Sunday, January 19, 2014

20 More Reasons to Go All Natural

20 REASONS TO GO NATURAL

This is a fun little note that I wrote a few months back on Facebook and that my Big Sis Vaughn edited. We received a great response and many women posted comments on the #’s that affected them the most in their very own decisions. And no this is not an ANTI-Perm Post, but I do feel strongly for natural hair and I love encouraging my sisters out there that are looking to make the change.
20. To fully understand your true beauty and to visually see yourself for who you really are.
19. To at least know the texture of hair you possess and to appreciate what was meant for you to have. What is actually growing out of your scalp for Gosh sakes! (LOL)
18. It saves a lot of money and time, no more expensive salon visits…and there are no mandatory 2 month “BURN” sessions. Hahahaha.
17. Natural hair is undeniably stronger than permed/chemically altered hair where the actual makeup of the hair has been processed…therefore making it weaker and more susceptible to breakage.
16. It allows you to be in tune with your ancestors, your lineage, your heritage and to feel proud to be different.
15. If you have dry scalp issues or irritation natural hair craves moisture, water, oils to maintain a healthy PH level…when you have a perm how many girls do you know that would want to get their hair wet or oily??? Point exactly…Natural Hair allows you to take better care of your scalp and strands.
14. When natural you can actually maintain hair growth. Your hair doesn’t grow faster when natural…but you actually retain length due to stronger strands. You essentially get to see the growth w/o it breaking off at an alarming rate which many of our sisters see on a daily basis due to over processed hair and weaker ends.
13. Versatility!!!! You can wear your hair poofy, bone straight, springy, curly, kinky, and in braids…it all depends on your preference and hair type. The sky is the limit, who wouldn’t want choices???
It’s like having a closet full of shoes and accessories, what are you in the mood for today? :-D
12. To appreciate everything about yourself, and not having to change anything on a month to month basis. People look down on women who get nose jobs, fake butts, and etc…. but what are perms and weaves. Comparables…that’s what they are.
11. It’s actually in style and accepted amongst educated Black people. You don’t have to worry about not getting the Corporate job…there are many successful African Americans rocking their Crown that they were born with.
10. It’s healthier for you. Straightening cremes are dangerous..if not applied correctly they can cause burns, and in some cases irreversible damage. Natural’s don’t have that problem….do we girls??? (chuckle)
9. Pride. We are a race of so many tones, textures, shapes and sizes. Be proud of who you are and accept who you are and what you look like.
8. You can share your natural hair Journey with other naturals, answer questions, and help out those that were just as clueless as you once were. Create some awareness within our communities and reach out to those that are in need of assistance. Awareness is so important.
7. It shows an unmatched level of confidence, and believe it or not men are attracted to confident, strong women. It separates you from looking like everyone else and what the media portrays as Beautiful. Standout.
6. It’s fun, and you get to learn “your hair” all over again. There are so many products that are exclusively designed for “our” hair..it’s great to figure out which products work best and to use healthier products. For example Mineral Oils and Petroleum clog our pores on the scalp that may stunt our hair growth. Lots of products made for women of color contain those ingredients…lots of natural hair care products do not.
5. Having natural hair allows you to take better care of your hair….oiling your ends and wearing styles that won’t expose your hair to stress and breakage. A lot of the time weaves and perms create stressful situations on the hair shaft creating breakage and in some instances balding. :-o “Oh no!”
4. It’s an awesome look to have in the summer/warmer months. Very easy going and looks awesome with flowing/earthy clothing. Fashion Statement ladies…..
3. Natural hair allows you to appreciate “New Growth” instead of being irritated that your new growth is coming in and now you have to process it so soon. It’s growth…it’s natural. Be happy you hair is growing.
2. Natural hair is actually in demand more and more. I dare you to actually pay attention to commercials appealing to African Americans. I would bet that at least 75% of those ads have women with naturally curly/kinky/textured hair of some sort.Now this does not include the perm ads guys…lol. I mean Tide commercials, Johnson and Johnson, and even in clothing store Catalogs amongst many others.
1. Natural allows you to know that you too can do it. How many times have you heard someone say, “That is so cute BUT my hair can’t do that”. How would you know? Most of our sisters have been permed since the tender age of 5….some sooner. Many of our women don’t even know the true texture of their hair therefore the reaction of being scared is normal. I get that…..but how will you know if you never try.
…And the NUMBER ONE BONUS REASON to “Go Natural” is simply because that’s the ONE THING that cannot be copied by ANY OTHER RACE OF PEOPLE no matter how hard they try. They can swell their lips with injections, implant the sillicone into their butts, tan in the sun all damn day, etc, but they CANNOT, by any means imitate our HAIR! …Think about that.
Thanks for reading.
So, what do you ladies think? Any #’s stand out in particular for you?                                                                                                                                                               
Is there a reason you went natural or will be looking to go natural that you would like to add?
Let’s weigh in.

