ChowBaby

when i posted my new year resolutions, stacie commented that she wanted me to ditch the pull-up bar and research water filters that remove (among other things) flouride. well, i didn't ditch the pull-up bar (in fact, i'm going to get it today!)—but i did look into some water filters. and, man, is it confusing. so i'm going to try to keep it simple. and here's what i found.
 
first, a little background. as per my new year resolutions blog post, there are lots of reasons why bottled water is really bad for the environment. we all know more and more about about why BPA plastics are bad for our bodies. and stacie already blogged about why many experts think flouride is bad for our kids.

here's where i'm at now. i have one of those poland spring home-delivery water dispensers in my kitchen. the big 5 gallon version. we go through 7 jugs a month at a cost of $53.55 per month. and we do our best to use our klean kanteen bottle (the whole family has them in different sizes) in lieu of buying disposables when we're on the go. starbucks will fill them with everything with water (for free) to tea and coffee (although that isn't the focus of this post). this solution addresses the issue of flouride, but still has less-than-stellar environmental and BPA consequences. so i'm ready for something better.

turns out, there are tons of pitcher, faucet-mount, counter-top, under-the-sink, and whole-house filters that remove various contaminants from silt to heavy metals to pesticides. the quality counter-top and under-the-sink ones seem to run in the $100-$200 range. and it seems that only the reverse-osmosis products also remove flouride. the counter-top versions can be installed in 5 minutes with no plumbing experience. the under-the-counter versions require some plumbing expertise. but not too much—ie, i can do it but i'm not sure about stacie (wink).
 
now let's do the math. because in this economic climate, the bottom line matters more than ever. sure, i try to make the best environmental choices at every turn. but if i can't afford the best environmental option today—even though i know it is the most valuable option for our kids, families, and earth long-term—well, then it just isn't an option. an initial filter investment of about $150 would equal 3 months of my current poland spring delivery. and since the average replacement filter costs about $55 dollars and should be changed every 6 months, i'd need to buy 2 filters this year for a total of about $100. that means that less than 6 months of poland spring equals 12 months of filtered water in the first year. and next year, i only have to buy the filters—at a cost equal to 2 months of poland spring delivery. so now i can save money AND do the best thing for the environment. woohoo!
 
so which should you buy? i wish i tell you, but i haven't even decide which i'm going to buy yet. luckily, there are lots of brands out there. PUR, Brita, Kenmore, Whirlpool, Clear2O.... the list goes on and on. you might want to check out the green guide for tons of great info on the various contaminants in water, product reviews, and the environmental impact. i'm leaning toward this Crystal Quest stainless steel water filter from Pure Water Essentials. mostly because i live in a rental apartment so don't feel like taking the time to do any real plumbing work. plus, i like the way it looks.
 
bottoms up!
 
—m

a quick friday post about getting local fruits and veggies.

this Michelle Slatalla article in the NY Times was published this summer. but i missed it. if you did, too, it's a great resource for finding local veggies online. well, at least if you live in CA, WA, TX, IL, OR or NY.

the sites that she (and, now, i) list are delivery services that bring organic, local fruits and veggies to your door. as a brooklynite, i'm used to getting groceries delivered from fresh direct. it's not without complication... or guilt. the scheduling. the extra packaging. and the extra gas and food miles that home delivery adds to the equation. but i'll stand by my decision to get groceries home delivered for as long as it enables more home cooked meals and better eating (fresh direct has a good organic selection from which we do most of our shopping).

if services like these empower families to eat better and support their local farms, then i'm all for it. and maybe, if they haven't already, these services will get creative about lessening the impact of individual home delivery so that, at the very least, the upside of creating a support system for local farmers balances the downside.

eat your veggies. have a great weekend.

-S

dr. alan greene, one of our favorite go-to experts and a dallas pediatrician, just finished a 3-year experiment with an "n" of "1" (he used himself as the study population)—where he ate only organic foods for 3 whole years. his goal? to see how feasible it was, to examine the challenges, and to see if there were tangible health benefits. he reports that it was far easier to eat organic at home than out. that he had to reduce the amount of meat he ate because organic meat costs so much. and that after 3 years, he gets sick much less frequently. 

we try to eat all organic in our family too. and i'm especially committed to feeding my son organic, even more than myself or my husband, for the reasons we talk about all the time:

but it isn't always easy to do. and, especially in this economy, financially daunting for many of us. but it's important to keep in mind that value of organic isn't just about the the price of an organic product. it's about the long-term cost of NOT eating organic. about how it affects our kids' health, the planet's health, and the health of generations to come.

if you really find yourself forced to choose organic vs non-organic, whether because of availability or cost concerns, most experts agree that certain foods should always be organic. we blogged a list of top-10 foods in the past that you can check it out here.

and then read about Dr. Greene's experiment yourself  here.

m

okay. so i live in an apartment. in brooklyn. on the third floor. so i doubt a root cellar is in my near future. but the sound of fresh tomatoes at thanksgiving and onions harvested in fall lasting until spring—all off the grid—sounds amazing. check out the full article with resources here: New York Times

-m