Safety Alert: Fluoride for Bottle Fed Infants
November 29th, 2006
The Environmental Working Group recently released this announcement on the use of fluorinated water for reconstituted infant formula:
In a little-noticed but dramatic turnaround, the nation’s leading fluoride advocate, The American Dental Association (ADA), issued an alert on November 9th urging parents to avoid fluoridated water when reconstituting infant formula, warning that “Infants less than one year old may be getting more than the optimal amount of fluoride if their primary source of nutrition is powdered or liquid infant formula mixed with water containing fluoride.”
The dentists are worried that fluoride exposure at this age will permanently damage teeth, not protect them. A growing body of research also links fluoride to weakened bones, reduced thyroid activity, and possibly bone cancer in boys.
The advice, however, has gone largely unheeded. Nursery Water, the nation’s leading fluoridated water for babies still markets its product nationwide at Wal*Mart and other major retailers.
How can you help? Sign this online letter to Walmart and ask them to pull the Nursery Water product from their shelves!
Volunteer With City Team
November 28th, 2006
With all of the focus on gift giving this season, is your family looking for an opportunity to give back?
City Team Ministries is a non-profit organization serving the poor and homeless in San Jose, East Palo Alto, San Francisco, Oakland, Portland, Seattle, and Philadelphia. They operate through a network of rescue missions, men’s recovery programs, youth outreach and camp opportunities for kids in the San Francisco Bay Area.
My sister, her one year old, and I spent a Saturday morning two weeks ago with City Team to deliver Thanksgiving dinners to needy families in San Jose. Giving financially to support charities is great, but certainly nothing feels better than giving a gift to someone in person. Though many of the families receiving food boxes were not English speakers, a smile and a hug went a long way towards sharing something bigger than just a turkey dinner.
While City Team is always looking for financial support, they will undoubtedly do another round of food delivery for Christmas and are looking for individuals who can volunteer their time to reach out and touch the needy people in these communities.
Even with your kids in tow (we did it with a 15 month old baby!), the two or three hours you spend delivering food to the hungry will be some of the most memorable and stress free moments of the holiday season. Try it and see!
World AIDS Day
November 27th, 2006
This Friday, December 1st is World AIDS Day. With over 40 million people in the world living with HIV/AIDS, what are the things you can do to combat this deadly disease and lessen its impact on the world’s economies, families, and children?
World Vision suggests these 12 Ways You Can Join the Fight Against AIDS:
* How much do you know about the AIDS crisis? Find out by taking this AIDS Test.
* Make your mark for children affected by AIDS. Ask the Bush Administration to allocate more money to help children affected by AIDS. Add your virtual signature to the online petition or use your mobile phone to send a text message to the White House.
* Build a Caregiver Kit. You’ll help assemble kits containing basic supplies that improve and prolong the lives of those living with AIDS while protecting caregivers from infection.
* Sponsor a child affected by AIDS and tell your friends, family, or church about child sponsorship using these free materials.
* Walk the steps of a child affected by AIDS through this virtual AIDS Experience.
For more suggestions on things you can do to curb the effects of this heinous disease, read on. Read the rest of this entry »
Plan a Food Drive
November 27th, 2006
The end of Thanksgiving is unfortunately not the end of hunger. With another round of holiday festivities coming up, PBS Kids offers these great suggestions on how to help your kids prepare for a neighborhood food drive!
1. Get some people to help you. You can work with friends, an after-school group, or your class at school. Remember to ask permission from a parent, leader, or teacher first.
2. Find a food bank. Visit Second Harvest, a Web site that lists food banks in each state. (You can also collect food for a local shelter.)
3. Ask an adult to help you call the food bank. Ask to speak with the Volunteer Coordinator. Explain that you are planning a food drive. Ask lots of questions, like: How many people are hungry in your area? What types of food do they need? When and where you should bring the food after the collection? What happens to the food after you deliver it?
For more of the step-by-step guide, read on!
Where are America’s Sex Offenders?
November 27th, 2006
California voters recently passed Proposition 83 which, among other things, requires lifetime monitoring of registered sex offenders by GPS tracking devices that allow their location to be pinpointed on a 24/7 basis.
Though struck down almost immediately by a federal judge as unconstitutional, the measure passed by an overwhelming 70% of voters, surpassing all other voter-initiated ballot measures by almost a full 20%.
Why does having a GPS tracking device attached to the leg of every convicted sex offender in California seem so appealing?
Certainly no one likes sex offenders, and perhaps any law that makes their lives harder seems like a good one to most people. The problem is that the idea makes sense only if sex offenders are people we don’t know. People we can’t find, or can’t catch.
The reality is that 90% of child victims know their offender, with almost half of the offenders being a family member. Source
According to a study by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, 38 percent of child abusers were parents, 33 percent were family friends and for all of the press around internet chat rooms, just 9 percent were the result of online enticement.
The Virginia Sexual and Domestic Violence Action Alliance bears out similar statistics.
Of the 4,326 child victims seen by sexual assault crisis centers from 2000 to 2004, just 7 percent were assaulted by strangers.
“I think the general public has a misunderstanding about what poses the most threat to children,” said Kate McCord, public awareness manager for the alliance. “Not that stranger danger is not something that children should be protected from. But the primary threat to children are the people who care for them on a day-to-day basis.”
No one needs a GPS device to track the location of their uncle or their cousin or their brother’s best friend. The majority of sex offenders don’t need to be located because the victims already know where they live; what they need is to be exposed and prosecuted.
Get the facts about sex offenders and take a look at the Megan’s Law FAQ site to learn more about what a sex offender really looks like.