Green Deen

My mother has always told me that drinking brewed fenugreek is good for health. I also discovered that it is very good for breastfeeding mothers to take as a supplement for increasing breast milk production. I drank it constantly while I breastfed my daughter, and more recently, my mother began brewing it (and diluted it) and offered it to her as she's now almost two.

One day I woke up and was near my daughter, and I could smell a syrupy sweet aroma. My first thought was that she had gotten into something sweet and sticky and it got into her hair. I dismissed this and noticed it every morning for one week that she always smelled like maple syrup. I couldn't figure it out because I did not offer my child sugar or sugary foods and I knew my family did not, either.

I mentioned this to my husband, and he was concerned, as he remembered from nursing school that a sweet smell coming from children was a symptom of a disease. Specifically Maple Syrup Urine disease which is an inherited disorder in which the body is unable to process certain protein building blocks (amino acids) properly. The condition gets its name from the distinctive sweet odor of affected infants' urine. Beginning in early infancy, this condition is characterized by poor feeding, vomiting, lack of energy (lethargy), and developmental delay. If untreated, maple syrup urine disease can lead to seizures, coma, and death.

Of course my husband and I began freaking out, and as we continued to research, I remembered my mom telling me that she remembered when she was little that when everyone in the family would drink brewed fenugreek, it would give off a certain odor. When this comment came back to me, I quickly told my husband to search "fenugreek" and "children" to my surise an article came up about a mother who's daughter always smelled like maple syrup! This news gave us great relief as we realized that alhamdullillah, she did not have MSUD, but rather, smelled sweet from the fenugreek she drank!



What is fenugreek? - Fenugreek is one of the world's oldest medicinal herbs. It has a variety of uses, including increasing breastmilk production.Fenugreek is the small stony seeds from the pod of a bean-like plant. The seeds are hard, yellowish brown and angular. Some are oblong, some rhombic, other virtually cubic, with a side of about 3mm (1/8"). A deep furrow all but splits them in two. They are available whole and dried , or as a dull yellow powder, ground from the roasted seeds.


What is it used for ? - Fenugreek seeds are ground and roasted and used to flavor to curry. The seeds are also soaked and then powdered and used to make lip balm and tonic. The seeds can be used to make tea, which can reduce fever and menstrual pains, or they can be used in an ointment to treat skin infections. The seeds have also been used to increase libido in men and serve as an aphrodisiac. Ground seeds are often used to give a maple flavor to sweets and candies. Ground seeds are also used to flavor cattle food, including different vegetable meals and hays. Fenugreek's leaves, which are high in iron, are used in salads. Taken internally, fenugreek is used to treat bronchitis, coughs, respiratory problems, sinus conditions and to increase milk supply (see more below).

Fenugreek and breastfeeding - Fenugreek seeds contain hormone precursors that increase milk supply. Scientists do not know for sure how this happens. Some believe it is possible because breasts are modified sweat glands, and fenugreek stimulates sweat production. It has been found that fenugreek can increase a nursing mother's milk supply within 24 to 72 hours after first taking the herb. Once an adequate level of milk production is reached, most women can discontinue the fenugreek and maintain the milk supply with adequate breast stimulation. Many women today take fenugreek in a pill form (ground seeds placed in capsules). The pills can be found at most vitamin and nutrition stores and at many supermarkets and natural foods stores. Fenugreek can also be taken in tea form, although tea is believed to be less potent than the pills and the tea comes with a bitter taste that can be hard to stomach.

Fenugreek is not right for everyone. The herb has caused aggravated asthma symptoms in some women and has lowered blood glucose levels in some women with diabetes. Please read Fenugreek Precautions and Dr. Ruth Lawrence's article Herbs and Breastfeeding for more information on fenugreek.

sourced from: http://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/condition=maplesyrupurinedisease

http://www.breastfeeding.com/all_about/fenugreek/all_about_fenugreek1.html

This is for all the modern mommies (and daddies and grandparents, and everyone) out there! waafia.com is a wonderful up and coming site with amazing products. And the great part is that it is Local-Muslim-Sister-Owned. I've just ordered several of her products, and I'm currently antsy in my pantsy until they arrive!

