Many of us know we need to ‘eat better,’ but this term can be confusing since it means so many things to different people. Couple that with the fact that daily we are inundated by advertisements for junk and processed food, and it shows – approximately 70% of what we eat is processed. And yet, every
You may well ask why PlanetSave, a blog usually dedicated to positive developments and actions to save the earth, is reporting news about ExxonMobil and a Russian arctic oil well. The oil discovery appears to have nothing to do with solar or wind or most of our usual topics—we’re talking fossil fuels here, which have caused much
Remember the difference between weather and climate? We know what happens when the weather changes—it’s obvious. Climate is another story. Read on. When it rains, you put on a raincoat or take your umbrella when you go out. It snows: time for high boots, a heavier coat, scarf, and warm gloves. And sunny days, well,
As you may know, PlanetSave posts important health stories as well as the popular science, nature, and climate reports we’re usually known for. (In fact, we’re working toward 500 health posts over these few years!) Today we excerpt from Examiner.com some news that follows up our Ebola story and exclusive interview with public health expert Vince Silenzio
When the hydraulic fracturing measure passed the Los Angeles City Council today, several tweeters posted photos of this meeting (source of the above: Walker Foley on twitter). The City Council of Los Angeles, second-most populous metro in the United States, voted 10-0 today to prohibit hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”) and other “unconventional” deep-underground drilling methods to produce
Farmageddon: The True Cost of Cheap Meat exposes a worldwide crisis in mega-farming. (Graphic from Sunday Times review by coauthor.) The authors, Philip Lymbery and Isabel Oakeshott, believe that the increasingly globalized food production industry threatens the quality of what we eat, our health, and the very land we live on. They say people now
Fifty years ago, the drugstore giant CVS/Caremark came into being. Also 50 years ago, Surgeon General Luther Terry released the first federal government report linking smoking with disease. Today, the events have coalesced: CVS, one of the nation’s top retail pharmacy chains (Walgreen is #1, in number of retail stores; CVS, in overall sales), has
On his blog “I see a change,” Nigerian Youth Development Expert Olumide Idowu presents the elements of sustainable development (source: olumideidowu.blog.com). Not all online courses provide all they promise you, but here’s one that should answer all your questions about environmentally sustainable, socially inclusive economic development. It will also challenge you to find out more.
“Determining the HIV-1 subtype of infected individuals could be important in the management of HIV-1 infections,” say A3/O2 study authors. (Photo: GIZMODO) Guinea-Bissau, West Africa, appears to have generated the newest strain of the HIV/AIDS virus. In recent years, health experts have begun to think of HIV/AIDS as a treatable, nonlethal disease. Seventeen people treated
Usually vegetarians or vegans familiar to me don’t push any agenda. They are content to live and let live, but when someone asks them about their food choices, they will provide information. Sometimes they over share – but generally because they are trying to be helpful, not argumentative. Naturally, discussions about food tend to lead
Everyone’s thinking about the U.S. government shutdown. American media have chosen to dramatize a health official’s suggestion that children with cancer will not be able to receive advanced clinical treatments because funds are unavailable. But the kids with cancer are only a sideshow. The most frightening health effects concern the entire nation, and by extension,
We still don’t know how humans acquire Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS, formerly known as “n-coronavirus”). The mortality rate among people treated for MERS is 65%, making it one of the most lethal coronaviruses identified to date. However, scientists from the Ministry of Health of Saudi Arabia, the Center for Infection and Immunity of Columbia
More on Obesity From the Clinton Foundation: Childhood Obesity: Facts & Solutions From PlanetSave: Obesity Is A Major Environmental Threat, Study Says From NaturalPapa: Sugar is killing us! Joe’s cartoon archive, twitter ramblings and StumbleUpon page…and now Facebook!
Mobility is a major concern for the aging person individually and as part of their family. Rather than rely on a family member to chauffer them around, a senior citizen can access their community’s ground transportation.
