Green Eco Services

Top 15-Homemade Shampoo Recipes

Welcome back!

Make Your Own Shampoo Video (9 minutes) 

I wrote about shampoo and the harmful ingredients to the environment. I think the average consumer has been ‘Hair Washed’ into thinking that their products are the absolute best- you and your hair will be healthier.  I wonder what happened to the day, when I used to condition my hair with mayonaisse and avocados? How did I get sucked into thinking that more expensive is better? If you look at all these products they proudly announce ‘Now With Baking Soda’. When did we get away from using baking soda as a primary cleanser?

Reality Check: 

• Healthy Humans have existed millions of years without expensive hair care products.

Are we as consumers so insecure as to not believe what we know what works and believe ad’s instead? 

Our excuses- We don’t have the time or energy to use. How much time, energy and money is spent putting a little baking soda and water together? 

The Green Savings Effect: 

• Making your own shampoo will save you money 
• Making your own shampoo will reduce toxins in the environment 
• Making your own shampoo will eliminate needless packaging going into landfills
• Making your own shampoo will save enormous amounts of energy in the manufacturing and shipping process. 

Homemade Shampoo Recipes 

#1) Soap Flakes, Water and Oil 

• 1 empty bottle
• 3 cups of soap flakes (which you can get almost anywhere)
• Water
• Essential Oil of Lavender
• Essential Oil of Rosemary 

Directions:  Mix the soap flakes with the water and then add 4 drops of each oil.

#2) Baking Soda and water 

• 1 tablespoon of baking soda mixed well with one cup of warm water 

#3) White Vinegar and Water 

• White vinegar, use 9 parts water & 1 part vinegar. Put it in a squeeze bottle & keep it in the shower, after washing just squeeze some all over my scalp & squeeze the excess liquid out & towel dry as usual. It is a really great way to help multiple problems.

#4) Baking Soda and Avocado 

•  Avocado, and some baking soda. Mash them together with a little bit of water to make a paste. Rinse your hair with warm water first, then apply the paste and rinse it out with cold water. Unbelievable soft hair!

#5) Tea, Soap Flakes, Glycerin 

• 4 bags chamomile tea, 4 tblsp pure soap flakes, 1-1/2 tblsp glycerin
• boil tea in 1-1/2 cup water, let cool then add other stuff shampoo as usual

#6.) Baking Soda and Vinegar 

• Make a paste with baking soda and water, massage this into my scalp and rinse well. next spray a solution of one part cider vinegar to four parts water on to the ends of hair and again rinse well. cleans and detangles. 

#7 Hibiscus Shampoo

• Take a bunch or hibiscus leaves and crush with a little water..keep crushing till you  soon notice the shuddiness. Apply the mixture to hair directly or strain through a strainer to get the bits and peices of leaves out. Add a few drops of your favorite food grade essential oil, I love peppermint! Tip: Make when your about to wash your hair because it doesn’t keep well.

#8) Egg and Lemon 

• In a blender, combine 1-ounce olive oil, 1 egg, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, and ½ -teaspoon apple cider vinegar. Use as regular shampoo. Always place leftovers in a labeled glass container and refrigerate. Use within 4 days

#9) Baking Soda, Water, Lemon Juice 

• Wash hair with a very dilute baking soda and water mixture, then rinse with even more diluted lemon juice

#10) Egg Shampoo

• For dry hair, whisk one egg yolk and slowly add 150 ml warm water when whisking. Massage through your hair and leave for several minutes, then rinse and pat dry.
• For oily hair, whisk one egg white while slowing adding 150 ml warm water to it. Massage through your hair and leave for several minutes, then rinse and pat dry.

#11) Homemade Egg Shampoo

• 1 organic egg, 1 teaspoon organic coconut oil, 1 teaspoon lemon juice, 1 tablespoon castile soap, 1/2 cup water or herbal tea, Drop of fragrant essential oil of your choice (optional)
• Combine all in blender and whip until smooth. Shampoo with mixture using warm, not hot water for the shampoo and rinse. Store any remaining shampoo in the refrigerator for use the next day.
• Take the yolks of two organic eggs, add the juice of two lemons, mix, and use instead of shampoo.

