Japanese-American singer-songwriter Mitski plowed her way through an hourlong Capitol Hill Block Party set with none of the frantic hype or endless appeals to the audience that characterize most festival acts. Her oeuvre is difficult to describe: at once a restrained, controlled masterclass in storytelling and a howling maelstrom of emotion, she moves from indie rock about the Asian-American diaspora experience (Your Best American Girl) to dance-pop about loneliness (Nobody, her biggest hit to date). A quick scan of critical pieces about her reveals the tendency on the part of her audience to read her work as autobiographical and project their private griefs onto it. She told Pitchfork: I was always bothered when people say, I cry to your music, it sounds like a diary, it sounds so personal. Yes, it is personal. But thats so gendered. Theres no feeling of, Oh, maybe shes a songwriter and she wrote this as a piece of art.

Her set played with the tension between performance and emotion and between audience projection and artists privacy. Unlike the other artists I saw at the Block Party, Mitski got on stage half an hour before her set, checking her equipment and putting tape on the ground. She joked with technicians and band members but is a consummate professional. Although her setup is not part of her set, it establishes for the audience that her performance is her job: not an organic outflow of emotion but a calculated and choreographed ritual. Mitski stands on stage in a uniform: white shirt, black pants or shorts, and kneepads the last of which hammer home the athletic nature of her work and the toll performing takes on her body.

Mitski dances through her entire set. Her motions are at times balletic, at times mime-like, telegraphing the artifice of the familiar movements of club dancing and yoga and all the other ways in which womens bodies are presented to and consumed by the public. During Liquid Smooth she positions herself like a butterfly pinned. Wailing and haunting, it is the most explicit song in her repertoire and yet the farthest possible thing from slow R&B song or a club banger I am an organism / Im chemical, thats all that is all, she sings, and feel my skin is plump and full of life, Im in my prime.As she gyrated and sang, I watched the security guard in the front turn away from the stage and fix his eyes on the ground. I felt the same discomfort, an awareness of a hungry voyeurism that thoughtlessly and endlessly consumes. Shes aware of the jarring effect of the obvious calculation of her movements juxtaposed against the normal laissez-faire throwing-around of the body that characterizes festival audiences and artists alike. Halfway through her set, she stops churning out the music to acknowledge the crowd and notes their confusion. This is it! she says. If you dont know me, this is what the whole set is like.

Other than that as well as the flippant Im Mitski. Bye. that closes out the set she doesnt acknowledge the audience. Mitski doesnt crowdsurf or jump into the pit. She looks not at, but through the crowd. A man beside me keeps reaching out to her, shouting her name; she doesnt reach back. All this negation of the parasocial relationship of the audiences desire to connect with her creates something else entirely new. The audiences relationship with her pain, her deliberate constructed onstage vulnerability, her moment with herself, feels intimate because it is their own mirror image. The stillness of the water, if you will, is not breached; you are free to project yourself entirely onto the artistic experience she has created.

Other critics have commented that Mitskis most dedicated fans are by and large young Asian-American women and gay men. I, a young Asian-American woman, staked out a front-row spot to the left of another Asian woman who made room for me as the moment the previous act finished up. To my right a young man texted his boyfriend, trying to find him in the crowd. Further back, the latecomers begin to look more and more like the majority-white demographic of the festival at large; they also look more and more confused by whats going on onstage. Mitskis appeal to young Asian women seems obvious, as she has acknowledged the influence of Asian-American identity on her music. Most notably, Your Best American Girl is an ode to an American boy whose mother wouldnt approve / of how my mother raised me / but I do, I finally do. Mitski disapproves of the public reaction to it, which focused on the songs uniqueness in the overwhelmingly white world of indie rock. On Facebook, she wrote: I wasnt trying to send a message. I was in love. The assumption that her lyrics are entirely personal and the assumption that they are inherently political, although seemingly opposite, both represent a refusal to think of the marginalized artists as capable of producing on multiple levels, a refusal to treat their work as worth inquiring into.

Indeed, its common to hear from her fans that Mitskis appeal is not in her explicit political statements, but something more abstract: she just gets it. She pins down a kaleidoscope of very specific experiences. If you need to be mean, be mean to me / I can take it and put it inside of me is perhaps a familiar feeling to many, but silent suffering holds a specific meaning for Asian women, who are too used to being its vessels. The cultural expectation that Asian women are willing to undergo duress in order to preserve social harmony or personal relationships is insidious. Mitski captures our perverse pride in our ability to suffer. In Brand New she sings, If I gave up on being pretty, I wouldnt know how to be alive / I should move to a brand new city, and teach myself how to die might sound dramatic to the casual listener, but for her young female Asian fans the line might capture exactly the experience of wasting your teen years trying to look beautiful the way the white majority wants you to. I spent all my teen-age years being obsessed with beauty, and Im very resentful about it, she told Jillian Mapes. Its a timely message in an age where influencers act like the bare requisite of beauty is ten steps of skincare routine at night and an hour of hair and makeup in the morning.

