Did you know that there are cancer causing chemicals in your tap water? There are "health standards" and there are "legal limits". The health standard is the amount of chemicals in the water to cause cancer in 1 out of 1,000,000 people. The legal limits can be greater than 100 times more! To prove this, I visited https://www.ewg.org/tapwater, found my city, and looked at all the chemicals that were found in the tap water. The health guideline for trihalomethanes (cancer causing contaminants formed during disinfection) is 0.8ppb (parts per billion) and the legal limit is 80ppb. The average amount found in my water was 21ppb. Just those chemicals alone are 26.5 times more than the health guideline! Not very reassuring... but I've researched ways you can remove these excess chemicals before you drink!
You just simply invest in a water filter! These come in many different forms. You can get one that goes right on the faucet or one that you fill up and put in the fridge. You can also get water bottles that have filters built right into them. They all come in many different forms. Plus, these are reusable and promote drinking tap water rather than bottled water. If you don't like the taste of your water, you can get water flavorings for a couple bucks! *Originally published 08/15/2018*
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I'm sure most of us have enjoyed a nice hot, or cold, drink from Starbucks at some point in our lives. Not everybody has $6 to buy a cup of ice and coffee everyday but when we do, they only ever have straws, no other alternates to drinking it without a lid and risking spilling it all over your face.
If this is the first post of mine you're reading, I want to let you know that we use 500,000,000 (five hundred million) straws each day which adds up to about 182,500,000,000 (one hundred eighty two billion five hundred million) straws used annually. Since a lot of recycling places do not recycle them, they are contributing quite a lot to plastic pollution. Plastic alone kills 100,000,000 (one hundred million) marine animals every single year. By making the switch to special "sippy cup" lids and vowing to go nearly straw free by 2020, Starbucks will be saving about 1,000,000,000 (one billion) plastic straws every year. They will still give you a straw if you request one and if you order a frappuccino, since they're frozen. This morning, I wanted to try a little experiment. I went to Starbucks before and based on this personal experience, this is still a new thing as I was still handed a plastic straw while I was waiting for my drink to be made. I saw the new straw-free lids and had to ask to have one. I think it's a bit ridiculous that they don't ask you which you'd prefer or just put a straw-free lid on anyway since I'm sure they've been educated of how damaging straws are to the environment. Also, unfortunately, they only have them in two sizes - Tall and Grande. That's a bit ridiculous, too. So, next time you decide to go out to Starbucks, remember to ask for a tall or grande (unless you got 0 hours of sleep, then order a Venti, but remember to bring your reusable straw!) and then ask for one of their new lids! Look below for some pictures I took of the new lid!! Resources: https://www.thrillist.com/eat/nation/starbucks-sippy-cup-lids-straw-ban https://news.starbucks.com/news/starbucks-announces-environmental-milestone
I'm not here to tell you that you need to become vegan, there are many alternatives to veganism that still help save the planet. There are many reasons why you should work toward becoming vegan, none of which you need to do. I know hamburgers are delicious.
Not only does going vegan result in weight loss, as the average vegan is 20x slimmer than a meat-eater, but it increases your energy as well. Veganism is the healthy way of keeping the extra pounds off while remaining energized, unlike all those diets you see on the internet and in "health" magazines. A vegan diet is also great for your health. It reduces your risk of heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and/or high blood pressure and you can get all of your necessary nutrients, like protein, fiber, and minerals, while avoiding the bad stuff in meat that makes people sick such as cholesterol and saturated fat. One vegan can save over 100 animals annually! Choosing vegan foods over animal products saves the suffering of innocent animal lives. Meat not only clogs arteries and impedes blood flow to vital organs, it also contains remnants of poop, blood, and other bodily fluids which is why meat is the #1 cause of food poisoning. Vegans also help the planet become greener. It takes a ton of water to raise animals and to produce the meat. Plus, it takes about 13 pounds of grain just to produce 1 pound of meat. This grain and water can be given to people in need instead. Animals are also one of the biggest causes of climate change, the release gases into the air and destroy land. Veganism is more effective in keeping the air clean than switching to a "greener" car. So, veganism feeds the hungry, saves animals, and essentially saves your life in the long run. Are you convinced yet? Still can't give up that delicious hamburger? Vegan food is just as delicious! As veganism is becoming increasingly popular, more and more companies are coming out with dairy free and meat free products that taste like the real thing while being healthier and saving animals. Stay tuned for recipes and more on how to make this healthy switch in your life! Resources: https://www.peta.org/living/food/top-10-reasons-go-vegan-new-year/
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First of all, what is fair trade? Imagine you are a farmer in a developing country. Many money hungry corporations that purchase your products pay prices that are lower than what the crop is actually worth - it's unfair. Fair trade is the action of paying fair prices to these farmers in less developed countries. Many items that you consume everyday were probably unfairly purchased, such as bananas, cocoa, coffee, cotton, flowers, gold, sugar, and tea. There are many more in this list but these are just some of the most common.
You may be just one of the world's many coffee or tea drinkers but do you know where it came from? You may purchase bananas on your weekly grocery shopping trip but do you know how much the producer was paid for his hard work? Everyone deserves fair compensation for their items so instead of throwing random products into your carts, read the package and know what you are buying and supporting. Look for the logo below to know that your producer is getting a fair share.
*These are affiliate links. By purchasing from these links, you are helping me save for my dream of traveling around the world to learn more about our planet.*
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