This section is devoted to the information that will be useful in the creation of a Kin's Domains.
Children, Television, and Screen Time
by Judith Graham, Extension Human Development Specialist
Many Maine parents, providers, and educators are concerned about the amount of television and the type of programming to which children are being exposed. Young children under the age of two spend, on average, two hours every day watching TV or other screen media. The American Academy of Pediatrics advises that children under age two watch no television. Studies show that too much television viewing can have negative affects: children may have attention difficulties, they may have delays in language and develop smaller vocabularies, they may have more violent and aggressive play and behavior, and they are more likely to be obese.
The 'Parents as Teachers National Center' says that young children need to "explore, move, manipulate, smell, touch and repeat as they learn." Research tells us that watching television or sitting in front of a screen does not increase attention, promote social skills, or foster creative play. Children should engage in the activities they need to help them develop their bodies and brains instead of watching television.
Children over the age of eight spend on average more than seven hours a day consuming entertainment media. This can include DVDs, the Internet, and videogames, using the phone, texting, or doing combinations of these and multitasking! It is important for children to play, read, do homework without distraction, and have in person conversations with other children and adults. These experiences are important for healthy social, brain, and emotional development,. Children who watch too much TV or are absorbed by screen time have less time for interactions and for free play, which are both important for healthy development.
Language Development and Television
Language skills are best developed through reading and interactions with others in conversation and play. Think of it like a tennis match, where one person serves the ball, and the other returns it. Children learn language when adults or others interact with them, returning their expressions and responding to noises and questions. Excessive television watching can impede this development. The television and computer do not talk back in a genuine way.
Children as Couch Potatoes
Childhood obesity is a national problem, and results from the Youth Risk Behavior Survey show that over 10% of Maine's youth are obese. Among young children under 5, those rates may be closer to 40%. Inactivity plays a huge role in weight gain, and television watching consumes only a few more calories than sleeping. Even active videogames where children stand and move do burn some calories, but not as many as playing the actual games like tennis or bowling. Although interactive video games burn minimal calories, parents should encourage playing the actual games, like going outside to play tennis or run. In order to burn calories with video games, you have to play as if you were really playing the real thing, and you have to try very hard. For example, playing tennis burns 8.1 calories per minute. Playing a video tennis game like Wii burns about 5/3 calories per minute.
Children who watch more television don't get as much physical activity and don't have time to explore new activities in the same way as children who spend less time in front of a screen.
Eating too much junk food and watching too much television are two major causes for obesity. And when children sit in front of the TV, they are more likely to snack and also to see advertisements for food products.
Advertising and Children
According to J. Van Evra, author of "Television and Child Development", young children are particularly vulnerable to the influence of commercial advertising. They do not have the capacity to evaluate it critically, and as a result parents are pressured to buy products such as cereal and toys. Children who watch TV consume more soft drinks and snacks, which are heavily advertised on television.
What Are Children Watching?
Violence in the media, television programming, video games and movies are a growing concern. According to Carla Kalin, M. S., statistics indicate that the typical American child will be exposed to 12,000 violent acts on television a year. "The American Psychological Association Help Center" reveals that children's TV programming alone contains about 20 violent acts an hour.
Children are imitators and those who watch violent shows are more likely to display aggressive behavior. They are more likely to "strike out at playmates, argue, and disobey authority" according to the American Psychological Association Help Center. The Parents as Teachers National Center suggests that violent television programming teaches children that violence is an acceptable way to solve problems.
According to the Parents as Teachers National Center, the toddler and preschool years are an important time for emotional development, as well as a time when fears increase, and many children cannot distinguish reality from fantasy. Watching a violent act on TV may be very disturbing to a toddler. "The American Psychological Association Help Center" suggests that there are three types of harmful effects associated with viewing violence. They are:
- Learning aggressive behaviors and attitudes (like hitting in order to get a toy from a friend)
- Becoming desensitized to real world violence (thinking that it's okay to tell people "I hate you" without talking about your feelings if you're angry)
- Developing a fear of being victimized (feeling unsafe walking home from school)
|
The only way to know the impact of television or other programs on your child is to talk with them about what they see. The Parents as Teachers National Center notes that children who watch shows with violent content have more anxiety about the world around them. You can reduce this anxiety by reducing or eliminating exposure to violent programs and games. Some children will have anxiety because of overhearing programs on television, so it's important to check in with them about where their fears might be coming from.
Is All Television or Media Bad for Kids?
Programs for infants can be harmful, and research suggests that children under 2 who watch programs designed to "teach" or help with "brain development" learn less than children who spend time playing and interacting with other children or adults. This is also true for toddlers, where each additional hour of TV has been found to relate to decreased classroom engagement and a higher body mass index.
Some television watching or screen time with parent discretion is beneficial for school age children. Parent discretion means helping your child make a wise choice about the content of a program. You can use the rating system (see details below), see if it is age appropriate or if it has educational benefit. Some programs for children can be educational and promote prosocial behavior. When parents watch the programs with children and talk about them, helping them to think about what they've been watching, the effects of TV are less negative. There are ways to watch TV effectively with your child to support moderate use that can stimulate a child's education and creativity. Some ideas are:
- Ask questions about shows that ask your child to predict what's going to happen
- Turn down the volume on commercials and explain to your child that advertisements are not part of the program
- Take the characters from shows and create stories about them at a later time using paper and crayons or have your child talk while you type what she is saying
- If there is an upsetting or violent scene in a program, ask her what she thinks of what she saw (did it scare her? What does she think is a good way to solve problems?)
- Question what you see. TV characters don't always make good decisions-does your child have other ideas that might be examples of better decision making?
- Talk about your favorite characters in the show
|
Being willing to take small risks is an important part of development, especially in social situations. TV can be a distraction from necessary risk taking and can interfere with trying new things or meeting new people and developing social relationships.
What You Can Do
How can you guide your child's television viewing? The government, in cooperation with the television industry, has implemented a rating system for television programming. This system is to help guide parents and assist them in establishing guidelines for their children's TV viewing. However, the American Psychological Association Help Center reminds us that television networks rate their own programs, unlike the motion picture association.
In 1996, the Telecommunications Act was passed in an attempt to help parents restrict the viewing habits of their children. A device inside of the television called the "v-chip" can be programmed from a remote control. All new TVs made after 2000 were required by law to have the v-chip, but a 2004 study revealed that only 15% of parents actually use the v-chip. Instructions for using the v-chip are included with your television instruction manual.
Even with the rating system and the v-chip in place, parents still need to take an active interest in what their children are watching on television. The American Academy of Pediatrics started the Media Matters campaign to inform parents about types of media and kids.
Here are some suggestions from the organizations Zero to Three and the American Academy of Pediatrics.
- SET LIMITS. Children under age two should watch no television. Children under 8 should consume no more than 1-2 hours. Know how much TV your child is watching. Set some basic rules such as no television before homework or chores are done or during meals. Keep TV out of your child's bedroom.
- CAREGIVERS AND BABYSITTERS. Talk with your family or child care provider about what to do when they care for your child. If you have a "no TV" policy, that includes time your child spends with them. Ask them to leave the TV off and suggest games that your child likes to play.
- PARTICIPATE. Watch TV with your child and discuss the program. Ask them questions and express your views. This will also let you know what your children are watching.
- MONITOR. Avoid shows, movies, or video games that have violent or sexual content. Encourage children to watch programs about characters who show cooperation and caring.
- ANALYZE COMMERCIALS. Help children to critically evaluate advertisements. Explain to your child the different between a "want" versus a "need" and that advertisements are designed to sell us things we don't need.
- BE A GOOD ROLE MODEL. This suggestion comes from the Parents as Teachers National Center. Because children model behavior, set a good example with your own television viewing habits. Avoid watching programs containing adult content when your child is in the room or nearby.
- BACKGROUND NOISE. Turning off the TV even if you're not watching it is important. Research shows that young children are distracted when a TV is on. It interrupts their play, and can reduce the interactions between parent and child. Don't go to restaurants that have televisions that can cause distractions for customers.
|
Ten Things Toddlers Can Do Besides Watch TV
Interaction, reading, and play activities are important to a child's brain development and learning. These types of activities are preferred to passively watching television. They matter in the healthy development of social, emotional, and intellectual skills. Here are some ideas from the Parents as Teachers National Center for activities to do with your child instead of watching TV:
- EXPLORE. Baby-proof an entire room and put an assortment of toys and safe household objects in the room to play with.
- WATCH. Hang a bird feeder outside a window where the child can see the birds and squirrels.
- LISTEN. Play music at a moderate volume and encourage your child to sing and dance.
- TOUCH. Toddlers like to dig, scoop, and mold, exercising their emerging fine motor skills. Provide some play dough or a bowl half filled with beans, and cups for scooping.
- SPLASH. Let your child play in the bathtub. However, never leave you child alone even for a minute when he or she is in the tub.
- LOOK AT BOOKS. Read a book or just look at the pictures with your child. Try to have some books that are unfamiliar so they will hold your child's attention.
- BAG IT. Let your child unpack and repack a suitcase or tote bag with toys or safe household items.
- SLEEP. Help your child develop a good sense of naptime and bedtime habits.
- HELP. Since toddlers like to be where the action is, let them play alongside you while you work. Think creatively about how your child can help you with a task.
- FIND A FRIEND. Trade babysitting time with other parents of toddlers so your child can experience being with other children. This interaction will contribute to healthy development.
|
Families and screen time - a summary
For many children, over 30% of their time will be spent in front of a TV and/or computer. Fortunately, most parents pay attention to what children are watching, talk with them about it, and place some limits on screen time. Infants do not need screen time at all, young children should be exposed to as little as possible, and all screen time should be a shared experience with adults, who can talk with children about what they see.
