Eye Opener: Online Learning Activities

Air Quality Crossword Puzzle

I think this was a really fun activity. 

Answers:

Down:

1. Air Quality Index

2. Air Toxics

3. Mobile

Across:

4. Asthma 

5. Carbon Monoxide

6. EPA

Childhood Obesity Quiz:

I Read all the articles and I recived 100% on this quiz

Uncovering the Facts about Cancer

1. First visit the WebMD webpage related to cancer and find 3 facts about cancer that interest you or that you never knew. 

2. Next, visit the American Cancer Society Cancer causes webpage and read about the different known causes of cancer. Be able to list 3. 

-Sun, Tobacco, and diet.

3. Once you feel you know what the causes/ risk factors are for cancer, go to this webpage from Preventcancer.org and read about things you can do to reduce your risk for cancer. 

4. Report 3 common causes of cancer and describe 3 of the ways you think you could best protect YOURSELF against cancer. If you already meet all the criteria, discuss changes you think are the most helpful in general. 

I can stop smoking, wear sun screen and eat a healthy diet. 

I learned a lot about cancer and what to do to fight it. 

Health Insurance for All

I watched a cartoon explaining how insurance works. I was really interesting and I learned in simple terms how the insurance company can come out on top. 

Emergency Contraception 101

After reading 10 Common Myths, Misunderstandings, and big Ol’ Lies About Emergency Contraception, please list 3 myths and why they are false.

1. Myth: The morning after pill is the same as abortion.

EC can prevent pregnancy. Abortions terminate pregnancy.  

2. MYTH: It's difficult to get. fact: Usually you can get EC over the counter. 

3. It's hazardous to my health.

Less so than regular combination pill use, which is safe for users following the instructions and who do not have health conditions of lifestyle habits which make BCPs risky to use.

Next, do some research and find & list 3 places you could go to obtain emergency contraception in Duluth, MN.

1. Planned Parenthood

2. Women’s Health Center

3. Esentia

Smoking Fact Find

Instructions:
1) Review the links below.
2) Find 5 things that you didn't know before watching the video or things that really effected you.
3) Post the 5 things you learned. Can you think of any personal reasons why you have chosen not to smoke too? For example, parents would be disappointed, dont want to smell bad, ect. Please provide one reason why you have chosen not to smoke or have quit because of (if you feel comfortable sharing).

1. Annually, smoking costs Minnesota nearly $3 billion in health care costs.

2. Tobacco use leads to over 5,500 deaths in Minnesota a year.

3. Children of smokers are almost twice as likely to smoke as children of nonsmokers.

4. Smoking causes coronary heart disease, the leading cause of death in the U.S.

5. China has more than 350 million smokers — 50 million more cigarette buyers than the entire population of the United States.

at this time i don't feel like sharing additional information

Eco-Chic Lifestyle Change Week 5: Weekly Review and Final Reflection

Review how the previous week went with your behavior change. Address the following:
1. What was your SMART goal? How did you do in achieving your SMART goal? My Smart goal was to stop my tobacco usage completely. This week I wen back to being a smoker.
2. Address successes & challenges. What strategies helped you to be successful? What challenges did you face? How did you deal with them? The reason that I started smoking again was that I was told my mom had cancer. It was a huge shock and I had not yet developed long-term coping strategies. I am struggling to regain motivation to start quitting again.
3. What feelings did you experience? When did you feel them? I am mad at my self. I don’t want to smoke anymore and with my mom having cancer one would think I would be motivated to quit but it’s more complex than that.
4. What did you learn this week? I learned that quitting smoking is a roller-coaster and I’m not sure when I get off.
5. What are your plans for next week? Will you continue with the change as is? Will you modify to make it more achievable or more challenging? I plan to continue to try and quit. I really don’t want to smoke and this is something I need to do for myself.

Review the entire process:
1. What was your SMART goal? Did it change at all during the project? I broke up my goal to quit smoking into small manageable steps so each week was a different goal were I continued to work towards my overall goal.
2. What helped you be successful? What things got in your way? How can you address these in the future? The support I felt from peers, and accountability really helped my success. But stress is one of my triggers to smoke and I had a lot of stress this semester. I will have to learn to be more resilient.
3. How did you benefit from this project? What did you learn about yourself? What did you learn about behavior change? I learned that behavior change is an ongoing process, I learned that a behavior change now can impact your life years down the road.
4. How did others and/or the environment benefit from you changing this behavior? I have always known that smoking is bad but I didn’t know how big of an impact it had on the environment. From the butts, to the smoke to the packaging, none of it is good.
5. Will you continue this behavior? Why or why not? I want to change because I know it is good for me I just have to over come the barriers
6. What recommendations do you have for others about making a lifestyle change? It may be hard but don’t give up, go at it with an open mind!

