I watched this film last night.
I am profoundly moved by it.I don't remember ever having such a profound reaction to a film.I have not been able to eat any meat today and the thought of it is unbearable.
I know I am a bit of an extremist.I care deeply and feel upset and digusted about the Earth ,people animals,
I cannot sit back any longer,I need to do more to change the way our World has gone...
I am so frustrated and wish I was better now and could do something much more.
I asked my family thismorning if any of them had seen this film some of them had and guess what they just shrug it off,
"Oh well ,that's the way things are",or the usual attitude that someone else will deal with it.
I am not able to sit back and take this crap any longer .
I am outraged at the way our planet is
so full of greed for money & power.
How can we let this crap go on?
This has been building up inside me for ages and that film last night just tipped me over the edge.I actually was sick after watching it and had to run to the bathroom.
I am going to do something about our planet even if it costs my life , I feel so strongly about this.

I have not seen that, but I have heard about it. i think there is a thread on herb allure somethere about it?

I like yr film recommendations Sunflower so I just bought it.

Know how you feel. This 20 minute video made me feel the same http://www.storyofstuff.com/index.html - just after I had showered my kids with the toxic goods they talk about.

Nicola

Thanks Imgeha for posting that link. It was very interesting indeed, and is very much my way of thinking and my way of understanding how this world has got to. I liked the part about “designed obsolescence and planned obsolescence”

It talked about “B.F.R’s” which is “brominated flame retardants” which are chemicals used in, amongst other things, pillows and mattresses…….she described them as supper toxic, and especially when we sleep with them every night...............bear with me here while I tell you a little story…….

One of my problems is that I wake up feeling worse than when I went to bed. Particularly muscle weakness lower back pain. In the morning my lower back hurts more than when I went to bed.

Some time ago I discovered that something in my duvet was a poison to me. I thought it was the feathers, but it was not feathers as I muscle tested fine for feathers. So must be some fire retardant chemicals that are put in the duvet. So I washed the duvet in some special stuff (miracle soap II) and it washed that crap out and duvet was fine. I muscle tested fine to it and I slept better, not brilliantly but better. That was 8 months ago.

After amalgam removal this lower back pain got less, not completely away…just a bit less.

I then started chelating. At first it was tricky and I needed to experiment to get the right dosage for me. I had to reduce my times for 4 to every 3 hours and reduce dosage to 6mg of dmsa. All this tinkering to find the right dose was difficult and the 4th round hurt like hell and I had to end the round early. Screwed me up good and proper that did.

After that the muscle lower back pain came back strong. Always weak lower back and it seems like its worse in the morning.

Viewing the link you just posted reminded me of the dodgy duvet and the Flame retardant chemicals…….

So I thought I’d re-test my duvet……and……….i muscle tested fine…phew!
I re-tested the pillows and blankets…..all fine……phew!

I tested my mattress…………I muscle tested weak to it. Really weak too. No question about it. I repeatedly tested various things and the mattress made me weak every single time. It was strong weak too, like when I test milk on myself….there can be no question about it……weak.

This is my chemical sensitivity rearing its ugly head.

Which is good news and bad news….

Bad news….it is new-ish and will be expensive & a hassle to change

Good news…..this could help out, big time.

So I will be sleeping in the spare room for a week now……see if I notice any difference. (I muscle tested fine on the spare room mattress.)

Thanks for posting the link Nicola. My fingers are crossed <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/crossfingers.gif" alt="" />

Sunshine,are there metal springs in the mattress?
I spent a couple of months sleeping on a double airbed,you know the ones for camping, just to see if any noticable difference to my health.
Big noticable difference.(But think I felt worse before I felt better.)
I slept much better,deeper too I think, and woke up more refreshed.
In fact the best sleep I ever experienced (and best dreams too) was on an air bed.I just took my usual mattress off the base of bed and replaced it with an airbed...

Anyhow the reason for this was because my friend mentioned how the metal springs in the mattresses are
effected by electromagnetic fields...
I forget exact details,but I'll try & dig out the newspaper article he gave me, ages ago.

<img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/countingsheep.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/swdarklightening.gif" alt="" />

imgeha
Thanks for that link.Really good.Really informative and explains it clearly as it is.

At christmas ,for the second time ,I did not buy any new clothes, like I used to.No wrapping paper,I did buy 10 cards from"sustainable paper"&for a charity but that was the last time I will never buy cards again.I made most of my gifts from things I already had and I did a little bit of shopping in a local
sustainable living shop.Bit by bit I am phasing material things out.I am questioning everything,what it is,where it comes from,how far and by what means it travelled.I need to know As much as possible
in "the story of stuff" you know the part where she talks about having all the latest trends like the news shoes or the latest model of computer?
I foresee that will change sooner rather than later it will be the opposite, people will be frowned at for buying new products...This will turn around,we have no other option as we have reached crisis point and we have to act right now.
Everybody has to act now is the right time.
Being sneered or laughed at for wearing "last seasons"
shoes is little price to pay for helping to save our planet.

Thanks so much for that link,I'm going to pass it on to a few
people.