It is confusing to me how a large group of Republicans can be so vehemently pro-life yet so anti the environment. Either these people don’t understand that protecting the environment from major polluters and pollutants keeps all life (humans included) free of unnecessary toxins and carcinogens (SEE LINKS BELOW), or as the bumper stickers clearly
Vitalize Without a Spa Last spring I stayed in NYC for a week. My stay in the city revitalized me better than any spa might have. This urban visit was the same as my experience of a visit to San Francisco for a few weeks in which my mental, emotional, and physical health improved. My urban
Those treehugging environmentalists and climate scientists are always trying to make a big deal out of nothing, you know? I mean, look at this recent study on 6 climate-related disasters of the past 10 years — it found that the health costs of these 6 U.S. disasters only totalled $14 billion. That’s a few times
The ginger root can be used for so much more than just cooking. It can be used for medicinal purposes such as helping to relieve nausea and pain, aid in digestion, and act as an anti-inflammatory.
7 more good activism stories of the week we haven’t covered yet:
I’ve covered this good infographic on CO2 emissions, other pollution, and the health effects of various sorts of pollution on a couple of our other sites already, but thought it should be shared here as well.
Rather than grabbing a bottle of mystery ingredients, you can pamper your skin naturally inside and out.
I’ve just chosen the winner of this excellent-looking new book, Changing Planet, Changing Health: How the Climate Crisis Threatens Our Health and What We Can Do about It. The winner was chosen randomly using random.org (screenshot below). And the winner is!….
Following up on my post last week announcing a book giveaway here on Planetsave (visit that post for 5 easy ways to enter the giveaway contest and potentially win Changing Planet, Changing Health), below is a question and answer with the authors (and a little intro to it). A ton of useful info in here.
Director of Harvard Medical School Center for Health and the Global Environment Paul Epstein, MD and award-winning science journalist Dan Ferber have a new book out on the health impacts of climate change: Changing Planet, Changing Health: How the Climate Crisis Threatens Our Health and What We Can Do about It. And you can win a copy of it here on Planetsave.
Case Western Reserve University researchers have detected small amounts of Iodine 131 in the rainwater collected on the roof of a campus building. The radiation is believed to have come all the way from Japan in the wake of the near-nuclear meltdown following the massive magnitude-9 earthquake that struck the Sendai region.
Most people would be lucky to live to 103. And even luckier to be able to ride a bike at that age. But, actually, riding a bike regularly would increase your chances of both things, since it is good for your health and extends your life expectancy.
103-year-old Octavio Orduño would recommend it. He is perhaps the oldest living cyclist and still loves cruising along on his tricycle (well, it would be a bicycle if his wife hadn’t insisted he switch)….
Stephanie Rach has created the Chipper character as a way to capture her own children’s adventures and from a personal desire to provide parents with a resource that makes exploring the outdoors fun and stress-free.
We love to vilify others, don’t we? Especially Big Government, Big Business, Big Oil, and so on. But let’s take a quick look at how we actually compared to CEOs of Big Oil and Big Coal, some of the most infamous or widely disliked “Big Boys” in the world (& certainly in environmental circles). Scale
Genetically modified (GM) food researchers still have a long way to go to show that GM foods are actually safe. In fact, the most recent news is that they cause miscarriages in animals. That’s what a scientist researching Monsanto’s Roundup Ready genetically modified crops has found. The miscarriages are linked to an organism that was
More on Breasts and Guns From Grist: Palin and Bachmann trash Michelle Obama’s breast-feeding advocacy From CNN: Palin defends rule allowing loaded weapons in national parks From EcoChildsPlay: Posts on breastfeeding From Mother Nature Network: More on breastfeeding The rest of Joe Mohr’s cartoons, and cartoon updates and other green news on Twitter @GreenCartoons. photo
On the heals of a momentous new study on the true cost of coal released by leading Harvard economist Dr. Paul Epstein, Greenpeace engaged in some trademark direct action in Bridgeport, Connecticut this morning. Greenpeace activists climbed an old coal power plant there and hung a banner (above) reading “Shut It Down: Quit Coal.” Six schools
Well, it doesn’t seem like Harvard Medical School will be getting any donations from the fossil fuel industry any time soon. A new study that is soon to be released and published in the Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences authored by Dr. Paul Epstein, the Director of Harvard Medical School Center for
The best things in life are free. This doesn’t only apply to open source applications on the web but other aspects of life as well. You may be surprised, but one of the best things you can do for yourself and mother nature is take cold showers on a daily basis. Sound crazy? Yes, it
Some of the top green living, activism, and clean energy stories from the past day or so: Activism Greenpeace Gives Facebook “Unfriend Coal” Deadline Greenpeace has been pushing Facebook to “unfriend coal” and go the route of clean energy for awhile. Facebook, for the most part, hasn’t listened. Greenpeace is now telling Facebook it should
Here’s some of the biggest global warming and environmental politics news and commentary from the last week or so, along with some fun cartoons. Rocket Fuel in Our Water? The inspiration for the cartoon above, among other things: information that there is rocket fuel (or a component of it) in water supplies across the U.S.