Her most recent album, Be The Cowboy, is an ode to the mythical American cowboy ethos of freedom, of doing what you want. Implicitly, it claims that ethos for people who have never had it before. For me, Why Didnt You Stop Me (I know that I ended it, but / why didnt you chase after me / You know me better than I do so / why didnt you stop me) is her most cowboy-ish song on the album: for once, the onus of vulnerability, owning up to mistakes and loss, sacrificing your pride to save a relationship is not on her.

Remember My Name captures a complicated relationship between public performance and private, intimate self: cause I need somebody to remember my name / after all that I can do for them is done. As an artist, she is expected to strip herself bare for public enjoyment. I gave too much of myself tonight, she sings, and then turns around to ask for more: Can you come to where Im staying and / make some extra love / that I can save for tomorrows show. The truth about the cowboy ethos is that it means being allowed to be selfish, to demand love, to stop giving yourself. As Zoe Hu put it for BuzzFeed News, Mitskis music is imbued with a self-centeredness that, for any oft-effaced Asian listener, can border on the revolutionary. Its a far cry from Puberty 2s evocation of trapped desire: I wanna see the whole world / I dont know how Im gonna pay rent / I wanna see the whole world / would you kill me, Jerusalem? she howls on My Bodys Made of Crushed Little Stars.

I came alone to her set, so did half the other people in the front row. We shared an experience so personal that none of us wanted to invite anyone else in our lives to it, and we get the sense that Mitski has too. Ive tried sharing and Ive tried caring and Ive tried putting out / but the boys, boys, boys keep coming back for more, more, more, she sings in Townie. Watching her up onstage, I wished I could be what she was: closed off, fully in control of what she gives out and what her viewers take from her. Asian women in America are expected to be obedient, passive, vulnerable, giving, endlessly grateful for scraps; female artists are expected to be open, authentic, raw, personal. Mitski refuses.

Image Credit: Unsplash/BrunoCervera

Read this article:
Mitski and the Art of Vulnerability - Harvard Political Review

DETROIT (WXYZ) Hit rock band TOOL is playing at Little Caesars Arena on Saturday, and if you're going to the show, make sure you keep your phone in your pocket.

In the concert listing, 313 Presents said that no cameras, or audio/video recorders (INCLUDING cell phone photo or video) will be permitted inside Little Caesars Arena.

In all caps and bold, 313 Presents said, "ANY CAMERA OR CELL PHONE TAKEN OUT FOR PHOTOGRAPHS OR VIDEO INSIDE OF THE ARENA BOWL WILL BE SUBJECT TO PATRON EJECTION."

In a post on Reddit with a screenshot of a reminder for the band's show in Cleveland, it said, "We respectfully request that you please watch and listen to the show, not your phone. You will be ejected from the show without the opportunity to return and without a refund if you violate this simple request and elect to take photos during the performance. In the event of a personal emergency, phone use may occur on the concourse away from the performance area."

Read the rest here:
If you take photos or videos at the TOOL show in Detroit, you could be ejected - WXYZ

Da de Muertos, or Day of the Dead, is a Mexican tradition that spans from Nov. 1 to 2 every year. It is a time to remember loved ones who have passed away.

People dont celebrate their loved ones by being sad, but rather it is a moment of remembrance and honorance of their loved ones legacies.

The Department of Chicano and Chicana Studies at San Diego State commemorates the Day of the Dead with their annual altar at the Chicano and Chicana Collection in the Love Library.

In the Love Library, students, professors and community members created and decorated this altar.

On Nov. 1, the room was filled with not only students and faculty, but also alumni, family members and Chicano/a activists who came to honor those whose photos were put up the altar.

Every year the department creates a theme, and this year the altar is dedicated to the activist leaders, faculty and students who have helped form the Department of Chicano and Chicana Studies over the last 50 years.

The altar also pays tribute to the Central Americans and Mexicans who lost their lives migrating to the U.S.

Professor Norma Iglesias-Prieto and her students assembled the altar to honor the dead and to make a political statement. They named the commemoration, Those Who Have Came Before: Stolen and Offered Lives.

Something that is affecting our community today are the kids who have been separated from their families, who are in cages and that some have died in the hands of immigration authorities, Iglesias-Prieto said. So we dont want to lose this opportunity to remember those children who have died and are linked to our hearts.

