What Can I Use Now That Clairol Loving Care is Discontinued? UseClairol Beautiful Collection!

Clairol Beautiful Collection hair color

THE BAD NEWS:

Clairol Loving Care hair color has been DISCONTINUED. (I've been noticing that I can't find it on the local drugstore shelves anymore, or even K-mart! )  Clairol Loving Care was a gentle, almost non-toxic hair color that I've been using now for about a  year (see my article Clairol Loving Care).  It has NO ammonia and NO peroxide and NO PPD (the chemical p-phenylenediamine).

However, it does contains AZO dyes (which are chemical compounds that have a hydrogen molecule replaced with an  amino acid.  For a more technical description see Aromatic Amino Compounds).  Note: Peolple can still be allergic to AZO dyes (especially if you already had an allergic reaction to PPD) - so you should always do the allergy tests indicated on the product before using it. 

I can still buy Clairol Loving Care hair color from Amazon.com (my affiliate link) - but, I know that eventually it will disappear from there.

SO, WHAT PRODUCT CAN I USE NOW THAT IS SIMILAR TO CLAIROL LOVING CARE HAIR COLOR?  

Tea Tree Essential Oil to Kill Mold and Mildew

Well, seeing I did some research on using chlorine bleach (see my article Chlorine Bleach) I wanted to find out if there are safer all-natural alternatives  for killing mold.  One method I did find is using  Tea Tree essential oil.  Tea Tree oil reputedly kills all types of molds.  So I figured I would give it a try.

Tea Tree Oil to kill mold and mildew

tea tree oil

How to Use:

Safety Tips for using Chlorine Bleach Around the House and How to LimitExposure to Toxic Chlorine Byproducts

Chlorine bleach has a very bad reputation as hazardous to our health. I still use chlorine bleach around the house sometimes, so I wanted to sort out all the information out there and get the real scoop on the product. Is it bad to use around the house? How is it harmful? What safety measures or precautions do I need to take?

Does Chlorine Bleach Contain Dioxins?

• When the paper industry mixes cellulose fibers with chlorine bleach, dioxins are produced which are some of the most toxic cancer causing chemicals known.  This process also generates organochlorines which enter our bodies and behave like our hormones do - which stay in the body and cause cancers - see  Organochlorines at LeafLady.org .


• Dioxins are not created when using chlorine bleach around the house.

What Are the Precautions to Using Chlorine Bleach Around the House?

• Fumes: watch out for fumes - they can cause irritation and damage to the lungs. The fumes are also one way that organochlorines enter our body. So wear a face mask!


• Corrosive action: don't let it get on your skin - it has a corrosive power that is caustic to your skin and another way organochlorines enter our body.


• Watch out for combining it with any other cleaners - they can contain ammonia or vinegar.  A combination of chlorine with ammonia or chlorine with vinegar will cause a toxic gas to form - either gas is very bad to breathe and can damage the lungs!!

Are there Hidden Sources of Toxins from Chlorine Around the House?

Products that we purchase that have been bleached can be a danger to us as well. That is because bleached paper and cotton products that touch our skin can introduce dioxins and organochlorines into our body.

So it is best to avoid purchasing bleached products such as:

• paper plates


• toilet paper


• facial tissues


• paper towels


• tampons

Also, plastic marked recyclable with a "3" is made from PVC or polyvinylchloride - which can leak these organochlorines into whatever is contained in it.

What About Chlorinated Water that We Drink and Wash With?

Many people drink a public water supply that is chlorinated. The chlorine that is added transforms into another bad toxin called trihalomethanes or THM. THM's are bad for our health and have been linked to asthma, heart disease and some cancers. See more info at ecowe.blogspot.com "The Pros and Cons of Chlorine"

Water containing chlorine that is heated can release the toxins into the air.
So beware of:

• showering


• boiling water


• hot steam from the dishwasher

So, How do I Avoid Exposure to Toxins from Chlorine?

• buy paper products that have not been bleached


• buy a water filter for your drinking and cooking water (or a whole house water filteration system would be the ideal)


• or let water sit on your counter for 1/2 hour and the chlorine will dissapate (but it will dissapate into the air that we breathe)


• put a water filter on your shower head


• do not use plastics marked recycle #3 for eating or drinking or cooking in the microwave


• buy cleaning products that do not have chlorine in them (watch out for automatic dishwashing products, tile and counter cleaners, etc)

What do "I" Use Chlorine For?

I know about the dangers of chlorine, but it sure does help me around the house with some of my chores! Because we live in the southern USA, there is a lot of rain and heat and that produces mold and mildew.  One of the things that does seem to clean mold and mildew well is chlorine bleach! I have tried vinegar to remove mold but even after scrubbing profusely, it still will not be completely gone - and that allows it come back to full dirty bloom in a shorter amount of time than when I use chlorine bleach.

