Which baby products are harmful in your opinion?

Well, I don't use jarred baby food, I always make my own. I think fresh pure food is healthier than the jarred ones. We also don't use a crib because I think our baby is much happier all snuggled up in our warmth at night, breathing with us in sleep. Plus there's no happier sight than waking up in the morning to your baby's bright, happy smile.

We also avoid soaps, lotions, sun blocks etc. with fragrance or unrecognizable, weird chemical ingredients (but geeez I just can't seem to say no to the $1 conditioner & those pump hand soaps from the Dollar Store!). The link bookgoddess posted is wonderful for sorting out the good products from the bad.

We also don't feed our kids meat. The flesh of a murdered beasts does not belong inside my children!

Um, we don't send our kids to school, we don't use flouride toothpaste or drink our county's flouridated water because we believe it's a toxin, & we don't vaccinate. We also don't use mercury teeth fillings because we do not like mercury poisoning! (I've read that some folks believe Alzheimer's is actually mercury poisoning! Interesting thought...)

I don't use those carry around plastic infant car seats because I prefer to carry my baby with me/on me (& I think he prefers that too ). Although I understand why some folks in very cold areas wouldn't want to take their snug baby out.

I use sponges not tampons. Oh wait, that's not a baby product.

Oh, I don't cook my kid's food on/in plastic dishes for fear of the carcinogens leaking into the food. My next plan of action is to replace our teflon pots & pans with cast iron!

That's all I can think of.

We don't use bouncy seats/swings/exersaucers/etc. because I think they make it too easy to not hold your baby. We have a stroller but rarely use it, and only for our 3 yr. old- the baby is worn.
I use that ewg link for bath products, of which we use few- just conditioner on my oldest, just water on my little guy, and just shampoo, conditioner and deodorant on me. Oh, and fluoride-free toothpaste for all of us. We avoid soap, makeup, and sunscreen.
We try to avoid plastic toys, although my 3 yr. old is in a My Little Pony phase right now.
We also try to avoid plastic dishes and nonstick pans but we're having problems with cups- glasses break every 5 seconds around here and plastic cups don't.
We don't vax.
We don't use sposies or disposable wipes.
We use seventh generation cleaning products in the house.

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Oh, oops, I'll clarify. I meant that I don't carry my babies around in those detachable infant car seats, that I prefer to carry or sling him when we're in stores or running errands. He does sit in it in the car. And he hates it!! Poor baby, but yeah, safety comes first. I just feel that those detachable seats are abused. I hate to see parents out carrying their newborns in his/her car seat & the seat being rocked when the baby fusses, or a bottle being propped in it with the baby. I mean, what what these new fangled "baby travel systems", we could take our babies out of their cribs/seats, etc at home, stick them in their infant car seat, drive someplace, detach the seat & set it on a compatible stroller, prop their bottles in the seat, then put the seat BACK into the car & drive home. I'm glad I was born in a time when my parents had to actually *carry me* & hold me when we were out & about.

We have the travel system actually...I bought it when I was still completely unaware that slings even existed. Yes, I was very "AP-ignorant" before I had my babe. I'm waiting on my sling to come in the mail, so when we run errands he is in the seat because I just don't like the way his weight is held in the Snuggli carrier we have, nor do I like how much his poor lil head bobbles around in it. The travel system IS convenient if you have no other carrying options, but yeah once this frickin sling gets here in the mail, he will be carried when we're out of the car. But even when we do use the travel system, I try to carry Evan in my arms as much as I can. He doesn't like to snooze in my arms so when he's sleeping he prefers to be in the seat or laying down somewhere.

But yeah, anyway, I just completely hijacked this thread...lol...just wanted to say that the travel systems aren't ALL evil. Yes, very much abused in my opinion but such is the way with so many "convenience items" for babies now. My sister in law has her kid in the seater at home, then pops him in the car, pops him in the stroller, back in the car, and again at home STILL has him in his seat. She claims its because of his "reflux" but I say she can hold him or pop him in some type of carrier if she wants her hands free.

I think many baby items can be very great, and many can be very bad, all depends on how you use them I guess.

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I have a question about plastic dishes. I don't cook in them but I do use plastic containers to store food in the fridge or to take lunch to work. Would you say it is bad too? If yes, what do you use instead (especially for lunches)..glass containers?

Why teflon pots/pans + non-stick pans are bad? What else can you use instead except for cast iron?

Why is flouride toothpaste bad? Where do you buy non=flouride toothpaste?

Also, since I was talking about "harmful" products, I was wondering what's so harmful about sending kids to school in your opinion?

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Well, then how do you manage to do everything at home that you need to do? Let's assume that your young baby does not want to lie down in your bed all day long...so you pick him up but since you don't use swings/exersaucers/bouncy seats/jumpers, etc...your only option is to hold him in your arms. So,isn't it uncomfortable (to say the least) to cook a meal and use a stove while holding your baby in a sling or in your arms? Isn't it uncomfortable to go and take a shower while holding your baby...or you always take a bath with your baby? Don't you think that those exersaucers/swings (when not abused) also add a bit of entertainment to your child?