#12) Herbal Homemade Shampoo

• 1/4 cup of your favourite herbal tea, strongly brewed, 8 oz liquid castile soap
• Add soap to tea. Stir over low heat until well blended. Store in a capped bottle.

#13) Dry Shampoo

• Take orris root, ground rosemary or arrowroot or a combination of any of them. Dry thoroughly in the oven, grind to a powder and brush though hair. The powder should take both grease and dirt with it.

#14) Chamomile Shampoo

• Make a cup of hot chamomile tea by pouring boiling water over a dessertspoon of dried flowers and leaving it to steep for five minutes. Drain the tea off the flowers, add a teaspoon of grated soap (castille or vegetable soap) and an optional teaspoon of borax. Mix well. Use the whole cupful to wash your hair. Chamomile tea is a brightening rinse for fair hair.

#15) Castile Shampoo

• 3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh rosemary  + lavender + 1 cup distilled water + 3/4 cup castile liquid soap or 20 drops lavender essential oil + 10 drops rosemary essential oil + 3/4 cup liquid Castile soap.
• For the herbal option, simmer the herbs and water in a covered pan for 30 minutes. Stand overnight, if possible. Strain, pour back into the pan and simmer, covered, until reduced to 1/4 cup. Strain through coffee filter paper, add to the castile soap, mix and then bottle.
• For the essential oil option, add the essential oils to the Castile soap and mix well. Up-end the bottle a couple of times before use.

Reviews and More Recipes 

Review from A The View From My Boots- she embarks on a Baking Soda and Vinegar Mix

Dissolve about 1 tablespoon of baking soda in just enough water to make a paste. Apply this to your roots only; work it in and let it sit for a minute.

In order to stimulate blood flow, clean your pores and get off built up grime, use your finger tips to scrub your scalp. Start by making a circle on the top of your head in the area you’d wear a crown. Focus on the back of this circle to begin with. Next, fill in the circle. This is where your part will be; grease here affects the way your hair looks. Trace while still scrubbing with your fingertips around the bottom edge of the circle. Keep making scrubbing circles underneath each one, drawing lines in circles around your head.

Lastly, scrub the back of your skull and your temples/sideburns. This will result in less grease and more growth. After doing this, your scalp will feel alive. Many women swear their hair grows faster after a visit to the salon — it does, and this massage method is why.

When scrubbing, you’re actually rubbing your fingers back and forth in short movements. Be gentle; you don’t want to break your hair. Next, pour about 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar into a cup and add water. (I keep two plastic 12-ounce cups in my shower and just mix when I get in.) After you rinse the baking soda out, pour the apple cider vinegar over the ends of your hair, let it sit for a minute and then rinse it out. That’s all there is to it!

Editor’s note: This Natural Living Des Moines Blog notes the following: “If you’re thinking about trying this method, be forewarned! Most people experience a week or two of “icky hair” while their scalp struggles to adjust to the new routine. I did not experience this transition time, but many do. If you can outlast this period, though, you’ll be rewarded with beautiful, all natural hair and scalp!”)

Review on Homemade Shampoo by Lifeless Plastic

Clutter Cut- Recipes and Reviews on Homemade Shampoos and Toothpaste 

Pioneer Thinking: Offers Tons of Homemade Shampoo Recipes

Thrifty Fun- More Recipes

EHow- 

Pet Peeves- Dog Doo!

My Front Yard

The other day, my handyman and I were loading and setting up a countertop to be painted. He stepped on the grass and WHEW!!! Since he can’t smell- he could have tracked this in my brand new floor! I was pissed! not at him, but at rude, inconsiderate people. Then- I went to our ‘Landscape Director’ and found out, he actually walks the whole complex and picks up Dog Doo for everybody! How rude is that!!!!!

The other thing that pisses me off, I know you all see it, people out walking their dogs and no bags! Then worse yet, once they see you watching, they pull out the bag and pretend to pick it up or they pick it up and leave it there! I know of 3 dog owners that do that. One has a small dog, she probably thinks, small dog, small mess!

See above photo- these are the signs I made for our complex- made with recycled materials (cardboard and hangers) Kids play in the green areas- people walk in the green areas- they should not be subject to having to wipe their shoes off!

