Hand Sanitizers

I am not a big fan of hand sanitizers. I much prefer washing with non anti-bacterial soap.  But sometimes hand washing is simply not possible and those little bottles of sanitizer are a life saver.  Unfortunately, the alcohol, parabens and other assorted goodies present in most hand sanitizers cause me to wonder about the lesser of two evils.

I am currently packing two mini bottles of hand sanitizer, OE Sanitizing Spray and Clean Well.  They are rated at 1 and 2 (out of 10, with 10 being the most toxic) by Skin Deep.  For comparison, Purell sanitizers, the most common name brand, are rated between 5 and 7 on the same scale.

I was actually surprised when I checked Skin Deep in preparation for writing this post.  Even though the OE is all organic I guessed it would rank higher because it contains alcohol albeit in the form of organic ethanol.  Indeed the ethanol is ranked at 5 but combined with the other ingredients, the product comes out at a 1. 

Clean Well's active ingredient is Thyme oil – yes, as in the food source – which pulls a 1 rating.  I was jazzed to find this and figured, since thyme oil works on mold, it can darn well dispose of a little cold or flu virus.  And since I usually end up using this stuff on my son when he is about to eat, this is definitely my preference despite the marginally higher ranking.  Clean Well also appears to be slightly gentler ie less drying  although the EO contains lavender which is both fragrant and anti-bacterial.  

In short, both the EO and Clean Well smell nice and are not overly harsh. The EO is marginally more expensive for the 1 oz size.  

Whole Foods carries the EO and I've seen Clean Well at several health food stores including Ambrosia in Toronto and Eating Well Organically in Waterloo.

If It Looks Like A Duck…

Today I spoke with yet another person who has H1N1 but thinks its "just the regular flu". These folks haven't been to the doctor so haven't been told that there is no other flu around right now.  The denial interests me because I think it reflects the terror instilled in us by the media.  It's as if they can't imagine they have it because when you get it you are supposed to die.

Don’t be Sweet on Sugar

Most of our mother's told us the same thing:  "Sugar puts holes in your teeth".  Unfortunately sugar does more than invite the whirring of the dentist's drill.  It prevents our immune system from doing its job – a big deal, especially during flu season.

The way I understand it, when too much sugar enters the blood stream, it occupies the white blood cells so that they cannot fight bacteria properly. (I am not a chemist so by all means Google 'sugar and the immune system' for further details.)

As a hopeless sweet tooth myself, I did not greet this information warmly.  More distressing is the fact that it is not just the things we think of as 'sweets' that have this effect.  Right up there with candy, ice cream and cake are any processed carbohydrate made from refined ingredients (even organic ingredients if they are not whole grain). That's right, bread, pasta, baked chips (potato, rice or corn) and crackers.  These too break down into sugar and prevent our immune systems from functioning properly. 

(Please don't get me wrong.  I am not advocating a low carb diet.  Just a low processed carb diet.  There is a BIG difference. Veggies are carbs as are fruit, potatoes and healthful grains like brown rice and quinoa.)

Food allergies that go untreated have the same effect.  I've told you many times about our son's gluten free, cow dairy free, egg free diet.  Its a lot of work but the improvement in his immunity has been startling. 

If your child is educated anywhere other than in your home, you have seen the outbreak of H1N1 tear through the student population.  Every time I start wishing I didn't have to do all this preparing I remind myself of this success and march right back into the kitchen.

So yes, he's doing fine.  But then along comes flu season.  I want him to have every natural advantage available to him.  So without explaining this to him, I am trying to cut back on his sweet and processed carb intake by being strict about the one (low glycemic sweet per day).  This makes sense whether or not you choose to vaccinate because vaccines are not 100% effective.  Indeed, I've heard varying statistics about last year's flu shot but the highest efficacy rate I've read was 40%.  Not stellar. 

So you can label me a mean Mommy because I try to minimize my child's sugar intake.  I can handle that. I know that I do it out of love and to protect him. 

Wouldn't it be grand if children and those who care for them could learn to associate carrot sticks and hummus with love instead of a brownie????

H1N1 The Sequel

This virus really has people going.  Me included.

Lesley wrote in to send the same list of natural preventatives as was published here yesterday.  This time the list was attributed to Dr. Vinay Goyal who heads the Nuclear Medicine Department and Thyroid clinic at  Riddhivinayak Cardiac and
Critical Centre, Malad (W).

Howard wrote to inquire whether the list of natural preventions "is this any different from prevention of the common cold?"

My
guess is that it probably is not.  If everyone followed the list of
suggestions – and stayed home when they did get sick – there would be
probably be much less transference of common viruses as well as the
more exotic.

Speaking
of which, I spoke with a friend yesterday whose six-year-old daughter is
believed to have the H1N1 virus.  She has not had a blood test but the
Doctor told my friend there is no other flu out there right now and to
assume the child has swine flu. 

I
heard the news by email so immediately called my friend to ask how her
daughter is doing and what this experience has been like.  I was both
concerned and curious as this is the first person I have known
personally to experience the illness.

According
to her mother, the child first became ill on Sunday with a mild fever. 
She was fine on Monday so they sent her to school.  A rep from the
school called mid-afternoon on Monday asking them to pick up their
daughter who was experiencing stomach pains.  By the time they got her
home she had a fever of more than 39C.  Vomiting followed as did
periods of disorientation on Tuesday. 

By yesterday, Wednesday, the child was much, much better and had only a mild fever. 

The
Doctor told my friend that her child will be considered 'over' the
illness when her temperature has been normal for 24 hours straight.
This is a good general rule to follow and, based on their experience at
the flu's onset, waiting 24 hours after a fever starts, to make sure it
will not return, is probably a safe bet.

In
the mean time, here is another list of recommended ways to boost
immunity in the hope of either not getting the flu or having an easier
go of it if one does.  This list comes from Dr. Mercola:

Take care of your health to reduce or eliminate your risk of contracting the flu.
The key is to keep your immune system strong by following these guidelines:

• Eliminate sugar
  and processed foods from your diet. Sugar consumption has an immediate, debilitating
  effect on your immune system.
• Take a high quality source of animal-based
  omega 3 fats like Krill Oil.
• Exercise. Your immune
  system needs good circulation in order to perform at its best for you.
• 
  Optimize your vitamin D levels. Vitamin D deficiency is the likely cause of
  seasonal flu viruses. Getting an optimal level of vitamin D will help you fight
  infections of all kinds.
• Get plenty of good
  quality sleep.
• 
  Deal with stress effectively. If you feel overwhelmed by stress, your body will
  not have the reserves it needs to fight infection.
• Wash your hands.
  But not with an antibacterial soap. Use a pure, chemical-free soap.

H1N1

MSN is reporting two deaths – a pre-teen and a teen – here in Ontario over the last week.  Scary. 

To vaccinate or not to vaccinate? 

On one hand the vaccine has been rushed into production.  On the same hand, we hear about the damage done by the last Swine Flu vaccine. 

On the other hand, children – who would normally take a week off school with the annual seasonal flu – are dying from this new strain.

Conclusion?  Both my hands are scared.