ADVERTISER

 

Archive for November, 2009

GoodBelly for your Overly Stuffed Belly!

Monday, November 30th, 2009

Feeling a little stuffed after the weekend?  It’s likely due at least in part to the obscene amount of food you ate and to the fact that your body is having a hard time digesting it.

Now is the perfect time to start the GoodBelly 12 Day Challenge.

GoodBelly is a probiotic fruit drink with 20-billion active cultures that are clinically proven to improve digestive health and strengthen immunity! That’s more than you can get from any yogurt and, as someone who drinks it almost daily I can safely say, it’s a lot more delicious and, with the single serving cups, it’s a lot easier to drink on the go!

All GoodBelly products are made with antioxidant-rich fruit juice and are dairy-free, wheat-free, and soy-free, a change for people who think active cultures can only come in dairy rich yogurts.

goodbelly-plusGoodBelly comes in a quart-sized probiotic fruit drink in four flavors and the GoodBelly Plus probiotic fruit drink with 17 essential vitamins and minerals in three flavors.  Both products feature 20-billion live active cultures of Lp299v and are meant to be enjoyed daily to maintin healthy, strong digestive health.

And as if 20-billion wasn’t enough, there’s now the GoodBelly BigShot 50 with 50 billion probiotics per serving.  GoodBelly BigShot 50 is a new super charged dose of 50 billion live and active cultures and features the powerful probiotic strain Lactobacillus Plantarum 299v (Lp299v) which has 16 years of use and over 17 clinical studies to support its efficacy.  It’s clinically proven to help keep bellies healthy and immune systems strong.  One 2.7 ounce single serving “shot” of the BigShot is designed for occasional use during digestive flare-ups, pre and post antibiotic treatment, or during periods of feeling particularly run down.

With over 70% of your immune system located in your digestive tract (your gut), core digestive health is a vitally important contributor to your over-all health.  Your digestive tract has an important job.  It’s responsible for sending nutrients to your vital organs and eliminating toxins. A healthy gut means a healthy body.

Probiotics (healthy bacteria) that are clinically proven to adhere to the intestinal wall (like the Lp299v strand found in GoodBelly) will form a barrier of healthy bacterial to actually help prevent harmful bacteria, viruses, and parasites from passing into the bloodstream.  With cold and flu season here, there’s never been a more important time to support core digestive health.

So, go with your gut – take the GoodBelly ChallengeTry GoodBelly for 12 days. If you don’t feel better, they’ll give you your money back, guaranteed.

Also on SaraSnow.com

TruWhip to help satisfy all your picky eaters this Thanksgiving

Monday, November 23rd, 2009

Remember when Thanksgiving was so easy?  Aside from the long hours spent over the oven and the stove, that is.

You baked a turkey, made some pies, whipped some potatoes, thawed some corn, tossed a salad, and jellied some cranberries.  Voila, a Thanksgiving feast.

In some families (lucky dogs), it’s still that easy.  But when families gather in most homes today there are a smattering of dietary restrictions making setting one table to please all difficult!

There’s one new product that might make that a little easier.  It’s a new whipped topping for your Thanksgiving pies that can satisfy vegetarians, cholesterol watchers, low-fat dieters, all-natural eaters, gluten-free folks, and more.  It’s called TruWhip, and though not usually a fan of anything but the real stuff – organic cream whipped together with a pinch of sugar and a splash of vanilla extract – I tried it on friends this weekend and it was a hit!

truwhipcontainerUnlike most frozen or canned whipped creams TruWhip is free of trans fats, hydrogenated oil and high fructose corn syrup, but is still low in fat and comes in an easy to grab and serve frozen tub like the stuff you’re probably used to. One serving (that’s 2 tablespoons) contains 30 calories and 2 grams of fat.

Though not completely organic, it is made of 70% organic ingredients.  I applaud their efforts there (although I’m still hoping for a certified organic one to hit the market)

This weekend I cracked open a tub and (because I was serving it to friends I thought I’d spice it up a little) I whipped it with a little orange liqueur, some melted chocolate and a dash of cinnamon, and served it over a pecan pie.  According to all at the party, it was a huge hit!

Find it at Whole Foods or other natural and specialty food stores.

Also on SaraSnow.com

Try a hammock for your health

Friday, November 20th, 2009

This time of year can be quite stressful.  Gifts to buy, pies and cookies to bake, dust bunnies to clean in preparation for the guests you have to pick up from the airport.  Relax?  Yeah right!

