Tumeric has been used for over 2500 years in India, and has many health benefits. Long known for its anti-inflammatory properties, recent research has revealed that turmeric is a natural wonder, proving beneficial in the treatment of many different health conditions from cancer to Alzheimer’s disease.

1. Prevented breast cancer from spreading to the lungs in mice.

2. When combined with cauliflower, it has shown to prevent prostate cancer and stop the growth of existing prostate cancer.

3. It is a natural antiseptic and antibacterial agent, useful in disinfecting cuts and burns.

4. Is a natural liver detoxifier.

5. Reduces the risk of childhood leukemia.

6. May aid in fat metabolism and help in weight management.

7. May prevent and slow the progression of Alzheimer’s disease by removing amyloyd plaque buildup in the brain.

8. May prevent metastases from occurring in many different forms of cancer.

9. It is a potent natural anti-inflammatory that works as well as many anti-inflammatory drugs but without the side effects.

10. Has shown promise in slowing the progression of multiple sclerosis in mice.

11. Has been shown to stop the growth of new blood vessels in tumors.

12. Promising studies are underway on the effects of turmeric on pancreatic cancer.

13. Has long been used in Chinese medicine as a treatment for depression.

14. Because of its anti-inflammatory properties, it is a natural treatment for arthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.

15. Boosts the effects of chemo drug paclitaxel and reduces its side effects.

Sckoon Organics , a brand of organic baby clothes and organic cloth menstrual pads, advocates organic living — organic food, mindful eating, conscious selections of everyday products, compassion and living in the present. Connect with us on Facebook and Twitter.

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<photo; Sckoon organic cotton cloth diaper from Sckoon Organics>

The demand for certified organic cotton cloth diapers for babies has been increasing tremendously. Some mothers think organic cotton needs a special care but it actually there is no difference from caring conventional cotton baby cloth diapers.

What detergent works best for washing organic cloth baby diapers? Different detergents will work or not work to your satisfaction dependent on many different factors, such as quality of water.  What works for one person’s diaper laundry will not necessarily work for you and yours.

Diaper Jungle offers a very nice chart as below, and you can even purchase some of the detergents there.
This chart analyzes many different detergent choices so that you can find the best cloth diaper detergent for your diaper laundering needs.

Why Avoid these
Ingredients?

Pure Soap:
Pure soaps are the more natural choice in the world of cleaners, but soaps will leave a residue on your diapers and covers, similar to the soap scum you find in your tub. Soap scum on diapers makes them repel moisture rather than absorb it and it is also harsh on the laminates used in your diaper covers, making them absorb rather than repel water. The best choice for washing your diapers is to use detergent on them. To combat build-up though, Annie Berthold-Bond,
author of Better Basics for the Home, recommends adding baking soda. “Start out
with 1/4 cup of baking soda, and increase to 1/2 cup if you have very
hard water,” she advises. Leave the soda in the water for ten minutes,
then add the soap and clothes.

Enzymes:
Enzymes attack organic matter and help dissolve stains when activated
with water or moisture. Sweat, urine, and feces are all organic matter
so there is a risk that these substances that are lingering on baby’s
skin will be a target for these enzymes. In particularly sensitive
children, these enzymes can cause blistering, bleeding, sores and rashes.
Fragrances and Dyes:
These are harsh and unnecessary chemicals for a baby’s laundry. It is
best to avoid them.
Artificial fragrances are often made from petroleum. Many do not degrade in
the environment, and may have toxic effects on both fish and mammals.
Additionally, they often can cause allergies and skin or eye irritation.

Optical Brighteners:

These are actually tiny particles that stick to the surface of your clothes after washing. These particles
make colors appear to be brighter by absorbing invisible ultraviolet
light and re-emitting it as blue light. If you want to see if your
detergent has these brighteners, simply look at the detergent under a
black light. Although these optical brighteners may make your clothes
appear brighter, they are chemical residues that are intentionally left
behind on your clothes and may cause skin irritation or other allergic
reactions.

Fabric Softeners:

Fabric softener, either in liquid or sheet form – leaves a water-repelling residue on your
laundry. When left on your cloth diapers (and towels), this residue makes them less absorbent and useful in the very purpose that
they serve. It also coats your diaper covers and can deteriorate their
water-proof laminate. If your diapers NEED softening
add 1/2 cup baking soda to the rinse cycle of your wash. Dryer Balls also help soften
laundry.

