Watch Your Mouth... Your Skin and Your Hair! Pt. I: Intro

Writing this blog is proving to be very enlightening... and frustrating... and difficult. My aim is to inform women- particularly women of color who would not otherwise have access to this information- about the natural things available to aid us in our pregnancy, childbirth and child rearing. So, of course, we have to talk about ways to take care of ourselves before, during and after pregnancy. This encompasses, not only the food we eat- which is of the utmost importance, but, what we bathe with and put on our skin and hair. Afterall, the best path to good health is NOT what we do once we're sick, but the everyday things we do so that sickness never- or hardly ever- enters the equation in the first place.

With that being said, it ain't easy to live a truly healthy lifestyle when you have little money. Or, when your neighborhood has no real grocery stores, let alone health food stores. For instance, in a particularly poor South Los Angeles neighborhood that I tend to frequent, there is not one major grocery store within a 2 mile radius. Not one. Lots of little corner stores such as one up the street where I bought a mango for breakfast. I opened it... rotten! Completely rotten! Not to mention the fact that there are no alternatives to bleached white bread, outdated bologna or "fruit"-flavored drink. Yes, I said "drink", not juice! Now, if you are a mother of one or more, have no car, are relying on food stamps and/or government cash aid then you may not see anything wrong with filling your baby's bottle with "drink" or sending your 8 year old to school with "Hot Cheeto's" and nitrate-filled bologna sandwich or even buying a bunch of McDonald's $.99 cheeseburgers for dinner because it's what's available and what's affordable. Shoot, my mother gave me plenty of bologna as a kid. But, when we know better, we do better... unless, you never knew better or don't have the means to do better.

So, this particular series of posts will be dedicated to showing women how to nourish ourselves, especially when pregnant and nursing, on a for real budget (not those fake "budgets" like they talk about in magazines which assumes that you have disposable income or a second income).

Let's begin with talking about the facts. Why should we care about our food? It's food ain't it? Why should we care so much about our soaps, lotions and haircare products? It doesn't go in my mouth, it won't harm my baby, right? Well, let's look at some facts, shall we?

Fact: the skin is the largest organ of the body; 


Fact: over 70% of what is placed on the skin manages to seep into the body and our bloodstreams; 


Fact: women, on average, apply over 5 pounds of lotions and creams to their skin annually; 


Fact: there are over 10,500 chemicals used to manufacture cosmetic products; 


Fact: many of these ingredients are toxic (poisonous); 


Fact: like tobacco, before regulation, no one currently knows the cumulative effect these toxic ingredients have on a person when used for decades; 


Fact: some of these toxic ingredients have been directly linked to cancer, birth defects, respiratory problems, liver and kidney disease, and much more; 


Fact: recent clinical studies on pregnant women have shown the same toxins at the same levels are in the bloodstreams of the fetuses and enter through the umbilical cord; 


Fact: the European Union (EU) has banned over 1,100 toxic ingredients in the manufacture of safe cosmetic products; 


Fact: the US has banned 10. (Source: ezinearticles.com)

That's just the stuff we put on our skin. What about the stuff we eat?

Fact: the umbilical not only carries nutrients to your unborn baby, it can also carry toxins and heavy metals from the food we eat and in our bodies;


Fact: "You are what you eat" whatever is in your food, is in you. This includes hormones, antibiotics, chemicals, waste (as in,  poop) or whatever!;


Fact: most of the food animals in the United States are no longer raised on farms at all. Instead they come from crowded animal factories, also known as large confined animal feeding operations (CAFOs).


Fact: many of the ingredients used in feed for these animals are not the kind of food the animals are designed by nature to eat.


Fact: dead animal carcasses from these factories can be processed and fed to the live animals, meaning, chickens eat dead chickens, cows eat cow blood, pigs eat dead pigs and so on. This leads to the spread of diseases such as mad cow disease, e. coli and salmonella outbreaks. 


