Wednesday, April 6, 2016

How Unclean Water & an Unhygienic Household Tamper Pregnancy & Baby Care

Good housekeeping, safe pregnancy and baby care

If basic living environments are unhealthy, dirty and unkept, it directly affects your health and causes severe damages to your overall wellbeing. Cleanliness is without doubt the need of the hour for those of you with infants and for those of you in the current sensitive pregnancy phase. You should reconsider in-depth home cleaning that includes your mattress, sofa, carpets, washrooms, kitchen and other tiny fixtures. A clean home keeps your indoor air clean, keeps your living space free from germs, shields you and your children from a host of diseases that may arise from a dusty environment and lastly makes provision for good housekeeping, safe pregnancy and appropriate baby care.

A preventive maintenance routine will not only increase the life of your home, but also keep you safe from illnesses. Homes are exposed to a number of toxic materials every single day, posing a serious threat to health. Nerve problems, respiratory problems, liver, kidney and blood issues can result from long-term exposures to such toxins. Health conditions may range from something as simple as a headache to as severe as dementia. It is therefore important to keep a keen eye for in-depth home cleaning and stay shielded from dangerous health hazards.

With consistent maintenance, it is possible to achieve a bacteria-free, healthy and an absolutely clean living space. However, for most of us, our time-crunched lives prevents us from doing so. This is pretty much why it is safe and beneficial to opt for professional home cleaning services. Home based service experts come with an insight to your every cleaning, maintenance and repair requisite and ensure to cater to your critical or specific needs with utmost care. Besides this, skilled experts will also be able to sketch out a detailed plan for a regular upkeep of your home.

Water pollution, infection and pregnancy threats

Most of us lack access to pure and safe drinking water. During pregnancy, there is all the more reason to stay watchful of the water you drink. Recent readings have shown that contaminants and pollutants present in unclean water have the capacity to cross into the placenta, an organ that unites an unborn baby to the mother. This organ also plays a vital role in sending nutrients to the baby. Hence, any sort of contaminant entering this sensitive organ has a substantial effect on the baby. Consuming contaminated water or water with excess chlorine during pregnancy, leads to premature births and low-weight babies.

In cases of severe water impurity, high risks like blindness, sudden miscarriage, and nervous-system break-downs may also occur. Such weak infants struggle to catch up both physically and intellectually. Some studies have also argued that low birth weight babies could possibly have developmental cognitive problems.

Drinking unclean and unsafe water during pregnancy can result in several health complications both for you and your baby. With the help of professional and skilled experts, you can ensure adequate sanitation. Good, safe and germ-free drinking water is essential for your baby to survive and thrive and for you to have a healthy pregnancy. It is the mother's health that determines the baby's health.

If you are expecting, then it is indeed crucial for you to ensure a healthy pregnancy diet that includes uncontaminated water and a consistent immaculately clean living space. It is always best to seek the help of skilled experts for water quality testing/audits/water tank cleaning or water wellness in general. Not only do they help achieve a clean and safe environment and water, but also shield you and your baby from potential health risks.

All you need to do is look up to a professional and no one knows it better like SayFix. SayFix is an exclusively tailored one-stop-shop for all your home cleaning, handyman and repairs, installation and maintenance and pest control needs.

In addition to this, SayFix also offers an exclusive water wellness program to determine the quality of water in your home and to conduct water-based services for clean, safe and contaminant- free drinking water - All this in just a click.

You could download the app from the Google play store for effortless booking. For an immediate service assistance, you could reach out to 7815 01 01 01. For further queries, you could write in to care@sayfix.com.



Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/9298551

Fresh Water Shortages

Water is the key ingredient to all life on our planet. It directly, or indirectly, affects every facet of life on Earth as we know it. Without water there would be no plants or vegetation, no oxygen for all living creatures to breathe, and the Earth would look like, and become, a desolate and lifeless sphere. Although water is the central driving force of all nature, it is disappearing at an alarming rate. The decline of fresh water is causing several extreme, dire consequences and will eventually result in a global crisis.

Four Negative Effects of a Global Water Shortage

Recent studies have shown that by 2040, there will not be enough water to meet the global demand for energy production and drinking. The water shortage will have terrible effects on billions of people, the first being a sharp increase in the number of wars being fought around the world.