A recent analysis of catch data calls into question the accuracy of previous surveys of marine ecosystem health. Without accurate data, environmental policy makers may be unable to determine if current reforms to fisheries management are working, and further, if their picture of our oceans’ health is even roughly accurate. The new analysis was conducted
Comparing the risks to the health benefits, bicycling is already better than driving. But one clear way to make it even more so is to make our roads safer for cyclists. New York State is looking to take one big step forward on this. It may soon pass legislation making a bike safety class a
I’ve mentioned the great health benefits of bicycling on here a number of times. With the health benefits being so clear, you’d think more health professionals would be pushing for better biking infrastructure… Well, a number of them are starting to. Check out this email/news release I received from NYC transportation advocacy organization Transportation Alternatives:
That’s one selfish Christmas present. Well, maybe not so selfish since giving bikes to all of its employees will help the whole world (bicycling is perhaps the greenest mode of transport). But, truthfully, IKEA can expect to save a lot of money from its employees being healthier, missing work less, and working more productively if
(Yet another environmental toxin in unacceptably high concentrations….) An analysis of 35 U.S. cities’ tap water has found that 31 one of these water sources contain exceedingly high levels of hexavalent chromium, a known carcinogen.The study is the first of its kind ever to be released to the public and comes, fortuitously, as the EPA
Think bicycling is too dangerous? Think again. The health benefits of bicycling outweigh the dangers of accidents with cars and air pollution in yet another study on this matter. The new study, published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives, found that regular cyclists can be expected to live 3-14 months longer than non-cyclists. Read more about
This guest post is the second of two guest posts from David P. Tusa, CEO and President of Sharps Compliance Corp. (Nasdaq: SMED), a leading full-service provider of cost-effective management solutions for medical waste and unused dispensed medications generated outside the healthcare facility setting. As a country, we regulate the disposal of car batteries, oil
I recently had the chance to interview Dr. Mark Sneller, an expert on the topic of indoor air quality (IAQ) and author of the new book Greener, Cleaner Indoor Air: A Guide to Healthier Living (Wheatmark, 2010). He gave me such in-depth answers on this critical topic that I decided I’d publish them in three
I recently had the chance to interview Dr. Mark Sneller, an expert on the topic of indoor air quality (IAQ) and author of the new book Greener, Cleaner Indoor Air: A Guide to Healthier Living (Wheatmark, 2010). He gave me such in-depth answers on this critical topic that I decided I’d publish them in three
Going Green Tip #4 — Green your transport, not only for the environment, but for your health, happiness, personal finances, and time.
A survey by Louisiana State University professors has investigated the health impacts on Louisianan residents following in the wake of the Deepwater Horizon disaster. At the time of publication the report noted that it had been 85 since the “onset of the disaster and the flow of oil has just been stopped.” The authors focused
A new exploratory study out of George Mason University has found that people will care more about climate change if it is framed as a public health problem. The authors of the study interviewed 70 Americans and had the respondents read a public health framed essay on climate change. Their results found that, on the
National Bike Month is here and there are a lot of reasons to participate! It’s that time of year again. The sun is shining more and more (in most places in the Northern Hemisphere), the birds are chirping, and you can see more and more people on the streets riding their bikes. If you aren’t
