Tea Tree Oil vs Vaginal Yeast Infections
…seems tea tree may just win In the same week, both a patient and my brother-in-law mentioned they used tea tree oil for different purposes; so I decided this was a sign to review it’s uses and the research out there. My patient used a tea tree oil mixture to treat...
Happy New Year! New 2012 California Energy Laws
We're installing solar this year! Happy New Year again! As 2012 begins, my family has decided to look into utilizing the power of the sun to reduce some of our electrical costs and decided to install solar. It’s not in yet but the plan is in the works. For...
Score One for Organic Milk
Minus one for those of us finding empty shelves... I heard a report the other day that Organic Milk sales were up by 15%. It's apparent, when we got to the grocery store, the organic milk, especially the one with DHA seems to be gone the most. The cost, however, is...
California Environmental Laws – 2012
Recycling Laws ~ every little bit helps Happy New Year! Maybe you are starting the year out with a goal of living with less, out of necessity possibly, or because you feel you can make a difference. For those who need a little help, California has enacted many laws...
Antiperspirant and Breast Feeding
Aluminum as cause for alarm? “Doctor, what do you know about the risks of using antiperspirant?” asked my 26-week pregnant patient, “Should I be worried?” Feeling pretty uninformed, I told her, “if it makes you feel better, switch to a natural deodorant instead”. I...
Aluminum in Antiperspirant
As a cause of human illness? “Doctor, what do you know about the risks of using antiperspirant?” asked my 26-week pregnant patient, “Should I be worried?” Feeling pretty uninformed, I told her, “if it makes you feel better, switch to a natural deodorant instead”. I...
Can Clothes Really Be Static & Toxin Free?
What About Fresh? After some reading, I’ve decided to give up my dryer sheets, not because I was swayed by activists or significantly by recent research touting dryer sheet emissions. However, after researching I do believe in the potential for cumulative harm from...
Adjustment of Bikram Sequence for Pregnancy
For Preggers In general, no postures should be done that compress the heart, diaphragm or abdomen, with backbends avoid pushing hips forward of knees, and separate feet slightly in standing and forward bend poses for balance. No standing head to knee, separate leg...
This Holiday Season…
Think Green As the shopping frenzy unfurled on Thanksgiving Day (what happened to that holiday is for another blog) I began to compose the list of things I needed to get done for Christmas, my gift purchase list, and my own Christmas “want” list. Americans throw away...
Choose Organic Cotton!
The Perils of Conventional Cotton Cotton seems like such an innocent material. As “the fabric of our lives” the cotton industry led me to believe it was good for the environment and for my family. When I saw something was 100% cotton, I felt good purchasing it. That...
A Question of Thanks.
“What are you grateful for?” I’m going to start my patient visits this next week with that one question. At each patient visit I often ask them what they do, who they live with, do they feel safe and, as an obstetrician/gynecologist, any number of other lifestyle...
Christmas Cards vs. Environment
vs. Tradition My annual tradition is to write my Holiday card and family letter updates the day after Thanksgiving. In addition to the timing of my writing, I have been choosing a ‘Peace’ theme for the past 7 years on my cards and the last couple years purchasing my...
Parabens in my child’s toothpaste!
Should I be worried? On my way home there was a physician speaking about environmental health and the topic of potential dangers of parabens arose, in my Time Magazine there was a blurb about the fact that Denmark banned parabens in products for children under 3, and...
“Made in China”
Is everything? Picking up my child's toys in his room the other day I realized that the majority had the words "Made in China" embossed on it’s surface. The reaction I had was actually sadness. Admittedly, I also felt a twinge of guilt for the toys we had accrued...
Breastfeeding — Fundamental to Survival
…and yet, one of the hardest things I’ve ever done! I lecture my patients about the benefits of breastfeeding. For babe this results in reduced rates of asthma and eczema along with childhood obesity and diabetes. Benefits for mom include more rapid weight loss...
Bikram, Baby!
Pregnancy and Bikram Yoga As an obstetrician-gynecologist whose primary mode of exercise and personal well-being has become Bikram yoga, I wondered what was out there in terms of research on Bikram yoga and pregnancy. There has been so few pregnant women attending...
World Food Day 2011
What’s for dinner? Today, October 16th is World Food Day! I admit, I hadn’t heard about this until recently but I’m learning. The first World Food Day was celebrated in 1981 and is held in recognition of the founding of the United Nations Food and Agriculture...
Simple Call to Action
Just Think Before You Buy The more I pay attention, listen to news programs, and read articles, the more I feel like I have to, as the famous quote by Mahatma Gandhi reads “be the change you want to see in the world”. I can feel myself getting angrier about injustices...
Bikram Yoga for ALL!!
Really! “Ninety minutes of hell…sooo worth it”, Troy, my yoga teacher at the Tri-Valley Bikram’s Yoga studio, proclaims during class. Enthusiastically, I inwardly agree while dripping sweat and struggling with the current posture du’jour. With an ideal temperature...
Driver’s Guilt
Individual Carbon Offsets After months of being home with my little boy, it’s time to return to work. I should feel fortunate that I have been able to find a job, however, it's 45 miles away. That’s 90 miles per day of driving just for work travel alone. In my...