1. Increased Global Conflicts - Most countries are forced to share their fresh water sources with neighbouring countries. As water becomes more scarce, fights between nations using the same water source will rise. According to the United Nations, there are 276 freshwater river basins that border two or more countries, and 200 other water sources being used by several countries. There are treaties in place dealing with this issue, but in times of war and peril, words on paper aren't much protection. The U.S. Director of National Intelligence has warned that even the security of the United States will be in jeopardy if the overuse of water continues.

2. Lack of Clean Drinking Water - In many developing countries, people are forced to drink unsafe and contaminated water. Currently, over 1 billion people worldwide have little or no access to healthy and clean drinking water. The lack of water means less sewage flow, which results in hazardous, often fatal, airborne diseases. The stagnant water also creates the perfect breeding ground for mosquitoes and other insects, dramatically increasing malaria and various deadly infections. The lack of clean water can also limit intellectual and economic growth. As populations rise and the water supplies dwindle, more and more people will be adversely affected.

3. Food Shortages and Hunger - It takes a lot of water to grow the world's agricultural crops and to sustain the livestock herds that feed much of the world. Approximately 70% of our water sources are used for irrigation and agricultural use. Increased water conservation techniques will have to be developed and implemented to slow down the unsustainable withdrawal from groundwater sources and reservoirs before they are completely dried up. Less water will mean fewer crops. Farm animals will die along with our crops, the end result being a low quality of life and a constant hunger for food and thirst for water. The global population is expected to be over 9.6 billion by 2050 but the shrinking supply of water will not be enough to meet the increased demand.

4. Energy and Economic Slowdowns - Energy production accounts for one of the biggest demands of freshwater resources. Thermoelectric power plants are run by water and account for 38% of all freshwater usage. Wind and solar energy uses a lot less water and is a step in the right direction, but they only make up a small portion of today's energy production. By 2030 over half the world's people will live in areas of high water stress. Having a robust and thriving economy in those regions will be almost impossible. The lack of freshwater resources will make it tough to produce goods such as food, clothing, and even cars.

Climate Change

Another factor in the decline of freshwater resources is climate change. Severe droughts around the world are forcing people to try and drill for their own water sources. California has never been as dry as it has in recent years, experiencing four years of drought in a row. In the Middle East, entire regions are turning into deserts. In Asia and other parts of the world there have been huge losses of the groundwater necessary for the irrigation of crops. Heavy global water usage combined with changing precipitation patterns is destroying agricultural lands everywhere. Changing rainfall levels and melting glaciers are wreaking havoc on the planet's climate, making the need to act now one of paramount importance.

Water is the key to life as we know it. Without it, we, and everything on our planet, will die. Learning about and implementing water conservation strategies could literally be the difference between life and death.

Water scarcity is an abstract concept to many and a stark reality for others. It is the result of myriad environmental, political, economic, and social forces.

Please take a look @ http://www.BestSportsWaterBottles.com - you will find a wide variety of insulated water bottles including ones that utilize a filtration system.



Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/9298041

Bankrupt Words: Natural Gas

"He who controls the language controls the masses."

- Saul Alinsky in Rules for Radicals

LIGHT

My mom switched to "light" cigarettes after the mandatory warnings appeared on her boxes of smokes in the early 1970s.

CAUTION: CIGARETTE SMOKING MAY BE HAZARDOUS TO YOUR HEALTH.
I used to break her cigarettes in half and put them back in the pack. It was my feeble attempt as a ten year old to stop her habit. The focus on milligrams of tar and nicotine in the marketing messages kept smokers from quitting for years.

Baby steps, they told themselves.

Everyone thought light cigarettes were the lesser evil.

Mom finally quit her pack a day habit after more and more evidence of harm continued to pile up. Years later, she died as a result of complications following surgery to remove a football sized tumor in her lung. She never had a chance to know her granddaughters.

LIGHT continues to be a term used on food and cigarettes. Light yogurts have less sugar than regular yogurt. But it turns out that those artificial sweeteners are even more hazardous to your health than regular sugar. Cancer, diabetes, migraines and weight gain top the list of the less than sweet side effects.

Sugar and artificial sweeteners are as addictive as cigarettes. We really don't want to face these facts. So we soothe our worries with words. Words like LIGHT that have no meaning.

