EcoParenting

Arabella Greatorex, owner of The Natural Nursery, reports on the rapidly rising demand for natural, environmentally friendly and ethically sound parenting products and highlights some of the concerns which have fuelled these demands.

Organic Food

There has been much media debate around the promotion of heavily processed food items to children, section of an extended standing concern about the quality of food available in the UK. While some say the jury continues to be out on issues such as pesticide residues in fruit and vegetables, it really is worth noting that only 30 additives are allowed in organic food, compared to over 300 in non-organic. Specifically, organic food bans the utilization of tartrazine (associated with hyperactivity in children) and GM ingredients.

The Soil Association reports that sales in organic food grew by 10% this past year overall and purchases from farm shops and box schemes by a whopping 16%. Which means that over 75% of households bought some organic food during 2004.

Organic baby and toddler foods now account for nearly 1 / 2 of total baby foods in the united kingdom, with its market share growing rapidly, highlighting the level of concern felt by parents, and is really a trend that looks set to continue.

Cloth Nappies

Modern cloth nappies bear no resemblance to the old-fashioned terry squares you almost certainly wore as a child. They are cheaper and more hygienic to utilize than their disposable counterparts and parents are fast cottoning on to this. A decade ago, only 2% of parents used cloth nappies; that figure has grown to over 15% and is rising steadily.

Despite this growth in cloth nappy use, Bristol City Council still spends around �500,000 each year dealing with disposable nappies. read more can contain up to 200 chemicals plus some estimates say they'll take over 200 years to decompose.

The alternative is by using cloth nappies, which are now available in a wide range of shapes and sizes and will be just as simple to use as disposables. It is possible to choose from so soft organic terry or perhaps a natural eco-look or funky fleece prints or even retro patterns to really make a statement. They might be flat, shaped or stuffed, depending upon your child's personal needs and you will find other "clothies" tend to be more than happy to help you decide which nappy is right for you.

They could help you save money aswell; the Women's Environmental Network estimate that savings will undoubtedly be around �500 for the first child and much more for subsequent children, even considering the price of home laundering.

Chemical Free Toiletries

Your skin layer will absorb around 60% of products put on it and Green People estimates that the average woman will absorb about 2kg of chemicals through toiletries and cosmetics over twelve months, around 75,000 different chemicals! Everybody knows how sensitive a baby's skin is and rates of eczema are rising fast with almost a third of babies now suffering from it.

Many people believe that the chemicals in the lotions and potions that people use are at fault. Even some so called "natural" products contain a range of chemicals that are thought to cause or exacerbate skin conditions or be carcinogenic, even though they are originally plant derived. Worryingly, a product must contain only 1% 100 % natural ingredients to be legally labelled "natural".

Natural, organic and chemical free toiletries are no longer the preserve of medical food shop but are accessible on the traditional or from specialist internet companies. The Soil Association estimate that there will be a 20% increase in the quantity of licensed organic manufacturers this year, reflecting the huge surge in demand, especially amongst families with small children.

Fair trade

While you are buying clothes or toys for your baby, international trade may seem such as a remote issue but by choosing carefully, you could make all of the difference to someone else's life. Farmers in the developing world are ill-equipped to handle dramatic changes in commodity prices, which are due to factors beyond your control of the individuals most concerned.

Parents are being offered an increasing range of fairly or ethically traded products, including clothes, shoes, toys, toiletries and nappies. Sales of "Fairtrade" marked goods are now well over �100m each year in the united kingdom alone, up 46% on last year and we eat a third of a million fair trade bananas each day!

The growth in organic cotton

Most people assume that as cotton is a natural product, it is produced naturally, unfortunately, this is simply not the case. Around 150 grams of hazardous chemical pesticides will undoubtedly be used to cultivate enough cotton to make one t-shirt. The cotton farming industry makes up about about 1/4 of the world's insecticide use and also large sums of fertilisers that can end up in the water system and food chain.

THE PLANET Health Organisation estimates that 20,000 people die every year in developing countries because of poisoning from pesticides applied to non-organic cotton. Worryingly, much of the world's cotton production comes from genetically modified crops: over 2/3rds of China's cotton crop is GM.

Luckily, an increasing number of organic textiles are now available and there's been an 80% upsurge in the worldwide production of organic cotton within the last 24 months, with sales in the united kingdom alone now worth over �20m from almost zero a couple of years ago. You can now buy organic clothes, bedding, towels, sheepskins and nappies from the selection of suppliers - even good old Marks and Spencer sell a variety of organic cotton yoga clothes.

Katharine Hamnett, fashion designer, says: "This is section of a rapidly growing trend reflecting increasing consumer awareness and concern over global issues related to the impact of pesticides, herbicides, dioxins and toxic chemicals used in textiles, on the surroundings and human heath. The good news is that this shows people are actually looking for positive alternatives."

And for the daddies

The Ecologist Magazine recently studied the contents of a can of shaving gel and found it to contain "several skin irritants, four potential carcinogens, three central nervous system poisons and two reproductive toxins" - and all this before breakfast!

Arabella Greatorex is the owner of [1], an online store selling organic and fairly traded products for families including organic clothing and nappies, fairly traded toys and natural toiletries.