from kevin, in Time
They line the nursery section children’s toy stores like brightly colored candies: rubber duckies for bathtime, chewable rings for teething, soft-covered books for pawing and mouthing. Parents shopping for their babies can be forgiven if they assume that everything on those shelves is 100% child safe. So why did the city of San Francisco issue a ban last week on the sale of certain plastic toys aimed at children under 3? And why are activists warning holiday shoppers in the most alarming terms against buying them? “Sucking on some of these teethers and toys,” says Rachel Gibson of Environment California, a nonprofit, “is like sucking on a toxic lollipop.”
At issue are contaminants in plastics used to make the toys. Environmentalists have long argued that some of these chemicals can leach out and harm children, pointing to animal studies that link the substances to birth defects, cancer and developmental abnormalities. Those warnings are hotly disputed by the chemical industry and toy manufacturers, which cite stacks of scientific studies that have found the plastics to be safe at federally approved levels. But the issue has gained traction on the strength of new evidence from independent and university-sponsored studies. The European Union has banned some chemicals in toys since 1999, and now half a dozen state legislatures are considering similar laws.
Thanks to Pirate Papa for the link to the Pregnancy Today article, citing the slow, painful breakdown of the vice grip that western medicine has had on our lives.
When we started the whole fertility treatment thing, we started at the western end, while dabbling on the eastern end.
It turns out that advice given by the naturopath (check progesterone levels and treat with suppositories) may have been the key, but our regular doctor and the fertility doctor didn't think it was important. When she came back with very low progesterone, and started treating it, we got pregnant that month, after a year of trying. Hmmm.
When we started the whole fertility treatment thing, we started at the western end, while dabbling on the eastern end.
It turns out that advice given by the naturopath (check progesterone levels and treat with suppositories) may have been the key, but our regular doctor and the fertility doctor didn't think it was important. When she came back with very low progesterone, and started treating it, we got pregnant that month, after a year of trying. Hmmm.
'Tis the season...eggnog, time with family, holiday travel. Just make sure that you don't mix the three in inappropriate proportions
Really, though, the TSA is doing fine...
I think we're going to be able to handle this parenting thing just fine...the good thing about stupid people is that they make you feel good about yourself.
A woman going through security at Los Angeles International Airport put her month-old grandson into a plastic bin intended for carry-on items and slid it into an X-ray machine.
Really, though, the TSA is doing fine...
On its website, the TSA posts extensive tips for travelers, including a section titled "Traveling With Children."
One item reads: "Never leave babies in an infant carrier while it goes through the X-ray machine."
I think we're going to be able to handle this parenting thing just fine...the good thing about stupid people is that they make you feel good about yourself.