Maybe tomorrow we will stop.

When the evidence of harm, more cases of obesity, cancer and diabetes become so obvious that we cannot look the other way. Or will it take losing a loved one to wake up?

NATURAL

Another word that means essentially nothing.

People assume that natural foods are minimally processed which do not contain additives like hormones, colors or flavors that were not originally in the food. The FDA (Food and Drug Administration) has not developed a definition for use of the term natural.

Natural sounds nice. Like something we'd strive for. But it is a word divorced from any real meaning.

People pay more for natural foods. The words are soothing.

Whoever came up with the term "natural gas" was a genius.

The technical term is methane, a deadly and destructive fossil fuel.

Thanks to the tireless work of ANGA (America's Natural Gas Alliance) and the API (the American Petroleum Institute), most Americans falsely believe that natural gas is "clean", "safe" and a "bridge fuel" to the future.

These words are outright lies.

There is nothing clean about methane, just ask the thousands of families in Porter Ranch, California who are evacuating because of a methane leak. Their pets and their kids have unexplained rashes, nosebleeds, headaches and more. Who knows if Porter Ranch residents will grow old to see their grandkids or if a cancerous tumor will get in their way.

SAFE Nope.

Methane is flammable and explosive. Just ask the folks in San Bruno, California where a methane pipeline exploded, incinerating more than 40 homes and killing 8. The methane fueled fires burned out of control for hours.

Saying natural gas is a bridge fuel to the future is similar marketing for light cigarettes. It keeps everyone deluded into thinking that they can transition to a better energy one day soon.

Baby steps, right?

The lesser evil, right?

Proponents say gas burns cleaner than coal. But when it leaks it wrecks far more damage than coal. Fugitive methane is 80+ times worse as a greenhouse gas, fast tracking all of us to an unlivable climate situation that no one wants to face.

We are in quite a pickle.

We have numerous addictions that are a very real threat to our health, safety and future.

It's going to take some real work to look through the bankrupt words, face facts and take meaningful action.

The evidence of harm continues to mount.

What will it take for people to look beyond the soothing words created by corporate masterminds?

What words are needed to break the trance?

This is my quest.

As a food and environmental educator and activist, I am in search of the right words and stories to motivate people into meaningful action.



Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/9299517

A Quick Cheat Sheet to Understand Alkaline Water Benefits

The alkaline diet has found a lot of followers, including some celebrities we all adore. As much as the diet is popular, so are the health claims made with alkaline water. Basically, alkaline water has a better pH than normal tap water, and many believe that it can work wonders for the body. In this very special post, we will talk of the claims made with the concept along with some of the other things that matter.

What's the Concept?

The pH balance of a substance determines whether it's alkaline or acidic. Regular tap water has a pH balance between 5 and 7, but alkaline water has pH of 8 or 9. People, who believe in the concept, are quick to add that alkaline water can neutralize acid in the body, and thereby, one can experience a number of different benefits. The concept makes some sense as most of the foods we eat are acidic, and drinking alkaline enhanced water may have a good impact.

Getting Access:

While most of the packaged high pH water available in the market today is made through chemical processes, it is possible to find natural sources too. When water passes through rocks, it gets enhanced with minerals, which directly increases the pH level. However, it is rather impossible to find natural water with that kind of pH, and hence, all the artificial sources are worth every penny. All you need to do is replace your regular drinking water with a trusted brand that sells water with pH of 9 or higher. It should be noted that the claims and health benefits associated with drinking water with better pH is yet to be backed by quality and detailed research.

The Benefits at a Glance:

Going by general claims, alkaline water can possibly yield a good number of advantages. Firstly, it is known to help in regulating blood sugar levels and may have impact in alleviating arthritis pain. It also works in bettering the regular body functions and works for acid reflux. Some brands are now selling packaged water that has added electrolytes for energy boost along with added essential minerals. There are also other benefits like better hydration rate, which have been mentioned time and again. People who are dealing with weight loss can also find alkaline or pH balanced water worthy because it helps in increasing the process of metabolism.

