• Granola Bars: Granola bars, while better than candy bars, still contain little in the way of nutritional value.
  Alternatives: Make your own, skip the refined sugars and use something like honey or sucanat. Also add whole grains, nuts, coconut, fruit and other healthy ingredients. If you use chocolate go with a dark chocolate which has less sugar.

• Cereal: Some cereals aren’t bad and contain pretty good ingredients and very little sugar but most are high in sugar and low in nutrition. Cereal marketed to kids are the worst offenders. With the amount of sugar in these cereals, you might as well serve they a candy bar for breakfast.
  Alternatives: Homemade oatmeal with fruit and unrefined sweeteners is a great alternative to boxed cereal. Homemade pancakes (which can be made ahead and frozen) with a little bit of fresh fruit and a touch of honey or real maple syrup can also be a nice treat and very healthy. For a quick breakfast green smoothies are a great option, ingredients can be prepared the night before to make it a very easy breakfast.

• Meal Replacers/Diet Shakes: Seems like everyone is selling some shake diet these days. And while you will likely lose weight on these diets, skinny doesn’t always mean healthy. It’s also not a sustainable way to eat. They contain a lot of refined sugar, corn, soy, and other highly processed ingredients. Many places even add pudding and Jello mixes to make the drinks taste better and those contain lots of sugar, dyes, and other nasty things.
  Alternatives: If you really want a protein shake go for a raw protein that is soy free, like Garden of Eden’s Raw Protein. Green smoothies are a really good alternative, if you want some added protein throw in some nuts, nut butter, or hemp powder. Eating well rounded, healthy, real food, meals will help you get healthy and lose some extra pounds.

• Fast Food Smoothies: A new trend is smoothies at fast food restaurants. They claim to have real fruit and that may be true but they also contain a huge number of calories, lots of sugar and not a lot of nutrition.
  Alternatives: This is pretty simple, real smoothies. Better yet, green smoothies.

• Turkey Bacon: Many believe turkey bacon is a better choice over pork bacon but the truth is it’s not that much different and likely still has nitrates which have been linked to cancer.
  Alternatives: Eat cured meats in moderation and when you do eat them be sure they are “nitrate-free.” Applegate Farms is a good brand.

• Juice: Even if you make sure to buy 100% juice, you are getting all the sugar from the fruit and very little of the fiber. Fruit is great for you but the fiber is the healthiest part and with juice you are missing out on most of that. In moderation juice can be okay but it’s not the health drink many believe it is.
  Alternatives: Once again smoothies are the better choice. Smoothies use whole pieces of fruit so the fiber is included. You can also make green smoothies which have raw vegetables making it even better for you.

• Diet Soda: Most of you reading my blog likely already know this one but just in case I will add it. Diet soda may have no sugar but the replace is no better, in some cases it’s worse. Fake sweeteners have been linked to all kinds of health problems, even cancer.
  Alternatives: If you really want a soda opt for a soda made with cane sugar in a glass bottle. And remember to limit all soda as it does contain a lot of sugar and is not good for you in anyway. Try different teas made at home so you can control the level of sugar. If you need it pretty sweet at first you can still likely slowly use less and less without noticing a real difference. Tea is great hot or cold, experiment and find your favorite. Honey and sucanat are two of the best sweeteners to use for tea but if those won’t work for you be sure to use organic cane sugar.

• Low-Fat Dairy: Low-fat diets have been the fad for awhile and it’s hard to find yogurt and such that isn’t low-fat. So why is full fat better? Lots of reasons, some include the fact that without the fat we don’t absorb the calcium as well, more sugar is almost always included in low-fat dairy verse full-fat (this is true of all food), and many studies are now showing that there are a lot of benefits to using full-fat dairy verse low-fat.
  Alternative: Use full-fat dairy in moderation.

• Fake Meat: While vegetarian diets can be healthy and limited meat is good for the environment, replacing the meat with processed fake meat is not so healthy. Most are made from highly processed soy which has endless problems from being genetically modified to being linked to breast cancer.
  Alternative: Make homemade, soy-free versions, like black bean burgers. Also look for recipes that don’t require meat in the first place. For protein go with beans, nuts, and other real foods.

So which of these things surprised you? Will you stop eating any of these items and try the alternatives? Also be sure to share your alternatives and surprisingly unhealthy foods. Post in the comments below or join the conversation on Facebook.

Photo Credit: qmnonic
This post contains affiliate links. Read disclaimer for more information.

One of the first blogs I ever read was Fake Plastic Fish (now My Plastic-Free Life). The author, Beth’s, journey to becoming plastic-free, as much as possible, is inspiring. A few years ago I remember standing in a book store with my mom and we commented on how we wished Beth would write a book. Well that dream came true! Beth’s book Plastic-Free just came out! And I’m honored to have a profile in the book!