Having family movie nights can be lots of fun when everyone is interested in the movie, and these should be special occasions. These hours in front of the screen add up, and mean that less time has been spent interacting, talking, and playing imaginative games.
The most entertaining experiences are in real conversations, story telling, sharing, and laughter. Spend as much time as you can with these activities, and save the TV for a rainy day.
RESOURCES:
American Academy of Pediatrics (2001). Children, adolescents, and television. Pediatrics. (107). 423-426.
Anders, M., (2008) As good as the real thing? ACE Fitness Matters, July/August, 7-9.
Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (2010). YRBSS: Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System. Retrieved from: http://www.cdc.gov/HealthyYouth/yrbs/
Family Education Network (2010). Watch TV Along with Your Child. Retrieved from http://life.familyeducation.com/television/toddler/53399.html?detoured=1
Kalin, C. (1997). Television, Violence, and Children. (Maste''s synthesis paper, Department of Educational Leadership, Technology, and Administration, College of Education, University of Oregon).
Kaiser Family Foundation (2010). Generation M2: Media in the lives of 8-18 year olds. Retrieved from http://www.kff.org/entmedia/
Kidsource Online (2010). What parents need to know about children's television viewing. Retrieved from http://www.kidsource.com/Kidsource/content/TV.viewing.html
Rupured, M., Smith, P.R., &, Qiuck, S. (2007). Television: Friend or Foe, Research for Families and Children Newsletter, 6(2), 10-13.
Ozmert, E., Yoyran, M., & Yurdakok, K. (2002). Behavioral correlates of television viewing in primary school children evaluated by the child behavior checklist. Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, 156 (9). 910-914.
Pagani, L.S., Fitzpatrick, C., Barnett, T.A., & Dubow, E. (2010). Prospective Associations Between Early Childhood Television Exposure and Academic, Psychosocial, and Physical Well-being by Middle Childhood. Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, 164(5), 425-431.
J. Van Evra, (1998). Television and Child Development, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc., Publishers.
Ravichandran, P. & deBravo, B.F., (June, 2010). Young Children and Screen Time (Television, DVDs, Computer). National Research Center for Women and Families.
Rideout, V.J., Vandewater, E.A., & Wartella, E.A. (Fall, 2003). Zero to Six: Electronic Media in the lives of infants, toddlers and preschoolers. The Kaiser Family Foundation.
Zimmerman, F.J., Christakis, D.A., & Meltzoff, A.N. (2007) Associations between Media Viewing and Language Development in Children Under Age 2 Years. The Journal of Pediatrics, 151(4), 364-368.
http://umaine.edu/
Image Copyright: http://www.ostrovlubvi.com/; http://www.paedology.ru/
Outdoor play
Excerpted from Play, Development and Early Education by Johnson, Christie and Wardle
Introduction
Playgrounds are places where children's play can take off and flourish. Good outdoor playgrounds are large enough and designed in such a way that children's play can come to full expression, where children can make a mess, run, jump and hide, where they can shout, whistle and explore the natural world. A variety of factors determine the quality of a playground for young children from infants to eight-year-olds. These include design of the play area, safety issues, play equipment, accessibility, and adult supervision. Particular emphasis should be placed on how playgrounds must encourage all forms of play. There is a critical need to develop a disposition for outdoor physical activities in our young children. Outdoor play should not become too academic and too teacher controlled.
Purpose of outdoor play
There are two fundamental reasons why outdoor play is critical for young children in our early childhood programmes and schools. First, many of the developmental tasks that children must achieve - exploring, risk-taking, fine and gross motor development and the absorption of vast amounts of basic knowledge - can be most effectively learned through outdoor play. Second, our culture is taking outdoor play away from young children through excessive TV and computer use, unsafe neighborhoods, busy and tired parents, educational accountability, elimination of school recess, and academic standards that push more and more developmentally inappropriate academics into our early childhood programmes, thus taking time away from play. The following sections (based on Wardle, 1996-2003) describe the main reasons why outdoor play is critical for the healthy development of young children.
Physical exercise
Children need to develop large motor and small motor skills and cardiovascular endurance. Gallahue (1993) provides a comprehensive discussion of the motor development and movement skill acquisition of young children, which must be encouraged in outdoor playgrounds. Extensive physical activity is also needed to address a growing problem of obesity in American children.
Enjoyment of the outdoors
Outdoor play is one of the things that characterize childhood. And as Lord Nuffield once said, the best preparation for adulthood is to have a full and enjoyable childhood. Thus childhood must include outdoor play. Children need opportunities to explore, experiment, manipulate, reconfigure, expand, influence, change, marvel, discover, practice, dam up, push their limits, yell, sing, and create. Some of our favorite childhood memories are outdoor activities. This is no accident.
Learning about the world
Outdoor play enables young children to learn lots and lots and lots of things about the world. How does ice feel and sound? Can sticks stand up in sand? How do plants grow? How does mud feel? Why do we slide down instead of up? How do I make my tricycle go faster? How does the overhang of the building create cool shade from the sun? What does a tomato smell and taste like? What does a chrysalis change into? Do butterflies have to learn to fly? Much of what a child learns outside can be learned in a variety of other ways, but learning it outside is particularly effective - and certainly more fun! In the outside playground children can learn math, science, ecology, gardening, ornithology, construction, farming, vocabulary, the seasons, the various times of the day, and all about the local weather. Not only do children learn lots of basic and fundamental information about how the world works in a very effective manner, they are more likely to remember what they learned because it was concrete and personally meaningful (Ormrod, 1997).
Learning about self and the environment
To learn about their own physical and emotional capabilities, children must push their limits. How high can I swing? Do I dare go down the slide? How high can I climb? Can I go down the slide headfirst? To learn about the physical world, the child must experiment with the physical world. Can I slide on the sand? Can I roll on grass? What happens when I throw a piece of wood into the pond? Is cement hard or soft to fall on? An essential task of development is appreciating how we fit into the natural order of things - animals, plants, the weather, and so on. To what extent does nature care for us by providing water, shade, soft surfaces, and sweet-smelling flowers? And to what extent does it present problems, such as hard surfaces, the hot sun, and thorns on bushes? We can discover this relationship with the natural world only by experiencing it as we grow up, develop, and interact with the natural environment.
The surplus-energy theory
The surplus-energy theory of play hypothesizes that play allows people to release pent-up energy that has collected over time. Many teachers and administrators believe that after intense (and often inactive) academic classroom pursuits, children need to "let off steam." To some extent, educators also believe that outdoor play enables children to "recharge their batteries," to reinvigorate themselves by engaging in a very different activity from their classroom experience. This recreation theory of play enables children to get ready to return to the important work of academic learning. These theories view outdoor play as an essential component to academic learning, not as an important activity in its own right.
Health
Everyone who works with young children in early childhood programmes and schools knows how quickly bacteria and viruses spread in these environments. One way to reduce the spread of infection is through lots and lots of fresh air. Outdoor play enables the infectious agents to spread out and be dissipated; it also enables children to get fresh air and exercise and be less constrained than they are in the classroom (Aronson, 2002).
Outdoor play also enables children to enjoy the natural environment and learn to seek out exercise, fresh air, and activity. There is something fundamentally healthy about using the outdoors. Thus outdoor play develops disposition for the outdoors, for physical activity, and for care of the environment. Children who engage in lots of physical activities at school tend to engage in more energetic activities at home, while children who have childcare and school experiences that lack active physical activity, engage in more sedentary behaviors at home, such as watching TV and computer use (Dale, Corbin, & Dale, 2000). Children who learn to enjoy the outdoors have a much higher likelihood of becoming adults who enjoy hiking, gardening, jogging, bicycling, mountain climbing, or other outdoor endeavors. This is critical as obesity becomes an ever-greater national concern and as we must all learn to care for and protect the environment.
Allowing children to be children
Using open space to fulfill basic childhood needs - jumping, running, climbing, swinging, racing, yelling, rolling, hiding, and making a big mess - is what childhood is all about! For a variety of obvious reasons many of these things cannot occur indoors. Yet children must have these important experiences. Today children's lives are more and more contained and controlled by small apartments; high-stakes academic instruction; schedules; tense, tired, and overworked parents; and by fewer opportunities to be children. Outdoor environments fulfill children's basic needs for freedom, adventure, experimentation, risk-taking, and just being children (Greenman, 1993).
Children need the opportunity to explore the unknown, the unpredictable, and the adventurous. They also need to be able to wonder at nature, from the worm gliding through the newly turned dirt in the garden to the monarch butterfly emerging out of the chrysalis and gracefully fluttering away in the summer breeze.
Encouraging different kinds of play
- PHYSICAL PLAY.
In general, physical play should be encouraged by climbing equipment and swings (also in the toddler area), tricycle paths, and large areas of grass and hills on which pre-schoolers can run and crawl and infants and toddlers can lie, crawl, and roll. Tricycle paths are used for Big Toys, tricycles, scooters, balls, jogging, and wagons. Climbing equipment for infants and toddlers should be very basic, including a crawling tunnel, small steps, and a slide. Because toddlers are very insecure on their feet, special attention should be paid to barriers - the railings and sides of raised equipment. A variety of sloped areas help children learn to adjust their balance on differing surfaces. Although it is important to encourage specific motor skills such as fine and gross motor development, it is more important to support the development of the brain and nerve functions and growth. Thus rolling, crawling, running and climbing, and swinging on swings are all absolutely critical activities for young children.