The paper goods selection is just lovely. The greeting card graphics are chic, Islamic, and thoroughly cool. Check out the Arabic poster! A fun modern way to teach kids Arabic letters, or simply frame as a Study of Arabic Fonts art piece.

They also have AWESOME, customizable baby blankets and kid pillows! These unique hand-made pieces are the perfect Eid gift for that special little shaikh or shaikha in your life. The graphics are crisp, original, and totally touchable.

Green Deen has decided to spice it up a bit by asking a number of masajid in the So-Cal area and abroad to participate in encouraging the Muslim community to get serious about going Green. This Friday, June 12, 2009, catch a Green Khutbah near you!!

Labels: community, environment, green khutbah, Islam

One of my dreams was to have an all-natural baby store, ideally I would have called it Baby Green Bean Shoppe (or something) and I would carry a whole array of green products from toys, to baby products, to beauty products... and alas, someone else got the idea before me...

Tucked away in the side streets of downtown Fullerton, a little gem of a shop can be found in the French Village. Belly Sprout is a tiny boutique that carries the most extensive selection of cloth diaper systems, and even hosts diaper clinics to aid parents in the ways of cloth diapering.

They also carry organic cosmetics (I just bought their black eyeliner, and loving it so far), as well as a selection of toys, and feeding items.

Upcoming Events :

June 4th- 10:30 - 12 pm:
Koala Club- Free event! Gathering of moms who enjoy baby wearing, and allows moms to share and connect.

June 17th- 10:30- 12 pm:
Cloth Nappy Club- Free event! Gathering of moms who cloth diaper their babies.

June 25th- 11:30 - 1 pm:
OC Babywearers - Free event! Learn tricks of wearing your baby

.

.

We live in a society that is highly dependent on drugs. Personally, I'd rather not take medicine. I prefer drinking tons of fluids and resting over popping pills any day. Nonetheless my medicine cabinet is piled high with bottles upon bottles of prescription medications. Some of these medications are expired and others I have no use for.

Given the wide array of side effects and contraindications that are attributed to various pharmaceuticals and given the fact that our water supplies are already showing traces of these pharmaceuticals (due to the body's inability to fully metabolize and absorb ingested medications), it is pertinent that a conscious effort is taken to properly dispose of any drugs that might be lingering in the medicine cabinet for one reason or the other.

Here are some tips:

1. Keep all medicines out of the reach of children and pets.

2. Do not flush pills down the toilet.
The presence of contraceptives in the water supply can be attributed to its excretion in the urine. Urine gets flushed down the toilet. Because a system that is able to completely rid the water of such pollutants has not yet been developed, contraceptives and other medications find their way to our water ways. You can prevent larger amounts of pharmaceuticals from reaching the water ways by not throwing you unused and unwanted medications down the drain or in the toilet.

3. Ask your pharmacist if they take back unused medications.
Some pharmacies such as Kaiser Permanente will take back unwanted, unused or expired medications and will properly dispose of them at no cost.

4. Ask around in your neighborhood.
Some cities have collection centers or will often have arrangements where residents can bring in any medications that they may want to get rid of. There are various locations in the Los Angeles area that take expired and unused medications. To find an location near you visit Earth911.

5. If you absolutely must dispose of medication in the trash, follow these steps:

• If the medication is a liquid , mix it with cat litter, coffee grounds, saw dust or something that will make it look less appealing to anyone who may want to ingest the med for whatever reason.
  
• If the medication is a solid, crush them, add water and mix with cat litter, coffee grounds, etc.
  
• Close the container tightly. Remember to remove any personal information that may be on the label.
  
• Tightly secure the bottle shut with layers of strong tape (duct tape, electrical tape, etc.).
  
• Place the sealed bottles in at least three plastic bags being sure to tightly secure each bag with layers of tape.
  