Hm, I just can't imagine holding my baby in my arms all day long (unless he is in bed) and doing all the cooking and cleaning and taking care of my 3 year old. :

In defense of some people who use carriers...I did take the car seat thingy in with me for the first couple months of DD's life, because A) it is super windy here and I wanted to be able to put the special sleeping bag cover thingy over her face so she wouldn't gasp, and B) she was often asleep and I didn't want to wake her up and take her out! But now that she is older and generally wakes up the second I take the car seat out, if she's even asleep, I do take her out and put her in the sling...plus I feel she can handle the wind better at 3 months than at 3 weeks.

I believe the concern with plastic is that it leaches carcinogens into your food...it's probably worse if you heat the plastic but plastic in general is bad. I'm trying to switch to glass, although it's inconvenient at times--baggies are just sooo convenient!

Same thing with teflon--leaches carcinogens or something bad. You can use stainless steel, or maybe copper? I haven't made the switch on that yet.

Fluoride is a toxin like aluminum or mercury. I bought some JASON brand toothpaste at a health food store and it is fluoride free. Actually Crest or Colgate or somebody came up with a kids' fluoride-free toothpaste (cuz it's bad if they swallow it was their reasoning), and I've seen that at Wal-mart.

I don't have a problem with sending kids to school, just with sending them to public schools. I wouldn't have a problem sending my kids to a private or parochial school if I agreed with the stuff they were teaching. I don't agree with the stuff the public schools teach and I don't want my kids exposed to some of the behavior that goes on in public schools. That being said, I would prefer to homeschool so I can teach my kids in the way that's best for them and make sure they learn everything I want them to. Somebody else will probably post and give you a different view on this issue, though.

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Thank you so much for answering my other questions. Now, I have one more question out of curiousity. What do they teach in schools that you don't like? If you don't want to go into details, please just say whether it is a particular subject/class or the approach to learning in general? Also, I am completely clueless when it comes to homeschooling. If that's what you are planning to do, does it mean that you will hire a few teachers (or one teacher) that will come to your place and teach your kids or you will teach them yourself? Also, what do you do when they get like 15-17 years old? Do you also hire teachers to come to your place? Sorry if that's a silly question, but I am just curious to know how it all works.

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And I think public schools are too conservative!! We homeschoolers sure do fall all over the spectrum of beliefs & reasonings for not sending kids to school. M of M, you could ask every homeschooling family why they choose to homeschool & you'll probably get a different answer from each. I personally began seariously researching it when my (public schooled) dd reached 4th grade. The kids were getting pre-pubescent & starting to care more about looks, cliques, celebreties etc. than the joy of learning. I just hated seeing it. I want my kids to be able to express themselves & seek their identity (almost) however they see fit, not be forced to conform & feel shame for not looking like Paris or who ever's cool at the moment. I think PS can be suffocating for some kids who don't conform. And I find there is way too much homophobia, sexism, classism, racism, etc etc running rampant in schools. I was at an elementary school & saw 2 little boys wrestling around & calling each other "****". Oh I just hate it. I want my kids to be free to be exactly who they are, not be pressured to conform & forget how fun it is to actually learn! Plus neither of my (older) kids learn at the pace that the state requires the PS to teach at. My 7 yr old 2nd grader AND my 14 yr old 9th grader are both in middle school math! They'd both be lost in PS. In my boldest moments, I like to say that the point of public schools are to spit out nice, conforming, American robots at the end of 12 years. (At the same time I totally understand that homeschooling is not for every family, so don't flame me, plz thx.)

As for teaching, personally I decided to use a state funded public independent studies program for my dd for high school because it was too hard for me to keep up with making curriculum for her (I couldn't afford to purchase curriculum), & I had a new baby 4 mos ago. So this year we have a teacher that comes out to our house once a month & brings her new curriculum & helps us out a ton. I'm loving it. We've been homeschooling now for 5 years, this month.

And in regard to your other questions, here's a quick link listing toxins in plastics: http://www.ecologycenter.org/ptf/toxins.html
Teflon & carcinogens: http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/...lon-usat_x.htm

What you could use instead of Tupperware & plastics to store food in are Mason jars, those jars used for canning. I'm always on the lookout for glass bowls & wide mouthed jars with lids at thrift stores. Instead of using plastic baggies one could wrap foods in waxed paper or use glass I suppose. I haven't gotten that far with my de-plasticing yet! I'd like to stop relying on ziplocs....

Flouride is just a poison. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11995461
http://www.wholywater.com/fluoride.html
http://www.ghchealth.com/where-the-yellow-went.html
We find flouride-free toothpaste at any Whole Foods or natural foods store.

That's all I have time for! Good luck with your research! This board is chock full of more links & info regarding all of the above!

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I'm sorry this irked you.
I don't find it uncomfortable to wear my baby. I can wear him in a mei tai or sling on my front or back while I cook, clean, and take care of my 3 yr. old. He's very safe on my back while I cook. We like to play with him on the floor (he is sitting unassisted for brief periods and thinks that's great fun). Also, my 3 yr. old likes to hold and play with him, and his daddy likes to hold him and sling him when he's home (which is when I shower).
I think being in my arms or on my back while I live my life is more entertaining than an exersaucer. We go to the zoo about twice a week, to 2 playgroups a week, to 2 classes a week, and to the park pretty much every warm day.

I forget where I read that the shampoo thing is a myth, someone from MDC linked to a site debunking it before. We use Jason Natural shampoo anyway, though, because I am worried about anything containing SLS.