- CONSTRUCTIVE PLAY
Research continually shows that constructive play is the pre-schoolers' favorite kind of play, probably because they can and do control it (Ihn, 1998). Constructive play is encouraged by using sand and water play, providing a place for art, woodwork and blocks, wheeled toys, and lots of loose objects throughout the playground. Constructive play occurs in sandboxes, in sand and water areas, on flat surfaces, even on grass (Wardle, 1994).
- LISTEN. Play music at a moderate volume and encourage your child to sing and dance.
- TOUCH. Toddlers like to dig, scoop, and mold, exercising their emerging fine motor skills. Provide some play dough or a bowl half filled with beans, and cups for scooping.
- SOCIAL PLAY
Children need lots of opportunities outside to develop basic social skills and social competencies: pushing each other on the swing, pulling a wagon carrying another child, playing together in the sand, and so on. Clearly, physical play, constructive play, and sociodramatic play also involve social play, especially if the equipment encourages the engagement of more than one child. Projects such as gardening, observing the weather in a separate science area, and having a picnic can be - and should be - social activities.
- SOCIODRAMATIC PLAY
A good playground must have playhouses, forts, and other structures that children can change, adapt, reconfigure, impose their own meaning on, and use to expand their imagination. These structures encourage rich sociodramatic play; further, they are an ideal place for the playground to reflect the cultures of the children who use it.
Dramatic play requires children to impose details, information, and meaning into their play. It is richer and more beneficial because they do so and dramatic play structures should be very simple and basic in design and construction. A basic structure of four walls, a roof, and a window can be the children's home, a classroom, a doctor's office, or a castle. On the other hand, a realistic replica of a 7-11 convenience store can only be a 7-11, and a rocket can only be a rocket (Wardle, 2003a).
- GAMES WITH RULES
The well-known games of Drop the Hanky, Red Light - Green Light, Simon Says, and Follow the Leader, are all simple games with rules, the highest level of cognitive play (Piaget, 1962). Children need places outside to play these games, and to "all fall down" is much more pleasant on grass than on concrete.
|
Outdoor play advocacy
According to Sutterby and Frost (2002FD), too many educators, politicians, and parents believe outdoor play takes time away from academic activities. As a result recess and physical education in many schools is limited or totally eliminated. Further, programmes that do advocate outdoor play often focus on learning cognitive and academic skills, rather than encouraging needed physical pursuits and social interactions. Major reasons for this problem is the adoption of academic standards by many state departments of education, the move to accountability, and the Bush administration's No Child Left Behind initiative.
However, there is a growing number of people and organizations that are attempting to reverse this trend. They include IPA and IPA USA, People C.A.R.E., and countless individual teachers, professors, writers, and ordinary parents.
Summary
Providing for the outdoor play needs of young children is a complex and challenging task. A variety of factors must be considered, including the various play needs of young children, supervision, safety, and ADA access. However, because our children experience fewer and fewer opportunities to explore nature, run, roll, climb, and swing and because outdoor play is part of being a child, we must find a variety of ways to provide quality outdoor play experiences for children, infants through age eight years. This task is made even more important as our early childhood programmes focus more and more on teaching basic skills and early academics.
From Johnson, Christie & Wardle; Play, Development and Early Education, 1e published by Allyn and Bacon, Boston, MA. Copyright (c) 2005 by Pearson Education. Reprinted by permission of the publisher.
http://www.communityplaythings.co.uk/
Image copyrights: http://xydoshnik-ds1.blogspot.com/; http://babysaratov.ru/
Watch Video:
The Importance of Outdoor Play
Vitamin B Group
The B group of vitamins is a collection of essential nutrients that have certain characteristics in common. They are water soluble and are usually found in similar food sources such as brewer's yeast, animal meats, cereals and vegetable proteins.
The vitamin B group contains many individual vitamins including the following:
- Vitamin B1 (thiamine)
- Vitamin B2 (riboflavin)
- Vitamin B3 (niacin)
- Vitamin B5 (pantothenic acid)
- Vitamin B6 (pyridoxine)
- Vitamin B12 (cobalmin)
- Folic acid or vitamin Bc
- Biotin or coenzyme R or vitamin H
- Choline
- Inositol
|
The vitamin B complex is an extremely important group of vitamins that the body must have to enable it to:
1. change food into energy,
2. maintain a strong immune system,
3. balance many of the body's hormones,
and perform a wide variety of other tasks.
The B vitamins work together as a complex and are dependent upon each other to perform their individual tasks in the body.
The insufficient intake of one B vitamin can create imbalances and deficiencies in others and impair the body's ability to assimilate and metabolize them. If a depletion or excess of one over the others occurs for a period of any duration, there will be a problem in the entire complex.
Because of this relationship between the B vitamins, an isolated deficiency of only one B vitamin is rarely seen, except for vitamin B12. For example someone with a vitamin B2 deficiency may have red, greasy facial skin which might also be caused by a coexistent vitamin B6 deficiency. It is usual therefore, that when a deficiency of one of the vitamins is suspected, a B complex is taken as a supplement.
However, while the B vitamins should be taken as a complex, in cases where there is a condition or problem caused by the deficiency of a particular B vitamin, the single B vitamin may be taken in a therapeutic dosage for a short time and the B complex taken as well.
Early warning signs of vitamin B deficiency
Dr Myron Brin has recently identified the sequence of events that occur when we undergo increasing deficiency of vitamin B complex.
1. At first the signs of a vitamin B deficiency are not recognizable and are to do with the running down of existing tissue stores.
If the low intake continues then we develop physical and psychological disturbances with symptoms such as:
- insomnia,
- recurring bad dreams,
- inability to concentrate,
- depression,
- anxiety and mood swings,
- aggressive changes in children,
- muscle pain of unknown origin,
- alternating constipation and diarrhea, and
- fatigue and muscle weakness.
|
3. If the vitamin B complex stores continue to be depleted then we develop more serious signs and symptoms of diseases such as beri-beri (vitamin B1 deficiency) and pellagra (vitamin B3 deficiency). Ill health will continue until death.
For most people in the western world our level of vitamin deficiency is not associated with severe symptoms like beri-beri. We are more likely to have the chronic psychological changes.
There are many symptoms and signs of a vitamin B complex deficiency including:
1. emotional disturbances such as:
- mild to severe depression;
- vague fears, morbid thoughts, feeling that something dreadful is going to happen, uneasiness to panic, apprehension;
- mood swings, rage, hostility, suspicion, anxiety, nervousness, inability to handle stress, insomnia or sleep disturbances;
|
2. mental disturbances, including:
- mental confusion,
- loss of ability to concentrate,
- impaired intellect,
- loss of memory, and
- headaches,
|
3. digestive disturbances including:
- digestive problems,
- hypochlorhydria (insufficient stomach acid production),
- constipation or diarrhea,
- stomach pains with decreased or increased appetite,
- craving for sweets,
- soreness of the mouth,
- sore throat,
- difficulty swallowing,
|
4. muscular and nervous disturbances including:
- weakness;
- fatigue;
- light headedness or dizziness;
- heart palpitations;
- chest pains;
- neuralgia to neuritis;
- muscular soreness;
- pain, tingling or ache;
- cold hands and feet; and
- heightened sensitivity to touch and/or pain;
|
5. skin disturbances including:
- dermatitis,
- acne,
- burning or itching eyes.
|
There are many lifestyle and physiological factors that can prevent us from having sufficient B complex vitamins. These factors include:
- smoking,
- excess alcohol consumption,
- the use of prescription or over the counter drugs, particularly those on long term drugs such as anticonvulsants, certain antibiotics and oral contraceptives,
- pregnancy and lactation,
- physical energy output,
- very warm or cold climates,
- wound, burns or post traumatic stress,
- psychological distress,
- unique personal requirements due to specific genetic individuality,
- environmental factors such as radiation, smog or lowered exposure to sunlight, and
- eating calorie rich diets which are mainly fat and sugars.
REFERENCES
Bland, J. 1996, Contemporary Nutrition. J & B Associates.
Davies, S. and A. Stewart., 1997, Nutritional Medicine. Pan.
Holden, S., Hudson, K., Tilman, J. & D. Wolf, 2003, The Ultimate Guide to Health from Nature. Asrolog Publication.
Pressman, A. and S. Buff, 2000, The Complete Idiot's Guide to Vitamins and Minerals. (2nd Ed.) Alpha Books.
Soothill, R. 1996, The Choice Guide to Vitamins and Minerals. A Choice Book Publication.
Sullivan, K. 2002, Vitamins and Minerals: A Practical Approach to a Health Diet and Safe Supplementation. Harper Collins.
http://www.healthy-vitamin-choice.com/
Image Copyrights: http://medgrasses.ru/; http://www.tofeelwell.ru/
Serious Dangers of Synthetic and Unnatural Vitamins
by Dr. Philip Maffetone
Truly health-conscious consumers choose to avoid artificial, unnatural and synthetic chemicals, but often - and unknowingly - consume these in dietary supplements. Misleading information on supplement labels is the most common reason for confusion about these ingredients. Consuming these potentially dangerous chemicals is much more serious than once thought.
We should be concerned about taking synthetic vitamins and other unnatural nutrients because published research in the last few years concludes two important things: First, synthetic and other unnatural nutrients are mostly ineffective in preventing disease. Second, these chemicals may be dangerous to your health - some have been shown to increase the risk of death! Most of the studies show an increased incidence of cancer and heart disease, the reason for the increased risk.
