I owe Sarah a big thank you for her latest health recommendation (she really does give the best ones!), what I’ll call a “miracle potion” because it got Ryan over about a month long off and on cold/illness in two days. It is an immune system booster called Dr. Dunner Sambu Guard and I bought it for $17.49 at my local health store.

It is a relatively small bottle that must be refrigerated and used within eight days of opening, but it is jam-packed with “nutritional support” from wild elderberry fruit and flower, acerola fruit, and echinacea plants. It also contains honey (which sweetens it up wonderfully) as well as a small amount of water, fructose, and citric acid.

Ryan had a sore throat, cough/cold, congestion, upset stomach and he was going up and down for a month (even with plenty of rest and chicken noodle soup) and then heading straight back downhill when I finally went out on a special run for this bottle. He took his first doses on a Saturday and by Sunday he already felt much better. On Monday, he was back at work and feeling almost good as new. It’s been about two weeks since and he is still feeling great.

I have to believe that for him this was just the immune system boost that he needed. And the good news is that you don’t have to already be sick to drink the Sambu Guard. The directions state “Take 1 tbsp. up to 4 times daily to support immune function especially during cold weather”.

Now if you’re feeling even more adventurous than a trip to the health store for an immune system boost, you may be interested in making your own homemade elderberry syrup with the recipe posted at 5 Orange Potatoes. Please let me know if you’ve had any success with Sambu Guard or if you have any other immune system booster ideas!

I recently purchased a great product from the health store- the healthiest, most natural shave foam I’ve seen yet: J.R. Liggett’s Shaving Foam. Believe me, I have looked at a lot of supposedly “natural” shaving creams for my sensitive skin and haven’t found a single one that compares to this.

This particular shave foam comes in a non-aerosol plastic foam bottle (so no rust stains in the tub!) and the top screws off so it is completely reusable. As you might guess there are only a few ingredients, none of them being propane or isobutane, which you would likely find in commercial shaving cream.

The excellent ingredients are as follows: saponified olive oil, coconut oil, castor oil, safflower oil, almond oil, jojoba oil, Vitamin E, essential oils, and natural fragrances. The oils are very moisturizing, but foam up nicely for a gentle, close, and clean shave. This is especially nice for sensitive skin and the foam is even hypo-allergenic. The fragrance is mild and would be good for women or men. I don’t even feel the need to use lotion after shaving because my skin gets so moisturized.

I paid $9.99 for 7 ounces, but since it is in a foam bottle I think it will last for a very long time. This shave option is obviously quite a bit more costly than mass-produced, chemical-loaded bottles, but I truly don’t think you can beat it in terms of health and quality.

While at the Wise Traditions 2009 conference, I had the opportunity to sample and purchase a deliciously healthy and refreshing beverage from the vendor Burgie’s Organics. The Lemon Kefir Soda is a naturally fermented (living) probiotic drink and has only four ingredients: distilled water, organic lemons, kefir grains, and honey. Although I tried many of the other flavors, the lemonade was my favorite!

In case you’re not familiar with it, kefir is a living culture which forms grains and as it ferments milk, keeps forming additional grains. The microorganisms (probiotics) in the grains (such as lactic acid bacteria, acetic acid bacteria, and many more) keep bacteria that would normally putrefy the milk away.

These probiotics are often called “friendly” or “good” bacteria as they help to fight against illness and disease while working to maintain a healthy digestive system. The best part is that they taste good- this lemonade kefir soda has a light, refreshing lemon taste and a delicious kick that reminds you that it is a healthy, fermented beverage.

I was first introduced to the Best Bath Store by my friend, Amanda, who loves their products. I visited the website and found out that they are an extremely small business, with only five employees located in MA. All of the products are handmade and hand packaged at this facility in a very “green” manner. You can see the ingredients used by Best Bath Store for each product on the website.

One great benefit of shopping with the Best Bath Store is that you can try free samples, even though they sell their products online. You can choose a maximum of 5 samples to try at a time for $6.95 in shipping costs. I chose the Dead Sea Facial Scrub, Dead Sea Mud Mask, Moisture Rich Shampoo, Deep Moisturizing Hair Conditioner, and Shea Butter Face & Body Lotion (unscented). I paid the shipping and they were on their way!

I have now tried all of the samples and know that I will be back to buy full size bottles. The shampoo smells wonderful and really seems to moisturize my hair- I noticed it did this before I even paired it with the conditioner. The lotion is also moisturizing, but leaves no greasy feeling. This can be so hard to find!

The dead sea scrub turned out to be the most impressive of all though. I used it before bed and then applied a small amount of lotion. The next morning I was washing my face in the shower and could not believe how soft my face felt- it was unbelievable! I also tried the mud mask this week which was nice, although I think that the pore refining benefits would only be seen with use over time.

