May is Asthma Awarness Month! Share this with those in need.

In 1998, The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that asthma increased 75% from 1980-1994 and in 2007, the EPA reported that an average of one out of every 13 school-age children suffers from asthma.* In fact, “asthma has become the most common serious disease of childhood, and there are at least several well-designed epidemiologic studies that have documented a strong link between use of domestic and industrial cleaning products and risk of asthma,” says Dr. John Spengler, Akira Yamaguchi Professor of Environmental Health and Human Habitation, Department of Environmental Health at Harvard University. “When reviewing the rapid increases of asthma rates in America, it is critical to recognize the link between pollution and human health, including chemical and biological pollutants in indoor environments.”

To help raise awareness around the asthma epidemic, Shaklee has teamed up with Harris Interactive (January of this year) to survey more than 1,000 American moms about their perceptions of home cleaners and their safety.

Key results from the Harris Poll are as follows:

• 81% of moms believe that their household cleaning products can trigger asthma in children and adults

“Moms already know household cleaners can be hazardous if swallowed or spilled directly on your skin, but most don’t make the connection that when these products are used as directed on floors, sinks and tubs, their families are exposed 24 hours a day.” - Jane Houlihan, VP for Research at Environmental Working Group in Washington, D.C.

• 38% of moms even agree that the air inside their homes is more toxic than the air outside
A person who spends 15 minutes cleaning scale off shower walls could inhale 3 times the “acute one-hour exposure limit” for glycol ether-containing products set by the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment.

Shaklee Get Clean Scour Off^TM Heavy Duty Paste gently removes stains and is great for cleaning tubs, ovens, sinks, and tiles.

• 88% of moms agree that household cleaning products can be harmful to you and your family’s health

With its incredibly powerful formula, Shaklee Get Clean Basic H2 Organic Super Cleaning Concentrate dominates grease, grime, and dirt 1,000 different ways. Basic H2and Get Clean products offer cleaning choices that are non-toxic, hypoallergenic, free of volatile organic cleaning compounds, and free of harmful fumes.

• 94% of surveyed moms would discontinue use of their favorite household cleaning products if they learned that they might be harmful to their families’ health. However, 35% believe that their children have developed skin rashes from the chemicals in cleaning agents used at home.

Shaklee Get Clean Fresh Laundry Liquid Concentrate, HE Compatible is a two-for-one non-toxic and hypoallergenic concentrate that outperforms leading detergents and big-name stain removers.

• 41% of moms admitted that they don’t know what types of ingredients are in the cleaning products they currently use

Shaklee Get Clean Soft Fabric Fragrance-Free Dryer Sheets use vegetable-based softeners on biodegradable sheets - you can throw the whole thing in the recycling bin when your load is done !

• 91% of moms report that they would use non-toxic cleaning products if they knew they really worked

Shaklee Get Clean offers cleaning choices that are green, safe, powerful and smart !

 Centers For Disease Control. Surveillance for Asthma, United States, 1960-1995, MMWR. 1998; 47 (SS-1)

Are All Omega-3’s the Same? What’s the Fish Story…

The Facts on Omega-3\’sBy now you’ve probably heard that omega-3 fatty acids are good for you.

The buzz is that omega-3s reduce inflammation and inflammatory diseases, lower the risk of heart disease, reduce triglycerides and help prevent metabolic syndrome, help prevent migraines and slow the rate of cognitive decline as we age.

There are a lot more clinical studies to be done, but in the case of the omega-3s most of the buzz appears to be true. So if you’re like most people, you’ve made the decision to increase your intake of omega-3 fatty acids.  But, if you’re like most people, you’re a bit leery of relying on fish as your source of omega-3s.   That’s because most fish in US restaurants and markets are farm raised, and farm raised fish are high in PCBs and other contaminants.

In fact the Environmental Protection Agency recommends that we eat farm raised salmon no more than once a month (if it was raised in farms located near Washington state or Chile) to no more than once a year (if it was raised in farms near Scotland or the Faroe Islands).  That’s a far cry from the two to three times per week that most health experts are recommending.  Of course, wherever there is a problem like that the American food industry is more than willing to step in. So you can go onto your favorite supermarket and purchase all sorts of foods and food supplements fortified with omega-3s.

Problem solved, you might think. Unfortunately, it’s not that simple.To understand why, you need to know a few things.