The altar was made for the community to learn more about more than just the cultural side of this tradition. The Department of Chicano and Chicana Studies wants those who attend the commemoration and visit the altar to learn about those who have lost their lives fighting for Chicano/a community.

It is more than just a tradition, it is about the people we are honoring, Iglesias-Prieto said. We want people to remember their legacy and to know that the lifestyle we have today is thanks to those who fight for us before.

The altar has been Iglesias-Prietos tradition for the last 15 years, and this is the first year it has been held in the Love Library, making it the biggest it has ever been to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Department of Chicano and Chicana Studies at SDSU.

Iglesias-Prieto said it took her, her students and 30 volunteers over 1,000 hours to make this altar possible.

Grandmothers and mothers of the students and department faculty formed part of the volunteers who helped create the items on the ofrenda (altar), making it more than just a school project, but giving it a family feel as well.

Every item on the ofrenda was handmade and has been in the making since May 2019.

Each of the altars seven colorful steps have traditional foods, marigolds, candles and several other items to offer to those who have been put on the ofrenda.

The altar has the photos of 27 Chicano activists, leaders and educators. The Chicano department also wanted to commemorate the lives of five children who have died in the hands of immigration authorities.

Chicano and Chicana studies senior Mnica Van Deerlin Murillois, one of the students who worked on this project for the last seven months, said it was more than just an experience of cultural and indigenous significance. She said it was to bring awareness to the several children who have died caged up in Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention centers.

We know there has been a lot of children that have died in ICE detention centers and border captivity, so this is why we also included photos of children that have been killed in hands of ICE and immigration law enforcement as well, Murillo said.

Chicano and Chicana studies senior Ana Miguel is one of eight students who worked countless hours on campus and in Iglesias-Prietos garage to make the altar. She said it is important to know there is a political meaning to this altar and hopes that the audience leaves with more awareness of what is happening in the Chicano/a community today.

I feel like a lot of people are coming in just thinking it is pretty, but it is more than that, Miguel said. There is a history behind Da de los Muertos and its not just full of color. It is where we connect with our ancestors, it is where they come back to us and we are also recognizing the Chicano activists for the work that they did.

Musicians received visitors.

The community was received with live music by La Rondalla Amerindia de Aztln, a band formed by former professors and alumni of SDSU, a music performance by department Professor Coral Mcfarland Thuet, speeches from professors of the department and traditional Pan de Muerto, Bread of the Dead, with coffee.

The altar includes handmade biography books to explain who is on the ofrenda, and will be open to the public until Nov. 15.

The Day of the Dead is a personal but also a community celebration, so the other goal of our celebration is to help form a community, Iglesias-Prieto said. We need to be together, especially in difficult times.

See original here:
Day of the Dead takes on political issues - Daily Aztec

Youre in college now. Your parents no longer supply you with food they bought at the grocery store. Now, you have no choice but to make your own choices surrounding food.

Youve heard in one of your classes or through some news article that food production is linked to climate change. Indeed, conventional farming techniques are harmful to the environment due to their use of carbon-emitting agricultural machinery, irresponsible consumption of water, overuse of fertilizers and pesticides, as well as a multitude of other offenses. As an environmentally conscious individual, you want to play your part in the sustainable food movement. So, in Kroger, you move toward the organic section.

The USDA Organic sticker must mean that this food is sustainable, right? Not necessarily.

Its true that organically produced food can be a better alternative to food that was grown on industrial farms. For example, organic farming omits the use of synthetic fertilizers that leach nitrogen into our waterways and strip the oxygen from waterbodies (a dual process called eutrophication and hypoxia).

Additionally, many organic farms engage in no-till farming techniques, which protect the soil by ensuring that nutrients are returned to the soil for future plant uptake. No till also reduces the amount of carbon dioxide lost from excessively disturbing the soil.

It is important, however, to remember that many harmful farming techniques are still used in organic farming. For example, large-scale deforestation to make room for agriculture removes treesone of our most important carbon sinksfrom the earth. In addition, many organic foods are produced thousands of miles away from where they are sold, meaning that they must be transported long distances to reach the grocery store. This of course releases a great deal of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, contributing to the greenhouse effect.

Keep in mind that many of our most popular organic brands, such as Cascadian Farms and Horizon Organic, are in fact owned by large corporations. These corporations also control the production of conventionally produced foods, and this is problematic because your money is being given to the same corporation whether you buy organic or conventional food, and they probably dont care whether theyre acting sustainably.

Another problem with organic food is that it is much more expensive than conventionally produced food. It targets middle-class Americans who can afford to buy these products and excludes low-income individuals. This creates a gentrification of the food system and makes it much more difficultif not impossiblefor low-income Americans to have access to alternative food choices. And for what?