Advocacy Project: BPA is a "No- Way" In Baby Formula

BPA is a "No- Way" In Baby Formula

• The purpose of this experiment is to let my peers discover their own opinion as to how closely regulated baby formula should be. Over the past few weeks I have been saddened by the fact that babies, one of the most helpless groups in our society, are being exposed to harmful chemicals in their formula. However, there are higher costs and political positioning associated with an increase in regulation, so here-in lies the problem. 
• Instructions: 
• After looking into the websites listed below, I want you to decided if you think chemicals should be more or less regulated specifically relating to baby formula . Post a short reflection on it.
• Environmental Working Group 
• Truth-Out
• Consumer Reports

Eco-Chic Lifestyle Change Week 4: Weekly Update

1. Last week my goal was: to be completely smoke free by Dec. 1st and... drum role please....... I DID IT!! Today is my second day of being completely smoke free! I did it with the help of the patch and focusing on my reasons for wanting to quit.
2. My biggest challenge so far came on thursday when i bought a pack of smoke and smoked half of it that night. However, I was back on track the next day and hated the way I fet after I smoked. For the past two days, even though I thought about smoking, I was able to push the thoughts out of my mind. I went out with my friend yesterday and was able to talk with her while she smoked without asking for a cigarett or feeling like I had to leave. It's good for me to know that I can still be around my friends who smoke without smoking.  
3. I felt really bad when I had that major setback on thursday, and a friend called me on it. He told me his was disappointed that I had started smoking and that if I smoke when I'm sad or frustrated I'll never quit. I felt horrible, like I had failed and I hated myself (just for a second). But i knew he said those things out of love, so i was able to get back on the horse on friday. 
4. I learned that even if you fall you don't have to stay on the ground. It's hard to get back up but if and when you do you are that much stronger. 
5. Most of all I want to continue to be a non-smoker so I will keep that goal and as a secondary goal I will add: I will drink 73 oz of water everyday for the next week. Wish me luck!

Share and Voice: Composting

Carly and I were talking about composting the other day. I was curious about starting my own compost because I live in an apartment building, so I took to the net for some tips.

Here's What I Found:

• When beginning to compost, its best to start in the spring so that the pile can heat up.
• A good Carbon to Nitrogen ration is important or the compost could get stinky.
• A good size compost is about 3x3x3 because it is manageable to turn and mix.
• There are about a bazillion types of composts a person can buy, build or assemble depending on your needs.
• Don't put animal products in there though! Carly taught me that one ;)
• One UMD professor gives his compost as gifts! What a great idea!

So after looking through all this good stuff about composts I have decided to order a kitchen compost. There are many different places to order from. I'm in the process of deciding between a "high tech" one from Williams Sonoma or a more "interactive" version from target. Ill have to talk to some people and see what they suggest! 

Eye Opener: Photo Essay

(Almost) Smoke Free Me

A place to rest your butts. 

What you dont see is that my bedroom window is about three feet to the left and three feet above that receptacle so even with the windows closed I get the pleasure of stinky (ciggarett) butt smell. 

What I hope my lungs don't look like

It was hard to look at this lidless smoker post without thinking "God I hope my lunges don't look like this"

You kill 'em we chill 'em

not only is smoking smelly, unhealthy and unattractive, it's not environmentally friendly.  

Move over Rosie

The red spot on my arm is an itchy deterrent. If I smoke while I'm wearing this it makes my heart race. Thus far the patch has worked better than the gum (just as an FYI).

