We all have a responsibility to care for the Earth, and the environment which sustains us. While we need to take many “big” steps, we can also take small ones to both care for our planet and improve our own immediate environment. Here are three small changes you can make for a more eco-friendly lifestyle at home.

Shelter A House Plant.

Besides their aesthetic value, houseplants can be good for your overall health. They naturally purify the air by absorbing carbon dioxide and releasing oxygen into their immediate environment. Studies by NASA have found that houseplants can remove about 87 percent of harmful air toxins within a 24-hour cycle. Cleaner indoor air can improve your mood, and their beauty can help reduce stress, turning your home into your own personal oasis.

With such a large variety of houseplant species to choose from, it can be difficult to pick the right one. The key to choosing the perfect houseplant is to take into consideration the conditions and level of care it needs. The ing Ming Aralia plant is a great start for beginners. These plans can thrive in both indirect light and bright light and require minimal maintenance as they can go for days without water. Indigenous to the Pacific Islands, their beauty lies in the green upper sides, and purple undersides of their leaves.

Despite being a great air purifier, the Ming Aralia was traditionally hailed for its medicinal components, as early research showed it helped reduce inflammatory, fungal, and bacteria-related illness.

Consider Using CBD Products.

Cannabidiol is fast becoming a natural remedy to help in the treatment of common illnesses. Popularly referred to as CBD, it is one of the active ingredients (cannabinoids) found in the industrial hemp plant. Whilst THC is another well-known cannabinoid and has a psychoactive effect (meaning it gives the user a “high,”) CBD has no psychoactive effect, making it the preferred option for individuals seeking relief from their discomfort.

Some common CBD products include CBD oil, CBD supplements, CBD edibles, and CBD tinctures and topicals. Of these, CBD oil is the most commonly used. It is made from CBD that has been extracted from the cannabis plant, then diluted with hemp seed or coconut oil. The wellness industry is fast embracing it and has found CBD oil is commonly used to help those with insomnia, as well as reduce anxiety and depression in people with an over-active mind, and alleviate discomfort NOTE: I have rubbed CBD oil on my hands to help reduce joint pain related to arthritis).

NOTE: Never ingest anything intended for health or wellness reasons without speaking to a medical professional or doctor first!

Opt for Natural Insect Repellent.

Most people use insect repellent to prevent bug bites and the infections that they transmit. However, most consumers are not aware of the chemicals used to make insect repellents. DEET, for instance, is an active ingredient found in a majority of synthetic insect repellents. But some studies show that DEET has a toxic effect on the body’s central nervous system, with the added side effect of causing a skin rash.

Stop The Bites insect repellent is a natural repellent for ticks with none of these downsides. Hailed as having the same efficacy as synthetic tick repellents, when properly applied, it can repel ticks and mosquitos for a period of up to one week. It can be applied as a spray on shrub and vegetation, as well as on swing sets and the patio.

Instead of DEET, it consists of active ingredients like lemongrass oil, geraniol, castor oil, cedarwood oil, corn oil, and sodium lauryl sulfate, plus water, soap, oleic acid and 1-monolaurin, a byproduct of coconut fat.

NOTE: Take special care not to apply it on or near food and vegetables, or food-bearing plants. Apply late in the day or early evening and not directly on bees, butterflies and other pollinating insects. Keep children and pets off lawns that have been treated until the product dries.

About Sponsored Posts: Occasionally, we run posts sponsored by companies that offer some interesting options. The post doesn’t imply endorsement of a particular product.  

The post 3 Natural Products to Add to Your Eco-Friendly Lifestyle appeared first on Big Green Purse.

Why is the Green New Deal such a big deal? And what impact could it have on your life and the life and future of your family and community?

I’ve read the Deal from top to bottom and here’s what I’ve figured out:

What the Green New Deal aims to do is:

Eliminate the carbon emissions fueling climate change and
the resulting extreme weather events, economic disruption, and disease it causes.

…and 

Do it in the next 10 years.

But what, specifically, does the Green New Deal call for? Here’s a rundown of the Deal and what it means for us and our kids.

First, what actually IS it? The Green New Deal is a resolution, not a proposed law. It does not suggest specific legislation. Instead, it sets an exciting goal that calls for the US to reach “net zero” greenhouse gas emissions by 2029. In doing so, it acknowledges how current energy production affects every aspect of our lives, including employment, health, housing, and education.

Still need to know more about climate change? Don’t miss this post:

Top 10 Reasons to Take Climate Change Seriously!