Of course the book itself is plastic-free, the cover and even the glue are plastic free! If you read the book so many times it’s unreadable you can even compost the book. How cool is that?! You can order a copy now from BuyGreen.com (and other book stores but I recommend BuyGreen because they will use plastic-free packaging). Also check out this super cute video from Beth about the book.

This post contains affiliate links. Read disclaimer for more information.

At MightyNest you will find everything from baby gear to kitchenware. It’s really a one-stop-shop for anyone looking for green and non-toxic products.

MightyNest gave me the chance to try out a Anchor Hocking Bake ‘N Store glass food container. I try and avoid plastic in general but especially when it comes to food. With cooking from scratch and a lot of freezer cooking, need a lot of containers for food storage.

What I really like about this container is it’s made in the US and is plastic free. It’s dishwasher safe, oven safe, fridge and freeze safe. I use this container all the time and love it. It is a little heavy but I see that as a sign it’s very durable. I haven’t baked in it yet but I’m sure I will in the future.

MightyNest has been kind enough to offer one lucky reader their own Anchor Hocking Bake ‘N Store container. Follow the directions below to win! And be sure to check out MightyNest for more great eco-friendly products.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclaimer: I was given an item to review for this post. I was not paid for this review and all of the above are my honest opinions.

The ingredients in many of the popular brands are pretty poor. One popular bars first two ingredients are chicory root extract and semisweet chocolate chips. It also contains corn syrup, canola oil, high maltose corn syrup, soy, fructose, and many other not very healthy ingredients. The only things of real value is whole grain oats and that’s the third ingredient. Another popular brand that even says it’s “100% natural”  on the package contains not so natural ingredients, like high fructose corn syrup. And the second ingredient is sugar and third is canola oil! Not really what I would call health food.

Healthier Alternatives

If you must buy a packaged granola bar be sure to read the ingredients. Avoid high fructose corn syrup, soy, partially hydrogenated oils, and refined sugar. And look for certified organic. You can also make your own. A quick Google search will find you lots of recipes. Here is one that I found that uses real ingredients and no refined sugar, Granola Bars/Cereal Recipe.

If you use granola bars for a quick breakfast look into healthier options for breakfast on the go. Green smoothies can be made very quickly, have the ingredients ready the night before and just toss in a blend for a few minutes and put into reusable bottles and drink on the way to work or school. A piece of fruit and some cheese is also a good quick breakfast that will give you some fiber and protein. You can make and freeze homemade pancakes and just reheat in the oven for a few minutes, add some honey or real maple syrups and a bit of fruit. You can even make homemade breakfast sandwiches using healthy ingredients. Get creative and you will find all kinds of ways to get a healthy breakfast with very little time.

What do you eat for breakfast when you are in a hurry? Share recipes and ideas in the comments below or join in the conversation on Facebook.

Photo Credit: smoorenburg
This post contains affiliate links. Read disclaimer for more information.

You will find palm oil in everything from cookies to soap, it’s in 50% of packaged food in supermarkets. So how is palm oil hurting animals? Palm oil is often grown by cutting down and burning rainforests in order to use the land for palm oil plantations. Most of the palm oil comes from Indonesia and Malaysia. It’s associated with human rights violations, greenhouse gas emissions, deforestation, and threatening endangered animals like orangutans and sumatran tigers.

Palm oil can be grown sustainably but many companies want to take the cheap, easy, and deadly route. We must ask companies to do the right thing and save our rainforests and our animals, before it’s to late.

Take Action

• Avoid palm oil unless the company unless the company shows it’s using sustainable practices for it’s palm oil.
• If a product you use, uses palm oil ask them to use sustainable palm oil.
• Sign Greenpeace’s petition asking Yum! Brand, one of the brands that still uses un-sustainable palm oil, to make the switch.

Did you know palm oil did so much harm? Do you know how many products in your home contain it?

Organic Top only $11.99 *more colors*

Pure Citizen is running a deal on several items from Blue Canoe until May 20th, 2012. Pure Citizen is a cool site where you can find lots of amazing deals on eco-friendly products and you can have them sent to your inbox as well so you never miss out. In addiction to the Blue Canoe clothing sale, Pure Citizen has Mango Tree bangles, Terra Firm Cosmetics (which I don’t know anything about so be sure to check ingredients before buying), cute clothes from SUST, and several great items that in their last chance sale.

Organic Jacket only $19.99 *more colors*

Be sure to go check out Pure Citizen and all the great deals, and sign up to stay in the loop of their future sales.

Disclaimer: I’m an affiliate for Pure Citizen. However, they did not ask me to write this and these are my opinions.

• People will just fill up the day before the boycott and soon after. It doesn’t change how much gas they are buying. So the money lost on the boycott day is made up for on other days.
• This boycott doesn’t change habits.
• To make a real impact people would have to not drive that day. And then there are emergency vehicles, lawn care equipment, delivery trucks, etc…
• Many of these boycotts have also called for boycotting on oil company, like many called for a boycott of BP. These don’t work very well either as the gas you buy likely contains gas from lots of different companies. Also many gas stations are privately owned so the individual will end up being hurt more than the CEO’s/company.

