{"id":9138,"date":"2012-07-19T04:23:21","date_gmt":"2012-07-19T11:23:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wordpress-367309-1145696.cloudwaysapps.com\/?p=9138"},"modified":"2012-07-19T04:23:21","modified_gmt":"2012-07-19T11:23:21","slug":"cool-healthy-green-living-for-summer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/feelgoodstyle.com\/articles\/cool-healthy-green-living-for-summer\/","title":{"rendered":"Cool, Healthy & Green Living for Summer"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Not sure where you are, but it is HOT, HOT, HOT here in New Jersey! We are all about low-stress living this week, including lots of\u00a0cooling salads<\/a><\/strong><\/em>,\u00a0gazpacho<\/a>,<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0fresh berries<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>and<\/strong>\u00a0lavender lemonade<\/a><\/strong><\/em>.<\/p>\n

We are done celebrating independence day, but I’m still trying to celebrate my independence from toxic summer skincare. Green Diva Juliette did a wonderful post with some great ideas for natural and non-toxic ways to avoid damaging sun AND pesky insects! Here’s an excerpt from her post:<\/p>\n

Safe & Sunny<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Of course, the best way to block out the sun besides creams and lotions (that can put nasty chemicals onto our skin) is to stay in the shade or wear sun-protective clothing, like a hat or a shirt. But what most people don\u2019t know is that a regular cotton shirt only has a UPF (ultraviolet protection factor) of around 5. And, to boot, sun-protective clothing may not be the most stylish clothing for a Green Diva\u2019s wardrobe.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s why there\u2019s\u00a0Mott 50<\/a>, a fashion-forward apparel company whose garments all have a UPF of 50 and are all about being smart in the sun without sacrificing style. Their clothing line is endorsed by the\u00a0Skin Cancer Foundation<\/a>\u00a0and also meets the standards of the\u00a0IUVTL<\/a>\u00a0(International UV Testing Laboratory) and the\u00a0AATCC<\/a>\u00a0(American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists).<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re not on the market for a new wardrobe and prefer to stick to sunscreen, the\u00a0Environmental Working Group<\/a>\u00a0has a great, comprehensive list of the best sunscreens that are rated for their broad spectrum (UVA and UVB) protection and for their use of hazardous chemicals.<\/p>\n

a LOT more detail and links in\u00a0the full post . . .<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Repel Those Pests Naturally<\/strong><\/h2>\n

\"\"Many commercial insect repellents contain chemicals that can be toxic to humans when they are not washed off the skin\u00a0after a few hours or if they are by accidently ingested, such as the powerful repellent\u00a0DEET<\/a>. There are some more natural ways to ward off the mosquitos, wasps and other summer critters that don\u2019t require as many chemicals.<\/p>\n

Put your clothes on!<\/strong>\u00a0–\u00a0For starters, a great way to repel bugs from your skin is to wear clothing at dusk (when the bugs are out in full force!) that provides a lot of cover, like a long-sleeve shirt or pants.<\/p>\n

Citronella<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 Then there is always a good old citronella candle or citronella incense, which may not be the most effective insect repellents on the market but do mean no chemicals are applied to the skin.<\/p>\n

Make your own, Naturally!<\/strong>\u00a0If you\u2019re looking for a contact repellent for the skin, there are a few DIY recipes for natural, plant-based repellents that are non-toxic but do need to be used still in safe quantities. These recipes use what are called essential oils mixed with an alcohol or a \u2018carrier oil\u2019 to dilute the essential oils so they\u2019re safely applied to the skin.<\/p>\n

for GD Juliette’s easy\u00a0recipe for natural insect repellent<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

woman in woods image via\u00a0shutterstock<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We are done celebrating independence day, but I’m still trying to celebrate my independence from toxic summer skincare. Green Diva Juliette did a wonderful post with some great ideas for natural and non-toxic ways to avoid damaging sun AND pesky insects! More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":40,"featured_media":9139,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"apple_news_api_created_at":"","apple_news_api_id":"","apple_news_api_modified_at":"","apple_news_api_revision":"","apple_news_api_share_url":"","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_is_hidden":false,"apple_news_is_paid":false,"apple_news_is_preview":false,"apple_news_is_sponsored":false,"apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":"\"\"","apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false},"categories":[45,15,11,12,29,5505],"tags":[6588,37,6589,141,6590,6591,5185],"apple_news_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/feelgoodstyle.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/07\/Woman_Sun_Woods.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/feelgoodstyle.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9138"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/feelgoodstyle.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/feelgoodstyle.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/feelgoodstyle.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/40"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/feelgoodstyle.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9138"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/feelgoodstyle.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9138\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/feelgoodstyle.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9139"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/feelgoodstyle.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9138"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/feelgoodstyle.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9138"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/feelgoodstyle.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9138"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}