1) Omega-3 fatty acids are fats. They are macronutrients, not micronutrients. Thus, a fairly large amount is required to provide health benefits. For example, the American Heart Association recommends 500-1,000 mg/day to reduce the risk of heart disease.  Clinical studies showing that omega-3 supplementation reduces the pain and inflammation of rheumatoid arthritis often use 2,000 to 3,000 mg/day.

2) Not all omega-3s are equal. It is the long chain omega-3s, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), that exert the health benefits. The shorter chain omega-3, alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) has to be converted to EPA or DHA to exert its beneficial effects.

3) The conversion of ALA to EPA and DHA is only about 10% efficient. That means we need to consume 1,000 mg of ALA to get 100 mg of EPA + DHA.  So you need to read the labels carefully. Look at the mgs of omega-3s provided and make sure that most of the omega-3s are EPA & DHA. If they don’t tell you which omega-3s the food or supplement contains, check the ingredient list.

If fish oil is listed as the primary ingredient, the omega-3s are primarily EPA & DHA. If canola or soy oil is the primary ingredient, the omega-3 is primarily the low potency ALA.

Finally, if you are using a fish oil supplemental source of omega-3s, make sure that the supplement uses only the highest purity, triple distilled sources of EPA and DHA because even ocean fish can be contaminated with PCBs, pesticides and heavy metals.

Household Cleaners and Childhood Asthma, Is there a link?

As our thoughts once again turn to Earth Day and the harm that the chemicals and packing materials used for household cleaners cause our environment, it is well to remember that many of them are also detrimental to our health.

For example, in a study published in the October 12, 2007 issue of American Journal of Respiratory and
Critical Care Medicine, doctors from the Municipal Institute of Medical Research in Barcelona reported
that use of household cleaning sprays increased asthma risk in adults.

They studied 3,500 adults and found that those who used household cleaning sprays (for example, spray air
fresheners, furniture cleaners and glass cleaners) had a 30-50% higher risk of asthma than those who seldom or never used spray cleaners.

The incidence of doctor-diagnosed asthma was highest in those who used the cleaning sprays at least four times a week.

The cause of the increased asthma risk is not known, but the scientists who conducted the study hypothesized that it was some irritant in the propellants used in the sprays because the cleaners themselves only increased the risk of asthma by 10-15%.

The scary part is that the incidence of asthma in children has increased dramatically over the past 15 to
20 years.

And the scientific community has been at a loss to explain the causes behind this increase.

Children are usually much more sensitive to household cleaning products than adults.

Perhaps it is no coincidence that the use of household sprays and other household cleaning products containing potential irritants has also increased dramatically over this time period.

This, and similar studies, deserve wider publicity than they have received in the press.

Household cleaning sprays are convenient and inexpensive. Most people are completely unaware of the
negative effects that they can have can have on both the environment and on their health, so household
cleaning sprays have become almost ubiquitous in American households.

Use safe, healthy products for your family. Shaklee Get Clean products are the perfect option. The Shaklee company is real “Green” with no hidden agenda here, just good things for you and the planet. To learn more about these amazing products go to http://www.shaklee.net/earthforce

Is Gluten what’s making you sick?

Many people have been asking us at the cafe if we offer Gluten-free products.  There is a rise in cases of Celiac and other intestinal ailments around glutens. 

Gluten is a composite of the proteins gliadin and glutenin. These exist, conjoined with starch, in the endosperms of some grass-related grains, notably wheat, rye, and barley. Gliadin and glutenin comprise about 80% of the protein contained in wheat seed. Being insoluble in water, they can be purified by washing away the associated starch. Worldwide, gluten is an important source of nutritional protein, both in foods prepared directly from foods containing it, and as an additive to foods otherwise low in protein.

Shaklee scientists are hard at work testing our nutritional supplements for the presence of gluten so we can make a “Gluten Free” claim for those products that pass the test—great news for our gluten sensitive customers and for Distributors and Business Leaders marketing our products to people who are or may be sensitive to gluten.

To date, there has been no legal requirement to test for gluten to make a “Gluten-Free” claim, nor has the FDA provided a final definition of what “Gluten Free” means or established a gluten threshold standard to test against. Despite these facts, many companies have marketed gluten-free products basing their claims simply on the absence of ingredients that contain gluten. While generally reliable, that practice has never met Shaklee’s quality standards. However, with the passing of the Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act in 2004, the FDA has now issued a proposed rule defining the claim “gluten free” for voluntary use in labeling food and dietary supplements. The proposed rule also included an established “gluten threshold” to test against. Although a final rule is still pending, based on the proposed rule, established testing standards and the increase in demand from Shaklee consumers, we are now able to test for the presence of gluten in Shaklee nutrition products and make “Gluten Free” claims on products that meet the label claim criteria.