Eco-Chic Lifestyle Change Week 3: Weekly Update

1. My SMART goal was to decrease my tobacco usage to three smokes per day. And yesterday I smoked zero ciggarets and today I only had one smoke. That may seem like a setback but I think it’s a huge improvement! I can can can do this!
2. I continued to use the patch and kept myself busy when I had the urge to smoke. I also wrote out the reasons I wanted to quit and looked at them everyday (even on the days I decided to smoke). The biggest challenge was when my mom who smokes came to visit and we had drinks on my birthday. I totally botched that day but got right back on the horse after she left. I also had to distance myself from my friends who smoke because that is a trigger for me.
3. When my friends went out to smoke I felt excluded so instead of moping I did something productive, like dishes or laundry while they were out.
4. I learned that if I set my mind to something I can do it! Everyone has been really supportive and even my smoker friends have been really cool about it. One says she wants to quit too now!
5. My goal for this week: I will finish with Step 2 of the Patch in order to be completely smoke free by Dec. 1st

Blogged for the Eco-Chic Lifestyle Change Week 3 hosted by Amy@Amy in the Rain

Advocacy Project: Issue Overview

Introduction

• What is the issue/problem? The issue I have chosen to focus on is the under-regulation of potentially harmful chemicals that go into products the general public uses everyday (most specifically chemicals in baby formula).

·          What current legislation has been proposed to address this? S.3209 : Safe Chemicals Act of 2010 (introduced in the senate)

Who is affected by the issue?

• Who is affected the most? The people who are affected the most are the highly susceptible population, most specifically children and women of childbearing age.  
• Who loses, and what do they lose? Women and children end up on the losing end because some chemicals they are exposed to can cause birth defects, developmental delays and cancer.  
• Who gains, and what do they gain? The ones who gain the most are the companies that are allowed to use these chemicals; they are able to increase their profit margin because the potentially harmful chemicals are often inexpensive compared to the safer alternatives. Also the corporations save money because they are in charge of reporting on the safety of the chemicals they use, and in most cases this means the data the corporations submit is inaccurate.

What are the consequences of the issue?

• For the individuals mostly affected? Major consequences include high medical bills, major lifestyle changes to accommodate their child with special needs. And for the women who are unable to conceive, the emotional conflict is often overwhelming.
• For their families? The families are often the caretakers and support system for those people affected by the affects of these chemicals
• For society? As a society we foot the bill for high medical costs, we also suffer the loss of a potentially productive member of society, and we are subject to the harmful affects of these chemicals.

What is the economic impact of the issue?

• What are the economic costs of the issue, and who bears these costs? Economic costs include medical bills, loss of productivity, and higher prescription costs. Also special education, and accommodations for children and a variety of therapy treatments for mothers and children.    
• What are the economic benefits of the issue, and who benefits? The economic benefit it limited to cheaper products for consumers and the upper middle class has more disposable income that supposedly stimulates the economy.   

What is the social impact of the issue?

• What are the social costs of the issue, and who bears these costs? The social costs to developmentally delayed children include but are not limited to the stigma of being “different”.
• What are the social benefits of the issue, and who benefits? I cannot really see to many benefits to this issue, buesides the issue sparks debate thus bring light to the issue and getting it into the public eye.  

What are the barriers?

• What are the barriers to addressing this issue? The barriers to addressing the issue are that spending more money to fix a problem is not popular in the public eye and that there are not very feasible ways to regulate chemicals.
• How can they be overcome? By involving politicians and policy makers we can overcome barriers.

What are the resources?

• What resources will we need to address this issue? We need public support, which means that the populations feel susceptible to the affects of the chemicals. Also we need to involve the policy makers and politicians.
• Where and how can they be tapped?  By writing letters and visiting politicians, and advocating for the issue we can tap into these resources.  

What is the history of this issue?

• What is the history of the issue in the community? This has been around for a long time the first act specifically related to this issue was first passed in 1976 to cover policies that were overlooked by other food and environmental safety acts.
• What past efforts were made to address it? The regulations of food, drugs and cosmetics acknowledged that there are issues with potentially harmful chemicals.
• What were the results? The other acts were successful but there is always room to improve upon these acts to insure the safety of the public.

Allies & Opponents

• Who would support this issue? Environmentalists, Democrats, Upper-class women and Health Educators are most likely to support this Act.   
• Who would oppose this issue? Republicans, Corporations, and lower income families would probably oppose this act.  
• How can you involve allies and opponents in advocacy efforts? (What common ground can you share? How can you create a win-win for your allies and your opponents?) Involving both allies and opponents is difficult but if there is a way to cut funding from outdated projects and apply it to this act I think there would be little opposition from either side. This question will require further research.

Your Recommendation

• How do you want policy-makers to vote on this proposed policy? I recommend that policy-makers vote YES to S.3209!  