Why Is It called a “New Deal”? The reference is to the New Deal President Franklin D. Roosevelt created in the 1930s to save the United States from the worst depression in its history. FDR’s New Deal not only put people back to work but established a host of federal agencies and programs to protect farmers, the unemployed, youth, and the elderly.

Several of those programs, including the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), and the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), as well as the Social Security System and the Securities and Exchange Commission, endure today and continue to benefit millions of Americans.

How would the Green New Deal benefit the environment? This past year, rampant forest fires and severe hurricanes destroyed millions of acres of forests. Climate change has made it possible for voracious pests like the pine bark beetle to extend their range northward, killing additional millions of acres of trees. Every year, oil spills pollute lakes, rivers and streams. Fracking for natural gas emits horrible air pollutants and contaminates the drinking water of hundreds of communities.

Phasing out the coal mining, fracking, and oil drilling whose emissions cause pollution and climate change would improve air and water quality. Reversing rising global temperatures could stop the spread of many pests and illnesses like Lyme disease, which have been on the rise as ticks extend their range into what were once cold climates.

How would the Green New Deal get us off dirty energy and onto cleaner energy sources? The Deal suggests a multi-step plan that begins with efficiency. It would upgrade all existing buildings to “achieve maximal energy efficiency, water efficiency, safety, affordability, comfort, and durability.”

New energy would be achieved by “Meeting 100 percent of the power demand in the United States through clean, renewable, and zero-emission energy sources”  like solar and wind. The GND also advocates investing in “clean, affordable, and accessible public transportation,” and expanding high-speed rail to reduce the need for polluting air travel. It would spur “massive growth in clean manufacturing” while “removing pollution and greenhouse gas emissions from manufacturing and industry as much as is technologically feasible.” Helping farmers and ranchers eliminate pollution and greenhouse gas emissions (i.e., the methane cows and pigs emit when they belch and fart) is on the list, too.

Would the Green New Deal benefit children’s health?  Yes! The Deal advocates an immediate transition away from burning the fossil fuels whose emissions are the primary source both of climate change and dirty air.

That would be good news for all kids, but especially for the millions who suffer from asthma and other respiratory illnesses. Less air pollution would also mean fewer “code red” or “code orange” air quality days, so kids could play outside more. In the long term, reducing the extreme weather events associated with climate change would protect children from threats associated with hurricanes, wildfires, and floods. It would also help stop the spread of infectious diseases, poison ivy, and the ticks that cause Lyme disease.

Who’s going to pay for it? The sponsors of the resolution, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Sen. Edward Markey (D-MA), view the Green New Deal as an investment, not an expenditure. “We will finance … the Green New Deal the same way we paid for the original New Deal, World War II, the bank bailouts, tax cuts for the rich, and decades of war–with public money appropriated by Congress.”

In all likelihood, individual programs would be paid for by some combination of re-allocated federal program budgets and private entrepreneurial investments, like those Elon Musk made to create the Tesla electric car and John Mackey made when he established the Whole Foods grocery chain.

Anything as ambitious and creative as the Green New Deal is bound to generate detractors and naysayers, and the Deal is no exception.

But with sixty-nine percent of Americans saying they are “somewhat worried” or “very worried” about climate change, according to a December survey by Yale University in Connecticut and George Mason University in Virginia, it would seem that a majority of Americans want government to do much more than they’re doing to rein in this catastrophe-in-the-making.

Of course, you don’t have to wait for Congress to act to do your own part to start saving energy and using  solar and wind.

Start by reading this post:

18 Smart Ways to Save Energy At Home

Then,

Check out the Sunrise Movement, a non-profit coalition that’s working to advance the Green New Deal across the country.

And stay tuned! I’ll have more specifics coming your way soon about how you can take advantage of the Green New Deal.

NOTE: A version of this post originally appeared on Moms Clean Air Force. Make sure you check them out!

The post 6 Reasons Why The Green New Deal Is Such a Big Deal appeared first on Big Green Purse.

As green and glorious as your yard may be, it could also be packed with hidden hazards for your pet. In fact, it could be packed with hazards precisely because it’s green and glorious, as hundreds of plants are potentially poisonous to dogs and cats.

We’ve teamed up with PetInsuranceU.com to bring you this list of outdoor plants that could make your cat or dog ill if they munch or brush up against them. We’ve also listed other hazards to keep out of reach of your pet. Many of those you wouldn’t want to be around yourself!