In the last few years, many diets and food fads have arrived in the market and vanished in thin air, but that's not the case with the alkaline diet. In fact, many people who have followed the diet and added other healthy lifestyle changes have agreed to have observed a change in their health. Of course you don't need to hear success stories, but the best way to get convinced is to start knowing the pros and cons. To be honest, there is absolutely no harm in starting with the concept, given that this is just a simple change that may have multiple benefits. You can check online to find the brands that are available in your area.

I am a marketing representative of http://www.trubalanceh2o.com. Tru Balance Water Inc seeks to introduce the highest quality alkaline health water to the masses at a competitive price while maintaining an Eco Friendly stance.



Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/9303066

Air Filters: Their Pros And Cons

Air filters remove dust particles, micro-organisms and dirt from air. The filters have different applications where they are used in commercial, medical and industrial sectors. There are many types of filters in the market with the most common being:

HEPA

HEPA is an acronym for High Efficiency Particulate Air. The technology was developed during the Second World War where it was used in removing radioactive dust from air. In modern times, the filters are used in households where they have the ability of removing particles that are as small as 0.1 microns.

Particles that the filters are able to catch and remove include: dust mites, mold spores, dust, bacteria, and pollen.

It's good to note that HEPA filters don't remove chemical fumes, odors, viruses, and cigarette smoke. To catch and remove these particles, it's recommended that you buy a HEPA filter with activated carbon.

You should regularly replace these filters as the captured micro-organisms can reproduce thus becoming a health hazard.

Ionic air filters

Also known as ionizers, these units rely on voltage in order to charge air molecules. They produce negatively charged ions (anions) which attract dust particles in the air just like static electricity.

When particles get into contact with anions, they de-ionize and are removed from the air stream.

The cool thing with them is that they remove particles that are as small as 0.01 microns. They are also able to sterilize bacteria, smoke, viruses and other toxic fumes. They are loved by many people as they function without causing any noise.

While the units remove the particles from air, the removed particles aren't removed from the room-they land on the floor, furniture and walls thus you have to go back and clean the floor and walls.

Studies have shown that the units produce ozone as a by-product. This puts your lungs at risk when you directly inhale ozone.

Activated carbon filters

They are activated using oxygen which opens carbon pores making the filters highly absorbent. As air passes through the filters, the activated carbon absorbs the gasses and odors thus neutralizing them. The filters are able to remove odors, chemicals, smoke, and air gases.

Unlike ionizers, these filters don't release contaminants back into the air. The main flaw with them is that they don't remove micro-organisms, dust and other allergens.

Conclusion

These are the many air filters in the market. As you have seen, each filter has its strengths and weaknesses. You should analyze the filters and go for the right ones that are ideal for you.

If you are looking for air filter media we have many types of filters that you can go for. We have HEPA, hydroponic carbon filter and many others. Visit the given links to know more.



Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/9311594

Flint Water Crisis Could Happen Anywhere

Flint Water Crisis Could Happen Anywhere, Anytime

Flint water is deemed undrinkable. Are you prepared? Do you think it couldn't happen in your community? Well the people of Flint, Michigan didn't think it would happen to them either. But it did.

While the residents are show images of brown, dirty looking water, that doesn't show the lead. Lead will not be physically visible in your water, you won't know it's there, till it is too late.

If you have a Multipure Aquaversa water filter installed, the chances of the lead effecting you and your family is very slim.

There have been reports that the filters that are supplied for free to residents of Flint are not reducing the lead content to a safe level. The supplied filters are NSF certified to handle lead up to 150 parts per billion. Water is testing at over that.

How did the lead get into the water supply in Flint? Well, simply put, in order to save money, the city council of Flint voted to cut ties with the Detroit and stop getting their water supplied by them. To replace it, they were to join a newly formed Karegnondi Water Authority who were building a pipe line to get water from Lake Huron. This pipeline was not built yet. It was slated to be finished in 2017. Detroit found out about their plans and stopped selling water to Flint.

Now the city was left with no public water supply. This is what lead to the rash decision to use the Flint River. At a tremendous cost to the city, the water treatment plant was upgraded to handle treating the river water for distribution to residents and businesses, ultimately saving millions of dollars.

Once the switch to using the Flint River for supplying water to the city, the complaints began. Water was found contaminated with many different things including fecal matter. GM stopped using the water from the river. It was causing corrosion to the engine parts.