This research should not be confused with the health-promoting roles of the natural versions of these nutrients found in natural foods. Decades of research and thousands of studies demonstrate the effectiveness of these natural food nutrients in successfully preventing and treating disease.
The Case of Vitamins C and E
The most common synthetic compounds used in dietary supplement are the vitamins themselves. In fact, almost all vitamins on store shelves, and those used to fortify foods (even "natural" foods), are synthetic. One common exception is vitamin E, which is found in supplements as either synthetic or natural. But the so-called natural vitamin E is actually quite unnatural.
Synthetic vitamin E products are used in cheaper supplements as dl-alpha tocopherol. So-called "natural" vitamin E, d-alpha tocopherol, is common in many other supplements. However, even
though this vitamin E is a natural form, it is very unnatural for two reasons. First, it's in an isolated form without the rest of the naturally-occurring vitamin E complex. In nature, alpha tocopherol exists with seven other vitamin E compounds: three other tocopherols and four tocotrienols. Second, supplements of alpha tocopherol are usually very high, unnatural doses. Normally, consuming a full days worth of high vitamin E-rich foods would yield about 30-40 IU of alpha tocopherol, yet the typical dose in supplements is 10 times that, sometimes much more.
Almost all vitamin C in dietary supplements is synthetic, and as such is listed on the label as
"ascorbic acid". The dose also helps identify it as synthetic - it's almost impossible to get much more than 100-150 mg of vitamin C from food into a tablet or capsule. The amount of vitamin C in a natural supplement, therefore, may be listed in the supplement facts panel as "vitamin C 100 mg" and will not list "ascorbic acid" (or any other of the many types of synthetic vitamin C).
A new study on vitamin C (Am J Clin Nutr; Jan 2008) showed adults taking the synthetic version
had serious side effects. Doses of 1,000 mg of vitamin C a day impaired their energy systems (significantly hampering their endurance capacity), specifically by weakening the mitochondria of the cell (which burns fat and sugar). It also had significant adverse effects on the antioxidant system (a key immune regulator). Those who take vitamin C often take this amount or more, and it's almost always synthetic. Children may be even more vulnerable.
Two Types of Dietary Supplements
High dose, synthetic and isolated dietary supplements - what I call HSAIDS - make up 98% of the products available to consumers. These unnatural supplements are one of two categories of dietary supplement, the other being truly natural supplements. It's the research on unnatural dietary supplements (the HSAIDS) that show both ineffectiveness and increased risk of death.
Truly natural dietary supplements are made from freeze-dried real food, or otherwise are not heated, and the nutrients they contain are natural doses without added synthetics. Fish oil (containing EPA/DHA), cedar nut oil (containing alpha-linolenic acid), and vegetable or fruit concentrates containing many nutrients are common examples.
Unfortunately, most fruit and vegetable concentrates used in dietary supplements are dried with very high heat, destroying various nutrients. They don't supply much nutrient but are used in the supplement to make it appear natural, while all the nutrients listed on the label come from synthetic or other unnatural additions. These so-called "whole food" supplements containing fruit or vegetable concentrates have to be "spiked" with synthetic vitamins and other unnatural nutrients in order to list any appreciable amounts of nutrients. Read the supplement facts panel carefully.
Some companies even claim their products are made from real food with real vitamins when, in fact, they feed synthetic vitamins to yeast, then harvest the yeast to use in supplements.
Unfortunately, the USDA is yet to address this issue, and the label information won't let you know the truth, unless the dose is high enough.
Other Vitamins
Almost all the B vitamins on the market are synthetic. In this case, the dose is not such a good indicator. The common synthetic B vitamins are usually listed by one of various synthetic names (i.e., folic acid). The truly natural ones, on the other hand, are referred to as active B vitamins.
The commonly used active B vitamins are listed on the label, and below:
Some common names of natural (active) B vitamins
- Thiamine (B1): Thiamine pyrophosphate; Thiamine triphosphate
- Riboflavin (B2): Riboflavin-5-phosphate; Flavin mononucleotide (FMN)
- Niacin (B3): Nicotinamide (adenine dinucleotide)
- Pantothenic acid (B5): Pantethine
- Pyridoxine (B6): Pyridoxal-5-phosphate
- Folic acid: Folinic acid; 5-methyl tetrahydrofolate
- Cobalamin (B12): Methylcobalamin; Adenosylcobalamin
- Choline Phosphatydlcholine
|
If you read the label and don't find these active names for the B vitamins, most likely they're
synthetic. Some synthetic vitamins may convert to their active forms once in the body, but they require additional nutrients. For example, in order for the body to utilize synthetic folic acid additional vitamin C, niacin and vitamin B12 are required.
Vitamin A in its natural form is actually a large group of natural compounds. Natural vitamin A only comes from animal sources, and the truly natural dietary supplement forms usually are from fish oils. Synthetic forms, which don't contain any natural vitamin A compounds, are typically in a dry form (tablet or capsule). The synthetic form of vitamin A is significantly more toxic than the natural form. The most commonly used synthetic form is vitamin A palmitate.
Beta carotene is not vitamin A, but is a phytonutrient, some of which converts to vitamin A
compounds in the body. However, this conversion is not very efficient. Most supplements that list vitamin A will also state, in parentheses, beta carotene. Those listing vitamin A without noting beta carotene are probably synthetic, unless some type of fish liver oil is listed somewhere on the label.
Vitamin D comes in two natural forms: Vitamin D2, called ergocalciferol, comes from plants. Vitamin D3, called cholecalciferol, is from animal sources, and is the active form, like the vitamin D obtained from sunlight. A variety of synthetic vitamin D compounds have been developed, the most common being calcitriol, doxercalciferol and calcipotriene. All vitamin D supplements can be toxic in high amounts, although one could not overdose on vitamin D from the sun.
Minerals
|
Schungite Stones mineralize water they are put in |
All minerals are natural - they came from the sun in the early formation of the earth. What could make them unnatural as a supplement is their high dose. There have been numerous studies showing that high-dose minerals can be dangerous. For example, iron and copper can produce very
dangerous free radicals. Beware of unnatural doses of minerals such as those that are five or 10 times above daily values. Also avoid minerals with the lowest bioavailability such the oxides and the chlorides.
One final note: Beware of natural. The use of the word natural has reached the level of abuse.
Basically, the term has little meaning. A bottle of 100% synthetic vitamin C, for example, may be labeled "natural". With no adequate legal definition, any company can use the word "natural" almost as it pleases. Ignore the word "natural" and look for key words on the label.
In summary, most dietary supplements contain synthetic vitamins and can be both ineffective and potentially dangerous to our health. Knowing how to read a label to avoid these common unnatural nutrients is the key for truly health-conscious consumers who wish to avoid them.
http://content.bandzoogle.com/
Image Copyrights: http://samsay.ru/; http://catalogdiet.ru/; http://kamni.ws/
Watch Video:
Dangers of Synthetic Vitamins
A Half Century Experiment
by Sergei Vlasov
|
Porfiry Korneevich Ivanov |
How to live without diseases? Generation after generation dreams about it. But even now, despite the tremendous medical achievements, we have to bitterly admit, that humanity doesn't have less disease.
We will not discus serious illnesses - let's take a common cold. According to statistics, more than half of all sickness falls into this category.
There are many various ways to stay healthy, but the best among them is the tempering-conditioning. Unfortunately the effect of cold on a human being has not been studied enough. However, the therapeutic properties of icy water were known millenniums ago. Many doctors still successfully practice this folk medicine today. For example, in the city hospital No.1 of Kaluga (Russia), the cold is used in treatment of neuroses and bronchial asthma. At the Kirov Sanatorium in Yalta, winter swimming is helping to treat hypertension and neurasthenia.
I.P. Pavlov explained the therapeutic influence of cold on an organism as a "shock treatment of the nerve cells" - a sudden affect on the nervous system. Still, there are many unanswered questions about the influence of cold on a human being.
This is why, in our opinion, the experiment of Porfiry Korneevich Ivanov, is so valuable. This citizen of the Voroshilovgrad's region, has been testing himself for almost 50 years. He has so adapted himself to cold that he can spend many hours outside only in shorts and barefoot on snow!
He will be 85 years old and during his a half a century of being a friend to frost, he has never caught cold and was never sick with respiratory disease and flu. Before he began training himself, he was as sick as anybody else...
I found out about Porfiry Korneevich from the writer V.G. Cherkassov, a zealous follower of the simple system of superior health, created by Ivanov. And he is not alone: just in Moscow I know more than several dozen engineers, doctors, scientists who became followers of Ivanov. Following the example of "The Teacher" (as everybody call him), they run barefoot on snow, forgot about disease; though in the past they were frequently sick, now they thank the fate that brought them to Porfiry Korneevich.
Before visiting him in Verhny Kondryuchy village, where he now lives, I read about him in the book "The Reserves of Our Organism" written by two doctors: N. Agadjanyan and A. Katkov.
"In any frost he walks barefoot on the snow... and without feeling any cold".
It sounded strange - doesn't he really feel cold? This was the first question I asked Porfiry Korneevich.
- I am not feeling cold?! - He exclaimed - I feel it, even more than you. Only you are afraid of it I am not. I made a friend of the eternal human enemy.
- And you indeed are not getting sick?
- Why not? I am sick all the time: I am sick from the thought that I am capable, but prohibited to give my experience to people.
- Some say you believe in God.
- It's not absolutely true. I believed until I realized that God remains not in the sky, but on Earth in people who are able to be victorious over themselves.
This unusual man has a very interesting life. Born in a poor family, he became a coal-miner, like his father. He descended into the mine for the first time at age 15. He did variety of jobs there. In 1917 he was drafted by the Army.