Plants

From azaleas and aloe to wisteria, the ASPCA lists more than 400 plants that are potentially toxic to dogs and cats. Poisonings from plants most frequently involve cats and indoor houseplants, but the plants listed below can also cause pets to vomit, suffer diarrhea, pant excessively, drool, and have difficulty swallowing (symptom will vary depending on the plant).

Andromedia Japonica, also known as Pieris or Pieris japonica
American Mandrake, also known as Mayapple
American Holly, also known as English Holly or Winterberry
Azaleas and Rhododendrons
Begonia
Black Walnut
Burning Bush
Scented Geranium
Vinca
Iris
Sweet Potato Vine
Wisteria

WHAT YOU CAN DO: Dogs usually don’t eat plants unless there’s something else on the plant that smells good to them, like feces, dead animals, or some kind of food that’s been tossed onto the plants rather than thrown away. Keep an eye on your dog when it’s in your yard, and keep a close watch when walking your dog so it doesn’t nibble on the vegetation along the way.

Cats might nibble on grass when they’re out if they’ve got an upset stomach or just need to clean their guts. The grass or vegetation will make them throw up.

The ASPCA maintains a 24-hour emergency animal poison hotline. The number is 1-888-426-4435.

Poisons

Insecticides, weed killers, plant food, soil additives and fertilizers can be hazardous to pets, especially if they contain iron, feather meal, blood meal or bone meal.

Dogs are particularly at risk since the meal can be rather tasty, but ingesting large amounts can consolidate in the stomach, block the gastrointestinal tract, and lead to pancreatitis.

Iron can be toxic, too, as can even small amounts of a substance found in plant-care products known as organophosphates.

WHAT YOU CAN DO: Garden organically without the use of toxic chemicals. Keep all soil amendments, fertilizers, and plant food on a shelf or in a cabinet so pets can’t get into them. When you apply plant food or any other amendments to your plants, keep your pets indoors and away from the treated yard.

Poison Ivy

This nasty plant deserves its own mention – not because it makes a pet sick, but because you can get poison ivy from your pet. The oils in the ivy leaves can get onto your pet’s fur, and you’d have no way of knowing. Then, you could pet your animal and voila! Poison ivy everywhere.

WHAT YOU CAN DO: Chop or dig out poison ivy as soon as you spot it in your yard. Make sure to wear gloves, long sleeves, pants, and boots. Dig the ivy out to the roots, and toss it in the trash (but bagged, so the trash people don’t touch it). Definitely do not put it in your compost pile.

Mulch

Mulch may contain cocoa bean shells or husks, by-products of chocolate production. The hulls may also contain caffeine and theobromine, the two poisons that make chocolate highly toxic to dogs and cats.

WHAT YOU CAN DO: Use shredded pine bark, shredded hardwood, or leaf mulch rather than cocoa bean shells or husks. Spread the word in your neighborhood so that your dog doesn’t accidentally come across cocoa bean mulch on a walk.

Compost

Compost contains decomposing matter, which can prompt the growth of molds that contain tremorgenic mycotoxins. If ingested, the toxins can rapidly make a pet sick, resulting in panting, drooling, tremors, seizures, vomiting and agitation.

WHAT YOU CAN DO: Most dogs love to roll around in mulch because they love the smell. Keep dogs away from mulch piles or freshly mulched garden beds until the smell dies down, which it will eventually.

Pests

Fleas can torment your pet with all their biting. Ticks (seen right, in dog fur) can spread Lyme disease to your animal.

Other yard pests can range from foxes to rattlesnakes to raccoons, and skunks to bats and rats.

WHAT YOU CAN DO: Apply chemical flea and tick prevention medication with utmost care, following all directions and ensuring the dose is designed for your specific animal and size. Keep on the lookout for animals like foxes and rats that might actually prey on your pet. Every spring a mother fox or two dens in our suburban neighborhood, and once she gives birth, she goes on the prowl for food. We all keep our cats and dogs under watch and definitely inside from dusk until dawn, when the foxes are most likely to be hunting.

Having a poison control number handy can be a helpful measure, as can knowing the number and location of an emergency vet. Since you never know when an emergency may arise – or how much treatment may cost – pet health insurance is another precautionary step for an additional layer of protection and peace of mind.

NOTE: Sponsors like PetInsuranceU.com enable us to bring you expert content at no cost to you. Our editorial opinions remain our own. Thanks!

SOURCES:
ASPCA
NOLA.com
Pet Poison Helpline
Humane Society Flea & Tick Care 

The post Do You Know Which Plants Can Poison Your Pet? appeared first on Big Green Purse.