I just Gotta Tell Ya

• Dog waste is estimated to cause between 20-30 % of stream pollution.
• An estimated 1.25 million lbs of dog waste in Whistler
• The U.S. produces 10 million tons of pet waste annually, with about 6,500 tons of pet waste coming from the very pet-friendly city of San franciso
• Recent study in San Francisco determined that pet waste makes up 3.8% of residential landfills.

So Is Dog Do Bad for the Environment?

• Dog Doo contain bacteria that is harmful to all animals- contains the same bacteria that human have.
• Bacteria from Dog Doo finds its way into the rivers and lakes and can cause cholera or dysentery.
• Bacteria from Dog Doo grows in water and reduces amount of oxygen for fish
• Not good to use in garden- can leach into vegetables and make you sick
• Runoff containing dog waste also causes bacteria levels to rise in waterways and can make beaches unsafe for swimming.

Some Common Diseases:

Roundworm

Giardia

Campylobacter

Leptospira

Tapeworm

Cryptosporidium

E. Coli

Fecal Coliforms

The Most Ecological Thing you Can Do

1.) Flush it down your Toilet – no waste, no plastic bags- how great is that – Your community sewage treatment or septic system can treat it

2.) If not Seal the Waste in a plastic bag and throw it in the garbage. Use Biodegradable pet bags

Order Bio Bag Dog from Amazon

3.) Bury small quantities in your yard (away from veggies) where it can decompose slowly. Dig a hole 1 foot deep. Put 3-4 inches of waste at the bottom. Cover the waste with at least 8 inches of soil. Bury the waste in several different locations in your yard.

Don’t Want to do that: Hire a Pooper Scooper

• Pooper Trooper –

Poop B Gone- picks up after your dog
Scoopy Doo - Waste Removal Services
Doo Care 

Toxins in Food- A Pesticide Guide

After some researching on Pesticides, and blogging about Farmers Markets, which are really the best foods to get? Which Products use the least and most Pesticides. Came across this guide rom Food News which tells you. Click on the link for more information 

Pretty interesting- Gives a pretty good case of growing your own and controlling your daily intake of toxins. 

The Full List: 43 Fruits & Veggies

Note: We ranked a total of 43 different fruits and vegetables but grapes are listed twice because we looked at both domestic and imported samples.

Update From Green Dimes

Just Received this and thought I would pass it on. 

Green Dimes: 

The New Site Makes It Even Easier to Stop Junk Mail

We listened to your feedback and upgraded our site a few weeks ago to make it even easier for you to stop your junk mail. It’s got a simpler catalog interface, a new section for action items– and did you notice the fresh lemony scent? Thanks to all who have written in with kudos and suggestions since the new page went live; keep those emails coming. If you haven’t logged in lately, check it out, and let us know what you think.

Gift Certificates are Coming Back SoonSome of you have been asking what happened to our GreenDimes gift certificates since we redesigned the site. Well, good news – they’re coming back; we are just making some improvements to the process. We will have them for sale on the site again in about a month, just in time for your holiday shopping. If you were thinking Soap-on-a-Rope and Chia Pet again this year, think GreenDimes instead and delight your friends, family and employees with a gift in their stockings they will really appreciate!

Did You Know… “Select Catalogs” goes beyond catalogsSome of you philanthropists out there tell us that your past generosity drives a ton of junk mail into your mailbox. If you’re drowning in mail from charitable organizations that somehow got your name, you can add these and other senders to your GreenDimes account. Just click “Select Catalogs” and enter the name of the organization. Yes, even if it’s not a catalog. If they’re in our database, we’ll help you get off their list.

Teachers and Scout Leaders: Take the Catalog Canceling ChallengeGreenDimes member and fourth-grade teacher Ted Wells of Jamaica Plain, MA is doing a lot more than adding catalogs to his GreenDimes account to eliminate junk mail – he’s working with kids all over the country in a grassroots campaign called the Catalog Canceling Challenge. His efforts have even been featured on the Today Show. Help kids go green and check out the Catalog Canceling Challenge at www.CatalogCancelingChallenge.com. And if you’re in, let us help you make it a reality – the GreenDimes team can support you in taking the challenge.

GreenDimes is in the NewsThe word is getting out about GreenDimes. You may have seen us mentioned recently in Newsweek:http://www.newsweek.com/id/161231.