Fact: Feed for any food animal can contain cattle manure, swine waste, and poultry litter. Animal waste used for feed is also allowed to contain dirt, rocks, sand, wood, and other such contaminants. 


Fact: animals at animal factories often receive antibiotics to promote faster growth and to compensate for crowded, stressful, and unsanitary living conditions. An estimated 13.5 million pounds of antibiotics—the same classes of antibiotics used in human medicine—are routinely added to animal feed or water.


Fact: This has lead to the growing antibiotic resistance in humans, overgrowth and early onset puberty in children and the mutating viruses and bacteria infecting us today.


Fact: Whatever is in the cows you eat is also in the milk.


Ok, we'll stop there. I know this is a LOT of information, but trust me, it's worth it to be informed. My next posts will not be so bleak, but we'll talk solutions and alternatives! In the meantime, please feel free to ask any questions you may want to see mentioned in the blog. And check out the video below! Remember, REAL food goes bad after a while. It gets moldy, starts to stink and decay... just like our bodies when they die. Why doesn't McDonald's or ANY fast food EVER go bad? What is in that stuff???





Be peaceful and Productive, y'all

Earthy Mama

Do You Doula?

What I am truly thankful for in this process of gearing up to give birth (I'm now 37 weeks), is the fact that, even with my limited funds, I can have an advocate in my corner to help me to make informed choices and to have my back whatever those choices may be.

A doula or woman who serves is a trained professional (but NOT an OB/GYN, midwife or nurse) who provides support for a woman before, during and just after birth. Doulas can provide comforting touch, techniques to ease pain and make labor go smoother, give you information before the birth about things that may happen and give you the tools to make your own informed choice and give you the power to use your choices and your voice to your healthcare provider about how you want your birth experience to go. Essentially, she provides and helps those around you to provide the all too important non-medical support you need while you transition into motherhood.

Doulas are not a new trend, but an old and ancient tradition that has resurfaced in recent years. Unfortunately, sometimes the cost of having a doula can be out of most of our price range, but some doulas who truly just want to help you have the best birthing experience possible are willing to work with your budget (or lack therefof).

Women of color (specifically, Black women) are on the lowest end of the almost every statistic when it comes to natural birthing. We are the highest in having cesareans and the lowest in breast feeding after birth. Most of that comes from not feeling as if we have choices in the way we give birth and care for our children. Having real, professional and educated support outside of our medical provider is rare in our communities. We believe that the doctor knows best and don't learn how to trust our bodies or our babies. When infections or illness come into the picture, we don't get information about dietary changes and herbal alternatives from the doctor and lots of us do not know that there are natural things we can do in order to even do the research on our own. This can leave us open to lots of side effects that can mean pregnancy and labor complications, allergic reactions and resistance to other medications in the future

Doulas can help you to sort out all the wives' tales from the facts. She won't make the decisions for you, but can give you all the info you need to make your own decisions. A doula can help you realize and utilize the power that you have in your mind, body and spirit to bring your precious baby into the world and care for them the best you possibly can.

To begin researching doulas (in California) you can begin with MY doula, Derah,  here.

Breastfeeding Injustice

In creating this blog, I did some research to try and find out why there are not more websites, blogs, campaigns or WHATEVER to promote natural parenting among women of color and, more specifically, Black women. I read some disturbing statistics from Kimberly Seals Allers of MochaManual.com that only 20% of Black women breastfeed compared to 40% of White women (check the breastfeeding stats below). When you think about all the benefits to breastfeeding (higher intelligence for baby, being better able to fight illness, greater sense of bonding, lower risk of breast cancer for mama, natural birth control, free source of food for baby, etc.) and the risks of giving baby formula at the start (respiratory complications, contaminants from the manufacturers [please see all the recent product recalls here], digestive problems, colic, etc.), one would think that breastfeeding is a no-brainer. But, with the economy at a devastating low all over the nation, and even lower in Black and Brown communities, mothers have to work. Folks surrounding expectant and new mothers do not create environments of support so that they know they can still work and give baby mama's milk.

