Welcome to Autumn! Time to harvest and prepare for a healthy winter.
Did you know there are safe and natural alternatives to cold and flu care?
Lavender essential oil is a natural alternative and useful against viruses.

According to the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), the common cold and flu are viral infections NOT requiring antibiotics. Take a look at their information on antibiotic use; see the link: Get Smart:  Know When Antibiotics Work. Also find out about six ways to use lavender essential oil for the flu and the common cold.

Get smart about antibiotics.

Antibiotics can cure bacterial infections, but not viral infections. The common cold and the flu are viral infections, so avoid using antibiotics if you have one of these. Using antibiotics when they are not needed causes some bacteria to become resistant to the antibiotic, and therefore stronger and harder to kill. See your doctor or nurse to find out if your illness is bacterial or viral.

• Get Smart: Know When Antibiotics Work
• http://www.cdc.gov/family/autumn/

Six powerful ways to use lavender during the cold and flu season

by Carolanne Wright 

(NaturalNews) Hidden beneath the pleasing scent of lavender is a fierce natural medicine and formidable protector. Used since antiquity, lavender was a significant guardian against some of the most deadly infectious diseases of all time - the great epidemics of plague sweeping across Europe throughout the Middle Ages and into the 17th century. The protective aspects of the plant were discovered when tannery workers who utilized the oil in manufacturing, and those who tended lavender fields, appeared to be immune to the disease. Unbeknownst at the time, lavender is an exceptional bactericide and also stimulates the production of white blood cells, thereby creating a robust defense against harmful invading pathogens.
http://www.naturalnews.com/z042405_lavender_cold_and_flu_season_essential_oils.html

Stages of Readiness for Change

There is some interesting research that shows that people who successfully change their behavior go through a series of five stages-and usually cycle through these stages three to four times. (The sixth stage, Termination is at the end of the cycles.)
It is important to recognize where you are in the cycle of change, so you can set appropriate goals and action steps. According to James O. Prochaska, the psychologist who identified the cycle, each stage requires different strategies or tools.
If you set goals that you are not ready for, you set yourself up for failure. Similarly, if you choose goals that you have already mastered, you will delay your progress. But if you match your goals to your stage of change, you will maximize your ability to change.

http://www.takingcharge.csh.umn.edu/activities/stages-readiness-change

Are you ready to change your comfort-ability? What stage of readiness to change are you today?

Do you know what's touching your skin?

Did you know?

Skin is one of the largest organs of the human body. Most people do not know about the risks to skin health related to the chemicals in clothing and skin care products. These risks are generally not life-threatening, but can affect well-being and put a strain on the health care system. The ability of skin to waterproof the body prevents rapid absorption of toxic liquids or unnecessary fluids and keeps the body from dehydrating.

Moisture must be present for the skin to absorb chemicals from your clothes. Do you sweat in your clothes? Do babies put clothing in their mouths?

Sherman, C. (2008 March 10). Organic consumers association. Do you know what toxic chemicals lurk in your clothing?. Retrieved from http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_10830.cfm

Did you know formaldehyde is used in clothing and textiles?

Ø      It is what gives a garment the convenience such as permanent press, no iron, and being water repellent. There is no legal requirement to list the chemical on the article label. Formaldehyde is a suspected human carcinogen and has been known to cause birth defects. 

      Dadd. D.L. (1997). Home safe home: Protecting yourself and your family from everyday toxics and harmful household products. New York, NY: Penquin Putnam Inc