We were on KTLA-TV’s morning news in Los Angeles, too. And people all over the country are enjoying the benefits of a junk-free mailbox. Like Michele L. from Middletown, MD, who wrote last week:

Thank you GreenDimes for eliminating the junk that comes to the mailbox. You have cut our mail load by almost 95%!

How about your friends and family? Tell a friend today, and help us spread the word. Just forward this email.

As always, if we can help, just let us know at customerservice@greendimes.com.

Optical WebBlog and Business

What’s in Your Shampoo?

Green and Healthy Mouths- Toothpaste

Getting Your Bang For the Environmental Buck

I Just Gotta Tell Ya 

• 1 Billion Tubes of Toothpaste in Landfills 
• Average Family uses 1 Tube per week 
• Over 300 people in Panama died in early 2007 due to toothpaste tainted by substance called diethylene glycol. It’s a chemical used in anti-freeze

Ingredients in Toothpaste 

• Triclosan  registered pesticide, used  as an antibacterial and antifungal agent and can destroy fragile aquatic ecosystems.
• Sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) 
• Detergents
• Binding agents 
• Humectants
• Artificial flavoring
• Artificial colors
• Preservatives such as Methylparaben and Ethylparaben-parabens: This family of preservatives (which includes methyl-, ethyl-, propyl- and butyl-parabens) can affect the endocrine system which produces the body’s hormones
• Pyrophosphate
• Potassium nitrate Potassium nitrate is also an aquatic environmental nasty, parabens can disrupt the hormones in animals 
• Lauryl sarcosinate  foaming and cleansing agent found in most soaps, shampoos and toothpastes. Serious allegations of SLS’s adverse health affects abound, though reputable sources such as the American Cancer Society have challenged the accusations
• Polyethylene glycol 
• Polypropylene glycol 
• Sodium saccharin/aspartame0Sweeteners such as sodium saccharin are added for taste. Other flavors are usually strong essential oils in the mint family.
• Fluoride, while required in toothpastes endorsed by the American Dental Association, does pose some health issues, namely enamel fluorosis, which can affect children age eight and younger. Enamel fluorosis is an excess mineral deposit of fluoride on developing enamel.

Recommended Toothpastes: – order from Amazon

Burt’s Bees makes fluoride-free Cinna Mint and Lavender Mint toothpastes 

Herbal Choice Body offers peppermint, fennel, cinnamon and clove in fluoride-free varieties (

Toms of Maine (store locator on website)

• If your city/county does not recycle the tubes, you can send them back to Toms (Quote from a blog)  ” In order to recycle our toothpaste tubes, you must first remove the plastic cap and the plastic threaded covering on the neck of the tube. The tubes can then be tossed in with your aluminum cans for recycling. In case you’re wondering, any toothpaste left in the tube and the food-grade plastic liner does not affect the tube’s recyclability. When the aluminum is processed, any residual toothpaste as well as the food-grade liner melts away without contaminating the recycled product. If your town does not accept our tubes, please feel free to save up a bunch and send them to us at Tom’s of Maine, Consumer Dialogue Team, 302 Lafayette Center, Kennebunk, ME 04043. We would be happy to recycle them for you.

Organic Clay Toothpaste $7.75 available on line 

• Ingredients_ Aqua, organic hammamelis virginiana water, kaolin, glycerin, xanthan gum, mentha piperita oil, decyl glucoside, sodium benzoate, potassium sorbate, benzyl alcohol, glucose.

Kiss My Face – ($5.99 )available on line 

• Kiss My Face Whitening Toothpaste uses soothing Certified Organic Aloe Vera combined with a powerful blend of carefully selected natural whiteners to create a truly exceptional toothpaste that still leaves your mouth feeling tingly fresh. Contains Certified Organic Aloe Vera, Silica (natural whitener), Icelandic Moss (natural whitener), Peppermint (natural flavor), Horse Chestnut (for healthy gums), Tea Tree Oil (cleansing and antiseptic), and Menthol (natural flavor).

