moisture should be gone. If not, wait until the skillet is completely dry. When it’s dry, remove it from the stove.

Take a close look at your old cast iron skillet…

Look for signs of rust, any parts where food may have been burned and left residue, as well as any pitted areas of the skillet. If you notice any of these things, buff the areas using a piece of fine gauge steel wool. Wash the pan again using mild dish soap and hot water. Pat it dry and place it on the stove again to dry thoroughly over a medium heat.

Season It In The Oven

Now that the old cast iron skillet is thoroughly clean, preheat your oven to 200 degrees. As you’re waiting for the oven to heat up, coat the skillet with oil, shortening, or lard using a paper towel. Make sure you get every nook and cranny, and up all of the sides of the skillet. Next, coat the entire outside of the skillet with oil, including the handle. It’s not necessary to coat the underside of the skillet, as this will create smoke when you cook with it, and the oil will just burn off.

Once the oven is done heating…

and your skillet is covered in oil, place it in the oven for three hours. It’s a good idea to use a low temperature for a long amount of time to ensure that the lard penetrates into the pores of the skillet as it liquefies. After the three hours are up, take the skillet out of the oven and wipe any excess lard off with a paper towel. Place it on the stove top to let it cool for about an hour. Then wipe it down one more time. Your old cast iron skillet is now properly seasoned. Repeat the process until you feel it is well seasoned.

Enjoy!

Now that you know how to season an old cast iron skillet, you can begin cooking up a storm of wonderful dishes. And each time you cook, the skillet gets seasoned! If you notice any scratches on your old skillet, it’s best to get a new one, for safety reasons. If you use a chipped or cracked skillet, it will continue to chip and could add flakes of cast iron to your food. Examine your skillet both before and after you season it to be absolutely sure.

What are your favorite recipes for cooking in a cast iron skillet?

Photo by Chiot’s Run

Great News! We have a Giveaway from the wonderful people over at Libre.

A couple of months ago I wrote about the Libre Tea Glass and how much we love it. We’re big loose leaf tea drinkers and this durable container is perfect for us. Plus, it’s really cool looking!

Here are some great features about the tea glass:

1. It’s double walled, so cold drinks stay cold and hot ones stay hot.
2. You can use a bag or loose leaf tea.
3. Two choices – glass and glass or glass and polycarbonate.
4. The polycarbonate glass is really durable and has been dropped on concrete and kitchen floors without breaking!
5. You get 10 extra cool points just for carrying it!

How do I enter to win?

To Enter just leave a comment between now and Thursday, June 3rd. We’ll pick the winner on Friday, June 4th.

This giveaway is limited to be shipped to Canada and USA and can not be shipped to PO boxes.

You are a health conscious individual. You make sure you put healthy food into your body, and that you get all of the essential vitamins and minerals. But what about your dog? Is your dog getting the best food, or just the every day run of the mill dog food? Your pet deserves to eat healthy too. There are a few organic dog food options that you may not be aware of.

Organic dog food has many health benefits for your pet. It can give your dog more energy, it can maintain your dog’s healthy weight, it can reduce allergies and skin problems, it can aid in digestive issues, along with several other benefits. Feeding your dog organic dog food will ensure that your pet lives a better quality life, can help boost their immune system, can lead your dog to live a longer life, and provide better overall health. Here are 5 organic dog food options you can give your pet.

Karma organic and all-natural dog food contains high quality ingredients, and promotes optimal health for your dog. The ingredients in this dog food are selected meticulously to give your dog the best nutritional diet. Ingredients include organic chicken from free-range chickens, as well as organic grains. The food also contains whole raw vegetables and fruits, that include antioxidants, phytochemicals, and essential nutrients. A yeast extract is used in Karma dog food which is rich in protein and vitamin B.

HealthWise All-Natural Pet Food is a premium dog food that provides a balanced diet for your pet. This brand of dog food is great for any breed of dog, and any sized dog. Top quality protein ingredients, including chicken meal, lamb meal, whole grains, and ingredients that are rich in minerals, are combined to make this dog food the most nutritious. Healthwise will provide your dog with the fuel it needs to sustain energy all day.

