Vitality

By Alanna Brown, LuxEco Editorial Assistant “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” In the 1970s, several senators began to recognize a literal truth behind this Chinese proverb. They realized the importance of teaching the man how to provide his own food source. When the government grasped the self-sufficiency and power of being able to fish, or in this case garden, they began granting $100,000 per year to gardening programs. This evolved to $100,000 to each of 20 metro areas around the United States, one of them being Los Angeles.

Meridith Baer is a storyteller. For the past 15 years, Meridith has designed interiors by imagining who might live in them and telling their...

By Nancy Chuda founder and Editor-in-Chief of LuxEcoLiving and co-founder of Healthy Child Healthy World. This year Healthy Child Healthy World is celebrating its twentieth...

Introduction by Nancy Chuda founder and Editor-in-Chief LuxEcoLiving and co-founder of Healthy Child Healthy World In 2000, many children's health advocates applauded Congress's decision to...

“Vissi d’arte, vissi d’amore.” These are the first two phrases that Tosca sings in her famous Act 2 aria, “Vissi d’arte.” The English translation means, “I lived for art, I lived for love.” Puccini’s Tosca was one of Maria Callas’ most infamous operatic roles and the prime example of life imitating art. Callas’ life ended on September 16, 1977 in a Paris apartment. It is said that she died of a broken heart as did opera singer Floria Tosca at the end of the opera. Callas had an extra special gift which was reflected in the art form of opera. Transforming passion through music for the world to hear was what she sacrificed her life for.

  Hatha Yoga in America By Alanna Brown, LuxEco Living Editorial Assistant What do you know about your local history? What stories lay within the paths you...

By Alanna Brown, LuxEco Editorial Assistant Sophie Uliano is the guru of all things green that coincide with feeling and looking gorgeous. An advocate of eco-friendly living without the sacrifice of beauty and glamour, she is the New York Times best-selling author of “Gorgeously Green: 8 Simple Steps to an Earth-Friendly Life,” “The Gorgeously Green Diet,” and “Do It Gorgeously: How to Make Less Toxic, Less Expensive, and More Beautiful Products.” Her breadth of knowledge is tremendous, ranging from non-toxic skin care, to gardening, to eco-friendly home restoration.

By Nancy Chuda founder and editor-in-chief of LuxEcoLiving and co-founder of Healthy Child Healthy World. Do drop in when in San Luis Obispo. Visit the...

By: Janelle Sorensen, courtesy of Healthy Child Healthy World Looking for a pediatrician is no easy task, especially if your concerns and parenting methods aren’t exactly the same as mainstream America. My husband and I scoured the city for a full year before finding the right one for our daughters. But, it totally paid off. We found an amazingly supportive and brilliant pediatrician whose philosophy was to tell us everything she knew and then let us choose what to do. She had only one provision; if she ever thought the results of a treatment were sub-par, then she would intervene with an alternate recommendation. That never happened and I was always overwhelmed with how much she knew. She could rattle off statistics about best practices in the EU, pertinent studies regarding alternative remedies, and recent outbreaks that could put my children at risk. She was a dream come true. But, alas, we moved. Now we are on the hunt again.

By Nancy Chuda founder and Editor-in-Chief of LuxEcoLiving and co-founder of Healthy Child Healthy World Cows have a voice too! If you can stomach, actually bare...

By: Emily Lynne Ion via Heathy Child Healthy World on Wednesday, April 28, 2010 Today, the Healthy Child family is mourning the loss of an...

Introduction by Nancy Chuda founder and Editor-in-Chief  of LuxEcoLiving and co-founder of Healthy Child Healthy World Step back in time. Over twenty years ago when...

By Nancy Chuda founder and Editor-in-Chief of LuxEcoLiving and co-founder of Healthy Child Healthy World For most people the diagnosis of cancer is a daunting...

A hearty "Haha" or fit of laughter may just be the key to a happier and healthier life. By: Kammie Daniels LuxEco Editorial Assistant A person must smile nearly a quarter of a million times to create one wrinkle. 15 seconds of laughter alone can add two days to your life span. One hearty chuckle burns over three calories. In today’s image and age-conscious society, where children want to grow up, adults want to hit the rewind button, and those in their twenties are considered to be in the "prime of their life", modern research is revealing that laughter is much more than just funny business.

By Nina Montee Karp a LuxEcoLiving  advocate for womens health and founding member of Healthy Child Healthy World Reposted courtesy of The Huffington Post You'd never...

"It will awaken your senses not only to the beauty of nature but to the plight of South Africa's wildlife, many of which are teetering on a thin line for survival.

Scientists with the National Institutes of Health are on a mission—being called the Human Microbiome Project—to find out what these microbes do exactly. Which ones are fighting for or against us, and how might they have the potential to counteract disease?

Healthy Child Healthy World provides parents with information that can prevent many childhood diseases. Our research team is powered by Environmental Working Group's comprehensive database which provides cutting edge scientific research which links human health to exposure to chemicals in the environment.