- I didn't make it to the Army - The Czar was overthrown. However, I participated as a partisan; derailed enemy trains, once burned the English airplane, for which the commanders rewarded me. After the war, I restored mines in Donbas, participated in the collective farms movement, and managed forestry.
Now, as he is approaching his ninth decade, he is impressive with the boldness of his reasoning. He was always this way - daring, courageous, thoughtful. Once, when he was in Caucasus and stood on the top of a high cliff, a thought came to him: "Why do people live such that while they are young the first half of their life is spent in well being, and then they reach maturity, and it seems that they should live a productive life, it is not happening - diseases jump on them, making them unfit, forcing them to think not of the business for which they came to Earth, but about themselves. Disease makes a man an egotist. Don't all human sorrows happen from the inability to conquer powerlessness? No matter how much you bundle up - it doesn't save you from disease. Why not do the opposite - not hide from Nature, but walk towards it, become close to it and merge with it?"
And Porfiry Korneevich decided to prove first to himself that "the unkind forces of Nature" (his expression) are possible to tame and use for benefit. He began to walk without clothes during frost, at first for a few seconds, then up to a half of a minute. Increasing it more and more, he was able to walk outside during snowstorm, wearing only shorts, and spend hours out in a field during strong winds and cold. He was returning home covered in snow and ice, the steam was rising from him, and people around him were perplexed whether he would be in bed with cold (or maybe with something more serious) tomorrow.
But this is all in the past. Now, having retired, Ivanov is set on the idea of transmitting his unique (unique indeed!) experience of tempering - conditioning to the people and scientists. And what about the scientists? They are not in a hurry... Maybe they don't know about Ivanov?
"I tell people, - Porfiry Korneevich says, - My dears, all your diseases are from your ignorance: from warmth, good food and rest. Do not be afraid of cold: it mobilizes (as they say now) the protective forces of your organism. Cold thrusts into the body a hormone of health. Let everyone think what is more important: the real thing or small enjoyments. For everything there has to be personal victory. A human being must live by Victory; if this would not happen - you would not be of much value. Why get treatment [from a disease] if it is possible to not let a disease into the body?!"
Marx has said that a civilized man must be able to withstand Nature as the ancient men did it. Porfiry Ivanov is able to withstand Nature. The basis for it is his system. He had been developing it for almost a half of the century and has been strictly following it for the same amount of time. The system is very simple at a glance and consists of seven rules. Some of them seem to be irrelevant to health. Judge for yourself.
1. Live with a constant desire to do good to people and once done - forget about it and hurry to do more.
2. Try to do everything with pleasure and joy. Until you have mastered the joyfulness of doing a job - consider that you don't know how to do it.
It seems that he doesn't speak about health, but really he speaks about the most important health - the health of soul. It is impossible to cure the body without it. Here are his other rules:
3. Don't drink wine or vodka.
4. Fast once a week. At other times try to eat less meat, and eat less in general.
"Now people suffer from obesity, they eat twice more than their nature requires. Excess food prevents clear thinking."
5. Walk barefoot all year around on grass or snow, at least for a few minutes a day.
6. Daily: morning and evening bathe in cold water.
The photo correspondent Edward Ettinger and I experimented with this. At first, we declined it point-black. I was afraid to think about it, moreover, I was suffering from a sore throat and cold. Only when we saw how disappointed Porfiry Korneevich became ("And now you don't believe me..."), we decided to risk it - for the sake of healing humanity.
But when he poured a bucket of icy-cold water on our heads and shoulders, we realized what it means to have an unearthly experience! By the way, after a half an hour my sickness was completely gone. We took the cold-water procedures every day, but only at the end of the fifth day of our visitation in the house of Porfiry Ivanovich did we begin to get a taste for it. We do not appeal to anyone to immediately follow our example. We are only telling the facts.
7. The last rule: Remain frequently with skin exposed to the air: summer and winter. "Let the body breathe and receive warmth from the cold". Someone may think it is nonsense.
But let's hear from one of a followers of Ivanov -- I. Khvoshevsky PhD, a specialist in area of thermodynamics:
"As a result of his unprecedented experience, P.K. Ivanov was able to show that under cold conditions, the human organism begins to constantly produce inner energy. It could not be ruled out, that it echoes the ingenious hypothesis of Tsyolkovsky regarding gradual and free absorption of energy from surrounding cold bodies. Indeed, we know very little about the human being and his potential. Perhaps during unknown extreme situations an organism shows new, unknown capabilities; right now we can only guess about it. This is why the experiment that Porfiry Korneevich Ivanov conducts on himself for over a half of a century is so important. It is difficult to find a similar example of such perseverance..."
|
A follower of Ivanov's system |
In the village, Ivanov has many followers. First among them is his wife Valentina Leontievna. Some time ago she was very ill, now, 70 years old, she considers herself perfectly healthy.
"I am afraid", she says, "to miss even one day in winter of going undressed out in the frost and pouring on myself an icy water. What if disease would return, like it used to 25 years ago.
Valentina Leontievna, like Porfiry Korneevich, eats very little. Despite being very busy (like any other peasant woman), she tires less than before she became a friend to the cold and began fasting. It's possible that the two factors are related to each other - one helping to overcome the other.
Really, the mysteries of the human organism are endless!
On our way to the airport we stopped by the Regional Party Center of Sverdlovsk-city to talk about Ivanov [with authorities]. The Secretary of the Regional Committee, Nadezhda Konstantinovna Kovaleva, said:
"Unfortunately, we aren't able to evaluate this unique man. We don't have the specialists for it here. And honestly speaking, we don't have the time. The region is big and complicated, with extraction of coal being done. But if you would help to attract attention to Ivanov with publicity, scientists...".
This is what we are trying to do here.
This article was reprinted and translated from magazine "Ogonyek" No 8, 1982.
Translated from the Russian by Marina Mars-Jones, U.S.A
http://www.parshek.land.ru/
Images Copyrights: http://documental.su/; http://lichnosti.net/; http://supersyroed.mybb.ru/
Ice Bath Therapy: Speed up recovery and enhance performance
by Jake Malto in Training Tips
If you haven't heard or just plain curious about Ice bath therapy, then you're in the right place. World class athletes have adopted this practice, so begs the question, why shouldn't you? Maybe you've tried it once or twice, and you didn't see any changes at all. Well, are you sure you did it right? Ice bath recovery, when done properly and regularly, will speed up the recovery process of your body as well as improving your overall athletic performance. Ice bath therapy is ideally done in hydrotherapy pools for the best results.
Why should I take a bath with ice? It's freezing!
Yes, it is chilling. Although most of us don't like a cold shower, an ice bath right after an intense running session can actually do wonders for your body. It's a fact that right after an intense activity, like a long run or a set of short sprints, your muscles experience microtrauma. These are small tears in the muscle fibers, which are perfectly normal for runners. You're probably feeling some of it when your muscles hurt after an exhausting run, but you won't feel every tear since they are, as the name implies, micro.
Because of the very low temperature, ice bath also becomes a great treatment for muscle soreness, strain, and inflammation. It also prevents the breakdown of muscle tissues. The cold water will stimulate muscle cells to start repairing the muscle tears.
As you immerse yourself in the ice bath, you'll get relief from your sore muscles, let's say your calves. The good thing about the ice bath is that your other leg muscles are also being treated in the process, like your hamstring, gluteus, and quadriceps. Thus, it gives your body optimal conditions for recovery.
How can I do it at home? I don't have a hydrotherapy pool
You don't have to be an owner of a five thousand dollar hydrotherapy pool for you to enjoy ice bath therapy. In fact, you'll just need a bath tub, water, and a lot of ice packs. Here are the steps that you can take to conduct ice bath therapy at home:
- PREPARE A LOT OF ICE CUBES OR PACKS
Remember that your target temperature for an ice bath is from 12 - 15 degrees of Celsius. You can make your own if you have a decent freezer, or you can buy some at the nearest convenience store.
- FILL THE TUB WITH COLD WATER BEFORE YOU RUN
Put enough water to fill up to your waists so that the whole lower body can benefit from the therapy.
- RIGHT AFTER YOUR RUN, ADD ICE
If you have a thermometer, you should measure how cold the tub is before going in.
- SLOWLY STEP IN THE TUB AND PREPARE FOR THE EXTREMELY COLD WATER
|
Things to remember
- DON'T STAY TOO LONG IN THE TUB
Ten minutes should be more than enough time to stay in the tub. Stay for more than twenty and you'll risk suffering from cold-induced muscle damage.
- YOUR FIRST FEW SESSIONS WILL BE THE HARDEST
It would be a great idea if you would have something to keep you warm by your side, perhaps a cup of hot chocolate or tea. You might also want to find something to do while under ice bath therapy. You could bring a running book or a magazine with you.
- TAKE A WARM BATH OR SHOWER AROUND 30 MINUTES TO AN HOUR LATER
Muscles, along with the tissues, have a tendency to become stiff and tense in extreme cold.
- THERE ARE TIMES WHEN YOU MIGHT WANT TO JUMP OUT OF THE TUB BECAUSE YOU CAN'T HANDLE THE COLD
I would suggest that you try your best to handle it. Keep yourself motivated by keeping in mind that this therapy will help your muscles recover, thus, possibly allowing you to have a better performance in your next run.
