Rent: Growing Up Green: Baby and Child Care: Volume 2 in the Bestselling Green This! Series (Green This!)

This book was helpful (if scary sometimes) at pointing out hidden dangers around us. Quite a few of the links were also helpful (the Amish cribs and mattresses are lovely) However I would like to point out my two hangups with it. While it is helpful to point out what cleaners to avoid, I wasnt given much in the way of alternatives. I do not live in the USA and ordering products and shipping them from her store to my country would be excessively expensive. A more in-depth study of healthy alternatives that are easy to find anywhere would have been more helpful, the few there were, vinegar and baking soda, I was happy to use.
My second hangup is her being obviously a hardcore vegan. Not every one can happily live that way and to show such disapproval for fish and animal products was annoying, I felt like I was being lectured. Also she fails to point out that soy is not a good alternative as it has estrogen mimics that can cause breast cancer and also that it is indigestable to babies. A little onesided wouldn't you say?

What a breath of fresh air! If you're like me, you're always trying to raise your child well, but never really sure you're doing everything you can. In many ways, this book is a light down that dark path of parenting, as it's filled with ideas on how to give your kids a safe and healthy life. Even if you are not pregnant yet, there's worthy advice. For example, one early chapter points out that any woman planning to have kids should avoid flu shots containing thimerosal.

My daughter is 14, so I was especially interested in the chapter about teenagers. It opened my eyes to the potentially toxic ingredients in cosmetics and other personal care products -- carcinogens like formaldehyde and diethanolamine, and neurotoxic heavy metals such as lead and mercury. I learned that it makes little sense for me to make sure she takes an organic apple in her lunch every day if I'm ignoring the toxic body spray she mists on herself every morning.

The book is divided into two sections, with a resource guide at the end:

One: The Wake-Up Call
1. A letter to parents
2. The role of the environment in our children's health

Two: From Utero to University
3. Preparing for pregnancy
4. Eating right for two
5. Pregnancy and birth
6. Developing your baby's palate
7. Infancy and early childhood
8. "Green" pediatrics
9. Off to school
10. Adolescence and beyond
11. Beyond the home: Community activism and outreach

This book is FANTASTIC. Not too overwhelming. A great introduction to greening your life. I will be giving this as a gift to every baby shower I go to. This book in a basket a nice collection of organic baby toiletries... I can't think of a better baby gift!!

This book should be in every school, doctor's office, daycare center and home. Look at American kids today. Sick sick sick. Asthma, ear infections, food allergies, environmental allergies, ADHD, seizures, mental illness, autism, learning disabilities. Our kids are bearing the brunt of our toxic world. Deirdre explains what's going on and offers solutions in an easy to ready book. In a world where parents are determined to raise the next LeBron or Tiger, enrolling their kids in class after class to get a leg up on the competition and sacrificing left and right to make sure their kids have the best of everything, what good is all of that if the child is not well?

Parents have the power to make their kids lives' safer. Deirdre helps you to learn how.

This is a perfect baby shower gift, Mother's day or Father's day gift, end of year teacher gift. Even a copy for Grandma and Grandpa who may still have a bottle of rat poison next to the lead paint cans in the garage..... It's never too late to learn!

Growing Up Green, by Deirdre Imus, is a well-researched and comprehensive book on how to make your child's world eco-friendly to keep them healthy.

Imus presents to problem in the introduction: "The World Health Organization estimates that we could prevent more than 80 percent of all chronic illnesses by improving our lifestyles in simple ways, like working to reduce our exposure to environmental pollutants and eating a healthier diet. Eighty percent! So why aren't we doing more to protect our children?"

In chapter two, Imus addresses the role of the environment in children's health. Specifically, she writes about the health issues caused by pollution including learning disabilities, headaches, hyperactivity, asthma, allergies, obesity, diabetes, autism, pediatric cancer and more.

"Prevention is the best cure," Imus says.

With prevention is the best cure in mind, the remaining chapters focus on way to keep your kids healthy, beginning with preparation for pregnancy. This chapter includes information on greening your home by replacing toxic chemicals with safe products. She also discusses green building and specific green tips for the nursery.

The following chapter shows the expectant mother how to eat healthy for two.

Next, Imus describes how to develop a healthy eating "palate" for your baby, which includes organic and healthy food.

Imus writes about all green aspects of your child's life, including safe toys and personal care products. One of my favorite tips was to use apple cider vinegar in the bath, as it boosts mood and is relaxing for children. Add bubbles to the vinegar in the bath and you get amazing and fun foam!

The chapter on pediatrics was excellent and covers vaccinations, antibiotic overload, natural homeopathic cures and more.

Imus even includes a section on getting the schools to go green.

Finally, the book includes a list of basic foods for your kitchen, healthy breakfast recipes and easy recipes, recommended reading and resources.

The book is health insurance for your kids.

By the author of the award winning book, Harmonious Environment: Beautify, Detoxify and Energize Your Life, Your Home and Your Planet.