Share and Voice: ABC news story

So I have really been on this kick lately where I am convinced that there are toxic chemicals that the general public is unwittingly ingesting. Not only that but what bothers me most is that there are so many regulations regarding pharmaceuticals and food regulation. For example, when you take a pill you know what the common side effects are or when you eat a granola bar you get to know what the ingredients are. But not so for chemicals, I think Matt discussed this in a post that leaching occurs and the saddest part is that its in our baby products. So I found this article on the issue and this is just one of many but it's interesting and easy to read.

Eco-Chic Lifestyle Change Week 2: Weekly Update

1. My SMART goal was : By Wednesday November 17th I will decrease my tobacco usage to two smokes per day. To be honest I fell short but I am not discouraged!
2. I cut down my tobacco usage by about 75% and I bought the patch. The biggest challenge is not kicking the addiction, it's kicking the habit. What helped me was to get distance from the people in my life who smoke and this is almost a heartbreaking process because about 3/4 of my closest friends smoke in addition to my mom and step dad. What I found to be helpful is to purposefully throw off my routine so that I was not waiting for my friends to come smoke with me. 
3. I told all of my non-smoker friends that I was quiting and I think they were expecting immediate results so some of them were disappointed and that was hard to let my friends down but I want to quit and I don't want to get discouraged.  
4. I learned that when I was little and everyone said "just say no" that that may have been a good idea. In all seriousness I learned that quitting is an uphill battle and that if I wait for the "right time to quit" it will never happen, so now is the right time.
5. I want/ need to continue with the patch. I'm at level one right now and by next Wednesday I will be at level 2 and hopefully not smoking at all. I want to continue the change but it is really hard so I am going to modify the goal (of just having 2 smokes per day) to allow 3 smokes per day on days/nights that I work.

And to borrow a line from Louie Anderson: I'm starting to wish that Nicorette made jackets

Advocacy Project: Healthy People 2010/THOMAS

HEALTHY PEOPLE 2010:

1. Goal: Promote heath for all through a healthy environment. Objective: Reduce pesticide exposures that result in visits to a health care facility. This objective has moved 32% towards the target of 11,398 visits to a healthcare facility due to pesticide exposure.

2. There is no data regarding disparities given in the website.

3. I found an act that has is waiting for committee approval is called the “Safe Chemicals Act of 2010” This states that the producers of chemicals must submit data regarding the safety of the chemicals they produce.

THOMAS:

S.3209 : Safe Chemicals Act of 2010 (introduced in the senate)

Title: A bill to amend the Toxic Substances Control Act to ensure that risks from chemicals are adequately understood and managed, and for other purposes.

Sponsor: Sen Lautenberg, Frank R. [NJ] (introduced 4/15/2010)  

Cosponsor: None

Latest Major Action: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.

Recommended Action: Vote Yes for S.3209 : Safe Chemicals Act of 2010

My Senator: Al Franken

Eco-Chic Lifestyle Change Week 1: My SMART Goal

1. By Wednesday November 17th I will decrease my tobacco usage to two smokes per day.
2. This is an eco-chic change because I will decrease cigarette butt, and packaging waste, and I will be working toward smoke free air.  
3. I chose this goal because, I am not proud of my choice to smoke, I want to be healthy and I want to be a good role model for my little brother and sister and to all kids. Quitting smoking is important because I want to be a professional and personally I would not higher a Health Educator who smoked. Secondly I love kids and I want to have kids someday so I want to do what is best for my body. I also do not want to promote smoking to any child who looks up to me. 
4. GULP! This is a big one for me guys, keep my accountable for quitting and ask me how its going in class. This is my third serious try at smoking cessation and I REALLY want it to stick!  

Advocacy Project: My Political Representatives

President: 

Barack Obama (DFL)

The White House

1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW

Washington, DC 20500

(202) 456-1111

Congresspeople:

House:

Keith Ellison (DFL)

2100 Plymouth Avenue N
Minneapolis, MN 55411
Phone: (612) 522-1212

Senate:

Amy Klobuchar (DFL)

302 Hart Senate Office Building

Washington, DC 20510

(202) 224-3244

Al Franken (DFL)

60 East Plato Blvd

Suite 220

Saint Paul, MN 55107

(651) 221-1016

 

Governor TBD However probable elect is listed: 

Mark Dayton (DFL)

800 Minnehaha Avenue East, Suite 201

St. Paul, MN 55106

(651) 797-3600

State Legislators:

House:

Jim Davnie (DFL)

545 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
Saint Paul, Minnesota 55155
651-296-0173 

Senate:

Patricia Torres Ray (DFL)

75 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.