Jason Natural (available on line )

Peelu Order through Amazon – $3.74

• Incorporates the fibers of the arak tree, the bark and twigs of which have been traditionally used in Saudi Arabia to clean teeth. Available in peppermint, spearmint and cinnamon ( 

The Natural Dentist 

Resources

The Green Guide 

Greener Choices 

Reuse: 

Trashion Article 

Green and Healthy Mouths- Toothbrushes

Just the Facts: 

• 50 Million Pounds of Toothbrushes end up in Landfills 
• An average American uses 3 toothbrushes a year 

Toothbrush Trivia: 

• 3000 B.C. ancient Egyptians constructed crude toothbrushes from twigs and leaves to clean their teeth. 
• Excavation have shown toothbrushes made with bird feathers, animal bones and porcupine quills 
• The first ‘modern’ Toothbrush is believed invented in China (1400’s) which used stiff hairs from a boar attached to a bamboo stick.
• The first mass produced toothbrush was by N.H. Wadsworth in 1857  and mass produced in 1885

Getting More Life out of your Toothbrush

• Use for Dirty Cleaning Cleaning- great for around sinks, window casements, bike chains. drainers, garlic presses, jars, coils, spot clean clothes, faucets, window screens, around hard to get areas in your car, spot clean carpet, shower doors, tile, can openers, jar threads, cheese graters,  
• Use in the Garden (marker for bulb placement) 
• Use as a bottle Cleaner 
• Use to Clean your Combs and Brushes 
• Melt the plastic and make a bracelet
• Keep outside to scape off your shoes before coming inside 
• Clean your jewerly (use toothpaste for a real sparkle
• Use as an Eyebrow Brush 
• Use as Fingernail Cleaner 
• Clean the keyboard on your computer. 
• Use to paint

Fun and Games with Toothbrushes- Go to Dr. Peterson’s website- lots of info 

Recommended Recycled Toothbrushes - order through Amazon

Radius Source: replaceable head toothbrush- keep recycled plastic handle forever- Price- $5.21 )93% recycled materials. 

Recycline- Toothbrushes made from recycled yogurt cups (partnership with Stoneyfield Farm). They offer a great program- you can send your #5 plastics back to them (free) and they will recycle them! Available at Target and other retailers. – Also order through Amazon 

Cebra Online; (Germany) offers Fair Trade Wooden Toothbrush with natural bristles. ($6.94 for toothbrush holder and 4 toothbrushes) 

Gaim Preserve Toothbrush: Available on line 6 pack $26.00 100% recyclable 

Smile Brite- just released a new toothbrush with a replaceable head – Order through Amazon 

Green and Healthy Mouths- Dental Floss

It is amazing how many of those dental picks with floss are laying out on the street. I use them my self, but swore I would never buy them again- after picking up 100’s of them in the street. But after reading about how bad dental floss is for the environment and the problems it causes- I might have to go back to lying to my dentist again about how much I floss! 

I Just Gotta Tell Ya 

• 3 million miles of dental floss sold to Americans every year. 
• Only 24% of Americans use dental Floss 

Floss Trivia

• Invented by American dentist, Levi Spear Parmly, who was born in Braintree, Vermont, on August 29, 1790.
• Silk continued as the desired material for floss until the introduction of nylon in the 1940
• Native Americans used yucca-leaf fibres to make dental floss, 

Why is it Bad? 

• Most dental floss is made from nylon or Teflon and the thread is coated with waxes to ease your path to healthy gums. This super-strong thread won’t degrade so it shouldn’t be flushed down your toilet. It can contribute to a blockage in the pipe between the sewer and your home. 
• Floss (most notably Crest Glide) is made from polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE),[3] an ingredient that also provides the coating in non-stick cookware. The uproar over Teflon is well known as is concern over a chemical used in Teflon’s manufacture, called perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA).
• Floss picks cut down on the actual amount of floss needed, using only one inch instead of 18 per use, but the handles for floss picks are also made from petroleum-based plastics of various types. This means before the manufacturing process even starts, raw petroleum must be shipped from the Middle East to refineries, then from refineries to manufacturers. Whether by air or sea or land, shipping that kind of distance means serious pollution. 
• Plastic packaging usually is a Code #5 for plastic recycling- although many do not come with a code written on them. 

What’s the Answer?