Mothers on welfare or any sort of public assistance, such as WIC, will find that giving baby breast is even less supported. WIC is the single greatest purchaser of commercial infant formula (breastfeeding.com). Hospitals will automatically give babies pacifiers and bottles when in the nursery unless the mother specifically and categorically tells the staff not to, and then must make nurses keep babies in the room with them for the duration of the hospital stay (called "rooming in").Women who are receiving government assistance are so often told what is best for their babies, they give up the power to ask questions and make demands themselves- being treated as if, because of their economic status, their opinions and feelings are worthless, unfounded and should not be expressed.

That's when I came across this gem of a documentary called "Formula for Disaster". It's in five parts on youtube. It takes pkace in the Philippines, where only 16% of the women there breastfeed. This is due to poverty (although, the formula costs so much, families there are barely able to afford it) and mothers must work and no one tells them that they can still breastfeed while working. Also, the media and doctors pressure, manipulate and lie to these women stating formula is best for their babies (sound familiar?). Watch it, share it, discuss it.

Be peaceful and productive!

Breastfeeding stats based on Race (via NPR.org)

Earthy Mama

Greetings From Earthy Mama!

I am currently 35 and a half weeks pregnant. I am in a position where I need to rely on the government for medical care. This is the reason why I created this blog.

Before I became pregnant, I ate relatively healthy- mostly organic. I never really trusted doctors and instead did lots of research on homeopathy and natural remedies. I was always into preventing and reversing dis-ease through food and supplements. I don't get shots (and yes, part of that is because needles hurt and hurt even more with some searing medicine shooting through them) because of the research I've done on vaccines.

After I found out I was pregnant, I decided the "responsible" thing to do was to go to the doctor. I am overweight and things like heart disease and diabetes have their place in my family. I hadn't had a blood test in years (again, the needle thing), and while I began a pretty good diet regimen, I was unaware of any damage I may have already done to my body. And now, this wasn't just about me.

For people, like myself, who either have to stop working or work jobs that cannot/do not offer health benefits (both applied to me), you may find yourself in an ugly and terrifying situation: relying on the government. If you are not armed with enough information, you can also find yourself settling for less than what you and your baby deserve, no matter what your financial status.

Thus, I begin this journey.

I have learned lots from other birth blogs and facebook groups, but have been saddened by the fact that I am either the lone or one of very few Black faces that contribute from the discussions. I am also saddened by the fact that the resources available, should one decide to be an "Earthy Mama" are VERY limited if your funds are limited and/or if you live in the hood. There are not any (in my neck o' the woods that I have found) midwives that attend to homebirths that are able to accept government medical insurance. The same goes for birthing centers. But, the fact that information is so very limited on breastfeeding and it's benefits (for mama and baby), the risks of cesareans (which are on the rise in the Black and Brown communities and all over the US), the facts about VBAC (vaginal birth after cesarean, which is TOTALLY possible), the risks of epidurals and etc, etc, etc... it just COMPLETELY blows my mind. Let's not even mention (though I realize THIS is a mention) nutrition and the availability of  fresh, organic food to poor mothers and pregnant women.

Most importantly, as I was researching and preparing for this first post, when I typed in "Black Pregnant Women", the results were... devastating. The first page of results in google were about murdered Black pregnant women, teen mothers, Black mothers dying during childbirth and other atrocities. I took that as a sign from the Almighty Father, Himself that there needed to be another voice.

So, this blog is dedicated to women, ALL women, who desire to be Earthy Mamas. The women who may not have known about the alternatives, which, really should NOT be alternatives at all, but the norm and the standard. But, this blog is especially dedicated to those women who may feel they do not have a voice in what they do with their bodies and babies because of pressure from doctors, government, family or whomever else. This is for you. I pray to have all sorts of info and resources for you all to learn and make informed choices. I'll tell you about my experiences and those of others. Ask me questions and I'll try to get as well-rounded an answer as possible.

Be peaceful and productive!

Earthy Mama