What if relieving all that stress was as easy as kicking back for just a few in a hammock hung in the backyard or, even, back of the basement?

Sounds pretty good, right?

Here’s how it works.

According to research on the hammock site, Hangouts.com, everyday people, as well as trained therapists, have been using hammocks and hanging chairs as a means of relieving stress and physical aches and pains.

Back and neck pain is often quite quickly and easily relieved by lying perpendicular on a hammock.  To do so, you’ll find yourself lying across the hammock, rather than lengthwise.

According to Hangouts.com (also the source for the picture here), The support removes pressure points and thus allows the muscles of the body to relax. Support without pressure points allows the blood to flow to all body parts and thus maximizes the healing potential that our bodies have. Without pressure points the verdabrae of the body can begin to align themselves.

The hammock works, in a sense, like a massage, helping you achieve a similar physical state of muscle relaxation equivalent to a massage session.  Pregnant women have also found that hammocks help to relive prenatal pains and allow them to sleep more soundly.

Many enjoy sitting cross-legged, in a meditative yoga sit, in their hammock.  Doing so, allows the body and mind to relax so they can achieve a deep meditation and a state of muscle relaxation similar to a yoga session.

The swinging and spinning motions of a hammock can even help Autism patients.  By stimulating cerebral activity it can help  increase one’s ability to focus and concentrate.  Good not only for Autistic children, but for those suffering from ADD, ADHD, or for any of us who lack the ability to focus from time to time.

But if you find yourself without a backyard or front porch fitting for a hammock (or weather unfitting at the moment), don’t worry.  Hammocks can be hung and enjoyed just as easily indoors.

orange-grey-sThough I remember swinging in our old rope hammock as a child, I more recently tried out a slicker version from Eagle’s Nest Outfitters.

The company was founded in the summer of 1999 by brothers Peter and Paul, who decided to leave the traditional workplace behind and make hanging out a full time occupation.

The brothers wanted something that would not only challenge them but would also be laid back, allowing them to live their lives in no particular way but their own. Starting with a sewing machine and a vision, they began sewing hammocks and slap straps in their sister’s garage.

They first traveled the  East Coast in a beat up old mini van, setting up shop selling and sleeping in whatever parking spots they could find. The response was beyond their expectations and soon the boys found themselves established high up on the Blue Ridge Mountains where they set up full-time shop supplying  hammocks and accessories to like-minded people all over the world.

Sounds like a story I’d like to be a part of!

Find their fantastic collection of beautiful and well-made hammocks and accessories at EaglesNestOutfittersInc.com.

Also on SaraSnow.com

Traditional Medicinals pioneers the new FairWild certification

Wednesday, November 18th, 2009

Traditional Medicinals, the leader in medicinal teas and largest Fair Trade Certified herbal tea company in the US, has become the first manufacturer in the US to obtain the new FairWild certification.

The FairWild certification is a sustainability standard, first established in 2006, that sets international social, ecological and quality standards for wild-collected plant species, and provides a fair deal to all those involved throughout the supply chain.

For more than 35 years Traditional Medicinals (founded by Drake Sadler, a good family friend and mentor of mine – he was featured as a Green Bar Profile in my book) has worked with plant collector communities to ensure the most efficacious and highest quality pharmacopoeial grade herbs for its products.  Theirs is a long-standing company commitment to social responsibility, environmental stewardship and cultural preservation.  You may have seen them featured on either of my Discovery Network series Living Fresh or Get Fresh with Sara Snow. I’ve been lucky enough to visit TM at their headquarters in Sebastopol, CA many times.  It comes as no surprise to me that they would pioneer this important and very fitting certification in the US.

“Traditional Medicinals was instrumental in first identifying a critical gap in sustainability certification for wild harvested plants.  Most notably, of the 3,000 total plant species traded globally, only about 900 species – less than one third – are farmed, with the rest being wild-collected.”  Because these wild-collected species are not included under any existing Fair Trade standards, it became evident that a new certification was necessary with a framework for measuring Fair Trade practices on wild collected herbs.

The new certification will be used across all industries that use wild-collected plant species in their products, including medicines, teas, spices, and cosmetics.

Included in the framework is verification of sustainable wild collection including respecting customary rights, fair prices and fair trade premium, preventing negative environmental impacts, maintaing wild resources, and applying good management and business practices.

Traditional Medicinals “Just for Kids” Organic Cold Care and Organic Nighty Night are the first herbal tea products to have the FairWild labeling.  FairWild certified Organic Throat Coat, Organic Licorice and Organic Nettle will be introduced in 2010.

Also on SaraSnow.com

Green Your Dry Cleaning

Tuesday, November 17th, 2009

What do you do when you’re already buying organic food, using energy efficient lightbulbs, installing Energy Star appliances and low-flow showerheads, buying recycled content goods, and so on?  You’re already green, so now what, right?!

Green Garmento™ is making it easy for you to green your dry-cleaning in one simple step by eliminating all of those single-use plastic dry cleaning bags.

The Green Garmento Garment and Duffle Hang  Green

The Green Garmento™ is an eco-friendly 3-in-1 reusable garment bag that helps consumers “green” their drycleaning routine.  At home it functions as a space-saving hamper; on the trip to the drycleaner, it becomes a stylish duffel bag; and at pick-up, it transforms into a hanging garment bag to protect

cleaned clothes – without a single-use plastic bag in sight! The simple step of switching to The Green Garmento™ will help to reduce the estimated 300 million pounds of single-use plastic drycleaning bags a year that continue to clog our landfills and kill our marine and wildlife.

How It Works:

  • Place all your “to be cleaned” garments in The Green Garmento™. (Use The Green Garmento™ in this state as a hamper or duffle bag for collection.)
  • Turn the bag over to your drycleaners and ask them to return your clothes hung inside. (The cleaner will attach The Green Garmento™ to one of your garments so that it won’t get lost.)
  • At pickup, the clothes will be neatly hung inside The Green Garmento™ (garment bag form). Wide gussets and a side zipper help to keep everything safely in place and allow you to easily access.
  • It is recommended to have 2 Green Garmento’s™ so that you can “swap out” with the drycleaner and repeat the process.

Many professional drycleaners have adopted the use of The Green Garmento™ as well. Not only does it meet their desire to be more eco-friendly, it is cost effective and easy to implement.

  • Features:
  • Made from recyclable, non-woven polypropylene
  • Breathable & water-resistant
  • Side zipper allows easy access to hanging garments
  • Drawstring closure at bottom
  • Sturdy loop fits over any hook for use as a hanging hamper
  • Durable shoulder strap for convenient carrying as a duffel bag
  • Reinforced handles for compressed carrying
  • Wide gussets allow cleaned clothes to hang gently at all times
  • Machine washable (short cycle – cold) and hang dries quickly
  • See-through front pocket for dry cleaning ticket or other customer ID

The Green Garmento™ is available in multiple sizes ranging from 40 inch to 72 inch (48” is most popular consumer size) and a variety of colors including: Black Night, Blue Water, and Green Grass. (Retail – $9.99.)

To purchase and for a listing of authorized drycleaners that currently utilize The Green Garmento™, visitwww.thegreengarmento.com.

“Cook Up Some Change!” My Program with MicroPlace kicks off today!

Monday, November 16th, 2009

Sara with Bernadette_smallEarlier this year, I had the most fortunate experience of traveling to Kenya with a small team from the Micro-finance group, MicroPlace.

I first became fired up with the idea of micro-lending a few years ago when my family decided to fund a bank and numerous micro-loans in lieu of gifts to one another.  It’s a beautiful idea: your loan of a “micro” amount ($20, $200, or anything above or in between) can completely change the life of someone living in a developing country.

Mom with her boy_smallMost often (84% of the time) these microfinance borrowers are women, and many experts believe the key to ending poverty and its resulting social problems is in empowering women.  Microlending allows this to happen!  According to the MicroPlace site, Although many women are initially hesitant to accept loans, their self confidence soars when they realize they can run a successful business and repay their loans. They use their profits to pay for things that will enhance their family’s welfare, like education, healthcare and nutritious food….making it more likely that future generations will end the cycle of poverty.

For more on how microlending works, visit the “how it works” page and the “small loans; big impact” page.

Only a few months after my family decided to engage in microlending, I found myself sitting over a plate of eggs and hash browns with the  General Manager of MicroPlace, Ashwini Narayanan.

We were soul sisters at once, and not long afterwards we were flying high about the Atlantic Ocean on our way to visit borrowers throughout the African country of Kenya; to hear their amazing stories of how small loans from people like you and me had changed their lives, the lives of their families, and ultimately their communities.

Now, I’m hooked!  And I’m hoping I can get you hooked on micro-lending, too!

Women dancing with beadsThis holiday season, I have partnered with MicroPlace to “Cook Up Some Change” and I hope you’ll join me in doing just that!

Your micro-loan can “serve” 1 to 100, depending on how much change you choose to cook up.  And because you’re loaning the money instead of donating it, you’ll earn interest as the loan is repaid so you can continue to lend over and over; thus recycling your money and helping more and more!

Visit my page on MicroPlace and “Cook Up Some Change” of your own!  This season, give the only gift that truly gives back and keeps on giving – the gift of promise, positivity, and change.

Also on SaraSnow.com

Men’s Eco Boutique Now Open!

Wednesday, November 11th, 2009

Men, too often, feel slighted when it comes to eco fashion.  Us ladies get to enjoy closets-full of organic cotton tees and yoga clothes, cozy bamboo bathrobes, delicious recycled cashmere sweaters, luxurious eco-fiber dresses, and so much more.

Connect imageWell, men.  Suffer no more!   Forward-thinking, Chicago-based sustainable retailer, Connect, has launched its first ever e-commerce site C by Connect; the first and only online men’s store with an environmentally and socially responsible focus.

Log on to C by Connect and you’ll find eco brands Nau, Holden Outerwear, Topo Ranch, Coal, Icebreaker, LiViTy, Patagonia Footwear, The Stronghold, and others.  Connect’s private label, SideCar, which uses reclaimed and surplus fabrics and organic cotton, is also available, making the popular Chicago line available for the first time worldwide.  In addition to the men’s fashions, C by Connect includes a “gifts for her” section, as well as sustainable home furnishings.  It’s a one-stop-shop for the forward-thinking individual.

Jonathan Shaun, a Connect Co-Founder and friend of mine, says, “We realized men didn’t have an authentic and conscious online experience to shop.  It’s our honor to finally offer men a place to go where they can find functional and design-driven brands that are progressive and socially responsible,”

Every brand that Connect and their partners work with goes through a rigorous selection process to ensure that it aligns with their values and vision. The Connect manifesto is based on a “not-just-for-profit” method honoring the triple bottom line: planet, people, profit. C by Connect donates 3% of all profits to its Community Investment Portfolio that consists of local, national, and international NGOs.

Sustainable Features of C by Connect:

  • Carbon ZERO bicycle messenger delivery within Chicago city limits
  • Carbon neutral shipping (national and international)
  • All brands are environmental, fair trade, and ethically produced and sold
  • Connect is dedicated to marketing ethical start-up brands made in the U.S.A.
  • Renewable energy-based web hosting


Save 10% on your first order!  Enter conscious at checkout for a 10% off savings on your first order.

Also on SaraSnow.com/blog

Organic Cocktails for the Weekend

Friday, November 6th, 2009

RoundLabelIt’s the perfect vodka in my opinion; made from 100% organic ingredients with corn (not wheat) as its primary element (I have a wheat allergy so I especially appreciate this).  Rain Organic Vodka comes in four unique flavors, plus the original variety.  Each is distilled in small batches at Buffalo Trace Distillery from 100% organic white corn.  The vodkas undergo a 20-day production process that includes cold-water sweet mash fermentation, seven distinct distillations, and a polishing stage that adds in pure limestone water.

This results in a smooth, perfumey vodka.  In fact, according to the Rain site “There are smells of pear drop, moss and hay in the first sniffing.  Aeration allows the aroma to deepen, especially the appealing earthy moss and wet soil perfume.  Palate entry is feather-light; at mid-palate there’s a firm but satiny taste of sweet grain.  Aftertaste is grainy.  Delicious and delicate.”

Maybe you’ve never gotten that deep with your vodka.  But when it’s organic, small batch distilled, and occasionally blended with flavors like Honey Mango Melon, Cucumber Lime, Red Grape Hibiscus and Lavender Lemonade it’s time you did.

RainOrganicsBottle-hi res

Here are a few recipes to get your weekend kickin’!

Cucumber Rain Refresher

  • 2 oz Rain Organics Cucumber Lime Vodka
  • 4 oz. Sweet and Sour Mix
  • 1 oz. Ginger Ale
  • Ice
  • Cucumber Wheel

In a shaker, add Rain ORganics Cucumber Lim Vodka, sweet and sour mix, ginger ale and ice.  Shake and strain into a chilled martini glass.  Garnish with a cucumber wheel.

Seaside Rain

  • 1 1/2 oz. Rain Organics Lavender Lemonade Vodka
  • 2 oz. Grapefruit Juice
  • 2 oz. Cranberry Juice
  • Lemon Wheel and/or Blueberries
  • Ice

In a shaker, add Rain Organics Lavender Lemonade Vodka, grapefruit juice, cranberry juice and ice.  Shake and strain into a chilled martini glass.  Garnish with a lemon wheel, blueberries, or both.

Laughter in the Rain

  • 2 oz. Rain Organics Vodka
  • 1/2 oz. Peach Liqueur
  • 1/2 oz. Fresh Lemon Juice
  • 1/4 oz. Simple Syrup
  • 1-inch piece of Cucumber, peeled and chopped
  • 1 strip Lemon Zest
  • 1 strip Cucumber Peel
  • Ice

In a shaker, add Rain Organics Vodka, peach liqueur, fresh lemon juice, simple syrup, chopped cucumber and ice.  Shake and strain into a chilled martini glass.  Garnish with lemon zest and cucumber peel.

Terra Plana shoes to bring an ethical spring to your step

Wednesday, November 4th, 2009

1016_blackvegtan_n

I first discovered Terra Plana a few years ago while filming my show in NYC.  Someone ran by their showroom to pick up some shoes for me to wear and I ended up purchasing two of the pairs they brought back because I couldn’t live without them.  About a month prior I had happened upon their SoHo shop and fell in love with the brand (and a handbag that, to this day, I get multiple compliments on every time I carry it).

What’s to love?  Everything.

The company offers fashionable shoes with an ethical twist.

The Terra Plana products themselves support theories and actions of sustainability: lightness, anatomic design, disassembly and durability.  They constantly strive to minimize waste, toxins (vegetable tanning their leather instead of using chemicals), and glues (using stitched construction instead), while using eco-friendly and innovative materials to create light, flexible, durable, and earth friendly shoes.  They say that “the totally sustainable shoe is still a long way off but with each collection we get that little bit closer.”

There are recycled elements in every Terra Plana shoe: recycled PET bottles for mesh, recycled rice husks for soling materials, recycled leather and recycled foam for footbeds, etc..

Their VivoBarefoot line goes one step further.  The construction of the show actually works to strengthen the muscles in your feet, realigning your posture, and stimulating sensory perception.  They give you the protection of a shoe with the health benefits of going barefoot.

But here’s what I really love about Terra Plana.  Their shoes and boots are not only ethical, they’re BEAUTIFUL!

1022_greyvegtannedJust the other day I slipped my foot into my newest pair of Terra Planas; a Grey (the hot color of the season) Juniper pump.  They hugged my feet in all the right places, felt so soft on the sole of my foot, and carried me on a bed of feel-good all day long.

Check out Terra Plana shoes out for your holiday parties, winter boots, or a special gift for someone you love.

Enter discount code TerraPlana20 for 20% off everything on the site!

Make Your Snacks Funky

Monday, November 2nd, 2009

While they’re probably meant for a younger audience than me, I have to say that I’m hooked on Funky Monkey Snacks!

51I7FZXD1IL._SL160_AA115_It’s the Fruit That Crunches – made of all natural, freeze-dried fruit.  They have no added sugar, preservatives, color, or flavors and they’re all completely gluten-free, wheat-free, and dairy-free.

While most freeze dried fruit is made up of teeny tiny pieces of fruit, Funky Monkey Snacks uses a proprietary freeze-drying process on whole slices and large pieces of fruit.  Each one-ounce bag contains three servings of fruit.  Sadly, 72% of Americans don’t eat their fill of fruits and vegetables in a day.  Funky Monkey Snacks can help!

Funky Monkey just announced the addition of three new flavors:

  • Applemon™ (freeze-dried apple and organic cinnamon),
  • MangOJ™ (freeze-dried mango and orange juice), and
  • Pink Pineapple™ (freeze-dried organic pineapple and guava)

This trio joins the existing varieties: Bananamon®, Carnaval Mix™, JiveALime® and Purple Funk®.

As for where to get it:  Funky Monkey Snacks can be found in the produce or snack sections of grocery stores and natural foods stores across the US, including Super Target and Whole Foods.  They retail for about $1.99 – $ 2.49 for each one-ounce bag.

Snack a little funkier today.  I will!

My favorite, by the way….the MangOJ.  Delic!!