As I have already explained, organic isnt necessarily sustainable. If you have the money to buy organic, odds are that you have the money to buy locally. Local is often a much more sustainable option, although the two terms definitely arent interchangeable. Depending on the farming techniques implemented, locally produced foods offer a sustainable alternative because they avoid long-distance transport, large-scale farming and (oftentimes) are still organically produced. Additionally, when you buy local, you support your local farmers rather than buying into large-scale corporations.

Ultimately, as you begin your journey into sustainable food consumption as an autonomous consumer, do not be blinded by fancy green stickers with images of rolling hills displayed on them. Instead, consider the methods through which that food was produced. Ask questions, do your research and be wary of greenwashing practices.

To be quite candid, its hard to be completely sustainable in your food consumption choices; there are always trade-offs that must be made. However, in a rapidly changing world reaching a critical point in climate change, questions about food production are important to consider. Sustainable food production should be our goal, and it is up to usthe consumersto get us there.

See more here:

Organic food is not always the sustainable option - Kykernel.com

(Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)

SorryOrganic Farming is Actually Worse for Climate Change reads the title of an October 22 article in the MIT Technology Review.

Its true, news editors take a certain glee in the public execution of sacred cows, and a cornucopia of similar, snarky headlines were pumped into the already-clogged arteries of internet news feeds after the publication of a recent study of organic agriculture by Cranfield University in the United Kingdom. Like the Reviews, the gist of them all: Contrary to its claims, the organic food movement is bad for the planet.

The truth is more complicated.

Agriculture is a major contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions, and the study, conducted in England and Wales and published in the journal Nature Communications, set out to assess how a nation-wide switch from conventional to organic agriculture would affect net emissions.

In the Review article, James Temple summarizes the studys findings:

The good news is [a shift to organic agriculture] would cut the direct greenhouse-gas emissions from livestock by 5% and from growing crops by 20% per unit of production. The bad news: it would slash yields by around 40%, forcing hungry Britons to import more food from overseas. If half the land used to meet that spike in demand was converted from grasslands, which store carbon in plant tissues, roots, and soil, it would boost overall greenhouse-gas emissions by 21%.

On October 23, the Organic Center, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit dedicated to scientific research on organic food and farming, published a rebuttal: These articles are using the same tired fallacies that The Organic Center has debunked before, and were returning to do it again.

First, the Center takes on the studys assumption that the decreased productivity of organic farming would require that, to feed the ever-inflating human population, more wild lands be plowed under:

The authors argue that this reduction in productivity would require large increases in land devoted to crops in other parts of the world, leading to the destruction of grasslands and forests that are critical sequestration pools for carbon. What the authors overlook entirely is the ability to fill that production need by reducing food waste. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations estimates that around a third of all food produced gets lost or goes to waste. The world produces an over-abundance of food for our global population (despite the tragic growth of food instability and hunger around the world, in part due to food waste, inefficient diets, and unequal distribution), which means that the drop in productivity could be addressed by reducing waste and loss rather than increasing extranational production.

Next, the Center notes that its a bit ironic to accuse organic ag of the future destruction of wild lands considering that conventional agriculture has caused and is causing the extensive loss of critical grasslands and forests. In fact, according to the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, industrial agriculture is behind 30% of the deforestation of Africa and Asia and 70% of Latin America.

On the other side, the Center writes, the organic community has spent a considerable amount of time reflecting on this very issue, and is working toward building native ecosystem preservation into the organic standards. For example, in April 2018, the U.S. Department of Agricultures National Organic Standards Board passed a recommendation on Eliminating the Incentive to Convert Native Ecosystems to Organic Production. In short, the resolution deters the conversion of native ecosystems to agricultural land by denying certified organic status to crops or animals raised there until 10 years after the conversion.

Next, the Center argues that the productivity gap between conventional crops and organic ones is not inevitable:

Organic yields have been increasing over the past decade, despite a dearth in funding for organic research thanks to the limited studies that have tackled on-farm challenges for organic farmers. According to a study by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, research supporting organic practices could further decrease or even eliminate yield gaps entirely through the use of best management practices and further research. The organic sector has already seen the benefits of the small amount of funding directed toward overcoming challenges to organic production, and several studies have found that best management practices can result in yields comparable to conventional. Because organic has been scientifically proven to use techniques that reduce greenhouse gas production and increase carbon sequestration in the soils while supporting ecosystem and human health, our focus should be on methods to support organic research to close the yield gap.

Finally, the Center denounces the myopic view that organic agriculture cannot work on a large scale, asking, instead, in what sense is conventional agriculture working when it depletes our soil, destroys pollinator populations, and depletes carbon stores?