I

Sunflower / Sunhine

Glad you liked the video. It certainly made an impact on me and the way I see the world. I shall also be finding ways of changing and reducing consumption - but it's hard with kids about to enter teenagehood.

I think the video should be compulsory viewing for everyone. May be Russ can put it somewhere more prominent...?

Another thing that really changed my outlook on life was the book 'Not on the label' by Felicity Lawrence. (think those are the right details). She talks at length about the use of migrant workers, food miles, transport insanity in terms of getting food to the stores, the use of disgusting ingredients - all to produce horrendous, apparently cheap, convenience food that the masses just lap up. Once you have seen the world for what it is, it is very difficult to 'unsee' it again. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" /> It is very depressing to think what our kids are growing up in.

Best

Nicola

Personally I think it will get a lot worse before the normal man in the street changes.
Change has already started, witness us here discussing it, but there are a lot of people out there that are ignorant of this and do not and will not, give a toss, nor will they change what they do, nor change what they think. It is just too far removed from what they understand/believe. “chemicals in pillows & mattresses making you sick!” – Sorry, but it is just not believable. People just think the “government” would not let it happen. Yes I know “we know”…..but the normal man in the street knows almost nothing about any of this and there is no incentive for him to find out either.

Sorry for the gloomy outlook, but we can still make a difference and we are making a difference just by being here discussing it, but we are the exception to the rule, the minority.

My mattress is one of those expensive foam jobs. “Tempur.” Moulds to the shape of your body, very comfortable and very warm….just it seems to be stuffed with toxic chemicals, which my toxic body cannot cope with.

I slept better last night and did not wake worse than I went to bed, but its early days, I will do a week and see how it goes.
<img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/zzz.gif" alt="" />

Sunshine

the toxic mattress thing rang a chord with me as well. In my last hair analysis I had high antimony, the main source of which is flame retardent mattresses. Mine is from Ikea, which must be one of the worst corporate offenders in terms of using third world resources to produce cheap goods for the West. I had puzzled about where the antimony could have come from until I saw this video. Can't believe I have made so much effort to detox and everything, only to be sleeping on a toxic nightmare!! I have been chelating intensively for the past six months, and am now awaiting my latest hair test resuls, so it will be interesting to see whether the antimony, or anything else, has budged.

Nicola

Yes, I freaked out with the toxic duvet.....cost a lot of money that duvet......but this mattress cost 10 times that amount <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/sadblownose.gif" alt="" />
This time i am not freaked, nor surprised.....i am getting used to all this toxic soup we are swimming in….

Two other things also rang alarm bells for me.

About 1 month ago, I left my normal pillow at my mums house, so I used a spare…..again a foam job, also made by Tempur, and the instant I put my head on it to go to sleep….i’m talking the exact instant……my sinus suddenly blocked up. was very strange. I moved about a bit, but……it made me feel weird. So I found another pillow and binned that foam junk.

When I get in and get out of my bed my back hurts. The other day I got into another bed in my house and my back did not hurt. Was very strange so I tested it out a few times, back and forth between beds……my bed made my back hurt and my other bed did not. That was last week.

Seeing the video link let me see what was happening, adding all these strange incidents together to show me that maybe my chemical sensitivity was causing these problems….. 2 + 2 + 2 = 6?

In both my hair tests “Antimony” was low and below the limits.

Sunshine

Sorry to hear about the mattress, I am extremely chemical sensitive and hope to be able to buy a chemical, and metal free one from The Healthy House, though it is £650 for the single.

I put these covers on all the mattresses, futons and pillows in the house a couple years ago. We've been pretty happy ever since.

http://www.alerg.com/page/A/PROD/BED3909Q#review

I have a tempurpedic pillow a friend gave me too... I hate it. It has a cover on it, all that, but the darn thing is so hard, I don't call that a pillow. It does duty on the bed just as a prop. I tried sleeping on it once and gave up the idea quickly.

My son will be 5years old tomorrow and for his birthday ,we promised him his first bike.
He had a little trike as a toddler,a plastic one.In good condition so can have a second life with another child...
He has picked out a bike in the local bike shop,metal with plastic bits,all red & shiny...
Here's the thing...It feels wrong to me especially after our discussion earlier about "The story of stuff"
I have looked for wooden bikes ,none in Ireland as far as I have found & the closest is to ship from the UK but these are special bikes with no pedals and only seem to go up to age 6.
So if I go ahead & get the metal bike, he will probably get a good few years use out of it,and if it's in good condition it can be passed on to another child.
Sorry I am rambling.My conscience(spell?) has kicked in overtime.I am questioning everything and being a pain in the to everyone.

I would agree your conscience has kicked in overtime.

You really are not responsible for all the worlds' troubles you know. The world is never going to be perfect no matter how hard your or I or all of us here personally try. It's enough we all do a little bit. Even then, the gluttons of the world will still be gluttons, don't make it your personal guilt complex.

Just get him the bike he wants.

Red paints usually have high lead levels even if they say they don't, I would get a different color. Bright yellow or blue are cool. Anything except red.