Overall, I am very impressed with the product quality from Best Bath Store and appreciate being able to try small sample sizes before committing to full size (and price) products. If you decide to try them out, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed!

I came across a good find at the health store a while back that’s now become a bathroom staple. It’s a tea tree oil floss, or more technically “dental tape” made by Desert Essence. At the price of $2.99, it was actually cheaper than the CleanPaste I was buying so I had to give it a try.

The floss is waxy and thicker than regular floss, which I like for deep cleaning and getting between wider spaces. The floss surprisingly has no flavor, but works just as well as the CleanPaste. (Guess I don’t need that minty taste after all!)

According to the label, the tea tree oil floss is “naturally waxed and saturated with inherently antiseptic Tea Tree Oil”. So not only am I cleaning the gunk out from between my teeth, but I’m also simultaneously rubbing them with the naturally cleaning oil. The package for the floss also notes that it contains no alcohol, artificial color, or synthetic perfumes. And don’t worry, I remembered to check- the floss got a very good rating with the Cosmetics Database.

I’ve been toying with the idea lately of also using tea tree oil as part of a natural mouthwash and/or toothbrush cleaner so I think this is my first step down that path. More will come on this over the next few weeks!

I picked up a fun product at the health store last week called “Tate’s the Natural Miracle Conditioner”. Although I was a bit skeptical of its miracle-working abilities, I decided to give the small 5 oz bottle a chance at the price of $6.49. After trying it out, I certainly don’t regret it- I’ve never purchased a bottle with more uses!

The ingredients are pretty impressive, starting with mountain spring water, apples, berries, celery, etc. and you can check out the full ingredient list here. The product is a creamy white, with a non-greasy feel and very light, fresh smell. My favorite part though is that it came with a booklet noting 82 different uses for the product including as a moisturizer, conditioner, shave gel, cuticle cream, lip balm, fabric softener,  deodorant, ironing (add 1 Tbsp to a bottle of water and spray lightly on clothes before ironing to help with wrinkles), and much more.

So far I’ve used the product as a lotion and conditioner- it moisturized without leaving a greasy feeling on my skin and it also was nice on my hair. My favorite use so far though was as shaving gel. It does not foam, but coats the skin with a nice layer for shaving and I think my sensitive skin was appreciative of the natural ingredients. I’ve been trying to get away from my current chemical based shaving cream for quite some time and I think this is just what I’ve been looking for.

Overall, it’s a great little mulit-tasking product and is perfect for travelling when there isn’t room to pack lots of bottles. If you decide to try it out, make sure to get the little booklet on all the different uses- it’s pretty fun testing them out!

I was lucky enough to run into a wonderful vendor, Dee Bellini, at the local Artisan’s market again this year. She is the founder of Bars by Bellini and has an offering of handmade natural skin care products that work extremely well. I’m writing this to tell you the best part-  you can now buy them online. She even offers free shipping for orders over $100 (and you could try out a lot of her products for that much!).

I won’t relay all of the ingredients on the labels of her products (since they are not all listed on her website and I wouldn’t want to publish anything she might not want online), but I am sure that if you needed to know the specific ingredients you could e-mail the contact address listed on the site. I will; however, describe my experiences with the products I’ve purchased so far.

The Lemon Buttercream Buff is a foaming scrub that exfoliates the skin and I use it about once a week. I bought the little tub last summer and it is only about half gone so you can see it can last for quite some time. It contains high quality ingredients such as coconut and jojoba oil as well as exfoliating agents. When I purchased this Dee noted that I would not have to use a moisturizer after it since it actually leaves the skin very moist. It certainly lives up to this although I do tend to still use an extra moisturizer afterwards because I like my skin feeling extra hydrated.

I have also purchased the Herbal Mask which is made with fresh lavender, slippery elm, comfrey, sea kelp, and bentonite clay. I simply mix a small amount of the powder with water (a shot glass works great for this) and then apply it to my face, rinsing off after about 15 minutes of drying time. It seems to really refresh and rejuvenate my skin. Sarah also recently purchased this, too, so she might have further comments to share.

I also use the Rosemary Lavender Toner which is one of my favorite products that I’ve had since last summer. It has a wonderful, relaxing smell and I simply pour a little on a cotton ball and run it over my face and throat. I could probably use this every day, but often forget and so I still have 3/4 of the bottle left.

And of course, I have saved what I think is the very best for last: the Goat’s Milk and Aloe Cream. Trying the sample at the market, I loved the light smell and the non-greasy , moisturized feel it left on my skin. Dee said that it is good for smaller, more specific areas such as feet. I noticed a huge improvement on my dry heels after using this at bedtime every night for a about a week. The moisture does not fade away, but seems to really absorb and last, unlike other foot lotions I’ve tried. According to the website, the goat’s milk works for strengthening, the aloe is soothing, and hempseed oil is added for moisturizing. It’s really been working great for me as during the summer my feet sometimes get pretty rough from drying out in sandals.

