Green Baby Shower: Give the Gift of Health

Blankets, toys and clothes are cute and fine gifts for baby. Those cute little Baby Phat dresses and tiny Nike Dunks are just over the top, but we love it! If you really want to show your love and concern for the new bundle of joy, share some knowledge with mama, papa and grandma along with a green and socially responsible version of your traditional gifts. Talk to them about choosing chemical free personal care and feeding products for their child. You know as black people we love to use Vaseline, baby powder and baby lotions to keep our children glowing and clean. We slather them in sunscreen to protect their skin from getting burned or too dark (that's a whole separate unfortunate psychological issue folks). If you read the labels on these products they are full of parabens, unknown chemicals, fake fragrances and petroleum. Baby bottles are being made with BPA-2, a chemical that is linked to hormonal issues in developing babies, chemical sunscreens are linked to hormonal abnormalities. Toys have been found recently to contain unsafe levels of lead. Many of these exposures will affect our children's mental and intellectual health now and physical health later in adulthood. Encourage your new parents to be as conscious of what they surround their baby with as they are in who will surround their baby. Toys R Us has made a commitment to better toy safety. Target and Wal-mart have dozens of affordable healthy and organic products for babies. I mention these companies because many parents have a shower registry with these firms and shop there. A good start will be to encourage them to take this brochure to their first pediatrician visit an to engage a discussion on environmental health and child development. Hopefully you can enjoy the food, fun and celebration of a new life while knowing that your contribution will have an impact for life!

Peace.