Synopses & Reviews
The first comprehensive guide to help environmentally conscious parents make healthy product and lifestyle choices.
Parents have become more and more conscious of how important it is to preserve the planet for their children and out of this consciousness, the green baby movement was born. This is the first definitive, up-to-date guide for parents on how to raise happy babies "green", that is, in a manner that is healthy for them and also for the earth.
Dr. Alan Greene, a leading voice of the green baby movement, advises on healthy choices during pregnancy and childbirth, feeding babies only the best food available, and using medicines safely. Consumer product expert Jeanette Pavini helps parents make smart choices on linens and diapers, bedding, furniture, plants, cribs, toys, carriers, household cleaners, lotions and creams, and dozens of other products.
This handy paperback is organized so that parents can turn to the stage of development and specific concerns they're facing, right down to the rooms of the home where the baby will dwell. From the womb to the delivery room and on to the nursery, kitchen, bathroom, linen closet, indoor plants and outdoor gardens, and beyond, the expert authors provide specific product choices and recommendations in an easy-to-use package that features innovative text, boxes, tips, consumer product ratings, and handsome illustrations.
Review
"I urge parents, old and new, to read this book and to keep it on a visible bookshelf, so that these messages of simple change can be passed on until we've raised a generation of healthy children in a balanced and healthy planet." Sara Snow, Host of Get Fresh with Sara Snow on Discovery Health
Review
"Pediatrician Greene's informative guide for raising children in the most environmentally friendly way possible makes for some fascinating (and surprising) reading. From pregnancy and childbirth to nursery design and gardening, Greene covers hundreds of questions and situations new parents will face and provides a nonstop flow of sensible answers. His evenhanded tone makes this an excellent choice for audiences as varied as committed vegans to those who are considering purchasing organic milk. There is no pressure to "convert," and readers will find plenty of options for how little or much they want to commit to a new lifestyle. The book's layout is particularly impressive, with boxed comments from other parents, lists of recommended products and food, and numerous links to helpful sites. From diapers to food allergies, Greene has a thoughtful, non-biased response to nearly every question a new parent could have. He gives his own opinions, but always states as much, and never! derides the choices of others. An excellent choice for those who don't know where to begin when it comes to environmental parenting." Booklist, September 2007
Synopsis
In this illustrated and easy-to-use guide, noted pediatrician Dr. Alan Greene, a leading voice of the green baby movement, advises parents how to make healthy green choices for pregnancy, childbirth, and baby care—from feeding your baby the best food available to using medicines wisely. Consumer advocate Jeanette Pavini includes information for making smart choices and applying green principles to a whole new universe of products from zero-VOC paints for the nursery, to pure and gentle lotions for baby’s delicate skin, to the eco-friendly diapers now in the marketplace, as well as specific recommendations for hundreds of other products.
About the Author
Alan Greene, MD (Danville, CA) is a practicing pediatrician and a leading authority and spokesperson for the green baby movement. Named "The Children's Health Hero of the Internet" by Intel, Dr. Greene teaches at Stanford University School of Medicine. His www.drgreene.com gets 50 million hits per month.
Jeanette Pavini (San Mateo, CA) is the ConsumerWatch reporter for CBS Eyewitness News in San Francisco and a winner of the Edward R. Murrow Award for Journalism.
Theresa Foy DiGeronimo (Hawthorne, NJ) has written numerous popular parenting books, including How to Talk to Kids About Serious Things.
Table of Contents
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS.
INTRODUCTION :Why Raise Baby Green?
CHAPTER ONE : The Womb.
Make sure your unborn baby receives the best possible nutrition and other vital elements through the green choices you make in your diet and lifestyle. Learn about the crucial impact of the environment on you and your baby.
CHAPTER TWO : The Labor and Delivery Room.
Fulfill your green birth plan to bring your baby into the world in the right place with the right people and with the type of delivery you feel is best.
CHAPTER THREE : The Nursery.
Create a beautiful, healthy environment with green furnishings, paint, wall coverings, flooring, bedding, clothing, and toys.
CHAPTER FOUR : The Kitchen.
Reduce your baby’s exposure to pesticides and other toxins, help clean up the planet, save energy, and reduce greenhouse gasses, just by eating the right delicious foods.
CHAPTER FIVE : The Bathroom.
Care for your baby with the best new choices in creams and lotions, save water, and stock your medicine chest with the safest remedies.
CHAPTER SIX : The Garden.
Whether you live in a house with a garden or in an apartment with pots in a sunny window, here’s how to have healthy plants and organic homegrown edibles in your baby’s life.
CHAPTER SEVEN : The Whole House.
Improve the air quality, lighting, water conservation, laundry, heating, and cooling throughout your home—and in your automobile, which has such an impact on the health of the family and the planet.
EPILOGUE : From the Ground Up.
NOTES.
Citations and sources for information in the text.
GREEN INFORMATION.
More valuable information about each room in the house.
GREEN RESOURCES.
Books,Web sites, organizations, and other forms of support and connections in the green baby community.
THE AUTHORS.
INDEX.