There are ways to make a real impact when it comes to oil and gas.

• Avoid using your car as much as possible. Walk, use public transpiration, carpool, bike, or just stay home.
• Use battery powered lawn equipment.
• Drive smart. You can increase your gas milage by driving better, reduce your speed, brake and accelerate gently, and plan your trips well.
• When buying a new car, buy the one with the highest gas milage that fits your needs.

We all need to work to reduce our dependence on oil. It’s a resource that will run out and some believe it will be in short supply in many of our life times. So, have you worked to reduce your dependence on oil? If so, what are your tips?

Photo Credit: Average Jane

I could have gone out and chewed them out and part of me wanted to but I decided against that. Often that doesn’t do much and I thought this would possibly be one of those times and there was a CHANCE they had planned to pick it up or that the person I talked to had nothing to do with it, as there were a lot of workers. I also strive to be a pacifist. So, I went outside and just started picking up all the trash in my yard. I took my time to be sure they saw me and didn’t say a word.

Soon after I started a worker on the roof saw what I was doing and while looking quite sheepish and saying sorry, picked up the trash in the yard they were working in. I just flash a little smile and finished our yard. I have a feeling in the future the yard won’t get trashed like that and I never had to say a word.

This is not the first time I have found this method works with litterers. At a sustainability conference, of all places, I watched a lady drop a cigarette on the sidewalk and walk off, I turned around, picked it up and put it in the nearby trash can. She saw what I did and came over and apologized over and over and said she felt guilty as soon as she did it and that she would NEVER do it again. I believe her, she was quite embarrassed. I just smiled that time as well.

Have you tried this kind of thing with people? Have you had similar reactions?

I got the chance to try out the Shopper, a reusable shopping bag. It’s becoming one of my favorites. It’s a good size, strong, has a zipper, machine washable, and is very cute! When shopping this month I used it when my insulated bags were full and I had more produce to get home (I shop about an hour away from my home so things have to be kept on ice) since it doesn’t need to stay as cold I put it in that bag with an ice pack to keep it cool since it was a hot day. (it isn’t really insulated but is thicker than a lot of bags so it worked for this propose)

Other items Mimi the Sardine makes includes; super cute lunch clutches, tablecloths, placemats, lunch bags for kids, bibs and more. Al of their items are easy to wipe clean since they feature the eco-friendly oil cloth fabric. Oh and they are made in the US with European fabrics.

Right now (as of May 8th, 2012) there are some great sales going on, on the site so be sure to go check them out! And you can also enter below to win one of the Shoppers, thanks to Mimi the Sardine!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

*This giveaway is sponsored by Mimi the Sardine, the prizes comes from them. I was not paid for this post, I did receive a sample but this doesn’t effect my views.

The pipe for the pipeline has been being moved into Oklahoma for quite awhile and preparations have been being made in other ways as well. Because of this I had little hope this part of the pipeline would be stopped. Also Oklahoma’s governor and other state officials had voiced their praise of the pipeline.

TransCanada plans to be done in 2013. The thought of the oil spills we will likely experience is horrifying for me. While the plans I last saw no longer have the pipeline going through my county it comes very close.

Most people in Oklahoma seem to be happy about this as they seem to think this will help gas prices. But this is foreign oil that is going to be exported, it won’t help gas prices. We are drilling as much as we can right now, more than we have in over eight years. The industry can’t keep up with the amount we are drilling, that is not the reason gas prices are high.

There is another very important concern with the pipeline going through Oklahoma,

Sac and Fox Nation Chief George Thurman fears that workers would place the pipeline through sacred ground in Oklahoma without consideration of the tribe.

The nation’s historic preservation officer, Sandra Massey, says there are countless unmarked burial sites throughout the tribe’s historic lands in north-central Oklahoma. -read more

TransCanada says it’s working with the tribes and has done a survey of the pipeline route,

According to a report released by TransCanada, a survey of the project found 70 archaeological sites, 18 individual artifacts and 34 historic structures in the area where the pipeline will be built in Oklahoma. The numbers were first reported by The Oklahoma Daily.

Seven of the sites met criteria to be eligible for the National Register of Historic Places, and TransCanada agreed to bypass six of them, said Oklahoma Historical Society Director Bob Blackburn. The site that will be partially destroyed is a Works Progress Administration drainage ditch built around the 1930s, he said. Details about the other sites and whether any Indian graves were included were not immediately known.- read more

However, many Native American graves are not marked and many fear these are at risk and many are protesting the pipeline in part because of this issue.

Take Action

EPA can stop the Army Corps from approving all 101 water crossings on the route between Cushing, Okla., and the Gulf Coast at once.  Time is running out to let the EPA know we don’t want the southern leg of the Keystone XL approved!

Photo credit: FreeWine