We really like bikes here. I would never buy a cheap bike, even for a kid, they are clunky and dangerous, break easily, and if they get left outside too much the chains start to rust and stuff. If you spend a little extra for quality you'll be happy you did within 2-3 years. The Fuji bikes are reasonably priced and still are light and balanced real well and last virtually forever, from my experience anyway. Schwinn has really gone downhill the past several years since they moved all their operations to china. You probably have different options over there, but buy a good bike that'll withstand rough and tumble and being tossed in the dirt and mud and then you will actually have a bike to give to someone else in 5 years when he wants a big kid bike. Don't buy a bike from a retailer like Walmart or some other superstore, they are the worst.

Mati: You are a star. I love you. That is exactly what I wanted. I had a good read, I will get a sample sent to me and muscle test it. A great recommendation!

Sos: Cheers. I have a dust mite cover on already. A long time ago I was advised that a dust mite cover would be the answer to all my problems. Bloody useless doctors!

Sunflower: re-cycle! Buy a second hand bike! LOL

there ya go.

little bike shops usually sell used bikes. You can often get a good used all cleaned up all tune up like new real good top-notch bike at about 50% the cost of new that way at a bike shop.

I still wouldn't get a cheap bike or you'll be buying another in 18 months or less if it's used.

I like the dust mite covers. mine are anti-allergen, dust mite is just one thing they aid against.

Thanks for replies,
second hand good idea,
lead in red paint,yikes.Thanks for the warning...
he liked the red...
he's gone off to bed ,took ages to settle...so excited...
so am I too...
goodnight

I watched Fast Food Nation last night. It was ok. Not as good as the film about hamburgers(can’t remember whats its called) but still a good-ish film, worth seeing. I guess I knew about all that stuff in the first place so it did not shock me too much. Slave labour in the USA! Lovely.

I have been sleeping in the spare room for about 12 days now. I no longer feel like a sack o $hit in the mornings, so my other mattress must be toxic. I assume the fire retardant chemicals in it.

I investigated the mattress Mati suggested but went direct to the suppliers in Wales and will get a 20pct discount if I purchase one from them. They are sending me a sample so I can test it to see if I react to it or not. They say it is not treated with chemicals….but i will wait and see how the muscle tests go.

Nicola – thanks very much for posting that link <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/highfive.gif" alt="" /> http://www.storyofstuff.com/index.html

It jogged my memory and enabled me to see that maybe my mattress might be toxic. It is already making a big difference. This is yet another toxin removed from my life which will enable my body to continue fighting more important things. Every little toxin I remove helps, and this was a big toxin….i spent 1/3 of my life in that bed!

<img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/skullandbones.gif" alt="" />

Sunshine P wow that's a big discount however, I found this place

http://www.dojoeco.co.uk/products/sleep

and found that they make them themselves to order so I have ordered one today. It is only £20 delivery and will be here in 2 to 3 weeks. I was going to get one from the Healthy House but they charge much more. The thing I liked is that MoJo do a coconut fiber centre with latex around it, instead of the latex centre of the others. That way, you can put a latex overlay on if you want it softer but still have a firm base. it sounds more flexible to me. I am having extra latex added on one side. They are very helpful.

Sunshine

You're welcome <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> I think it should be essential viewing for everyone.

N

Thanks Mati, I had not discovered dojo yet.

Lots of the other shops supply Abaca mattresses. Some have more colourful descriptions but they are all from this company.

http://www.abacaorganic.co.uk/abaca-matt.html

I was gonna go for a latex mattress, but I have not made up my mind yet. Need to get the test materials in first.

I wonder if I get a free gimp mask with the latex mattress? <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smirk.gif" alt="" />

I had some samples from the Abaca organic mattress sent to me. I had them muscle tested last night and all was fine so I will buy one today. I am currently haggling over the price.

I have said it already Imgeha, but I want to say it again, thanks a million for posting that link.

Now that I am not sleeping on a toxic mattress things are getting better and better for me. Removing this toxin from my life is making a big big difference. My sleep is restful. My body is no longer battling toxins when I sleep. I am waking up feeling better and rested. I have been seeing my osteopath weekly for 3 or 4 months now and since I have been on the spare bed, 3 weeks now, the muscles in my back are totally calming down. The knots are coming out and staying out too.

<img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/zzz.gif" alt="" />

Great! Pleased to have helped.

Sunshine <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/zzz.gif" alt="" />

that's great news. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/applause.gif" alt="" />

You must feel <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/bunnydance.gif" alt="" />

Nicola

Happy dayz!

My new Organic mattress has arrived. Guaranteed no toxic chemicals used. No fire retardant chemicals pumped inside. I eventually got the latex mattress from here http://www.abacaorganic.co.uk/abaca-matt.html

I muscle tested fine. It did smell very “new” and I was a bit worried but turned out fine. Muscle tested fine.

But the real test is sleeping on it!

And……………. I slept like a log. Super comfortable. I actually woke up feeling rested. Phew!

This is a major discovery. I spend 1/3 of my life in bed and for the first time in years and years and years…………I am sleeping on a toxic free bed………

<img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/zzz.gif" alt="" />

Wow Sunshine that is just great news! I am tempted!