Happy Earth Day!

Whether you're afraid of the oceans rising in the next century, think climate change is a hoax, or just want clean air for your kids, I think that it's hard to deny that humans must use resources wisely in a time of population growth and increasing quality of life. For me, Earth Day is about realizing the need for humans to work in synergy with our home.  Resources are not unlimited and there is clear evidence of man-made pollution and adverse health effects in urban areas. Our current way of life, especially in the United States, is not sustainable.

Sustainability is my theme for 2014, and I think I'm doing pretty well. I'm eating mostly plant-based, taking public transportation when I can, and trying to make the case for nuclear energy's role in sustainable development. Read my post today on #Atoms4Earth. You can design your life to take only what you need instead of abusing resources. Earth Day is about celebrating our life on Earth and educating ourselves on how to preserve our only home.

How are you celebrating Earth Day?

Carbon footprint of meat

I don't usually promote the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) because I am pro-nuclear energy but they posted an interesting fact sheet on the carbon footprint of our favorite foods. This research is actually from an article in Scientific American that shows that diet can be more important than cars in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and thus combating global warming.


The carbon footprint of food includes all of the fossil fuels that that went into producing the fertilizer, pumping irrigation water for the crop to grow, emissions from converting forest land to grazing land, transportation of feed and packaged products to consumers, and even methane released from the animals’ digestion and manure. Therefore, meat has a high carbon footprint because you have to grow the crops to feeds the animals and then also have land for the animals, and all of the transportation in between.

The NRDC estimates that if all Americans eliminated just one quarter-pound serving of beef per week, the reduction in global warming gas emissions would be equivalent to taking four to six million cars off the road. The single-most green/sustainable thing that you can do as an individual is simply eat less meat. You will reduce greenhouse gas emissions more so than you would than taking public transit or driving a hybrid car. And you don't even have to be close to vegan or mostly plant-based, like me. Try doing Meatless Mondays or reducing your portion size of meat and adding vegetables. Your health will benefit, as well.

Would knowing the carbon footprint of your food impact your eating habits?

How do you try to be more sustainable in your daily life?

My New Year's Theme: Sustainability

I know a lot of you are making New Year's Resolutions right now, probably centered around improving your health and fitness. But there's something you can do to improve yourself, your community, and the world for future generations. Be more sustainable.

This Huffington Post article suggests having a "theme" for the new year that you add to your daily life, instead of resolving to do something concrete. My theme for this year is sustainability. I chose this as I was thinking a lot about sustainability writing a post for the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week blogging contest. Vote for my post to win here!!

I am already pretty sustainable in my daily life. I work from home, own a hybrid car, take public transportation when I can, recycle, and eat mostly vegan. In addition, my career involves advocating for clean energy. But there's still more I can do. I live in an old house, so I should insulate the windows better and maybe not keep the thermostat at 75 in the winter. Although I use re-usable bags for the grocery store, I don't always remember them and I still use a lot of little plastic baggies. I can invest in more quality glass food storage. I also still often take my car for short trips in Chicago because it's easier and warmer, so I'm thinking about buying a bike. Being more sustainable can often involve a large initial investment but it pays off in the end. An energy efficient washing machine or hybrid car will cost more upfront but save you in electricity and gas costs in the future. Sustainable transportation like walking or biking will help with your health goals, as well. The same is for eating less meat.

Did you know that eating less animal products is the single, most effective thing you can do as an individual to be green? Anywhere from 30% to 50% or more of greenhouse gas emissions are caused by animal agriculture around the world. According to the United Nations, raising animals for food is “one of the top two or three most significant contributors to the most serious environmental problems, at every scale from local to global.” You can impact the environment in a positive way by eating less meat more than you can by driving a hybrid car or recycling. And you don't have to be 100% vegan, I'm not. The typical American eats animal products in every single meal. You can make a big difference just by not eating meat for a day each week, like Meatless Mondays. Learn more about combating climate change with eating less meat here.

What are your New Years Resolutions/Themes for 2014?

Read my health and fitness recap for 2013!

Mason Jar Reorganization 2.0

Back in August I bought some mason jars to reorganize my kitchen cupboard (read my post). I buy a lot of dry goods from the bulk section at the grocery store and used to store them in sacks before I purchased a dozen quart mason jars on Amazon. Putting my dry goods in the mason jars definitely made the cupboard much more organized and allowed me to see when I was running low on something.

Well, with Karyn's Raw Detox this month, I've had to buy a bunch of extra supplements and haven't had much room for them in my cupboard. I have a very small kitchen in my 750 sq. ft. apartment with not a lot of storage space. So I browsed Pinterest for ideas and decided to put up some shelves in my kitchen to store the mason jars.