It should be noted that the majority of Shaklee nutrition products do not have gluten containing ingredients, with the exceptions of Herb-Lax®, Vita-E® 400 IU Tablets, Iron Plus C, Zinc, and the Cinch™ Meal-in-a-Bar products.

We are excited to announce that Shaklee has begun testing our products and as a result, customers will begin seeing new labels with the “Gluten Free” claim on selected products over the next several months, with the first appearing on Shaklee Vita-C Sustained Release in late April or early May.

Earth Day Member & Friends Event!

Are you wondering what you can do to make the Earth cleaner for 2008?  How about joining us on Monday April 21st to learn how changing brands to Get Clean products can make you, your family, your pets, and the planet healthier.  This biodegradable, non-toxic, ultra concentrated line of cleaners has been featured on Oprah, many magazines, and recently chosen to clean the White House.  This will be a great way to show friends and family some changes they can make to truly be “GREEN”.  

Join us at the Asprey Boat House #1 East View Street in Warwick on Monday April 21 7-9pm.  All members who attend will receive free shipping on their next order, a 10% discount on orders of $200 or more placed that night, and a special gift for bringing a friend and sharing the great Shaklee products.

Hope to see you there!

Get Clean on Rachael Ray

from vodpod.com posted with vodpod

Who’s Using Shaklee Get Clean?

As many of you may know, Shaklee Get Clean products were featured several times last year on the Oprah Winfrey Show.  Also, many famous celebrities were given Get Clean kits at the Oscars and Emmy’s as gifts.  Our public visibility has never been better.  But just when we think we can’t get any better, guess who is asking fo Get Clean?  Shaklee recently received a message from the Chaney residence in Washington D.C. asking that the Vice presidents home have the Get Clean products, in addition, an email from The White House requesting the Get Clean products was received as well.  If the top homes in the nation are making the switch, isn’t it time to consider doing it yourself.  To learn more about Shaklee’s amazing Get Clean line of all-natural, biodegradable, safe cleaners go to SHAKLEE GETCLEAN

National Women to Women Initiative, May 3rd!

Mark your calendars for May 3rd. and join us for the first ever Shaklee National Women to Womens Initiative, an important discussion specifically for and by women.  Topics will include not only health and wellness, but stress, financial concerns and much more.  Don’t miss experts from around New England and make an investment in yourself!

The event will be held on Saturday, May 3rd at the Wm. Hall Public Library 1825 Broad Street, Cranston, RI 02905.  The event will start at 1-4 and open to all Shaklee members and friends.  For information visit http://www.nwtwi.org  

Next Member Reception March 24!

Our first member reception held at Little Falls Cafe on Feb. 27 was a huge success.  Many members and thier guests enjoyed discussions on many of the Shaklee product lines and some great conversation with many top Shaklee leaders.  The next event will be held at the Aspray Boat house at 2 East View Street in Warwick (in Pawtuxet Village).  We will focus this month on Sports nutrition presented by Ironman Triathlete, Maryann Donnelly.  Bring a friend or two and learn how you can actually have Shaklee pay you to use the products you love.  More detail will follow so check back at www.myshakblog.com Please RSVP to Jeff at 401-941-3732

Do you want better health? A better life?

Who doesn’t!  Whether it’s eating better, working out more, having less stress or just feeling alive, everyone is looking for something that will solve at least one of these issues.  I have found after my two year career with the Shaklee Company, that all of these things are possible and achievable if your willing to make the effort.

Imagine how different your life would be if you had all the money you needed.  What if your job was helping others have the same freedom.  What is the value to our health of eliminating the stress that money causes.  Who wouldn’t want to not worry about bills, mortgage, retirement.  Shaklee can be the vehicle to create what ever lifestyle you choose.  It’s up to you how much or how little you participate with a Shaklee business, but it’s totally YOUR choice.  

The benefits of a Shaklee business are much more than just financial.  Personal growth and development, as well as better overall health and well-being are just the start of what awaits.   Not to mention being recognized and rewarded for your efforts by your peers.  And then there’s the travel, but that’s another post…

Dr Shaklee said “The best way to have the life you want is to create it”.  Awaken the entrepreneurial spirit inside and learn more today!

If you are at all curious about how you may be able to have the life you’ve always wanted, give me a call or email and we can set up an appointment to discuss what it takes.