• Use Less
• Use Recycleable or biodegradable
• Reuse the floss 

Why You Should Use Natural Dental Floss 

• Ingredients found in nature are used to coat the floss, not eco-unfriendly chemicals including synthetic wax which may be petroleum-derived.
• It’s free of harmful chemicals such as polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) whose manufacture pollutes our air and water.
• Makers of natural dental floss often follow green business practices, such as using recycled packaging and harnessing renewable energy sources like wind power.

Where to Buy – All Can be Ordered Through Amazon 

Eco Dent – Have 2 types of Floss – Gentle and Vegan- Eco Friendly Packaging. Order online or available through Natural products stores. Or order it online from Amazon - 

Radius Source- spun with natural beeswax sold online through Amazon 

Dentek   Natural Floss Pick, the first sustainable, 100% biodegradable/recyclable floss pick on the market. The handle is made of a resin made of starches from sustainable, renewable resources like tapioca, potatoes, and wheat grown right here in America’s Midwest. This bioresin is just as durable as petroleum-based plastic, but will decompose in less than 180 days in commercial composting facilities. As a result, DenTek Natural Floss Picks are the only floss picks on the market that meet the required biodegradability standards to receive the Biodegradable Products Institute seal of approval.

Dessert Essences- he Desert Essence floss is naturally waxed (no animal ingredients). The floss is saturated with 100 percent pure Australian tea tree oil which has antiseptic properties.

Bryton Reusable Floss 

Resources 

American Heritage 

Top 10- Toothpaste Recipes – Make it Yourself

I grew up on baking soda toothpaste- How we all as consumers got away from that is really the story of dentist pushing products and us believing the hype from manufacturers. They would like us to believe the only dental care we need is expensive, flavored, flouride, whitened, non- biodegradable, throwaway, toxin loaded toothpaste. 

You don’t need to do that. The advantage of Greening your mouth, you could save money and the environment at the same time. Use products you currently have, less energy is spent, less toxins and packaging in landfills (zero waste) 

I have copied and pasted some stories and recipes for your convenience- 

The prime ingredient is Baking Soda- Just go right to your kitchen- and pull out that baking soda. Advantages- less abrasive, meaning less tooth wear, keeping your teeth healthier longer. Studies are indicating that baking soda can break down particles that are able to penetrate enamel and remove food particles and deep stains. 

Top 10 Recipes for Making Your Own Toothpaste or Powder 

1.) Use 2 Tablespoons of baking soda and 1 TBSP of peroxide. Wet brush and start brushing 

2.) Mix 3 parts baking soda (the cleanser and sweetener) with part salt (the abrasive) and funnel the compound into a short small-mouthed container such as a pop or beer bottle. You’ll find that the creation has a satisfying, different taste and leaves your mouth feeling very fresh and soothed. If you’d like, add a few drops of peppermint or wintergreen oil to the concoction – or mix the home “brew” half-and-half with a commercial tooth powder – to give the dentifrice a more pleasant flavor.

3.) To each half cup of homemade powder (above), add 3 teaspoons of glycerin, 10-20 drops of flavoring (peppermint, wintergreen, anise, cinnamon or whatever) and 1 drop of food coloring. Mix the ingredients thoroughly in a bowl and add just enough water to make the concoction “tooth-pastey”. Spoon the substance into a small refillable plastic squeeze bottle or any container that dispenses easily and won’t leak.

4.) (From Dr. Paul Keyes) Add glycerin to baking soda to form a pasty mixture that can be applied to a toothbrush with a spoon or other instrument. 

• Put a capful of hydrogen peroxide in a tumbler.
• Moisten bristles of toothbrush (mulitufted) by dipping in peroxide
• Rub moistened bristles over cake of unscented Neutrogena soap  
• Cover bristles with soda-glycerin mixture.
• While watching in a mirror brush cheek-sides and tongue-sides of teeth
• Redip brush in peroxide as needed
• Work mixture between teeth with a flat toothpick or Butler stimulator

#5.) Equal parts Real Salt (Redmond Utah) and baking soda made into a paste using 3% Food Grade Hydrogen Peroxide. 