By Nancy Chuda founder and Editor-in-Chief of LuxEcoLiving and co-founder of Healthy Child Healthy World Get outdoors and enjoy the breeze it's good for you   I...

By: Bethany Colson, Managing Editor of LuxEco Living. Walking around plush suburban America in Hazmat suits because the environment is saturated with toxic chemicals? Well,...

By Alanna Brown, LuxEco Editorial Assistant Have you ever wondered how your shampoo fulfills its magnificent claims to give you “shinier,” “sleeker,” “frizz freer,” “blonder,” “brunetter,” (…the list goes on) hair? Annie Leonard, author of The Story of Stuff and The Story of Bottled Water, wondered this of her personal favorite, Pantene Pro-V. She looked at the ingredients on the bottle post-lather and thought, “Sodium laureth sulfate? Tetrasodium EDTA? Methylisothiazolinone? What is this stuff?” After doing some research, she found the truth behind her shampoo was disheartening, to say the least. In her most recent short film installment, The Story of Cosmetics, Annie Leonard tells us how it’s not just shampoo, but many personal care products that contain toxic ingredients. From sunscreen to lipstick, there are disease-causing chemicals in our daily product regimen responsible for cancer, learning disabilities, and much more.

By: Leslie Harris, Interior Designer, Leslie Harris Interior Design and LuxEco Advocate As I wind down for the year I find myself thinking about a book called The Home Within Us and how much that says about my design philosophy. Everything I approach as a designer lies first and foremost in the feeling of comfort, well being, creating a place of safety and sanctuary. Problem solving, space planning, furniture and color selection comes later but it is driven by these things.

by Elizabeth Grossman, Author of Chasing Molecules: Poisonous Products, Human Health, and the Promise of Green Chemistry, High Tech Trash: Digital Devices, Hidden Toxics, and...

By Sahar Ghaffari, LuxEco Living Editorial Assistant You may or may not have heard of the essential oil known as tea tree oil, but it has been an age old remedy for a myriad of ailments. Obtained from the leaves of the native Australian plant called Melaleuca alternifolia, Australian Aboriginals used the leaves to heal skin cuts, wounds, and infections. The name originated from the fact that the leaves of the plant were used as a substitute for tea. Tea tree oil has antiseptic, anti-fungal, antibacterial, and antiviral properties which make it useful in a variety of ways.

By Alanna Brown, LuxEco Editorial Assistant The old diet and exercise routine just doesn’t seem to be working anymore. You eat your fruits and veggies, avoid carbohydrates (well, you try to), and are physically active at least 3 times per week. Yet, when you step on the scale it won’t budge past your old plop-down-on-the-couch-with-a-bag-of-chips weight. What is it going to take to drop the next 10 to 15 pounds? Scientists have discovered that it’s not your diet or exercise routine to blame, it’s a little endocrine-disrupting chemical known as EDC’s or “obesogens” making it impossible to shed the extra fat.

By Janelle Sorensen, Chief Communications Officer, Healthy Child Healthy World Expert Opinion courtesy of Healthy Child Healthy World When my husband and I toured schools to...

By Nancy and James Chuda founders of LuxEcoLiving and Healthy Child Healthy World Buelton California at the Circle JB Polo Ranch photo credits LuxEco Living...

By Bethany Colson, Managing Editor of LuxEcoLiving.com When fighting cancer, we often think of disease management through any number of Western medical practices.  But wellness...

Picture of the week   A Lions Mane Jellyfish, the largest jellyfish in the world! They have been swimming in arctic waters since before...

After recently writing an article about Justin Timberlake’s newly reopened green golf course, Mirimichi, I began to dig deeper into the potential hazards that non-green golf courses pose and the ultimate cost that humankind and the environment will have to pay. One of the main and most talked about dangers of golf courses in recent years, has been the use of pesticides on golf course lawns.

By Florence "Flip" Ross a LuxEcoLiving contributor and advocate   It is such a beautiful world, have you noticed the various hues? When I step out the...

By Michelle Dennis, LuxEcoLiving Marketing Assistant and author of "COLON TALK", a cancer survivor's blog. The day I was diagnosed with colorectal cancer, I asked...

By Alanna Brown, LuxEco Living Editorial Assistant The largest organ in, or should I say on, our bodies…the epidermis.  It is defined by the Online...

By Anna Getty, Author and LuxEco Adovcate I have been addicted to organic food for almost 10 years. I know it is better for me, my kids and better for the planet. Studies have shown organic produce to be higher in anti-oxidants; vitamins and minerals (thank you to The Organic Center for your vigilant scientific research) and organic dairy, meat and eggs have fewer hormones, antibiotics and pesticide residues (yes, pesticides are found in meat because cattle are eating feed laden with them). It’s also true that organic farming is more sustainable; it uses fewer resources and encourages community. But above all else it tastes better. Try this experiment. Blindfold your kid and have him taste both a conventional and organic apple. You will see, he will pick the organic apple.

I was hoping to wear a white dress and walk into town to share my heartfelt joy with my friends. I wanted to roar like a white lion with pride and share the passion of OUR WIN TOGETHER.