- EXTREMELY COLD ICE BATHS, COLDER THAN THE ADCISED TEMPERATURE, COULD RESULT TO FAINTING
It's always best to check the temperature from time to time. It's also better if you let someone know that you're in the tub with ice. Do this for safety reasons.
|
Now, you're quite ready to take an ice bath. The therapy will surely help you reach your athletic goals, whatever they may be. Famous athletes will tell you that ice bath therapy works great. They believe that ice bath therapy gives them speedy recovery, and at the same time, helps in preventing injuries.
So what are you waiting for?
If you have a competition on schedule, you might want to consider taking ice baths to make sure you're 100% ready for the big day. Quickly repair that muscle damage through regular ice baths after intense running.
http://www.runaddicts.net/
Image Copyrights: http://www.zdorovieinfo.ru/; http://smi2.ru/
Watch Video:
HTC Columbia Team Doctor talks about iCool Recovery system
Hybrid vs Heirloom Garden Seeds
Planting a garden from seeds is the most economical way to start growing vegetables and herbs, and it has the added advantage of providing you with many more options than if you use nursery plants. For homesteaders, the question is usually not whether to plant from seed, but which kind of garden seeds to use.
Seed Varieties
The most widely available garden seeds are hybrids, which have been artificially cross-pollinated to produce plants that display characteristics of two different plant varieties. For example, hybrid tomato seeds may have been created by mixing a vigorous, but low-yielding plant with a fragile plant that produces bountiful tomatoes.
Heirloom seeds, on the other hand, were developed through open pollination. In most cases, seeds from the best plants -- or plants that displayed unique characteristics -- were held back and replanted. New varieties were developed slowly over time through artificial selection. Heirloom varieties generally date back to 1950 or earlier; some are believed to have existed since ancient times.
Many seed companies advertise their seeds as "non-GM", but whether or not to buy genetically modified (GM or GMO) seeds is a non-issue for the hobbyist gardener. These controversial seeds are sold only in bulk to commercial farmers. Although it's technically possible that purchased seeds could have been produced when a normal plant was pollinated by a GM plant, it's very unlikely. In any case, "non-GM" labels don't certify that this hasn't occurred -- only that the seed producer isn't reselling GM seeds to individuals.
Pros and Cons of Using Heirloom Seeds
Heirloom vegetables are rapidly becoming more popular, and there are some good arguments for using heirloom pepper seeds heirloom seeds in your garden. Although more expensive than hybrid seeds, there's no need to ever purchase more than a single packet of heirloom seeds for each variety you want to grow. You can allow your plants to fully mature and save back seeds for each year. Stored properly, seeds that you harvest yourself will be viable for years to come. If you practice seed saving, it's a good idea to hold back more seeds than you need each year. If inclement weather or wild animals destroy your crop, you'll be glad to have the extra seeds, and you can also trade seeds with other gardeners to diversify your selection of fresh fruits and vegetables without spending a penny.
Another advantage of using heirloom vegetable seeds is the quality of your produce. While heirloom vegetables tend to bruise more easily and can't be stored fresh for long periods of time, they are far more diverse and flavorful than hybrids. Russian heirloom tomatoes, like the Black Krim and Black Prince varieties, make a richer, more flavorful tomato sauce than any hybrid available. Lemon cucumbers, round Parisian carrots, purple potatoes and other unusual varieties have unique -- and often better -- flavors than their high-yield hybrid cousins.
Of course, heirloom plants aren't perfect. The main drawbacks are relatively low yield and unpredictability. You'll need a larger garden if you want to be able to rely on it to produce all of your family's fruits and vegetables. Growing zone information is also not always available for heirloom seeds, so there's a chance that your plants won't produce at all in your climate. Ask around before you sink a lot of cash into heirloom seeds; local gardeners may have experience growing the varieties you're interested in.
Pros and Cons of Using Hybrid Seeds
Until you've established what heirloom varieties will grow best in the conditions on your homestead, you may want to set aside a small area to grow dependable hybrids. Unlike heirloom plants, hybrids are reliable and can be counted on to deliver a heavy yield. In most cases, the vegetables you'll wind up with will resemble the ones you see in a grocery store -- long orange carrots, round or oval red tomatoes, dense heads of green broccoli. They'll taste a bit better because they're fresh, but they won't be truly unique.
Technically, you can save the seeds from hybrid plants, but it's hard to say what you'll get. Sometimes the seed you save won't grow at all. More often, you'll wind up with inferior plants. Hybrid tomato plants from commercial plant nurseries usually produce seed that grows high-yield cherry tomatoes. Many gardeners are surprised when volunteer cherry tomato plants start showing up in their vegetable patch -- especially when last year's tomato crop consisted entirely of enormous slicers.
Hardiness and resistance among hybrid plants varies a lot. Some varieties have been bred to resist pests, but others were developed with the understanding that growers would use pesticides liberally. Varieties labeled as "hardy" can usually withstand a bit colder temperatures than those that aren't labeled as such. Hybrids almost always require much more water than heirloom varieties. With enough water, hybrid plants produce a bounty of vegetables, but without enough they simply shrivel and die. Heirloom plants will generally produce a smaller yield when water is scarce rather than dying off entirely.
Growing vegetables is a worthwhile endeavor regardless of whether you choose to plant hybrid or heirloom varieties -- or both. Over the long term, heirloom seeds are more cost-effective and produce higher-quality produce, but hybrid seeds eliminate much of the risk of growing your own food.
http://www.lifeunplugged.net/
Image Copyright: http://kingsad.wordpress.com/;
http://www.lifeunplugged.net/;
http://blog.oregonlive.com/
How to Save Seeds
by Judy Gaunt
Plants that reproduce through natural means tend to adapt to local conditions over time, and evolve as reliable performers in that locale. The modern trend to rely on hybridized and cloned plants negates these evolutionary processes and thousands of varieties of vegetables and flowers are being lost, due to the reliance on commercial hybrid seed. This erodes the gene pool, resulting in less hardy, more vulnerable plants. If you'd like to join the growing movement of organic gardeners and farmers who save their own seeds, here's what you need to know.
Since I've been saving seeds for over ten years now, I'd like to pass on some of the knowledge I've gathered about the subject to help you along the way.
First of all, it's necessary to know how to keep varieties pure and this varies with each type of plant. Then, you need to know how to prepare, clean and store the resulting seeds.
Solanaceae
The nightshade family contains tomatoes, eggplants, peppers and potatoes as well as garden huckleberries, tomatillos and various ground cherries.
The tomato is grown by more home gardeners than any other vegetable. Since many tomatoes commonly grown are hybrids it must be remembered that while hybrid seed will grow, you can't be sure what the result will be. The new tomatoes may resemble their grandparents or great grandparents rather than the plants you started with. This is true of all hybrid seed.
But if you're starting with an open-pollinated (non hybrid) variety you can save tomato seed by cutting the fruits in half, scraping the seeds and the juices around them into a container and letting it ferment for three days at room temperature. This removes the gel coating from around the seeds and also prevents the transmission of some seed-borne diseases.
After fermenting, rinse the seeds under running water in a strainer and then put them on a small plate to dry. The seeds should be stirred occasionally the first few days to keep them from sticking together. Let them dry thoroughly before storing.
Regarding cross-pollination, the newer varieties are much less apt to cross as the pistil is covered in the flower and not exposed to passing bees. Older, heirloom varieties are more likely to be crossed because of the flower structure. Separate these varieties from other tomatoes as much as possible.
Peppers
Peppers are self pollinating but can be crossed by insects so different varieties must be either caged or separated by 500 feet to maintain purity.
Let the fruit mature before removing seeds. Remember that when working with hot peppers, rubber gloves should be worn. Also don't rub your eyes at this time as the hot pepper oil can be extremely irritating.
Eggplant
Eggplant usually self pollinates but insects can sometimes be a problem so to be sure, different varieties should be separated by 50 feet, or caged.
To obtain seeds, first let the fruit ripen, then grate or blend the bottom part of the fruit which contains most of the seeds. Put the pulp in a bowl, fill with water and squeeze the gratings with your fingers, separating the seeds from the pulp. The pulp will rise and good seeds will sink to the bottom.
Potato
While usually propagated vegetatively, the potato can be grown from seeds which occasionally form on the plants. Let the seed balls mature, then squeeze the seeds into a bowl. Add water and pour off the floating debris, saving the seeds which sink to the bottom. Grow the same as tomato seedlings.
Some of the smaller nightshades, such as cherry and currant tomatoes, tomatillos, ground cherries etc., can be processed in a blender and treated the same as potato seeds.
Legumes
The usual families of beans and peas are common bean, pea, lima bean, fava bean, soybean and runner bean.
While the families do not cross, different varieties within the same family will cross. The amount of crossing varies in different locations. Here in Eastern Ontario where I live, I have had some crossing between bean varieties but in an area with fewer wild bees perhaps there would be less. So I would recommend separating varieties as much as possible. To be absolutely sure, plants can be grown in cages or blossoms bagged with spun polyester until the pods begin to form.
The way I deal with legumes is to wait until the pods are quite dry and the plant is drying up and leaves falling off. Then I cut the whole plant and place in the carport or shed to dry further. Later, I either pick off the pods and shell them by hand or else put the whole plants in a feed sack or on a large sheet of plastic and beat them with a stick until the seeds fall out. They have to be quite dry for this though and sometimes in a damp fall they never get to the right stage and have to be shelled by hand.
Pods can also be picked while still in the garden, as long as they are beginning to dry up and becoming flexible rather than stiff. Make sure all seeds are placed in an airy, dry place once shelled to continue to dry. Mould is the enemy of seed savers.