#6.) 2 tbsp baking soda -1/2 tsp salt (sea salt, available in bulk at health food stores)-1 tsp vodka 2 drops each: Oregano oil, wintergreen, peppermint

#7)” I bought a wide mouth jar at the store, added one cup baking soda and one cup salt, then shook.  I wet my brush, shake off the excess water, dip it in the mixture, and brush for two minutes.  Then I swish a few tablespoons of hydrogen peroxide around in my mouth, gargle, and spit.  I rinse with water a few times, making sure to gargle.  Follow this with dental floss. I’ve eliminated bleeding, tender gums using this for a year now.  The interesting thing is using the hydrogen peroxide.  It sometimes foams like mad and sometimes doesn’t foam.  I figure it’s the variation in germ amounts in my mouth!  Probably keeps me from getting colds and sore throats, too.”

Glycerin  Glycerin has an antibacterial potential, which is not well recognized. When living bacterial dental plaque is examined with a phase contrast microscope, all of the motile microorganisms (spirochetes, amoebae, motile rods, tricohmonads, etc) can be seen actively moving about. If a drop of glycerin is add to the solution in which the bacterial are living, all motility instantly ceases. In the scientific literature some of the antibacterial properties of glycerin have been described.  

Hydrogen peroxide.  When hydrogen peroxide comes into contact with dentobacterial plaques, it breaks down very rapidly into oxygen and water.  This breakdown, which causes the foaming action, is caused by an enzyme (catalase).  This foaming action does two things: It helps to disorganize and disperse the bacterial biofilms growing on tooth surfaces, and it reveals places where bacteria are located.  When used as an ingredient in dentifrices, it has little, if any, bactericidal action. It breaks down too rapidly. 

Vinegar  Vinegar is another product that has been used for dental hygiene for many years. A half strength solution of vinegar (apple cider for taste) will pickle all of the motile bacteria mentioned above, and it will help to dissolve deposits of calculus.  For persons whose dental hygiene does not reduce the buildup of bacterial plaques adequately, some of this buildup may harden into calculus.  Brushing several time a week with a vinegar solution can help to prevent calculus formation. 

Cranberry juice Unsweetened cranberry juice can be used as mouthwash and as a solution for brushing one’s teeth.  It will kill all motile bacteria on contact and help to disintegrate plaques.  Since it is somewhat acidic, probably it should not be used more then a few times a week.  It is pleasant to use and can be swallowed. This juice can be used as a rinse and then swallowed.  Brushing the teeth with cranberry juice leaves the teeth and mouth feeling very fresh and clean.  After brushing one can rinse again and expectorate or swallow the juice.  For the care of handicapped persons who cannot manage conventional oral hygiene measures, this could be a pleasant solution for caregivers to use.  It is tasty and can be swallowed.  

Should You Pay For Garbage?

Should you pay extra to get rid of your trash? User pay is based on the idea that what gets measured, gets managed. It has been found that when we measure what we use or discard, whether water, energy or waste, and have to pay for it directly, we choose to reduce use and cut waste.The more you throw away, the more you pay.

I Just Gotta Tell Ya

• In the U.S., 4.39 pounds of trash per day and up to 56 tons of trash per year are created by the average person.
• Only about one-tenth of all solid garbage in the United States gets recycled.
• Almost 1/3 of the waste generated the U.S. is packaging.
• America is home to 5% of the world’s population, yet it consumes 1/3 of the Earth’s timber and paper; making paper the largest part of the waste stream at 37.5% of the total waste stream

When I read the article in Parade Magazine about Pay As You Throw, I was elated. Currently I pay $17.00 per month for weekly pickup, recycle and landscape debris. Quite honestly, I get rather peeved, because I am the only one who doesn’t have to put out the Trash every Monday. (Recycle Bin, yes)

Why I was elated? It just seems to me, that with all the info about reuse, recycle and reduce, nobody, as least nobody in my neighborhood is doing anything. Trash cans are still over- filled, people still throw away perfectly good stuff while I would probably only use 1 trash can filled in a year.

See -we haven’t really made the connection about our consumption and the huge amount of trash we produce. We go to the stores, don’t look at the amount of packaging, buy stuff on impulse, throw away billions of pounds of disposable goods, never thinking about waste, landfills, our taxpayer dollars, toxic substances, energy and pollution.

