Today has been frustratingly mind-blowing. First I found out that even though I'm four weeks away from my due date I'm already one centimeter dilated. Then I just finished watching a documentary called "Bag It" that I wish I'd seen nine months ago. It started out talking about plastic bags and what a crazy idea it is to use a material that will never EVER disappear for something that is supposed to be disposable. I mean, why would you use a material that will last FOREVER for something that is designed to be used for a few minutes. The doc went on to show how much plastic we use in our country, explaining that all disposable coffee cups are lined with plastic, everything packaged in the store is wrapped in plastic, etc. I'm already actively disgusted by how we abuse the environment but too lazy to really do anything about it. I usually try to use my reusable shopping bags, but only when I go to the grocery store... I never think to use them when I go to Target or the Christmas Tree Shop. I hardly use plastic water bottles, but I get ice coffees from dunkin donuts all the time. So what's really the difference?
Anyway, some of the things that I'm thinking about now that I'm becoming a mother are the following. I have been drinking beverages from containers that most likely had BPA in them for the last nine months. I've been heating up my food in containers that probably contain BPA and phthenolytes(?) all along. Studies show that ingesting these chemicals can be bad for you but also be harmful to your unborn child, causing all kinds of issues that effect millions of Americans. One of the things that can come from allowing your child to use bottles or sippy cups that have BPA in them is ADHD. It is no wonder why the amount of kids with ADHD has gone from 1 in 2500 to 1 in 150 since the 70s when we began using so many disposable drink containers. Also included in the list of possible issues? Diabetes, feminization in boys or masculization in girls, breast cancer, colon cancer, and the list goes on and on. These chemicals are also in all kinds of canned food and toiletries like body wash and shampoo and it is never listed on the label.
This sucks. I hate that our country protects the money making companies at the risk of our health and safety. You think you could trust that if you buy a can of corn you are simply eating corn. I wonder how much of the chemicals leak into my food every time I heat up a Healthy Choice meal? How healthy is it? Sure its low cal and low fat but it's full of chemicals that cause cancer and diabetes.
I also began thinking about using cloth diapers. I know this sounds crazy, and those of you who already have kids are probably laughing at me right now thinking, yeah sure, let's see how that goes after one week. I probably won't do it, like I said, I'm actively angry about the environment, but passively participating. Just think about all that plastic that goes into Pampers. And how many Pampers you throw away every day. That crap doesn't get recycled. No pun intended.