Capitol Building, Room 124

St. Paul, MN 55155-1606

(651)296-4274

County Board President (Hennepin County):

Mike Opat

300 S. 6th St. 

A2400 Government Center 

Minneapolis, MN 55487-0241

(612)348-7881

Mayor (Minneapolis, MN):

R.T. Rybak

City Hall, Room 331
350 South Fifth Street
Minneapolis, MN 55415
(612) 673-2100

Reflection: Second Quarter

Oh how interesting the past 4 weeks have been,
Through the various documentaries we have watched in class I have come close to ralphing, I have been scared out of my GMO-consuming pants, and have taken to shunning my family members who choose to drink non-organic milk. Dr.V has beat us at our own game! She has taken the class from the pre-contemplative stage to the contemplative stage and-- speaking for my-self-- into the preparation and action stage of behavior change! I have learned that consuming non-organic animal products causes damage to the environment, that soy and corn have become the most-consumed GMOs in America if not the world, and that a precedence was set when the supreme court allowed the patenting of life. I have also learned that there are places in America calld "cancer ally". These are places that rare diseases and cancers are common among people in the community.

It is nigh impossible to consume any food product in our country that has not been kissed by Genetic Modification. When the supreme court ruled that seed companies could patent seeds they (hopefully unwittingly) decided that life forms could be claimed as intellectual property. This has changed our agriculture because now, humans are altering/preventing what Darwin discovered. Only a few select types of crops are now being grown because the seeds are said to be more resilient to the elements. However, since there are only a few types of crops, one element can completely wipe out a crop. Take insects for example, if a worm becomes immune to the pesticide used on the corn crops, the worm is harder to eradicate since all the worms consume only that crop. The implications are horrifying.

We also learned that the rates of cancer in the area referred to as "cancer ally" are staggeringly high. Not only that but the rare cancers that are cropping up (no pun intended) are harder to treat and cost more than many families can afford. The cancer victims are stuck between a rock and a hard place because they cannot afford to move but no-one can afford to live, or die, there.

Inspired by "unnatural causes" I watched PBS coverage of a public heath fair that discussed a very important issue: If we regulate pharmaceuticals, why do we not regulate chemicals?" The woman talking went on to say that there are many safe alternatives to chemicals we use on a daily bases but due to lack of support and high cost, very few decision makers are able to make legislative changes. I thought this was so interesting and the fact that it was on public access made my smile-- at least word is getting out!

As far as blogging goes I learned how to make my own graphical header for my blog. I also learned that once I fell behing in blogging it was really hard to catch up again. That made me apreciate people who blog daily!

Overall, I have truly been able to take how my consumerism affects the world around me and now I take time to think about what food I buy, where I get my clothes and what chemicals are going into products. I have learned so much and hope to keep on learning!

Eye Opener: Junk On The Brain

Part I:

Antique- Old and collectible, prized because of its rarity, condition, or historical significance.
Junking- Taking unwanted items and using them in new ways or refinishing items to use the way they were intended.
Flea Market- a bizarre where second hand items are sold or bartered for.
Thrift Shop- Shop that sells used goods, typically clothes, at low prices.
Upcycling- taking useless products and making them into new materials.
Resale shops- shops that buy items outright from individual owners.

Part II:

Antiquing, junking upcycling ect... are environmentally friendly because the items being purchased are already made. meaning that there are very few environmental consequences in purchasing something that will be reused.

