Dare You To...

It's the return of Friday Features!  Lately, I've been seeing more and more articles promoting some research findings that I've been living by for a while. Vindication! Love having a quick link to send to my friends, family, and YOU that unearths and explains some important science that impacts your life.



"Light emitting e-readers detrimentally shift circadian clock" The American Association for the Advancement of Science recaps a research study's findings about the negative impact of e-readers' light on participants sleep quantity and quality, as well as their alertness and functioning the following day!!

Yet another publication has caught up to the times:
"Nutritional experts say it's time to stop fearing fat."
The article as a whole is tentative, as the title indicates
by placing responsibility on the "nutritional experts."
It goes back and forth, asking expert after expert about their take
on a recent research study.  Some advice…

Here's a dare I've taken on that people have noticed.  I've gotten compliments on my glowing skin, and some have asked me what I'm up to.  If you want to stop worrying about what's on your face and finally have glowing, balanced skin, then this post is for you.

Just as I got rid of the unpronounceable ingredients in my body lotion, I wanted to avoid the artificial cleansers in my face wash, too.  What good does it do to use coconut oil to moisturize my face, if I'm still washing it with strange chemicals twice a day?

Well, I'd heard of "oil cleansing" before, and you may have, too.  There's a website dedicated to it (The Oil Cleansing Method.com, and it's outlined extensively with various options in The Skintervention Guide by Liz Wolfe.  THere's also a helpful tutorial on Mommypotamous.

It may seem counterintuitive, but using oil topically actually helps balance your skin.  It's nourishing, cleansing, and moisturizing.  It helps …

I've done less goal checking-in on the blog this past year but I've certainly been setting and keeping track on my own.  Time to look back and reflect on some of these...

In May, I joined the Runners' World Summer Running Streak, vowing to run at least one mile each day, from Memorial Day through Independence Day. I thought it'd be a good way to get back into running after some time spent focusing more on strength, and it was. If you followed along on DailyMile, then you know I achieved my goal, logging at least one mile daily for those 39 days.

Did it get me back into running? Somewhat. As I mentioned before, I found that running outside in suburbia or parks is much more enjoyable to me than city streets. Most of the miles logged did, sadly, take place on a treadmill, but I didn't mind it so much. I would jump out of bed 10 minutes earlier than usual, hit the treadmill for a quick mile, and then start my day feeling awesome, because I already ran a mile!

Th…

HAPPY FRIDAY! Here are some fascinating articles and blog posts of late: 
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There was a very interesting, thoughful post last week that got me thinking,  and the title should reel you in on its own:  Please Don't Help My Kids, an article by Kate Bassford Baker.
Remember whenI said I want to learn moreabout GMO (ab)use and labelling?  
Babble.com hasthe lowdown on GMOsfor you and for me.
Want to become a morning person?Greatist tells you HOW.

Pretty Little Liars may be a favorite guilty pleasure among young adults, too,  but what kind of messages about food is it sending to its target audience: teenage girls?   This "Food Horror" video raises serious questions.
As part of mynatural skincarequest, I was excited to see that
Nicole at Making Good Choices explains why and how to
avoid parabensin skincare products.

Is Protein Powder Okay on a Paleo Diet?   Diane Sanfillippo reminds us that it's not food,  but there may be special circumstances where it's useful.
Karen Maidme…

Go find your lotion.  Face lotion, body lotion... whatever it is that you apply on a regular basis, take it out.  Turn it over.  Look at the ingredient list.  Count the number of ingredients you recognize.  How many words do you understand?  How many words can you pronounce?  How many of the listed items do you think came from nature?



How many do you want seeping into the largest organ of your body: your skin?

If you're cool with rubbing all that garbage into your body, that's your choice.  To each, his own. Personally, I'd rather ditch the man-made chemicals for something nature made, something my skin might recognize as naturally moisturizing.  I also don't want something that will actually dry out my skin and make me become addicted to the lotion.  But, again, that's just me.  If you feel similarly or simply want to try another, more natural approach to moisturizing, read on!


Today's dare: Swap your daily lotion for coconut oil.  

I was a little skeptical at…