Why should I as a conscientious consumer pay for those who waste? Why should I increasingly cut back, recycle everything, compost- pay for those who frankly don’t give a S%*&^! Why should I pay for my neighbors 3x week pizza deliveries? Disposable Diapers? Boogie Boards? Golf Clubs? Ironing Boards? (yes, these are all in my neighbors trash) Garbage Disposal should be the same as our water and utility bill. Pay As You Throw (PAYT) is the way to go. Make the cost of garbage disposal visible and make it depend on how much garbage you actually put at the end of the driveway on Sunday evening. In other words, make the user pay the real costs. We have no incentive to cut back on producing the stuff since the effort doesn’t save us a dime.

Many People do not realize the full cost of trash. They know they have to have pickup- which may or not be in their taxes. They take it as their right and a necessary evil.

Pros and Cons of Pay As You Throw:

Cons:

• Drop in Trash would result in Roadside Dumping: Reality- Roadside Dumping is already there! Studies have shown that there might be an initial increase but will drop off
• Poor Not able to Afford: Is that a valid arguement? We already help them with subsidies in other areas.
• Not fair to large Families: No one objects to user pay groceries. No one objects to user pay utilities. No one objects to user pay toys and other luxuries. No one objects to user pay water. And please, if they can’t afford large families, then don’t have them.

Pros:

• Open Garbage to Free Market- Business could find new markets with recycling plans and technologies.
• Recycling and Reducing can reduce the waste in landfills by up to 17%
• In the long term, with less trash, business will start to think of trash as a valuable commodity, (raw material) to be sold- THEY MIGHT EVEN PAY YOU TO PICK UP YOUR TRASH
• PAYT helps slow the buildup of greenhouse gases in the Earth’s atmosphere which leads to global climate change.
• It’s fair to consumers
• You could save Money- not only in your Waste Bill, but in overall taxes
• Many Business opportunities available (see below)

Results:

• The municipality of Georgina, north of Toronto, brought in buck a bag garbage in 1997 and immediately cut the average number of household trash bags left at curbside each week from 1.8 to .76 per family 40 per cent lower than in neighbouring towns. Garbage went down because recycling went up: Recyclable materials collected shot up 42 per cent. Garbage output was also cut with easy steps like buying things that minimize trash and putting organic waste into backyard composting. The roses are surely redder in Georgina.

Urban Mining – Successful Garbage Collectors

lchemy Goods - Eli Reich is the founder of this Seattle business where old bicycle innertubes are stitched together into messenger bags. He made his first bike inner tube bag after his messenger bag was stolen. The mechanical engineer soon received requests for his sturdy innertube bag and launched Alchemy Goods. Now he has a few employees and a whole line of products made out of old innertubes, seatbelts, and outdoor ad banners.

TerraCycle - story of Tom Szaky and Jon Beyer. Two young men built a multi-million dollar company out of garbage through a lot of hard work and crazy experiments with barf inducing worms and solid waste. Their main product is a plant food made out of earthworm poop packaged in used soda bottles collected by kids all over North America. Their website still lists their main product as “worm poop fertilizer” and states that “TerraCycle Plant Food is the first mass-produced consumer product to have a negative environmental footprint”.

Energy from garbage - Turning garbage into energy is not a new concept. Hundreds of garbage dumps across the country already capture the natural methane gas generated by the mountainous piles of solid waste. The City of San Francisco actually has a program that collects dog poop and turns it into energy through a anaerobic digester. Some cities sell the methane gas they produce from their garbage to energy companies and some others use the energy to power buildings, and many private companies are getting in on the garbage energy business. One company named Solena Group actually plans to build a plant in Gilroy, California to produce jet fuel from garbage . Plasma Process turning garbage into energy.

Nine Dragons Paper -  Zhang Yin, Queen of Trash from China is probably richer than every other woman in the world. She has a personal wealth of more than $1.5 billion and she got it all through recycling and manufacturing paper. She moved to America from Hong Kong in the 1990s and she remembered that China does not have many trees for manufacturing paper. So she scoured the garbage dumps of America with her husband and exported all of the paper she could get to China. Eventually her company Nine Dragons Paper made deals with American scrap yards and shipped huge amounts of paper back to China. Her company went public in 2006 and it is still growing because China has a insatiable demand for paper products.

Junk On- Junk off-  The story of a man, who hit bottom and has made a business in other peoples’ trash

Communities with PAYT