Textile Truths: A Parent's Guide to Fabric Selection for Baby

Fertilizer for Plants in Pots

What do people with MCS use to fertilize flowers in pots outside and in the outside garden for acidic and non-acidic loving plants? Are the 3 month feed pellets ok to use outside in the garden? I haven't fed my plants outside for 6 years now because I don't know what is safe to feed them. We have river rock as mulch in our main flower bed so I'd need something that doesn't have to be worked into the soil. I was thinking mushroom compost for the bed that didn't have river rock in it but that has cocoa in it and I don't want to use that because it could poison our dogs. Thank you for your help.

Sincerely,

Colleen

PVC and Lead Dust

Hi Debra, I have two questions that go hand in hand.

I've been reading a lot lately about lead dust on PVC products, but I'm confused. Does the item (like a toy or window blind) need to be deteriorating to produce lead dust, or can household dust settling on an item (that's intact) get lead in it?

Also, our house is six years old, and the builder used faux wood doors throughout. They're made of some kind of plastic, and now I'm worried that they're PVC but have no way of knowing for sure. They're hard plastic with a fake wood grain. Are you familiar with these doors? If they are PVC, would you suggest replacing them? We have 24 of these doors!

Again, thank you for all you do!

Donna

Twine to Make an Outdoor Doormat?

Hello Debra, I was wondering if you could suggest a natural or one of the 'safer' non-natural twines or yarns that someone could use for an outdoor doormat. I would like to have something that didn't mildew or mold, since I am sensitive to mold and I have heard that sisal can be bad when it gets wet. Any ideas?

Thank you so much!

How to Kill a Toxic Spider?

This morning there was a spider on my balcony, in a corner, about two feet off the ground. It was about three inches from the sliding glass/screen door to the living room. It looked like a baby black widow spider, so I didn't want to take the chance that it would come inside. Fortunately it was within arms' reach, so I finally put on a very long plastic glove, smooshed it with a damp piece of toilet paper after it fell to the ground, and threw it in the trash. But I got to thinking, when it appears that the spider is not harmless, and we don't want to spray it with Raid, I am wondering what the options are, especially if it doesn't look like it will be an easy job to kill it, and I most definitely didn't want to try to catch it and take it somewhere else. The wall texture is stucco, so I couldn't surround it with Chinese Chalk, which isn't nontoxic anyway.

Blocking Fumes from Vinyl Shelving

Hi Debra! Thanks so much for your site and all the great info you provide. I have a question about vinyl shelving. We currently have shelving in our rental home that is vinyl. Unfortunately removing it is not an option as we are renting. The shelving is in our pantry, every closet, and our laundry room so going without using it would drastically cut down on our storage space. Is there anyway to protect ourselves from the shelves out-gassing? This is our second year living here, and I don't think the shelves were put in right before we came so I am guessing they have been here at least two to three years. Is it safe to store things in the closets but not actually on the shelves? Thank you so much---this site is such a valuable source of information!

Safe Water While Traveling

I was wondering if you could share any thoughts on how to travel/vacation with the least amount of toxins. I struggle every time we go on vacation with things like water. At home we have a whole house water filter but what do you do when on vacation? Is it better to buy bottled water rather than drink the local water (in the U.S.) from the tap? How about using the water pitcher filters even though they don't filter out a whole lot of contaminants? Is it worth it to take a shower filter? I try to keep thing in perspective that this is only a week away from our normal toxic free living but always worry since my 6 y/o son had leukemia.

Least Toxic Way to Pack a Drink for a Kid's School Lunch

what is the least toxic way to pack a drink for a kid's school lunch? I was using Honest kids juice pouches but they get so expensive and so does organic milk in the mini containers. I am curious to know what the inner lining of those types of containers is made out of? It seems my only options would be a reusable plastic water bottle (ugh!) or a stainless steel water bottle. Both have leaching issues. Kids can't take glass to school so the glass water bottles are out. thanks for your help.

Nontoxic Water Nozzle?

Debra, Any suggestions for a non-toxic water nozzle? Every one I've seen has brass or plastic and is not good. How about aluminum? What's the lesser of all these evils? And what do you use in your garden? Thanks.

Dr Oz Finally Says No to Sunscreens

Dr Oz amazingly enough is finally debunking the myth of sunscreens and their cancer-causing, endocrine-disrupting dangers. http://www.doctoroz.com/videos/oz-investigates-your-sunscreen-poisonous-pt-1

Sorry, this isn't a question but of interest to all here; after years of hearing Dr Oz recommend sunscreen & wanting to yell at my TV about the danger of toxic chemicals being worse than any sun-promoted cancers, this is long overdue! (We can only hope the air "fresheners" dangers show will follow soon).

Warning: on part 2 there's this nightmare of a woman from the AAD (American Academy of Dermatology) with her horrible (to be polite) denial & useless, ignorant rebuttals about "lack of scientific proof" that will make everyone here cringe. (Why people fall for that line will forevermore be beyond me!)

Now if only he could stop promoting the toxic chemical face & eye cream lines! Not to be mean but he says he uses them and obviously they're not working for him! Well one step at a time, I guess!