As far as resale shops go I typically go to Plato's closet because they are geared more towards young females and I can usually find some pretty sweet deals there.
Their location and contact info:
5115 Burning Tree Road
Duluth, MN 55811
(218) 733-9455

From my experience the antique stores up here leave much t be desired but I found a few interesting things for m y apartment at Old Town Antiques:
102 East Superior Street
Duluth, MN 55802-2116
(218) 722-5426

I heard that there was a flea market and car show this summer at Lake Superior College. Its the second Sunday in August. I don't know If i would go to a flea market just because I feel pressured to buy things in those kinds of settings.
2101 Trinity Rd, 2 mi S of Miller Hill Mall. 
218.722.8533 or 218.722.4855
E-Mail: stude.one@usfamily.net  

I think that one of the best thrift store to look for second hand furniture at is Goodwill. I think they have a decent selection and good prices.
Goodwill Industries Vocational Enterprises, Inc.
700 Garfield Avenue
Duluth, MN 55802
218-722-3050

I don't know of any places in Duluth that focus specifically on upcycling but I was toying with the idea of taking a compilation of old curtains my mom has and pillows from Savers and making them into new decorative pillows for my apartment.
Savers
1740 Mall Drive
Duluth, MN 55811
Any of the above places are good for junking but I really like

Ok so for the three projects that I find cool:

I think this table is awesome! it's made out of a pallet but looks really nice, and its functional. I don't want to junk just for the sake of junking. I want to make or get something that is functional and serves a purpose.

This um... flower hanger has inspired me. I love plants and i need to add height to my apartment. Hanging something like this would add color, life and style to my apartment.

I love this piece because of the almost Gothic femininity it exudes. although I would probably not have something like this in a small apartment, It would be great to have as a decorative piece in a house.

Share and Voice: Song/ Music Video

I found that I had this song stuck in my head after watching one of the documentaries in class. Farmers may not use DDT anymore but we do need to take a stand about agrucultural developments. Hope you enjoy!

Read and Seed 5: Fourth Quarter of "Smashed: The Story of Drunken Girlhood"

1. I read the section titled 'Abuse' that ranges from pages 247- 339
2. The main topics included:
1. Trying to get help
2. Spring break
3. Changing location does not mean a change in behavior
4. Gender roles  
3. In this section Koren talks about starting her Junior year in college off on the right foot. She swears off drinking and engulfs herself activities that she enjoys, like doing stories for the school newspaper. However, she is once again, consumed by her old habits after only a few months. Koren cycles through loneliness and depression and falls behind in school. The author touches on something that i think is very interesting. She talks about changing living arrangements to move off campus in order to avoid drinking. But despite her best efforts, she lapses back into drinking shortly after moving. While on spring break in Cancun, Koren is sober enough to realize how alcohol abuse intensifies gender roles. She observes that the jocks drinking beer and tequila become more manly, but the girls who do the same are perceived as less feminine. By her senior year Zailckas begins to pull herself out of another cycle of alcohol abuse by attempting to identify herself as an alcoholic. She contacts an addiction councilor that tells her to try and practice sobriety as opposed to abstinence.  Koren realizes that the road to leading a sober lifestyle is not easy and writes about times that she stumbles but in the last few pages of the book she concludes that she feels she has come out of the abuse stage and can finally see that the days of her severe alcohol abuse have come to an end.
4. One of the most prominent things that I learned form this section is that although changing locations may be a good start to sobriety, unless the reason behind the abuse is acknowledged and dealt with properly.

1. The whole book is basically a testament to why the U.S. needs to start taking underage drinking seriously. The author makes some very strong arguments that underage drinking is perpetuating gender roles. She also makes valid points that because parents, teachers and community members  do not view underage drinking as a serious issue, they too perpetuate the problem.
2. The three most important things I learned from reading this book are:
1. Underage drinking is a huge problem that especially harms females
2. Gender roles are perpetuated by alcohol and the alcohol industry
3. Relationships with foundations in  alcohol/ substance cause more damage than good
3. This is so important because before I read this book I chose to only view alcohol as a fad part of my life, but I now know how truly harmful alcohol abuse can be. I know that we, as health educators need to make underage drinking as serious as cocaine and heroine use. 
4. I would recommend this book to anyone but especially women who have daughters, any chick who has ever been drunk, and anyone who has ever felt that they were alone. This book is entertaining and yet so powerful. Zailckas has inspired me to change my views of underage drinking and i hope this book along with health educators can make a difference.  

Eye Opener: Environmental Working Group

Aww dang! Foiled again! I thought I was doing something good for my lashes when I invested in Neutrogena's Healthy Volume Mascara. I mean with a name like that-- what could be wrong?! Well I guess there is a chemical in the mascara that has been shown in some studies to cause cancer. The website does not claim that the product itself causes cancer but the chemical in the product has the potential to cause cancer, allergies, irritations and a few other things. So although this is yet again a disappointing discovery I now know that products may not be as beneficial as their labels lead one to believe.