Another of the 5 organic dog food options you can give to your pet includes California Natural. California Natural dog food uses all natural ingredients to provide your dog with a hypoallergenic diet. Flavors include, lamb, chicken, and herring. This brand has low fat options as well. Healthy brown rice, white rice, and sunflower oil are added to this food to give your dog plenty of energy for endurance and exercise.

EVO: The Ancestral Diet provides dog food containing ingredients that resemble that of the ancestral diet of dogs. This organic dog food contains nutrients that come from proteins that are meat-based, and fats that are easily digestible. EVO has dog food products that are low in carbohydrates, grain free, and rich in protein. EVO provides flavors such as chicken, turkey, salmon, herring, and red meat.

Innova dog food, is not only organic, but it’s holistic as well. Innova contains all natural ingredients, and comes in such flavors as beef, buffalo, venison, and lamb. This organic dog food provides your pet with essential nutrients and vitamins that are vital for a healthy diet.

These 5 organic dog food options can help provide a long, healthy life for your pet. You most likely feel more energized and healthier when you eat a healthy diet. The same is true for your dog. Your dog will have more energy and will be more healthy as a result of eating all-natural dog food. You will have many happy years with your dog.

Photo by mikebaird

Women want to look their best. Women want to look beautiful for many reasons. Makeup is a way to cover up blemishes and wrinkles, making a person look, and possibly feel, younger. Not all makeup is created equal, however. You have regular makeup, made with various dyes and chemicals, which can be unhealthy for you. You also have organic makeup, which is made from natural materials, such as plants and various healthy minerals. Pesticides are often used to make non organic makeup, as well as harmful toxins and carcinogens.

It’s best to make absolutely sure that you’re getting real organic makeup. Many products claim to be organic, but they still contain harmful toxins and carcinogens. Some organic makeup products are easy to come by. Moisturizers, anti-aging creams, and facial cleansers are the easiest products to find. When it comes to lipsticks, mascara, and eye shadow, it can be more difficult to find organic options. Here are 4 organic makeup options for women that can provide a healthy alternative to looking beautiful.

1. SkinBotanica offers many organic makeup products, including lipsticks and mascara. Their lipstick products contain no synthetic dyes. Instead they get their color from iron oxides and carmine. They also contain edible zinc for protection from the sun. SkinBotanica offers concealer products to hide skin blemishes. Their concealers are made for any type of skin, and are made with olive fruit oil and jojoba seed oil. SkinBotanica products contain no harsh chemicals, so they are safe to use.
2. Another option is Dr. Hauschka Makeup. The brand’s line of makeup includes just about every type of product you can think of. The line includes, lipsticks, lip gloss, lip liner, mascara, liquid eye liner, concealers, foundations, and a whole lot more. These products contain bio-dynamic ingredients, and are BDHI certified natural. Dr. Hauschka Makeup is a trusted brand that has won several awards, including the Natural Beauty Award, and Elle’s Green Star award.
3. Makeup made by Lavera is also BDHI certified, and is 100% natural, containing organic ingredients. Lavera products offer a variety of lipstick colors, up to 14 different shades. All of Lavera’s lip products are free of lanolin, a greasy yellow substance that is secreted by the glands of wool bearing animals. This product line is gaining in popularity, and is the favorite line of many celebrities. Lavera has received several awards, including 2004′s product of the year.
4. Starting in the late 1970′s, the Logona makeup company is a German brand, and is BDIH certified as well. Logona not only carries organic makeup products, but they carry organic hair coloring products also. More surprising to some people is that this makeup company also provides baby care products. All of the products from Logona are made with all natural ingredients, from their hair care products, makeup products, to their baby care products.

It’s important for most women to look their best, and it’s a good idea to apply makeup with natural ingredients rather than those using harsh chemicals. These products will leave you with the knowledge that you’re being safe about what cosmetics you’re using. All of the brands listed above are safe to use, and contain no artificial coloring or dyes.