Saturday, January 18, 2014

Organic food and farm groups ask Obama to require GMO food labels

Organic food and farm groups ask Obama to require GMO food labels

Thu Jan 16, 2014 9:33am EST

RELATED TOPICS

(Reuters) - Four U.S. lawmakers joined with more than 200 food companies, organic farming groups, health and environment organizations and other groups on Thursday to urge President Barack Obama to require manufacturers to label food products that contain genetically engineered ingredients.
The groups delivered a letter to the president dated January 16 reminding Obama of a campaign pledge the groups said he made in 2007 as he campaigned in Iowa to work to label so-called GMO foods.
The issue is hotly contested, with more than 20 states considering laws to mandate labeling of foods made with gene-altered corn, soybeans, sugar beets and other biotech crops. Currently, labeling of such foods is voluntary.
Advocates of labeling say consumers deserve to know if the food they eat contains GMOs. But the makers of biotech crops, and many large food manufacturers have fought against mandatory labeling, arguing that genetically modified crops are not materially different and pose no safety risk, and labeling would mislead consumers.
Among the signatories on Thursday's letter to President Obama are the ice cream company Ben & Jerry's, cereal maker Nature's Path, organic yogurt maker Stonyfield Farms, the Consumer Federation of America and several environmental and health groups.
"We believe there should be a mandatory national labeling system. FDA has a duty to act when the absence of labeling would leave consumers confused about the foods they buy," the groups said in their letter.
Four Democratic members of Congress held a press conference on Thursday to support the call on Obama for mandatory labeling - U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio from Oregon; U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro from Connecticut; U.S. Rep. Ann McLane Kuster from New Hampshire; and U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree from Maine.
The move comes as the Grocery Manufacturers Association, which represents more than 300 food companies, is pushing Congress and the Food and Drug Administration to pre-empt any state labeling mandates in favor of a federal standard for voluntary labeling, and to allow some GMO foods to be labeled "natural."
Most of the biotech crops on the market have been genetically altered to repel pests or tolerate direct spraying of herbicides. Those crops are used in a vast array of food products.
The companies that develop them say the crops are safe, and are backed by many scientific studies. But U.S. government regulators do not independently test GMO crops before approving them for commercialization. And there are also many studies showing links to human and animal health problems, and environmental damage.
Last October, an international coalition of scientists declared there still was no consensus in the global scientific community about the safety of genetically modified crops, which were first commercialized in 1996.

(Editing by Ed Davies)

ORIGINAL STORY HERE 

Friday, January 3, 2014

First 6 Reasons

There are many reasons to go all organic, i will try and hit most of the important aspects i believe in. 
First and foremost the most important reason is for your health. Durr right, well you would be suprised how many humans on this earth just love chemicals so much. Your body is a machine, to keep it going strong you really need to put good fuel in it, not Mcdonalds (Which recent studies proved its not fit for human consumption).
Secondly, whats more important than food? Water is the most important aspect in our life's, and organic farms protects water sources by not adding dangerous pollutants. People need to realize how important water is.
It Tastes good! This one should really be common sense and very self explanatory, better soil, better plants, better taste. Studies show that organic fruits and vegetables more often than not have higher levels of flavor. The end result typically is more intense and complex flavors, not to mention the absence of artificial flavors and preservatives.
Unlike the normal food industry, organic companies have very strict standards. If your buying organic you know there are no chemicals added to your food.
GMO's are virtually banned in Every other country besides ours! So whats the hold up for good ol' USA then? Oh yeah i forgot, the USA makes Millions if not Billions in profit from using GMO's. Not to mention population control (another blog another day).
Decrease your Intake of unnecessary hormones and antibiotics. Most livestock farmers use a combination of drugs, feed supplements, high grain diets, and HORMONES!!!, they push their animals to grow faster and get bigger. The more the push the live stock, the sicker they get and the more antibiotics they hgave to use. The National Organic Program rule prohibits the use of virtually all synthetic animal drugs, healthy animals produce healthy product.