Did you know that your income will tend to be the average of the incomes of the ten people you hang out with the most? It’s true. Just check it out for yourself and see.
Your attitude will tend to follow the same pattern.
The people you spend your time with are your team. They’re your support system –- whether they’re supplying support for the highest and best in you and your life ... or otherwise.
List the ten people you’re most involved with and them rate them on a scale of 0-10, with ten being someone who is a total cheerleader, always encouraging and edifying you and expressing faith in you. 0 is the opposite: a “dreamstealer” who always finds fault, finds the reasons why you can’t do what you want and why “it won’t work.” A “downer.”
Some
plastics are safer to eat and drink from than others. Here's a quick
guide to help you make informed choices. If you want to dig deeper,
take a look at the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy's Smart Plastics Guide (PDF).
It's
worth avoiding the following plastics when you can. You can identify a
plastic by looking at the recycling code number that appears inside a
triangle at the bottom of many containers.
Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) can leach phthalates,
known male reproductive toxicants. It can be identified by code 3. One
way to avoid it in the kitchen is by choosing plastic wrap made from
polyethylene rather than PVC. If a box is not labeled, find a brand
that is or call the manufacturer.
Polystyrene is used in Styrofoam products. It may leach styrene (a neurotoxin) when it comes into contact with hot, acidic, or fatty foods. It's marked with recycling code 6.
Polycarbonate can leach bisphenol-A
(BPA), an endocrine disruptor associated with a long list of health
concerns. Baby bottles, "sippy" cups, 5-gallon water jugs, and reusable
beverage bottles are typically made out of this plastic. Products may
be marked with recycling code 7 (also includes any plastic that doesn't
fit into the 1 to 6 recycling code categories) and/or the letters
"PC."
In response to the widespread concerns about BPA, baby bottles
and other items made from alternative materials are springing up.
Experts say stainless steel is your best bet for reusable water bottles
right now. ThinkSport and Klean Kanteen are two widely available brands.
The following plastics are considered safest for food storage. Glass and stainless steel are also good options.
Don't
microwave food plastic containers. Chemicals are more likely to leach
out when plastic is heated. "Microwaveable plastic" doesn't guarantee
that chemicals won't leach. Cover foods in the microwave with wax paper
or a plate. If you do use plastic wrap, then make sure it doesn't
touch the food.
Avoid putting hot foods in plastic containers. Let leftovers cool off before storing them in plastic.
Take
good care of plastics by not washing them with harsh chemicals, and
dispose of scratched and worn containers. Research has shown that older,
scratched items will leach more, says Kathleen Schuler at the Institute for Agricultural and Trade Policy. (Don't put them in the dishwasher if you want to be completely risk-averse, she suggests.)
Environmental journalist Lori Bongiorno shares green-living tips and product reviews with Yahoo! Green's users. Send Lori a question or suggestion for potential use in a future column. Her book, Green Greener Greenest: A Practical Guide to Making Eco-smart Choices a Part of Your Life is available on Yahoo! Shopping.
Ever since Fukushima I have
wondered about the possibility of radioactive food eventually appearing or even
growing the US due to fallout. How will know when it happens? Who will tell us?
This brings up the logical question - Can I use a Geiger counter to test food?
For practicable purposes the answer is no.
There is no Geiger counter out there that can reliably test for radiation in food. It is not a question of accuracy.
The
problem is that it only takes a very low amount of radioactive
contamination to be dangerous if consumed. The radioactivity of the food
will almost always be masked by the normal background radiation (which
is usually of a non harmful type).
Example: If
containment is .02 uSv/h and the background radiation is .09 uSv/h, the
Geiger will detect contamination but you will not see a spike in
readings (which will continue to show .09 uSv/h). It would be like
looking for a drop of water in a pond.
The exception of
course would be if the food was extremely radioactive. If your
background environment for example, varies between .09 uSv/h and .14
uSv/h and the food sample consistently spikes it to .20 uSv/h, you know
you have something you better get rid of fast.
The only
way to reliably distinguish between low contamination and the normal
background radiation is in a lab, where food is placed into a container
that isolates it from any background interference. That is the only way.
Next
comes the question of how much food. A single piece of food most likely
will not give you an accurate reading if any at all. You will need a
lot of food. This is because it is very possible that the radiation
leaves the sample in such a direction as to miss the tube in your
device. The bigger the sample, the better the chance of the device
picking it up.
This principle is best explained in the video below. It clearly demonstrates why you cannot accurately measure food.:
Testing food with a Geiger counter overview
Finally
you must remember that a Geiger counter only recordes radiation. It
does not tell you what type. Take a banana for example. Bananas
naturally give off radiation within a small range of 0.10 uSv/h. Yet
bananas however or not harmful at all because they give off potassium –
40, which your body eliminates once it reaches a certain level.
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