The Center concludes: Without ecological production systems like organic, we wont be able to support food production in the long term.

In These Times has been selected to participate in NewsMatchthe largest grassroots fundraising campaign for nonprofit news organizations.

For a limited time, when you make a tax-deductible donation to support our reporting, it will be matched dollar-for-dollar by the NewsMatch fund, doubling your impact.

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Organic Food Hurts the Earth? Sorry, But It's More Complicated - In These Times

Organic food is food produced by methods that comply with the standards of organic farming. Standards vary worldwide, but organic farming in general features practices that strive to cycle resources, promote ecological balance, and conserve biodiversity. Organizations regulating organic products may restrict the use of certain pesticides and fertilizers in farming. In general, organic foods are also usually not processed using irradiation, industrial solvents or synthetic food additives.

Access Report Details at: https://www.themarketreports.com/report/global-natural-and-organic-food-market-by-manufacturers-regions-type-and-application-forecast

Market share of global Natural and Organic Food industry is dominate by companies like Spartan Stores, Hain Celestial, United Natural Foods, Amys Kitchen, Whole Foods, Clif Bar & Company, Kroger, Dole Food, Frito-Lay, Newmans, Dean Foods, Organic Valley, General Mills, Natures Path Foods, Quaker Oats and others which are profiled in this report as well in terms of Sales, Price, Revenue, Gross Margin and Market Share (2017-2018).

With the help of 15 chapters spread over 100 pages this report describe Natural and Organic Food Introduction, product scope, market overview, market opportunities, market risk, and market driving force. Later it provide top manufacturers sales, revenue, and price of Natural and Organic Food, in 2017 and 2018 followed by regional and country wise analysis of sales, revenue and market share. Added to above, the important forecasting information by regions, type and application, with sales and revenue from 2019 to 2024 is provided in this research report. At last information about Natural and Organic Food sales channel, distributors, traders, dealers, and research findings completes the global Natural and Organic Food market research report.

Market Segment by Regions, regional analysis covers:

North America (USA, Canada and Mexico)

Europe (Germany, France, UK, Russia and Italy)

Asia-Pacific (China, Japan, Korea, India and Southeast Asia)

South America (Brazil, Argentina, Columbia, etc.)

Middle East and Africa (Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, Nigeria and South Africa)

Market Segment by Type, covers:

Natural food

Organic food

Market Segment by Applications, can be divided into

Mass merchandise

Natural health farms

Online

Others

Purchase this premium research report at: https://www.themarketreports.com/report/buy-now/1484181

Table of Contents

1 Market Overview

2 Manufacturers Profiles

3 Global Natural and Organic Food Market Competitions, by Manufacturer

4 Global Natural and Organic Food Market Analysis by Regions

5 North America Natural and Organic Food by Countries

6 Europe Natural and Organic Food by Countries

7 Asia-Pacific Natural and Organic Food by Countries

8 South America Natural and Organic Food by Countries

9 Middle East and Africa Natural and Organic Food by Countries

10 Global Natural and Organic Food Market Segment by Type

11 Global Natural and Organic Food Market Segment by Application

12 Natural and Organic Food Market Forecast (2019-2024)

13 Sales Channel, Distributors, Traders and Dealers

14 Research Findings and Conclusion

15 Appendix

Ask your report related queries at: https://www.themarketreports.com/report/ask-your-query/1484181

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Global Natural and Organic Food Market Forecast (2019-2024) Report: By Regions, Type and Application with Sales and Revenue Analysis - Editorials 360

Shauna Sadowski is head of sustainability for the Natural & Organic Operating Unit at General Mills.

Last month, PBS published an article that explored how more organic farming could worsen global warming.

The article discusses a recent study, which predicts that a shift to 100% organic food production in the U.K. could result in higher greenhouse gas emissions. The finding is driven by the assumption that a significant yield gap between organic and conventional agriculture exists, and lower crop yields in the UK would require increased production elsewhere, offsetting any decrease in greenhouse gas emissions conferred by organic farming practices.

Toward the end of the article, the writer cites a studyfrom the RodaleInstitute that suggests implementing a suite of regenerative agriculture practices, like cover cropping and diverse crop rotations, has the potential to effectively cut down greenhouse gas emissions.

Shauna Sadowski

While it is encouraging to see regenerative agriculture featured in the article, it is important to remember that many organic farmers are already employing regenerative practices. And while definitions of regenerative do vary, it is important to recognize and celebrate where all farmers have made inroads and where there is opportunity to do more.

At General Mills, we take a holistic, inclusive and outcomes-based approach to regenerative agriculture. We define it as farming that protects and intentionally enhances natural resources and farming communities. Key tenets of organic agriculture include moving away from synthetic pesticides and herbicides, maintaining and building soil health, and improving biodiversity aligning with the spirit of regenerative agriculture.