I really like the clean look of the stainless steel shelves and how they match the tops of the mason jars and the other kitchen appliances. The shelves are a perfect fit for the panel in the kitchen (pictured below)! Here's what I used for the project:

• Two 12-packs of 1-quart Ball mason jars - $22 per dozen on Amazon (I only used 15 jars on the shelves and the rest are used for taking liquids to work and storing other things)
• Three 23-5/8" Limhamn stainless steel shelves from IKEA, $14.99 each (needed 3 screws for each shelf - not provided in the package)

The total cost for this project was approximately $90, not bad for some extra kitchen storage! Plus, you're left with extra mason jars for miscellaneous uses. I seriously do use them daily for storing liquids like juices and soups, and especially for bringing food to work. Their traditional use is for canning, but the glass material and secure top make them really versatile. 

How do you keep your kitchen organized?

What's your favorite use for a mason jar?

Reasons to go organic

I keep going back and forth between buying organic fruits and vegetables, mainly because of the cost. Many of the natural foods that I buy are already organic but its easy to not buy organic fruits and veggies because they are so much more expensive than their pesticide-covered counterparts. We've all heard the rumors of pesticides being linked to cancer and such but what are the actual reasons that you should buy organic food? Here's a summary of a list from Organic Gardening:

1. Genetically altered crops like soy and corn use so much weedkiller that researchers are finding it in rain, the air, and streams. The chemical glyphosate is in the weedkiller and linked to potentially irreversible metabolic damage, infertility, obesity, learning disabilities, and birth defects.

2. Hormone-disrupting phthalates, common fragrance chemicals used in soaps and shampoos, are winding up inside produce. The potential source is human sewage sludge that is applied as a fertilizer to farm fields.

3. Some chemicals in pesticides tamper with our body’s natural weight-loss chemistry thus increasing the risk of becoming overweight and obese.

4.  Pesticides are also linked to diabetes. Though obesity and genetics remain the two biggest risk factors for the disease, certain pesticides may interfere with the way our bodies produce the blood-sugar-regulating hormone insulin.

5.  Pesticides could interfering with your vitamin D levels. Vitamin D wards off cancer, diabetes, infections, heart disease, and broken bones and boosts your immune system.

6. Factory farming has become so filthy that farmers not only inject low levels of antibiotics into animals, breeding antibiotic resistance in humans, but they’ve also had to resort to other questionable techniques to prevent e. coli and other bacteria from getting into the food supply.

7. Thanks to an increased reliance on pesticides and machinery, farms have been able to grow in size while cutting back on labor. Organic farms create more jobs, which is good for the community but also one of the reasons that organic food is more expensive.

It is a fact that genetically-engineered crops paired with pesticides have drastically increased the yield of farms, especially in the U.S. But, is this system sustainable? Are pesticides leading to more problems, like increased risk of disease? I think that this ongoing debate is very important and until the government tackles this, then you have to make your own personal choice. You may be paying more for organic food now, but you could also save on health care costs in the future.

My personal debate about buying organic fruits and vegetables is ongoing but I'm thinking about switching over 100% until I can grow my own produce (hopefully I'll have a backyard one day). Going back to reason #3 above, some chemicals in pesticides lead to excess estrogen in your body which leads to excess fat in your midsection. I have actually noticed that I have less fat in this area during phases of eating organic produce. So if you already have a healthy diet and exercise regularly, eating organic can be that last step to reach your health goals. What do you think?

Reasons to Eat Vegetarian

When I tell people that I don't eat meat, they think I'm crazy (especially in the Midwest). Being vegetarian/vegan is gaining popularity in the U.S. and around the world for many other reasons than just wanting to "save animals." In fact, saving animals is not even in one of my top reasons for being vegetarian.

1. Meat is gross! I may be an anomaly in America but I actually don't like the taste of meat. Not only that, but when you're eating meat, you are eating the rotting carcass of an animal. Meat is often contaminated with feces, blood, and other bodily fluids, all of which make animal products the top source of food poisoning in the United States.

2. Save the planet! The amount of meat that Americans (and other developed countries) eat is completely unsustainable. The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization reported that the meat industry is "one of the most significant contributors to today's most serious environmental problems." Not eating meat or just eating less meat is the single most effective thing you can do to reduce your climate change impact. More so than reducing your electricity and fossil fuel usage! All of the food that is grown to feed livestock could be feeding humans directly. One day, meat production will become so unsustainable that it will be extremely expensive, so you'll have to be a vegetarian unless you're rich.

3. Be healthy and have more energy! Vegetarians and vegans tend to be much healthier than meat-eaters. This is mainly because they pay attention to what they eat and eat many more fresh vegetables. Trying to lose weight? Substitute your meat with vegetables and beans and see what happens. Eating more vegetables and less meat will also reduce your risk of developing countless diseases. A very common myth is that vegetarians do not get enough protein. Actually, plants, beans, nuts, and seeds have protein! Read this post if you don't believe me: Do Vegans Get Enough Protein?

4. Save money! Vegetables are cheaper than meat. When I first stopped eating meat, I made the mistake of buying too many "meat substitutes," like veggie burgers, that tend to be expensive. I know try to make everything from scratch, which is not only cheaper, but also healthier.


You don't have to completely give up meat if you don't want to. I'm not perfect either, I eat fish and seafood occasionally. But, eating meat for both lunch and dinner everyday is completely unnecessary for your nutritional needs. Start with eating a vegetarian salad once a week and see how you feel...you might like it!