The city water authority sent notices that the water was contaminated with trihalomethanes (TTHM) in January, 2015. TTHM is a deadly combo of chemical leftovers created by over processing water. Shortly after this, the Detroit water offered to reconnect Flint and even waived the reconnect fee. Flint turns them down.

It all boils down to Flint was totally unprepared to treat polluted river water. In February, 2015 it was announced that the water may be discolored, but it was safe to drink. The TTHM levels were down and all is good with the safety of the water.

All this time, the corrosive contaminants in the river were allowing lead from the plumbing to be leached into the water supply. Very high levels of lead. In September, 2015, lead was found in more than 10% of homes and babies and children were testing for high levels in their blood. By October 1st, the water in Flint was deemed undrinkable and residents should stop drinking it.

Finally, the city reconnected with Detroit, but it was too little, too late. At this point, the only logical answer to fixing the problem is to totally re plumb the entire system in. The current plumbing is too damaged to be used for safe drinking water.

Katrina Oakley is dedicated to informing everyone about the quality of the water they drink.

The Safest Water You Can Drink

Right At Your Kitchen Sink. http://www.indianawaterfilters.org

Everyone should know about the quality of the water they drink. Visit her blog for up to date information on life essential water. http://www.indianawaterfilters.org/essentialwaterblog



Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/9305349

Cleansing Air Pollution

Indoor air pollution is one of the world's most difficult toxic pollution problems today. Why is it so prevalent and what simple ways can it be changed for the good of our health?

Indoor air pollution is the presence of particles, molecules, or other harmful materials in the environment that cause diseases, damage living organisms and eventual death to humans. Air pollution can come from substances created by people or caused by human activity and from natural sources. These impurities can be solid particles, liquid droplets, gases, or electromagnetic in origin. The impurities can be from a primary or secondary source. Examples of primary pollutants are produced from ash of volcanic eruption, carbon monoxide gas from motor vehicle exhaust, and sulfur dioxide that is released from factories. The secondary pollutants form in the air when primary pollutants react or interact. One example of a secondary pollutant is ground level ozone.

Many homes lack good indoor ventilation and then concentration of air pollution persists. People spend the majority of their time inside their homes. We have Radon gas that is exuded from the Earth in certain parts of our country and then it is trapped inside the house. We have created building materials such as carpeting and plywood that emit formaldehyde gas. Lead paint will degenerate into dust. The use of air fresheners, incense, and other scented items introduce air pollution. Wood fires in fireplaces and stoves will add smoke particulates into the air in significant amounts. Using pesticides and chemical sprays in closed environment without good ventilation pollutes the air. Faulty vents and chimneys produce carbon monoxide poisoning causing fatalities. Our clothing will emit tetrachloroethylene and other dry cleaning fluids after dry cleaning for many days.

There are biological sources of air pollution that are airborne particulates and gasses found in our homes. Pets will produce dander. People will produce dust from decomposed hair and minute skin flakes. There are dust mites in the bedding, furniture, and carpeting which produce very tiny decal droppings. Mold will form on walls which generates mycotoxins and spores. Our air conditioning systems can cause Legionnaires' disease and mold. Houseplants, soil, and near gardens can produce dust, pollen, and mold. A lack of air circulation will allow the airborne pollutants to become greater in number than they would normally occur in nature.

There are a number of health conditions that pose a significant risk actor resulting from indoor air pollution which include respiratory infections, heart disease, stroke, COPD, and lung cancer. People will experience difficulty with breathing, wheezing, coughing, asthma, and will worsen your existing respiratory and cardiac conditions. These health problems will result in the need to increase medication, more doctor visits or emergency room visits, more time in the hospital, and premature death.

The good news is that there is a natural way to address poor indoor air quality. I am Eunice Kenney and I have found Himalayan Salt Lamps to be very beneficial to purifying air. The dust, pollen, smoke, and pet dander collect with moisture in the air. When these droplets come in contact with the heated Himalayan Salt Lamps they are destroyed as a result of being dehumidified. The wide variety of cleansing salt crystal lamps can be found at http://www.himalayansaltlampsplus.com. Choose the lamps that best fits your individual preference and experience cleaner air, lessened health issues, increased energy, health, and well being.



Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/9318335