Tag: yuka

Sunscreen

Yesterday, my husband and daughter went to an outdoor event during the heat of the day. A conversation about sunscreen popped up, and so I pulled out my Yuka app to check our choices.

Here’s the first choice:

Here’s the second choice. After seeing the score, I threw it in the trash! And that’s a shame because it was pricey.

Here’s the third choice. Winner winner chicken dinner!

CLL brings with it a higher than average risk of skin cancer, so I did the research a while back (that is, I stood in Target and scanned all the choices with Yuka). Native had the best ratings that I could find.

For the record, hats and shirts are my preferred “sunscreen.”

Deep Dive on Endocrine Disruption

I wanted to share this article sent to me by Yuka, an app I use on my phone to help understand all the chemicals we find on labels and make safer choices.

I’m hearing others say the name “Yuka” more and more, and that makes me really happy. I’m so glad folks are using this valuable tool to defend themselves against all the dangers in the grocery aisles.

(Wow, what did I just write??? This place that should be so safe… we need an app to safely shop. Yes, that IS where we‘re at.)

https://yuka.io/en/endocrine-disruptors-health/

I love that they included the alligators of Lake Apopka, Florida. I grew up in Florida and remember this happening. The young male alligators were trying to mate with the other males, and the females were left out of the action… and the population declined. 🐊

Not making a political statement! But, the  endocrine system controls hormones. And hormones control sexual development.

Bread

When I first got diagnosed, my sweetheart of a husband started baking bread for me. Eventually, I found a brand that’s really good, has omega 3s, and gets a high score on Yuka.

There are a couple of varieties — seedtastic, graintastic, thin slices, thicker slices, etc.

I don’t eat a lot of bread, but when I do, it’s this brand.

100 out of 100 … that’s a rare thing. Thanks, Aldi!

If you are thinking of baking your own bread, I recommend One Mighty Mill flour. Expensive but really pure. Here’s their information:

https://www.onemightymill.com/

Morning Routine

I recently spoke with an old friend who had heard of my diagnosis through the grapevine. He asked if I was doing all the things… all the things a person does when they get a diagnosis like this. Yes, I replied.

But what are the things? Well, there’s a lot of ’em, so I’m breaking them down by the phase of a typical day.

Here’s Part 1: Morning Routine.

I’ve wavered in consistency lately in terms of my morning routine. Months of extra-snowy and cold winter, plus traveling & staying with family are just a couple of the reasons why. There’s also “couch inertia,” aka “warm blanket in front of the fire,” inertia.

Yeah, its a thing.

It’s just a little snow… no biggie.

Here’s the morning routine I strive for (and often achieve):

  • Wake up between 6 and 7 am. I don’t use an alarm but seem to always wake up around this time.
  • Put on my dumb watch, which counts my steps and tells the time, but isn’t constantly sending updates to my phone.
  • Open the blinds & get a blast of natural light into the bedroom.
  • Brew some organic coffee, which I drink black.
  • Use filtered water, of course.
  • I add about a tablespoon of chaga to my coffee. Chaga is a mushroom product that has some really great health benefits.
  • A quick walk outside, usually my backyard. Put bare feet on the earth. This is called grounding, and there’s a wonderful documentary on YouTube called The Earthing Movie… check it out.
  • While I’m outside, I like to break pine needles and smell them. I feel that it wakes up a different part of my brain. In the summer, we have other aromatics like rosemary, basil, and lemon balm to choose from. But in winter, it’s pine.
  • Set my circadian rhythm by looking at the sun. We have mostly hazy sun here, and if you live in a very sunny place, this would be impossible. Still, our stomachs set their expectations based on this morning exposure to the sun. Read about it in the book The Oldest Cure in the World by Steve Hendricks.
  • I started doing this morning activation routine with Master Shi Heng Yi, and it was a great starting point. However, over time, I’ve added reps and hand weights and a few more exercises to make it a more challenging routine.
  • A shower with only yuka-approved soap, shampoo, and conditioner.
  • While showering, I do a lymphatic massage. This is based on lots of reading and videos by lymphatic specialists. A great resource is the Lymph Love Club, which you can follow on social media for lots of reminders and techniques. (Note: CLL is not only considered leukemia but also a form of Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma, so taking care of that system is important for me, especially to balance out my sedentary work.)
  • A cold blast at the end of the shower, based on the research of Wim Hof.
  • Out of the shower, I get dressed, walk the dog, and do chores — or hit the rebounder — with a goal of getting 2500 steps before settling down to my desk at 8:45 am.

Ok, that’s it for the wake-up routine. Tune in next time… 📻

Salad Dressing

For 99% of my life, I’ve used either the Good Seasons spice packet or the Aldi knock-off to make my dressing with red wine vinegar, high quality olive oil, and a little bit of water.

The spice packets are both delicious and easy to mix in the Good Seasons bottle (you know what I’m talking about).

Recently, though, I scanned the Aldi and Good Seasons packet with the Yuka app. Both scored 18 out of 100… yuck!

Both of the additives flagged “may be associated with” development of breast cancer.

It’s just a spice packet, though. How hard could it be to make it from scratch?

I decided to make my own. I used a big jar and mixed up a bunch, so it’s ready whenever I need it.

Copycat Salad Dressing Spice Mix

  • 1 tablespoon garlic powder
  • 1 tablespoon onion powder
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 2 tablespoons oregano
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon basil
  • 0.25 teaspoon ground thyme
  • 1 tablespoon parsley
  • 0.25 teaspoon celery salt
  • 2 tablespoons salt (use less if you want)

Put it all in a jar.

When you want to make the dressing, mix:

  • 1 tablespoon of the spice mix above
  • 1/2 cup of olive oil
  • 1/4 cup vinegar
  • 3 tablespoons water

Bon appetit!

Update: Great article from the Environmental  Working Group:

https://www.ewg.org/news-insights/news/2022/09/turn-over-new-leaf-ditch-your-salads-harmful-chemicals-healthier

The Mighty Mighty Bar Code

An election is right around the corner, but you know, voting is really an everyday thing.

Every day in this country, we vote with our dollars as we shop and purchase items.

The restaurant with crummy food gets voted out of office. The restaurant with great food and service grows and expands.

Every item at the store is competing for shelf space. So when it’s little barcode or UPC symbol gets beeped at the checkout, the stocking software is updated. New orders are electronically placed. It’s like magic.

Help me vote for healthy foods and products. Thank you!

Yuka App

I found this free app that really helps when shopping and searching for healthy products, not just foods but soaps, lotions, etc. It’s called Yuka.

You open the app, scan a product bar code, and up pops a little report on the product. If it gets a bad score, the app suggests a “cleaner” product, which is often in the same shelf area.

Let’s check out this Pantene shampoo…

Ok so… probably not going to buy that again. But Native looks great!

You can click the little “i” icon for information about each flagged ingredient.

Here’s another scan of a product I really thought was “clean” but wasn’t.

I love this app, as it makes shopping easier. Download it and give it a try.

Use it to clean out your pantry and bathroom cabinet first. Out with the old toxic stuff, in with the new!

Here’s a few of my favorite new products that I found using the Yuka app: