The Baking Soda List

Baking Soda is another one of those amazing products that can do almost anything. It's dirt cheap and completely safe and natural. 

Quick science lesson... Baking Soda is actually the mineral, sodium bicarbonate, which occurs naturally in all living things. It's function is to balance pH (keep them from being too acidic or too alkaline). It can be manufactured by mining sodium carbonate and dissolving it in a solution through which carbon dioxide is bubbled. Baking soda's ability to balance pH is one of the things that makes it such a useful, multi-purpose product.

So, here's the list...

To Deodorize:  

1. Small bowl or box in the refrigerator and freezer.

2. Sprinkle in garbage and diaper pails and inside each new bag.

3. Soak containers in a solution of baking soda and water.

4. Sprinkle in drains and garbage disposals and then run warm water.

5. Sprinkle carpets, let sit for 15 minutes, then vacuum.

6. Sprinkle in litterboxes.

7. Sprinkle your dog and then brush. 

8. Sprinkle in your laundry hamper between washdays.

9. Add to each load of laundry.

10. Sprinkle camping gear and sports gear before putting it away for the off season.

To Clean

11. Sprinkle on a damp cloth or sponge to use as a light scrub. Rinse with water.

12. Clean silver with a paste of 3 parts baking soda to 1 part water. Rinse with water.

13. Remove scuff marks from floors by sprinkling and wiping up with a damp cloth.

14. Clean pans with baked on food or grill racks by sprinkling and then soaking overnight.

15. Clean stains off kitchen or bathroom surfaces with a paste of baking soda and water. 

16. Clean hairbrushes and combs by swishing in baking soda and water.

17. Clean a carpet spill as normal, but then sprinkle with baking soda and vacuum.

18. Clean toys or lawn furniture with 1/4 cup baking soda per quart of water. Rinse.

19. Pre-treat grease stains with a baking soda paste.

20. Clean mildew from kiddie pools with baking soda and warm water.

21. Clean thermoses and coolers with baking soda and warm water.

22. Run your (empty) dishwasher through a cycle with baking soda instead of detergent.

23. Clean/deodorize garlicky or fishy hands by scrubbing with baking soda paste.

24. Use to remove melted plastic bread wrapper from toaster. Dampen cloth and make a mild abrasive with baking soda.

Other Ideas

25. Throw handfuls of it at the base of grease or electrical fires to put out.

26. Can be used in pools to balance pH... see Arm and Hammer website for details.

27. Keep drains clear by occasionally pouring 1/4 cup down and and then running hot water.

28.1/2 tsp in 4oz of water every 2 hours as an antacid. (Not more than 7 times per day-- not more than 3 times per day if you are over 60 years old). 

29. Sprinkle on ant piles.

30. 2 TBSP in baby's bath to relieve diaper rash.

31. Sprinkled liberally in an adult's (cool) bath to relieve sunburn.

32. Paste on insect bites, rashes, and poison ivy.

33. Used as a mouthwash it will relieve canker sores.

This is hardly a conclusive list... there are literally hundreds of uses! I definitely recommend buying baking soda in bulk because you will be using it all the time!!

The Oil Replacement

Some sections of the grocery store are just overwhelming.... so many choices ... they all look alike... how are we supposed to know which one to pick!? 
Cooking oil is like that. Vegetable, corn, soybean, canola, peanut, safflower, olive, extra virgin olive, coconut... Everything is yellowish (except coconut oil, which is white), in a bottle, tons of fat... no difference, right? 
Wrong. Oils all have very different qualities; some good, some bad. There are some simple changes you can make when purchasing oil that will make a big difference in your health.
Basically, you want to look at the amount of essential fatty acids (good) versus the amount of saturated fat (bad). Healthful oils will help your body absorb vitamins, provide the building blocks for cell membranes (especially in the brain), and are good for your skin. 

The Good Guys

Extra Virgin Olive Oil- Comes from the flesh of the olive (rather than the seed, as other oils do) so it doesn't need to be processed. About 90% unsaturated fat, mostly monounsaturated which lowers cholesterol. However, it is not a good source of Omega 3 or Omega 6 fatty acids, so it needs to be balanced with other oils. "Extra Virgin" Olive Oil is the oil from the first press of the olives and has the highest amount of antioxidants. Avoid  "Virgin", "Pure", or "Light" Olive Oil which come from the second and even third press and are often chemically processed. Extra Virgin Olive Oil is best for dressings and low heat cooking. It does have a rather strong flavor, which does not lend itself to baking
Canola Oil- Comes from the rapeseed and is the second highest vegetable source of Omega 3 fatty acids. Also a good source of alpha-linoleic acid which is an Omega 6 fatty acid. Canola oil is only 7% saturated fat content, so is considered a very heart healthy oil. Because it is high in unsaturated fat, it is thought to reduce your risk of coronary heart disease. Best to purchase organic, since rapeseeds are usually sprayed with pesticides.
Macadamia Nut Oil- I had actually never heard of this until doing this research, but now I am going to get some! It is 80% monounsaturated fat, which makes it extremely good for your heart (canola is considered good at 58%). It also has the best ratio of Omega 3 to Omega 6 fatty acids. Lastly, this oil has a smoke point of 389 degrees, which makes it ideal for sauteing and stir frying.
Coconut Oil- There is a lot of conflicting information out there about this type of oil. I think it really needs it's own post so that all of the pros and cons can be discussed. I just didn't want to complete this post without at least mentioning it. There are some pretty amazing claims out there about coconut oil including that is supports heart health, weight loss, metabolism, your thyroid, and your immune system. I've also read some amazing things about the flavor when using it for baking (especially with chocolate). The problem is that the saturated fat content is very high (which advocates have an explanation for). As I said, its very controversial. I personally feel good about using it. 

So make the replacements today. The oils listed above are going to be the best choices for you and your family. 


Quick tip: The healthiest way to cook at high heat with oil is called the "wet saute" method. Pour about 1/4 cup of water in the saute pan. Add the food and cook slightly before adding the oil. this shortens the amount of time that the oil is in contact with the hot pan (which can destroy the nutritious properties and flavor of the oil).

High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS)

Isn't everything you see on TV true?? As the commercial says, "whether it's corn sugar or cane sugar... sugar is sugar". These commercials which are paid for by the Corn Refiners Association (shocker) are absolutely false. According to a study by Princeton University here's why.
Chemically...  High fructose corn syrup is chemically different than sucrose (table sugar). Sucrose is comprised of two simple sugars; 50% glucose and 50% fructose. HFCS is 55% fructose, 42% glucose, and 3% of larger sugar molecules called higher saccharides. A second chemical difference is that the fructose in HFCS is "free and unbound", meaning that it is ready to be absorbed and used by your body. In sucrose, the fructose molecules are each bound to a glucose molecule. Therefore, metabolically there is another step to absorbing the fructose in sucrose.
Nutritionally... In the Princeton study, they fed rats a diet of rat chow combined with water sweetened with either HFCS (half the concentration found in most soft drinks) or sucrose (the full concentration found in soft drinks). The researchers monitored weight gain, triglyceride levels, and body fat in the rats. The rats given HFCS gained 48% more weight, had significantly more triglycerides circulating in their blood stream, and put on large amounts of abdominal fat. One researcher stated, "These rats aren't just getting fat; they're demonstrating characteristics of obesity, including substantial increases in abdominal fat and circulating triglycerides. In humans, these same characteristics are known risk factors for high blood pressure, coronary artery disease, cancer and diabetes".
I'm not sure why there are still questions about whether this is a good alternative to sugar. Clearly, research has shown that HFCS causes obesity when sucrose does not. I'm not advocating a diet full of sugar, I'm advocating a diet free of HFCS. Unfortunately, the average American consumes 60 pounds of HFCS per year. gross. It is present in an alarming number of our foods/drinks: juices, sodas, ketchup, salad dressing, bread, yogurt, cereal, crackers, cookies... etc... etc... etc...
The positive thing is that people seem to be catching on and food manufacturers seem to be noticing. There are products out there without this garbage in it. If you must buy soda, try natural sodas or at least the throwback editions which are made with cane sugar. Organic products are obviously the best choice.
Be diligent about checking labels and know that you are making the right choice for you and your family.

Side Note

Just wanted to say sorry about the brief hiatus! My sisters were visiting from out of state and I haven't seen them for months! In the future (as I get better at blogging!) I will try to plan ahead and have extra posts prepared. I'm going to skip the menu plan for this week since we are already a few days in... there will be a new one posted on Saturday. Here's what else you can look forward to this week...

Info on High Fructose Corn Syrup

The Oil Replacement

The Baking Soda List

Info on Laundry Soap

Thanks for reading!