So I recently did some digging trying to find some recipies for homemade plant fertilizer and these are a few of what I found. I was looking for something simple to make that I could use with cheap and easy to find household ingredients. My favorite plant food recipe that I found was this one…

I took a old gallon milk-jug and filled it near the top with de-fluoridated tap water and added the following ingredients…

• 1 tablespoon Epson Salts
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. household ammonia

I have been using it now for about a month and I have seen noticeable growth in my houseplants. I hadn’t been using any fertilizer at all previously, so some of these fertilizer recipes could be better, but with the ingredients I had around the house, this one seemed to be the best option.

Other homemade plant food options

Doing my research, it was clear that there are a million and one ways to fertilize your houseplants. Some people suggested boiling vegetables and after allowing the water to cool using that as a fertilizer. Others just let old tea bags soak in water and poured that water as a liquid plant food, and broke up egg shells and let them sit in water for a month or so (that must be stinky!).

Other suggestions I found…

• Once a month pour a can of room temperature beer into each of my plants.
• If you have fish always save the water when you clean or change your tank. Water your plants with this.
• Dry out empty eggshells, and crush them into powder. Work approximately five crushed eggshells into the soil around every plant. Outdoor flowers, fruits, and vegetables will benefit greatly from this homemade fertilizer.

For even more ideas to create a simple plant fertilizer check out these links…

• Home-made plant fertilizer
• Homemade plant food
• Homemade fertilizer
• A better way to fertilize your garden
• How to make homemade plant fertilizer
• Plant lovers homemade fertilizer
• Homemade plant fertilizer from the Helpful gardener

Do you have any plant-food recipes that you love? Let us know!

I found this on Huffington Post and really wish I could verify that it is legit. But apparently Brazil is trying to conserve water by encouraging people to pee in the shower rather than having to flush the toilet.

It never ceases to amaze me how different some cultures are. Can you imagine seeing a PSA in the US encouraging people to do this?

My wife and I are planning on doing a lot of painting when we move into our new house so we have been looking through and comparing some of the healthy (low or zero VOC) paints that we are finding out there.

Mythic Non-toxic Paint

• Web: http://www.mythicpaint.com/
• Where to buy: Can’t tell where dealers are located, but you can buy online.
• Color Palette: 1,232 colors
• Cost per gallon: $51 (free shipping on all orders in the US)

A little bit more about Mythic from their website…

No toxic gasses that leak off into your home up to six years after application. No VOCs that can harm your family and deplete the ozone – nothing but gorgeous colors and peace of mind. So now you can go inside and get some fresh air. It is estimated that 10% of the ozone depleting substances in the urban United States come from paints and other surface coatings. The majority of these substances are VOCs or volatile organic compounds and they are the cause of not only thinning ozone but also the rise in global warming and increased respiratory related diseases and cancer. Fortunately for the planet now we have Mythic Paint –the World’s first high performance, zero-toxin, zero-VOC paint. So now we can enjoy both our beautifully decorated homes and our beautiful planet.

FreshAire no VOC paint

• Web: http://freshairechoice.com/
• Where to buy: Home Depot
• Color Palette: 65 colors
• Cost per gallon: $38

According to the Freshaire people, their paint and tints contain no VOCs. They go on to explain… “Although other paints may claim to have no VOCs, what they don’t tell you is that these chemicals are put back into the paint once the color is added.”

Green Planet zero VOC and truly “green” paint

• Web: http://www.greenplanetpaints.com/
• Where to buy: Buy online or via some of dealers across the US – only in 10 states
• Color Palette: 48 colors
• Cost per gallon: $55

According to Green Planet Paints they are different from other chemical free paints…

“Most paint companies, in attempting to “green” their paints, have focused on the human health aspects, removing particular additives so as to meet low and zero VOC criteria established by the EPA. Yet their paints are still petroleum-based, with pigment, binder and additive remaining synthetic.”

Benjamin Moore Natura odorless, no VOC paint

• Web: http://www.benjaminmoore.com
• Where to buy: Dealers across the U.S.
• Color Palette: ?
• Cost per gallon: $55

A little of what the Natura website says about it…

It is virtually odorless, has Zero VOC’s, is 100% Acrylic, Spatter-resistant, and carries the Green Promise designation.

Have you tried any of these eco-friendly paints? If so did you like it?