Regenerative agriculture can be practiced by organic and non-organic farmers alike, rendering the approach accessible to all types of farmers regardless of their starting point. General Mills frames its understanding of regenerative agriculture around five key principles championed by scientists and pioneering farmers like Gabe Brown: minimize soil disturbance, maximize diversity, keep the soil covered, keep a living root in the ground year-round and integrate livestock.

General Mills, as the PBS article acknowledges, works with farmers who employ regenerative agriculture practices to grow ingredients used across our product portfolio, from organic offerings like Annie's and CascadianFarm to iconic brands like Cheerios and Nature Valley.

Unfortunately, this article falls short on presenting a holistic lens into the food system and the nuanced role that organic can play in landscapes and communities. There are several omissions and misleading assertions we'd like to address:

The article fails to mention the study's finding that transitioning to organic would result in 20% lower emissions per ton of crop, compared with a conventional baseline.

Production is an important metric of success for the food system, but it is not the only metric worth considering.

A narrow focus on the organic-conventional yield gap sidesteps the fact that we waste one-third of the food we produce globally.

The predictions cited in the article are based on models, not actual outcomes.

At General Mills, we celebrate the important role that organic farmers play in helping us better understand the negative consequences of farming practices that disrupt ecosystems. As regenerative agriculture builds momentum, we can thank organic pioneers like Gene Kahn for elevating the importance of farming practices that have the potential to not only sustain, but to restore our land. At the same time, it's important for farmers to autonomously choose the practices that best align with their land stewardship philosophies and the region-specific needs of their land. All farmers organic, conventional, small, large, crop and livestock are part of the path toward a healthy food system.

This article is an important reminder to keep improving our measurement systems and supporting an outcomes-based approach so that all of agriculture,organic included, can move away from being a big part of the climate problem to instead be a big part of the climate solution.

Read this article:

How regenerative agriculture and organic farming helps the earth - Food Dive

With so many new companies offering organic cotton menstrual products, my housemates and I got to talking one night and wondered why so many people were making the switch. There are the obvious reasons: Theres less waste with silicone cups, and the smaller companies are run by knowledgeable women versus huge corporations. Theres also the glaring concept that, compared to non-organic items, organic products are simply better for you due to the lack of chemicals. My friends and I began to look up the ingredients of commercial and conventional tampons and realized we actually knew nothing of what goes into them.

Like many things, the Food and Drug Administration doesnt thoroughly require toxicity testing for menstrual products or that all ingredients and the manufacturing process be made transparent to consumers. They do recommend that tampons should be free of pesticide residue, but many still contain trace amounts due to the manufacturing procedure. Furthermore, the cotton that constitutes non-organic tampons is commercially produced, meaning it goes through rigorous bleaching and chemical cleaning that exposes the cotton fibers to toxins. More insecticides are used to grow conventional cotton than any other commercial crop.

First, lets consider the area of the body that tampons regularly come into contact with. As many of us know, tampons are inserted directly into the body to absorb blood and stop external leakage. The tampon then resides in the upper two-thirds of the vaginal canal, an area rich in blood vessels and mucous membranes. Additionally, the vaginal epithelium is covered in multiple layers of dead and dying cells, and the vaginal mucous membrane helps to protect against harmful microorganisms and bacteria. However, this tissue is nowhere near as thick as our external skin, and this tissue is efficient at carrying chemical messengers and other materials throughout the body.

A report from Womens Voice for the Earth, a nonprofit organization, states that within menstrual products, there are ingredients used that are known or suspected to be endocrine-disrupting chemicals, or EDCs. The endocrine system is a complex physiological network of glands and organs that work to produce and secrete hormones. When the endocrine system functions normally, it works brilliantly to regulate healthy development and body function. However, when exposed to EDCs which can be substances in the environment, food, personal care and/or manufactured products this system is disrupted. Some EDCs can act as mimic hormones and trick our bodies while others can stop natural hormones from doing their job. They can increase or decrease natural hormone levels, change how sensitive our bodies are to hormones and have the ability to ultimately cause various injurious health outcomes. These deviations of healthy processes can include abnormalities in sex organs, endometriosis, early puberty, changed nervous system or immune function, including respiratory, metabolic, cardiovascular issues and more.