Lettuce
Lettuce seeds are quite easy to produce although they are difficult to clean. Just let the plants go to seed. They grow two or three feet tall and are covered with small yellow flowers. Eventually, small seed pods form which are ready when dried up and brown. The pods can be individually picked by hand and opened up, which is time consuming but the best way to get clean seed. The heads can also be shaken over a paper bag, which is easier but results in a lot of chaff with the seeds. The seeds are so light that they're difficult to separate but if just for your own use the whole mixture can be planted and the seeds will still grow.
One bonus from producing your own lettuce seed is that early next spring you'll get lots of volunteer lettuce plants which you can transplant where you wish. You'll have early lettuce without much trouble.
Lettuce is self-pollinating generally but occasionally can cross with wild lettuce, a common weed. Any growing nearby should be removed.
Cucurbits
The squash and melon family is a large and varied group of plants. As with legumes, crossing can only take place between different varieties in the same family, not between members of different families.
Cucumbers
Different varieties of cucumbers will cross with each other. However, Armenian cucumbers, West Indian gherkins and serpent gourds belong to other families and will not cross. Separate varieties by one half mile or else just grow one variety. Otherwise hand pollination is necessary. Space does not allow a description of this, perhaps in another article.
To save cucumber seeds, the fruits must be allowed to mature far past the stage they're usually eaten - until they're ripe and have turned orange or yellow. Remove the seeds and let them ferment in a pail for three days the same as tomato seeds to remove the gel around them. Then they can be cleaned by repeatedly filling the pail with water and pouring off the top layer. The good seeds will remain on the bottom while the debris will float and can be poured off. Dry the seeds thoroughly before storing.
The rest of the cucurbits are easier to do as the seeds don't have the gel coating and don't need fermenting.
Melons
All melons will cross with each other so must be either grown in isolation or hand pollinated. The seeds are easily removed and dried. Remember that hybrid melons may not come true.
Watermelons
These will only cross with other watermelons or citrons. Once again, the seeds are easily processed.
Squash
These are rather complicated in that there are four different families of squash commonly grown here. As usual, the families don't cross but members of the same family will and it's necessary to know which family a particular variety is in. One member of each family can be grown together without crossing, which is the method I use. Otherwise, hand pollination is necessary.
Examples of the most common members of each family are:
Cucurbita maxima: Atlantic Giant, Banana, Buttercup, Golden Delicious, Hubbards, Turbans.
Cucurbita mixta: Crooknecks, Cushaws, Tennessee Sweet Potato squash.
Cucurbita moschata: Butterbush, Butternut.
Cucurbita pepo: Acorn, Crookneck, Delicata, Pumpkins, Scallops, Spaghetti squash, Zucchini.
Let the fruits mature fully before harvesting for seeds, even those usually eaten when immature such as zucchini. The seeds are easily removed although you may need an ax to chop the squash open. Germination is better if fruits are allowed to age for at least three weeks after harvesting before removing seeds. As usual, let seeds dry thoroughly before storing.
Corn
Corn is difficult for the seed saver as in many areas, acres of field corn are grown that can be crossed with your open-pollinated corn by the wind.
Most corn grown these days is hybrid so the seeds will not come pure if grown. An open-pollinated variety must be either hand pollinated or grown in isolation to maintain its purity.
Biennials
Now that you know all about saving the seeds of many annual vegetables, it's time to learn about another group, the biennials. These plants have seeds which are more complicated to produce although it's not necessarily more difficult.
The biennials consist of all the root vegetables, from onions to turnips as well as some members of the cabbage family.
Onions, carrots, beets, parsnips, salsify, turnips and rutabagas are all treated in much the same way. They're harvested in the fall, stored over the winter and replanted in the spring. The second year they flower and produce seeds.
For winter storage, I'm lucky to have an unheated basement, which keeps the root crops cool enough. I store them in large plastic pails with lids. You could also use a root cellar, either indoor or out, or maybe even store them where they grew in the ground if you covered them with enough bags of leaves or other insulating material. Those growers in the milder areas can leave these plants outside to winter over.
The only plant you would not want to store this way is onions, which require a drier storage area. We keep onions in an unheated room in the house.
In early spring the roots are planted out. Again, remember to keep everything labeled, both while being stored and once planted. It's amazing how easy it is to forget vital information after a few months, even if you told yourself you'd remember.
Some people worry about carrots crossing with the wild carrots so prevalent in many areas, but I have found that my carrots bloom earlier than the wild carrots and it doesn't seem to be a problem. As with the other vegetables, if you plant more than one variety you may have some crossing.
The plants will grow quite tall - taller than they were the first year - and eventually seeds will form. I usually cut the seed heads and hang them up to dry or keep in a paper bag until they're dry enough to remove the seeds.
The other biennials are in the cabbage family. This is a rather complicated family as there are a few annuals in it and there are many members which will cross pollinate with each other.
Chinese cabbage, mustards and some radishes are the annual family members and saving seeds from them is easy. Just let them flower and go to seed and then collect the seed when dry.
One group - Brassica oleracea - contains broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, kale and kohlrabi. These will all cross so it's best to only try to save seeds from one member or else separate them by a half mile.
Another group - Brassica rapa - consists of turnip, Chinese cabbage, and Chinese mustard so only grow seed from one of these.
Rutabaga (Brassica napus) - the large winter turnips - don't cross with the small summer turnip (B. rapa) but will cross with Siberian kale and rape.
Since these plants are insect pollinated and not self-fertile, caging them is difficult. Another thing to remember is that it's necessary to grow several plants for seed to maintain vigor in the variety. Six plants is the bare minimum but more would be better.
The whole plant including the roots has to be dug up and brought in for the winter, if in a cold winter area. If planted several to a pail, (turnips don't have to be planted) they usually survive the winter although they look quite pale and yellowish by spring. Then plant them outside and hope they have the vigor to survive and begin growing. If they do, they'll produce lots of yellow flowers, which the bees love, and then lots of seeds.
Brassicas produce an abundance of long seed pods which can be harvested after drying out. Dry them further under shelter and then beat them in a plastic bag or feed sack or on a sheet of plastic until the seeds fly out. Again, make sure the seeds are thoroughly dry before storing.
Cleaning and Storing Tips
Now I'd like to tell you of some ways I've found suitable for cleaning and storing the many kinds of seeds it's possible to save.
Freeing them from their seed pods or whatever other covering nature provided them is the first step.
Small quantities of seed can be simply rubbed between the hands. Some tougher types of seed pods can be rubbed against a piece of screening with the sole of a running shoe to separate the seeds from their stems or pods. Grains are one kind I do this way. I've already mentioned beating dry, brittle seed pods with a stick over a sheet of plastic. And I find it rather relaxing to shell some seeds such as beans or peas by hand while watching TV in the evening.
Then you have to clean all the chaff from them. I have a series of six screens, each a different size which are helpful in sifting some kinds of seeds.
An ancient method I use a lot is to pour the seeds back and forth between two large bowls outside on a breezy day, which will blow away most of the chaff. Just be sure that you don't also let many of the seeds blow away!
Another method is to pour the seeds onto a sheet spread in front of a fan. The heavier, best quality seeds will fall onto one area of the sheet.
Remember to keep the seeds dry and exposed to the air at all times until they're ready to store. Mould will quickly kill them. The top of the refrigerator is a warm, dry place in most homes. I use baskets - of which I have a large collection - for many of them. Baskets enable air to circulate all around the seeds. Small plates or bowls are useful for the small seeds that are not suitable for baskets.
When the seeds are thoroughly dry they can be stored. Larger seeds are ready when they will break rather than bend. I sometimes use the bite test for beans and peas. When they are too hard to be bitten they're ready.
For storage, airtight containers are best. Glass jars are ideal and can be used in all sizes, from baby food jars to gallon bottles.
During storage, it's important to keep the seeds as dry and cool as possible. A collection of seeds in paper envelopes could be placed in a gallon bottle. The freezer is good for long time storage if the seeds are in an air-tight container.
I hope I have given you the encouragement and help you need in order to begin saving seeds. Maybe I should warn you that once you begin working with nature in this way, it may become a compulsion as it did with me and you'll find yourself with the same large hoards of seeds. Good luck with it anyway!
http://www.naturallifemagazine.com/
Images Copyright: http://almary.ru/; http://aww.ninemsn.com.au/;
http://blog.kp.ru/; http://sadico.ru/
Watch Video:
Saving Seeds
Watch Video:
Houses of straw - the rediscovery of strawbale building
Straw Bale Home Basics
by Kenton Shepard Edited by Laura Bartels
Certified Master Inspector GreenWeaver Inc.
Boulder, CO Straw Bale Consultant
NACHI member Carbondale, CO
CONCERNS WITH STRAW BALE HOMES
Moisture intrusion is the number one concern with straw bale homes, just as it is
with conventional homes. Because straw bales can provide food for decay
fungus, wide-spread, long term fungal activity can destroy a straw bale home.
In addition to decay of the straw, decay fungus are a concern because mold
fungus release spores. High concentrations of mold spores in indoor air can
cause health problems in infants or the elderly, people with compromised
immune systems, lung disease or allergies.
Preventing Moisture Intrusion
A number of design methods are used to keep moisture out of the wall cavity or
allow it to escape once it gets in there...
1. Foundation
a. The foundation should extend above the exterior grade far enough
to keep the bottom of the outside wall plaster a minimum of 12 inches above grade to minimize damage from splashback.
b. The bottom of the lower course of bales should be a minimum of 3
inches above the interior finish floor. This will help prevent soaking
the bales if the floor should flood.
c. The lowest course of bales should rest on a waterproof material
which will provide a capillary break (such as plastic sheeting) to
prevent bales from wicking up moisture from below.