Sources: Earth911, Casa Sugar, Noaa Research

Labels: medicine disposal, safe, Water

By Larry West, About.com

Looking for small ways to make a big difference for the environment? Why not start by making yourself a peanut butter and jelly sandwich?

As members of the PB&J Campaign (no, I’m not kidding) like to say, “You don’t have to change your whole diet to change the world. Just start with lunch.”

Eating a plant-based lunch (such as a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, a bean burrito, vegetarian chili, or a hearty salad) instead of an animal-based lunch (such as a hamburger, a tuna or grilled cheese sandwich, fish and chips, or chicken nuggets) will save water, preserve land and slow global warming.

How Eating a PB&J Sandwich Slows Global Warming
Every time you eat a peanut butter and jelly sandwich or other plant-based meal instead of one that features red meat, such as a hamburger, you save the equivalent of almost 3.5 pounds of greenhouse gas emissions. Eating a strictly plant-based meal compared to the average American lunch still saves 2.5 pounds of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. That’s about 40 percent of the carbon you would save by driving a hybrid vehicle for the day instead of a standard sedan.

How Eating a PB&J Sandwich Saves Water
Growing plants for food takes a lot less water than raising animals. As a result, every time you substitute a peanut butter and jelly sandwich or some other plant-based meal for an animal-based meal such as a hamburger, you save about 280 gallons of water. Eat three PB&J sandwiches a month instead of animal-based meals and you can save as much water as you would by switching to a low-flow showerhead.

How Eating a PB&J Sandwich Saves Land
Raising animals for food takes a lot of space. For example, animal products require 6 to 17 times as much land as soy to produce the same amount of protein. Eating a plant-based lunch like a peanut butter and jelly sandwich instead of a hamburger, ham sandwich, or another animal-based meal saves anywhere from 12 to 50 square feet of land from deforestation, overgrazing, and pesticide and fertilizer pollution.

How Eating One PB&J Sandwich Helps the Environment
By eating lower on the food chain—plants instead of animals—you also consume fewer resources. Why? Because, basically, everything you eat comes from plants. You either eat plants directly—in the form of fruits, vegetables and plant products such as peanut butter—or indirectly after animals have converted plants into meat, milk, eggs, butter and cheese.

The problem is that animals are not very efficient as living food factories that convert plants into food for humans. Animals use most of the plants they eat to produce the energy they need to walk around and keep breathing. To stay alive long enough to become part of your lunch or dinner menu, every cow, pig and chicken has to eat much more protein, carbohydrates and other nutrients than it will yield once the ax finally falls. As a result, it takes several pounds of plants to produce one pound of beef, pork, chicken, eggs or milk.

Inevitably, that means it also takes a lot more land, water and fuel to produce one pound of meat, milk or eggs than it does to produce one pound of edible plants. Not only do the animals need food, water and room to roam, but growing the plants to feed the animals that will, in turn, become food for you requires even more land and water as well as fuel for farm machinery and irrigation pumps.

To help provide some context, the PB&J Campaign says the water required to produce the beef in one hamburger could grow enough peanuts for 17 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. And the land required to put that same beef patty on your bun could produce enough peanuts for 19 PB&J lunches.

How You and Your Diet Can Make a Difference
Basically, this all comes down to your power as a consumer. Every time you choose a hamburger, omelet or grilled cheese sandwich over a plant-based meal, you’re telling your local restaurants and supermarkets to buy more meat, eggs and dairy products. By choosing more plant-based meals, you’re asking for less meat and a more efficient use of resources. Either way, your unspoken but unmistakable messages are received by your local merchants and conveyed to wholesalers and farmers.

Want to do more? Share this information with your friends, coworkers and family members and urge them to take action. Encourage your school or office cafeteria, and the local restaurants you frequent, to offer more plant-based dishes. Organize a weekly PB&J lunch (or other plant-based meals) at work, home or school and calculate the positive environmental contribution you’ve made.

Read on from Source.