Update

Hey everyone! Just wanted to fill you in on a update. Ella is scheduled for a tonsillectomy and a aspiration of her neck lymph nodes on Tuesday. She has PFAPA and the tonsillectomy will give her a 60% chance of curing it. They are aspirating her lymph nodes to make sure it is nothing else. It's been a crazy month with millions of Dr. visits and a hospital stay. :( I wrote this for the Franklin Goose Newsletter and wanted to share with you.

Last week Ella was in the hospital for a baseball sized cluster of lymph nodes in her neck. While we were in the "most sanitary" environment, it still proved to be toxic. When we arrived, we were given extra pillows (which were fire retardant!), scary personal products, and some chemical smelly extra sheets and towels. Luckily, I brought E's pillow and I was the one who slept on the PBDE doused pillow- which caused my face to break out like a teenager's! Yuck!

But the personal products are what freaked me out the most. When the nurse handed me Johnson & Johnson baby shampoo I asked her if she was kidding me. She gave me a crazy look and said they've had J&J for 14 years. When I told her about J&J admitting and refusing to reformulate their iconic baby products that contain 1,4 dioxane and formaldehyde (cancer causing chemicals) she about lost it. Most people who are in the hospital have weakened immune systems, so you think they would pay close attention to the chemicals going into their body!

Johnson & Johnson usually rate a 4-7 on the Cosmetic Safety Database, which is moderately to highly hazardous. The ingredients in J&J products are known to cause; cancer, reproductive toxicity, neurotoxicity, endocrine disruption, immunotoxicity, organ system toxicity, skin irritations, and biochemical or cellular level changes. The other products they gave us were Keri Moisture Oil, and Cardinal Health Shampoo and Lotion. Keri scored a 5 and the Cardinal Heath didn't even show up. I did look up every ingredient and they were higher than 5's. So, I'm sure they have a super high hazard score. :(

This is when knowing how to read personal care labels comes in handy. My rule of thumb is if it has methyl, butyl, ethyl, proply, or fragrance in the ingredients name I stay away from it. Also, stay away from parabens, methylisothiazolinone, triclosan, boric acid, sodium borate, phenoxyethanol, diazolidinyl urea, Quaternium 15, cocomidopropyl betaine, sodium laureth sulfate, cocamide DEA, TEA (Triethanolamine), 1,4 Dioxane, and ceteareth-12 alcohol. The Cosmetic Databse has a cool download you can use when out shopping.

This just goes to show you can't trust what anyone gives you. Well they say knowledge brings power, and in this case it brought safety. Make sure you are aware of what hospitals, doctors, and even schools are giving your children. You won't believe how many ENT's told me to give E Tylenol during our visits- when all of children's Tylenol has been recalled. Write to establishments asking them to switch to products like Earth Mama Angel Baby or other natural/organic alternatives. We can make a difference and create toxin free environments for our children!