2. Exterior
a. Roof overhangs should be extensive to protect walls from weather.
b. Flat roofs should be avoided because they're likely to leak.
c. Windows should be installed so that they extend past the exterior
surface of the plaster. Whether windows are installed to the
exterior or inset from the exterior wall face, high-quality pan
flashing should be installed under the windows. Any sills should
slope and extend past the exterior face of the plaster.
3. Interior
a. Shower stalls should be placed against interior walls.
4. Plumbing
a. Plumbing pipes should not be routed through straw bales. Pipes
should be installed in the floor or in waterproof channels designed
with a clear drainage path out of the straw bale wall. This includes
supply pipes for exterior faucets.
If pipes must be routed through straw bales they should be
contained within watertight (preferably seamless) conduit which is
sloped to the exterior.
5. Moisture barriers or retarders
Wall plasters should be applied directly to the straw bales. No
plastic, polymer or other barriers or retarders should be installed in
wall assemblies. In addition to trapping moisture in the wall cavity,
installing a barrier will limit the shear strength of the wall assembly,
which relies on good adherence of the plaster to the straw.
Crack Diagnostics
Cracking is a natural process with the earthen and cementicious plasters typically
used to cover interior and exterior walls in straw bale homes. They shrink as they
dry - they can crack as they shrink.
Cracking plaster is the #1 maintenance issue with straw bale homes.
Cracks through the finish coat should be repaired to prevent increasing damage
from the freeze/thaw cycle. Hairline cracks are not a problem, but should be
monitored and repaired if they widen.
Cracks through multiple coats may allow moisture intrusion and are a defect
requiring immediate repair to prevent moisture intrusion of the straw-filled wall.
Sagging or Weight Cracks
If the heavy, wet plaster has not bonded well to the straw or mesh to which it
has been applied, gravity will begin to pull it toward the floor...
1. in parts of the wall where it has been applied thickly to fill in low spots.
2. if the plaster has been mixed with too much water.
3. if the plaster has been mixed with inadequate amounts of fiber (chopped straw).
This kind of cracking is common in the first coat and to a lesser extent, in the
second. These cracks will often extend across a section of thick plaster and take the
shape of a frowning or smiling mouth.
If you see this kind of cracking in a finish coat it may mean that...
1. cracks in underlying coats were not allowed to cure completely before
subsequent coats were applied.
2. cracks in underlying coats were not filled completely when subsequent
coats were applied.
Inadequate Plaster Mix
While excessive amounts of binder in the plaster can cause cracking, too little
binder can cause the plaster to be weak or crumbly. Especially with earthen
plasters, additives are often used to modify or augment the qualities of the
clay/sand mix.
Improper Curing
When the wall surface is covered with extensive, spidery, multi-directional veinlike
cracks, the reason is probably improper curing due to inadequate hydration
(moistening) during the drying process.
Dry plaster will suck the moisture out of any wet plaster applied to it before the
wet plaster has a chance to hydrate completely, causing the bond between coats
to fail.
Inadequate hydration can be caused by...
1. exposure to sun and wind causing rapid evaporation.
2. inadequate wetting of the straw before applying plaster
3. inadequate wetting of dry plaster before additional coats are applied.
4. inadequate wetting of plaster coats as they are curing.
If cracks are wide and close together and plaster detaches when it is tapped or
scraped, the bond to the underlying material has failed and the entire coat in
problem areas needs to be removed and a new coat properly applied.
If cracks are widely spaced and narrow, it may be possible to simply patch them.
Different substrates
Plaster applied over different substrates, such as straw and wood, may crack
where different materials meet for two different reasons...
1. differential curing caused by dissimilar materials absorbing moisture from
wet plaster at different rates.
2. differential thermal expansion and contraction rates of dissimilar materials.
Lack of Qualified Professionals
Designers, building officials, general contractors, sub-contractors and home
inspectors are often ignorant of good building practices unique to straw bale
homes. This can lead to difficulties in getting plans approved, problems being
built into homes which are sometimes difficult to identify and/or correct both
before and after the home is complete and a lack of qualified pre-sale and prepurchase
home inspectors.
Problems obtaining financing
The main concern of mortgage lenders is resale value. If they should have to
foreclose on the property, they want to feel confident that they can recover the
cost of the loan by selling the home. Areas with a larger percentage of straw
bale homes will be more likely to have financing available. This condition may
also improve with time.
Problems obtaining insurance
There are companies who will write fire insurance policies on homes containing
straw bales, such as Farmer's Insurance, but at this time (Sept. 2006), many
insurance companies will not. is. Difficulty in finding coverage will depend to
some extent on the area in which the home is located. Availability will probably
change with time.
http://www.ecobroker.com/
Images Copyright: http://www.cottagecountrynow.ca/; http://www.solarhaven.org/
USE LOCAL MATERIALS
|
This rock wall made with our local stones lends a grotto-like feeling to our shower |
In almost all localities, nature has provided us with some wonderful materials to build with. Because these materials require little processing or transporting, the environmental and economic costs are low. Some are renewable resources (like trees and straw), and some may be so abundant that their supply seems almost inexhaustible (like rocks and sand). One of the beauties of building with local materials is that they seem to fit well with the feeling of the place, naturally.
For me, the most prized local gems are the rocks. What can you do with these rocks, besides admire them? You can stack them to make retaining walls for landscaping, or make other decorative outdoor projects. They can also be mortared together to make walls for a house. My feeling is that such walls are best suited to special interior places where their thermal mass for heat storage can be taken advantage of. If they are used for an exterior wall, it should be insulated from the interior space. I built a rock wall in our shower stall that lends a wonderful grotto-like feeling to the space. I coated these stones with a thin layer of linseed oil mixed with mineral spirits to bring out the natural colors. If you go out to gather rocks, please respect people's private property and get permission from land owners to do so.
Another local mineral of great value is sand. It is the nature of sand to be self-compacting and to drain water readily. My earthbag house actually has no conventional foundation; it is built directly on sand, with a layer of scoria for insulation. Sand is also useful for bedding stones, and for making mortar for rockwork.
|
Our dog Sunbeam enjoys the warmth from our sunlit adobe floor. |
Adobe is an extremely valuable building material, useful for both walls and floors. Any soil that is composed of between 20 and 30 percent clay, with the rest mostly sand, is good for adobe projects. Such soil is found naturally in many areas of the country. A simple way to test possible adobe soil is to place some in a glass jar and then fill the jar nearly full with water. Next, shake the jar until all of the soil is suspended in the water and then set it aside for several hours to settle out. The heavier particles will sink first, and the finer clay will settle on the top. Organic material will probably float on the water. There should be a clear line of demarcation between the clay, silt and sand. From here it is an easy matter to estimate the percentage of the total amount of soil that the clay represents. I have seen some gorgeous adobe floors that have been poured with local soils. A thin layer of colored clay can be troweled on top to produce wonderful effects. Adobe can also be made into blocks for building, tamped into forms for rammed earth walls, or mixed with straw for cob construction.
|
Straw bales have become a common building block. |
Scoria, a volcanic stone similar to pumice, is light and full of air pockets. This makes it very useful as a natural insulating material. I built nearly my entire house with this stuff (in a crushed form), putting it into polypropylene bags. When the bags are then sealed on either side (I used papercrete for this), you end up with a wall that is very well insulated (estimated at about R-40.) Scoria can also be used as sub-floor insulation to good effect. This stone has been used as an aggregate in cement, which results in a material that is as strong as concrete, but much more insulating. The most common use for scoria is in decorative landscaping. Our local variety is a rust red, but I have seen it black, white, and other colors.
|
The view up to my office loft. Parts of natural trees were used for step runners, balustrades, railing, loft vigas, posts to support the vigas, and structural dome supports. |
A renewable building material that has become quite popular is straw, baled into tight, three-string bales. For insulation, straw bales cannot be beat (said to be about R-60). The walls go up fast, and yield a pleasingly thick, cozy feeling to a house. Care must be taken at all stages of construction to keep the bales dry, which basically means allowing the bales to breath when the house is finished. The temptation is to seal the straw bale walls completely from moisture from the outside with a vapor barrier in order to keep them dry. This would be a mistake, because the moisture in the air on the inside of the house will eventually condense on the inside of that vapor barrier, which will lead to rotten bales, and eventually failure of the wall.
The last local building material I'll mention is trees. Wood is clearly one of the most useful building materials on this planet. This usefulness has unfortunately led to its demise in many places. I generally advocate using wood sparingly, as decoration, or in places where nothing else will work. This is why I especially like domes, because a roof can be made without wooden supports. When trees are utilized in their natural rounded, and/or contorted shapes, rather than sawn into boards, there are many benefits. It is possible to find dead, but still solid trees in many locations that can be used in many ways. Parts of trees can support tremendous weight in a decorative, pleasing manner. By keeping them round, you retain the inherent strength that the tree had in the first place. Small poles that result from thinning an overly dense forest can be used both decoratively and structurally in many ways.
So, when you are thinking about a building project, either large or small, I suggest you first look around at the materials that nature provides nearby. You just might find more treasures than you suspect.
Note: For resource links related to using local materials, refer to the specific materials listed in the Natural Building section.
http://www.greenhomebuilding.com/
Image Copyright: http://www.greenhomebuilding.com/
These articles come directly from researchers and are passed on to everybody. The company assumes no liability for any content in these articles.
For Educational purposes only. This information is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease
For more great articles go to http://www.ringingcedarsofrussia.org/infoE.php#article
Mailing Address USA 
Mailing Address CANADA 
Customer service in ENGLAND 
Mailing Address