We use it to clean outdoors where mold grows like:

• the patio


• the roof


• the outdoor shower


• the hot tub cover

How to Use Chlorine Bleach

bleach, latex gloves, face mask

• wear latex gloves


• use a face mask - Otherwise, the mold and the bleach will make me feel sick and tired and give me headaches. And I don't want to breath it either.  Especially in a closed area - very bad for the lungs!!


• wear old clothes


• Apply the bleach to the areas that need cleaning


• Use a scrub brush to brush the area - this helps clean it faster. And it gets the chlorine into the small cracks - which will prevent it from coming back a little bit longer than if you did not scrub it.

For additional information, see Facts About Chlorine at Body Fueling.com

Alternatives to Bleach for Killing Mold

I did read that there are alternatives to using Chlorine bleach for killing mold.  One is using  Tea Tree Essential Oil.

Tea tree oil reputedly kills all types of molds.  So I figured I would give it a try. (See my article coming soon.)

Disclaimer: I do not provide medical advise or otherwise engage in the practice of medicine. The statements on this website have not been evaluated by the FDA. Consult your doctor before following anything you have read on this website.See my full medical disclaimer under Terms of Use.

How to Avoid Travelers Diarrhea with Probiotics

Disclaimer: I do not provide medical advise or otherwise engage in the practice of medicine. The statements on this website have not been evaluated by the FDA. Consult your doctor before following anything you have read on this website.See my full medical disclaimer under Terms of Use.

We like to travel to Mexico when we can (we go to Tulum - it's really beautiful there - inexpensive, great beaches, Mayan ruins, etc.) However, when traveling to Mexico and other countries, the CDC cautions you to NOT drink the water.

People may get travelers diarrhea because of 2 main reasons:

Why is Himalayan salt good for you?

Disclaimer: I do not provide medical advise or otherwise engage in the practice of medicine. The statements on this website have not been evaluated by the FDA. Consult your doctor before following anything you have read on this website. See my full medical disclaimer under Terms of Use.

Salt can be a problem for people with high blood pressure (or hypertension).  My husband has borderline high-blood pressure and has been advised by his doctor to NOT use salt. As for me, since I was a little girl, my family never used salt - I'm not sure why, but they never used ANY spices at all (that's a whole other story). So, we both normally don't add any extra salt to our food at the kitchen table. We DO add some to certain foods when we are preparing them - like bread and chicken soup.

So now, I just found out about  Himalayan crystal salt. It is supposed to be healthier for you than normal refined table salt.   People involved in natural health products say that  it has many trace minerals and elements that your body needs and is very easily assimilated.  Oh yeah, and it's PINK (due to containing iron and other minerals)!

Himalayan Sea Salt

Do We Really Need Salt?

Why is Coconut Oil Good For You and Its Uses

open coconut

Coconut oil is good for you.  It is more easily digested by the body than other vegetable oils.  It has good fatty acids and vitamins, like Vitamin E, Choline and Vitamin K (which is good for healthy bones and is a vitamin needed to make your blood clot - a good thing).

Why is Coconut oil good for you?

Coconut oil has medium chain fatty acids (MCFA’s).  These fatty acids are more water soluble and more easily digested by the body than the long chain fatty acids (LCFA’s) found in other vegetable oils.  This is because they don‘t require bile to break them down, enter the bloodstream quicker and go to the liver faster where they are used as an immediate source of energy.  Also, less MCFA’s are converted into fat than LCFA’s.



What is a Medium Chain Fatty Acid and a Medium Chain Triglyceride?

Fats in food are composed of fat molecules called fatty acids, which are grouped in a structure call a triglyceride which has 3 fatty acids linked with a glycerol carbon atom.

Triglycerides and fatty acids are both classified as saturated, monounsaturated or polyunsaturated. Plus they have a further classification on whether the fatty acid chain of carbon atoms are short, medium or long.

So there are short chain fatty acids (SCFA) and short chain triglycerides (SCT), medium chain fatty acids (MCFA) and medium chain triglycerides (MCT), and long chain fatty acids (LCFA) and long chain triglycerides (LCT).

How I Used Alternative Treatments to Cure My Urinary Tract Infection(UTI, Bladder Infection)

Disclaimer: I do not provide medical advise or otherwise engage in the practice of medicine.   The statements on this website have not been evaluated by the FDA.  Consult your doctor before following anything you have read on this website.

The first signs of a urinary tract infection (UTI) for me