Health Nuts

I have many friends that are what I consider Health Nuts. I use that term affectionately. Actually, they are very health conscience and attempt do all of right things like eating properly and nutritiously as well as exercising. I often comment to them, “You health nuts are going to feel mighty silly, someday lying in bed, dying of nothing.Some of them spend a good deal of money shopping at the local health food store. They are very careful to buy organic whenever possible. While I am not fully on board with the everything must be organic religion, I commend them on their efforts. As with most comments like this you know there is a “But.” I enjoy doing research on the computer of whatever project is on my mind. For example, I have recently done research on DIY (do it yourself) water features for our back yard, DIY birdhouses and various gardening projects. Yesterday I was looking at information on non-stick versus standard cookware. Within this research was the warnings against aluminum cookware and the possible adverse health effects it can have on the body. Because I have never been able to use a anti perspiring deodorant because the aluminum ingredients causes an adverse reaction, I started looking at DIY deodorant. I came across this interesting website - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MyiLGR5msLU. On this site, the fellow discusses the various ingredients in many of our household products that are, or possibly may be, detrimental to our health. It is an interesting site. So…….. back to my health nut friends. As mentioned, they spend big bucks shopping for organic foods. It seems there is a concern they might be ingesting chemicals used for fertilizing crops or insecticides used to kill bugs. Then there is GMO. I won’t get into the GMO (Genetically modified organisms). Don’t get me wrong, I am not against taking extra precautions when it comes to the quality of our foods and other household products. The intent here is to suggest many health nuts are selective about their “organic” lifestyle. What follows is a few examples. For a number of years I suffered from a condition called Cough Variant Asthma. This is a condition in which, when I was having episode, I would have an extreme dry cough. These coughing fits would often prevent me from a good night’s sleep or wear me out coughing throughout the day. Almost anything would trigger a coughing attack. Perfume, smoke and even moving from a warm area to a cool or cold area. It was miserable. We have some very good friends that are extremely health conscience. Many times we would go for a visit. The lady is an immaculate housekeeper and a great hostess. As with Bonny (my wife) she would have scented candles burning throughout the house. They would trigger this asthma situation causing coughing attacks. I had to ask Bonny not to burn these candles around the house whenever I was having an attack. All of this got me to thinking, we spend a lot of money on healthy, organic fruits and vegetables in order not to induce chemicals into our system, and then light candles made from paraffin which is a by-product of the petroleum industry. Within these paraffin candles is some sort of scent material. This scent may or may not have any negative effects on the body. So anyway, we don’t eat bad stuff but have no problem inhaling it. Another example: About three years ago I was researching (on the net) how I might get oil or grease stains out of my work shirts. I had seen where baking soda had a lot of cleaning uses and was looking at this product. I came upon a web page called No-Poo. The no-poo stood for no shampoo. They suggested replacing shampoo with baking soda. I gave it a try and it really works and has for almost three years. It should be noted, I have very fine and extremely oily hair. This no-poo method works even better than the many shampoo’s the various hairdressers and my dermatologist have recommended over the years. As an added bonus, it has eliminated a condition of infected hairs I have suffered with off and on over the years. Bonny tried this method and said it worked for her also, but for whatever reason she is still buying and using all kinds of shampoo and conditioner. I say “for some reason,” but I know the reason. When you put the soda water on your hair, there if no feel of rich suds and lather. We have been conditioned to believe we need that feel. Give it a try. Mix 1 tablespoon of baking soda with one cup of water. Pour it on your head and message. Rinse and you are done. If you have dry hair, mix a tablespoon of white vinegar and rinse (conditioner). Trust me your hair will be cleaner than ever and after a couple of minutes you will quit smelling like salad dressing. I got a bottle of Bonny’s shampoo (one of many) and looked at the ingredients. Here is my finding. Iingredients: Water (Aqua) , Sodium Laureth Sulfate , Lauryl Glucoside , Cetearyl Alcohol , Sodium Chloride , Glycol Stearate , Cocamidopropyl Betaine , Phenoxyethanol , PPG 5 Ceteth 20 , Fragrance , Pentasodium Pentetate , Limonene , Methylparaben , Citric Acid , DMDM Hydantoin , Stearic Acid , Saccharum Officinarum (Sugar Cane) Extract , Amino Methyl Propanol , Hexylcinnamal , Linalool , Wheat Amino Acid , Hydrolyzed Soy Protein , Butylphenyl Methlyproprional , Citrus Limonum (Lemon) Fruit Extract , Pyrus Malus (Apple) Fruit Extract , Camellia Sinensis (Green Tea) Leaf Extract Some of these I know. Water, Sodium Chloride (salt) and maybe a couple of others. The rest may be just fine, I don’t know. I guess we can be comforted in the fact that there has probably never been a death certificate issued indicating the cause of death as being hair shampoo Anyway, I mixed up a batch of the home brew deodorant discussed on the aforementioned web page. This stuff is all natural. I will be able to tell if it is working if I don’t notice my friends attempting to stay upwind from me. If it doesn’t work, I’ll just eat it.