The breakthrough concerning EDCs came following a time when female researchers realized there was really no scientific research into the development or effects of conventional tampon usage. Vaginal research desperately needed more attention, and women such as Penny Hitchcock and Nancy Alexander took this opportunity to begin research programs on vaginal physiology, microbicides and immunology. These new programs founded by women led to the knowledge that certain chemicals, many of which were conventionally used in or around reproductive organs, could irritate or even damage vaginal epithelial cells. While nearly everyone who menstruates uses some type of tampon or sanitary pad, the chemicals in those create a perfect environment for altering normal vaginal physiology. In a study conducted in 2000 to provide numbers for how many people use which menstrual hygiene product, a range of 50 to 86 percent use tampons, 75 percent use panty liners, 62 to 73 percent use pads and so on. With a rough majority of users opting for the tampon route, many people choosing conventional tampons are directly and unknowingly subjecting their body to microdoses of chemicals and parabens.

Groundbreaking menstrual health research, which has only started in the past few decades, creates greater awareness surrounding chemicals in hygiene products, but theres still a large data and funding gap. This means people who menstruate really dont know what is going into their bodies and how those products are affecting their health.

This brings us to the upside of organic cotton tampons. To be labeled organic, any product must go through considerably stricter FDA guidelines than their nonorganic counterparts. For this reason, we know exactly what we are getting, and that is often pesticide-free, rayon-free, synthetic fiber-free, all-organic, cotton tampons. The wonderful women who started the organic tampon movement industry, pioneering companies like LOLA and Cora, ensure their consumers that their companies do not contain synthetic fibers, chemical additives, fragrances, dyes, chlorine bleach, GMOs, pesticides, toxins, latex or formaldehyde. We can assume that if a company specifically states those ingredients are not involved in their products, it would be logical to believe those bad ingredients go into the widely purchased, conventional tampons But we dont really know, do we?

Of course, the FDA does regulate tampons as medical devices and provides many guidelines companies should follow. However, this doesnt mean the micro-amounts of chemicals still allowed in non-organic, conventional menstrual products are necessarily safe for you or ideal to put in your body. For the same reason many people made the switch to organic foods to avoid consuming trace amounts of pesticides, fertilizers or carcinogens, many are now making the switch to organic tampons to avoid those same things. For some, including myself and my housemates, organic tampons have anecdotally reduced menstruation time or lessened period cramps. These results could be due to a variety of reasons, but it gives us peace of mind to know what we are putting in our bodies.

Brittany Bowman can be reached at babowm@umich.edu.

Read more from the original source:

Brittany Bowman: The harm in non-organic tampons - The Michigan Daily

Reflecting on the life of her mother, Barbara Berwick says: It seemed she would consider first what she thought was right. Then she would think about how reality might arrange itself around what was right.

It was that spirit that made Barbaras mom, Lois Booth, at once the most idealistic and the most practical person Ive ever known.

Her study of the horrors of the first world war turned Lois into a pacifist by her high school days. With her husband, Don, Lois joined a sprawling community of conscientious objectors and social reformers who tried to organize their lives around creation of a world free from war and violence. It was a vision they took seriously and applied to daily life as well as political causes from the 1940s to the 21st century.

For Lois, much of her idealism was applied to the matter of raising a family. As she put it in a letter, written around 1960, We continue to be fully occupied with the basic problems of making a living and caring for our children (she had six). That meant attention to food, cooking, education and complementing Dons home-construction business by becoming a Realtor.

Years before the Woodstock generation was going back to the land, Lois was studying the methods of organic food production. She read everything she could about it, and she had legendary success. At the height she had at least a couple acres of amazing gardens, and all sorts of natural tricks to grow beautiful vegetables and fruits, says Barbara.

It wasnt just food production that put Lois ahead of her times, Barbara recalls. I always felt she sort of invented things that now are commonplace, things like health foods, natural childbirth and recycling. Don later became the Concord areas premiere builder of passive solar houses, pioneering designs to minimize the use of fossil fuels and nuclear-derived electricity.

But Lois always felt the tension between attention to family and attention to the world. I often question whether it is right to spend so much time and energy on our personal problems with the world almost on fire around us, she wrote in the early 1960s.

Although she was part of a Women for Peace group in Concord that protested atmospheric testing of nuclear weapons, led a study group on Vietnam in 1965 and leafletted high school students about the draft in 1968, Loiss career as a peace activist didnt take off until her kids were grown and gone from her Canterbury home. But even there, her focus was as practical as it was visionary.

In 1975, Lois was one of several New Hampshire Quakers who turned their attention to establishment of a local branch of the American Friends Service Committee, which at the time had staffed offices in the other five New England states but no such presence in New Hampshire. When Marge Swann, the AFSCs regional director, suggested that local fundraising would help make it possible, Lois turned her attention to that most practical and under-appreciated of volunteer activities.