I truly hope that if you try out these products, you enjoy them as much as I do. If you happen to be in Grand Rapids area, you can even meet Dee and try the products at the regular Sunday Fulton St. Artisan’s Market.

Since homemade natural soap can be significantly more expensive than unhealthy mass-produced bars, I try to use mine down to the very last suds. My new “soap sock”  pictured here has definitely helped me out in doing this.

I found the soap sock on Etsy.com for about $4 and it is knit of very soft yarn and meant to be easy on the skin. I hung it on the hook in my bathroom so it can dry out after a shower and all I need to do for the next use is get it wet and rub it a little to get it sudsing again.

The soap sock is very gentle and if it feels too rough after I first wet it down, I just run it under the warm water again and soften it a little more by rubbing. After that, the sock is as soft and sudsy as my first use. It is also large and flexible enough to fit a variety of bar shapes and sizes.

A soap sock is a great little tool to have in the home; if you’re interested you can either find one online, make your own, or search for one at a local craft show or farmer’s market.

If you’re looking to shine up your “do” or add that piecy, sexy look to your hair, you’re in for a “natural” treat. Finding a healthy and homemade hair wax was not an easy task (since so many of these mainstream products are filled with nasty ingredients), but my new little tub was well worth the wait.

As you might guess, it’s got minimal ingredients: olive oil, beeswax, and aloe vera juice. It has a light, honey-like scent and only takes a teeny, tiny bit on my fingers to add an all-over smooth look to my style. It also adds moisture to dry ends and gives a wonderful shine. Best yet though, it doesn’t irritate my skin or eyes because the ingredients are so safe.

I found this little tub called VanBeez Hair Wax on Etsy.com (Nyse Designs) for only $5 plus shipping for 60g (I don’t know how much that is in oz) and it looks like it will last a very long time. The creator developed the recipe in her kitchen after having a bad reaction to hair wax from a salon. She states that it works best with curly or wavy hair, but it’s worked fine for me even when I wear mine straight.

Since I’ve paid much higher prices in the past for salon and other mainstream hair waxes (which often contain dangerous ingredients) and this is more economical and works wonderfully, I wanted to make sure to spread the word. Hopefully you enjoy it as much as I do if you decide to try it out!

If you remember back a few months ago to my Erzulie Cosmetics post on beautiful, truly natural makeup, you may have thought that it couldn’t get any better (I know I didn’t- and I’m still enjoying ALL of the products!). But excitingly enough, it does. Rhonda Demars, founder of Erzulie Cosmetics, has also created a new line of baby skincare products. In my opinion, they are the best products you can buy to care for a baby.

The product line is called Nature Babyz and is featured on Etsy.com. The products include shampoo, conditioner/detangler, body wash, baby powder, chest rub (the natural alternative to Vick’s, which has some very questionable ingredients), lotion, butt balm, a calming mist that smells amazing (I spray it on my pillow every night), and baby oil.

You won’t see any scary ingredients in these products and they are truly made with the end user (a baby!) in mind. Unlike huge companies that obviously (by their chosen ingredients) choose profits over a baby’s health, Erzulie Cosmetics carefully selects ingredients based on health and functionality. Babies simply don’t need to be slathered in mass-produced chemicals to be clean and moisturized. Mainstream ingredients may be cheap for big producers, but they are harmful and unnecessary and will be absorbed into a baby’s skin.

You won’t find any cheap fillers or dangerous, mainstream ingredients in the Nature Babyz line. You can also rest assured that the products do NOT contain any of the following ingredients: sulfates, gluten, talc, chemicals, parabens, PEG’s, glycols, acrylates, synthetic silicones, phthalates (plastic esters), BHT, petroleum bi-products, synthetic fragrances, or DEA.

As an example in comparing mass-produced baby products to Nature Babyz, if you’ve ever checked the ingredients on a bottle of baby oil at a pharmacy or grocery store you know that the oil is usually close to 100% mineral oil. Hopefully, you are already familiar with the dangers of mineral oil (you’ll find some extra-shocking information here), but it is an especially bad ingredient for babies.

The Nature Babyz oil; however, has the following ingredients: sunflower oil, jojoba oil, grapeseed oil, olive oil, vitamim E, and lavender essential oil. These are expensive ingredients to use because they are so much healthier, but the 2 oz bottle is only $4! The other items are priced similarly, and are really quite reasonable considering the quality.

Overall, the Nature Babyz products are gentle and healthy; you might even enjoy them for yourself (I’m thinking of trying out the shampoo next!). Remember that a healthy baby is not one that is covered in mainstream, chemical-based products that can lead to effects such as cancer.  Don’t let your baby pay the price for government and corporate irresponsibility, healthier products are available!