Devoted to public education, it was Lois who started up a local AFSC newsletter, Quaker Witness. If people only knew the dangers posed by nuclear weapons, she believed, surely they would want to take action to control and eliminate them. When others, including Don after he retired from building solar houses, spent hours on the street holding signs and banners, Lois was more likely to be found at a desk producing leaflets, writing newsletters and organizing conferences, without neglecting the importance of those fundraising appeals.

Not only was Lois central to the birth of the New Hampshire AFSC office, she played an equally important role in the birth of the organization now known as N.H. Peace Action, which grew out of the Nuclear Freeze movement of the early 1980s. As the anchor of the Peace Action board and a nearly full-time volunteer in its Concord office, Lois helped keep the peace movement on course through several presidential administrations, a number of military misadventures and a succession of young staff members.

While she also served on Peace Actions national board and regional AFSC committees, Lois never lost her focus on educating and organizing Canterbury neighbors. Neither did she fail to give attention to individuals who needed a warm place to stay, needed a good meal and needed her love.

Lois Booth, who died on Sept. 13 at the age of 97, opened her home and her heart to those who yearned for peace. She believed that if something was right, it must be possible. In a world thats still on fire, her spirit lives on.

A celebration of the life of Lois Booth will be held Saturday, Nov. 9, at 2 p.m. at the Unitarian Universalist Church, 274 Pleasant Street, in Concord. For more information, go to loisbooth.wordpress.com.

(Arnie Alpert is the co-director of the American Friends Service Committees New Hampshire Program. Lois Booth was a member of the search committee that hired him in 1981.)

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My Turn: Radical idealism and extreme practicality came together in the life of Lois Booth - Concord Monitor

On the University of Wisconsin campus, we have a Fresh Madison Market, a Capitol Centre Market, a Walgreens and a CVS, among other sources, for groceries. Known to some, but not all, and remembered by some, but forgotten by many, we also have a Trader Joes grocery store on 1810 Monroe Street near Camp Randall Stadium, and it is calling to us Badgers more than ever in this snowy start to November.

I get it. Trader Joes is out of the way for many students. Why hike to Monroe Street when Fresh and Walgreens are in the center of campus and are an easy walk from the dorms? You might need a car, bus or bike to get to Trader Joes, but I promise its worth any inconvenience.

No matter how reluctant some are to admit this especially the fitness junkies everyone knows mac and cheese is a college essential, especially in the Madison winter when a piping hot bowl of cheesy noodles is simply irresistible. Whether you need to make it for a quick dinner or for a midnight snack, mac and cheese is a common and delicious craving. Trader Joes has some of the best mac and cheese in the form of Organic Shells and White Cheddar Mac and Cheese.

Just about every product Trader Joes sells is from the Trader Joes brand. The Organic Shells and White Cheddar Mac and Cheese is no exception, and it serves as a delicious alternative to the Kraft mac you probably keep buying. Nothing wrong with Kraft. I love Kraft, but Kraft doesnt offer white cheddar shells. The shells soak up the distinct, white cheesy flavor with authority.

Those of us who routinely eat Kraft may forget that mac and cheese can taste a different way. Give your taste buds a break from the same mac and cheese routine and do yourself a favor by trying out the Organic Shells and White Cheddar Mac and Cheese for just $1.39 a box.

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The next must-have product from Trader Joes right now is their Organic Honey Crisp Apple Cider, which they are currently making in-store and giving out free samples. One tiny plastic cup of this organic cider will have you storming out of Trader Joes with gallons of the product.

The taste is so fresh, sticking a straw in a squashed apple would lack the same authentic flavor. If you were unable to make it to a pumpkin patch or apple orchard this fall to get your apple cider on, dont fear, Trader Joes has got your back.

Last, but certainly not least, Trader Joes has the best kept secret in the world with its jars of Speculoos Cookie and Cocoa Swirl Spread. This is a build on their original Cookie Butter, combined with their own spin on Nutella. Its a heavenly product that profiles both as a casual snack and as a dessert.

The cookie butter flavor is almost indescribably good and trying to describe its flavor would spoil it. You just need to try it for yourself.

The Speculoos Cookie and Cocoa Swirl Spread offers enough flavor on its own, so its recommended your edible carrier is simple. Trader Joes Golden Rounds Crackers are an excellent vehicle for this delightful spread. A slightly salty, but simple flavor and flaky crunch mixes with the thick spread perfectly.

Life and school may seem more stressful in the winter, which means we need to treat ourselves more often. Next time you grinding late on your next assignment, make sure you have Trader Joes Organic Shells and White Cheddar Mac and Cheese, Organic Honey Crisp Apple Cider, and Speculoos Cookie and Cocoa Swirl Spread by your side to make life a little more enjoyable.

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Trader Joe's: The go-to for comfort food this November - UW Badger Herald