Image	Detergent Brand and Name	Cost Per Load	Enzymes	Brighteners	Dyes	Fragrances	Softeners
	Ruby Moon	N/A	No	No	No	Some varieties	No
	Charlie’s Soap	$0.19	No	No	No	No	No
	Charlie’s Soap	$0.19	?	No	No	No	No
	*Mountain Green Free and Clear	N/A	No	No	No	No	No
	*Mountain Green Baby Detergent A PETA acceptable product	N/A	No	No	No	Yes	No
	20 Mule Team Borax	$0.25	No	No	No	No	No
	All Free and Clear	$0.18	No	Yes	No	No	No
	All Baby Care Plus	N/A	No	Yes	No	Yes	No
Image	Detergent Brand and Name	Cost Per Load	Enzymes	Brighteners	Dyes	Fragrances	Softeners
	All Small and Mighty	$0.23	No	Yes	No	Yes	No
	Allens Naturally Powdered and Liquid Laundry Detergents	$0.26	No	No	No	No	No
	Arm & Hammer FabriCare	$0.23	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes
	Arm & Hammer FabriCare Free	N/A	Yes	Yes	No	No	No
	Arm & Hammer Essentials Free Note: The Mountain Rain edition has fragrance and dyes	N/A	No	No	No	No	No
Image	Detergent Brand and Name	Cost Per Load	Enzymes	Brighteners	Dyes	Fragrances	Softeners
	Arm & Hammer Sensitive Skin	$0.20	No	Yes	No	No	No
	Bio-O-Kleen Laundry Powder	$0.20	No	No	No	No	No
	Bio-O-Kleen Free & Clear Powder	$0.24	Yes	No	No	No	No
	Bio-O-Kleen Premium Plus Laundry Powder	$0.22	Yes	Yes	No	No	No
	Bio-O-Kleen Liquid Laundry Detergent	$0.20	No	No	No	No	No
	Caldrea Sweet Pea Laundry Detergent Note: Contains plant-derived surfactants, Borax and essential oils of Geranium, Orange, Jasmine, Coriander, Rose and Bergamot. HE (front loader) compatible	$0.50	No	No	No	Yes	No
	Cheer Cheer	N/A	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	No
	Cheer Free and Gentle	N/A	Yes	No	No	No	?
	Country Save Country Save Liquid	$0.19	No	No	No	No	No
Image	Detergent Brand and Name	Cost Per Load	Enzymes	Brighteners	Dyes	Fragrances	Softeners
	Country Save Country Save Powdered Detergent	$0.16	No	No	No	No	No
	Dreft Dreft	$0.27	Yes	Yes	No	No	?
	Dropps Liquid Laundry Pacs	$0.31	No	No	No	No	No
	Earth Friendly Products Baby Hypoallergenic Laundry Soap Vegetable & Coconut Based Soap…may not be strong enough to launder cloth diapers	N/A	No	No	No	No	Yes
	Ecos Free and Clear Liquid	N/A	No	No	No	No	No
	Ecos Magnolia & Lillies, Lavendar & Lemongrass Scents Note: scented Ecos contains coconut based surfactants and softeners as well as essential oils	$0.22	No	No	No	Yes	No
Image	Detergent Brand and Name	Cost Per Load	Enzymes	Brighteners	Dyes	Fragrances	Softeners
	Ecos Powdered Laundry Deteregent	N/A	No	No	No	No	Yes
	Ecover Non Bio Laundry Vegan Approved	$0.47	No	No	No	Yes	No
	EnviroRite Laundry Detergent Ingredients: Deionized Water, Vegetable-Based Cleaning Agents, Surfactacts, Microbiostat	$0.19	No	No	No	No	No
	GAIN GAIN	$0.45	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes
	GAIN GAIN HE Powder	N/A	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes
Image	Detergent Brand and Name	Cost Per Load	Enzymes	Brighteners	Dyes	Fragrances	Softeners
	Ivory Snow may not be strong enough to launder cloth diapers	$1.20	Yes	Yes	No	No	No
	Kirkland’s Kirkland’s Signature (Costco brand) This product is nearly identical to Tide	N/A	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No
	Kirkland’s Signature Environmentally Friendly contains vegetable based surfactants including those derived from coconuts	N/A	Yes	No	No	Yes	No
	Kirkland’s Free and Clear (HE) Costco brand	$0.15	Yes	Yes	No	No	No
	Lifekind Naturally Safer Triple Concentrated Note: contains Seed & Pulp Extracts, Orange Peel Extracts, Surfactants from Coconuts.	$0.23	No	No	No	No	No
	Maggie’s Soap Nuts Maggie’s Soap Nuts Note: 100% natural – Grows on Trees!!!	N/A	No	No	No	No	No
Image	Detergent Brand and Name	Cost Per Load	Enzymes	Brighteners	Dyes	Fragrances	Softeners
	Melaleuca MelaPower	N/A	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
	Melaleuca MelaPower Scent Free	N/A	Yes	Yes	No	No	No
	Method HE Laundry Detergent	N/A	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No
	Method Baby Laundry Detergent	N/A	Yes	Yes	No	No	No
	Method Free and Clear	N/A	Yes	Yes	No	No	No
Image	Detergent Brand and Name	Cost Per Load	Enzymes	Brighteners	Dyes	Fragrances	Softeners
	Mountain Green Original Citrus A PETA acceptable product	N/A	No	No	No	Yes	No
	Nature Clean All Natural Laundry Liquid	N/A	No	No	No	No	No
	Nellie’s Nellie’s Laundry Soda contains coconut oil based ingredients.	N/A	No	No	No	No	No
	OXY-PRIME OXY-PRIME Powder	N/A	No	No	No	No	No
	Penguin Sport-Wash Restores factory applied waterproofing (DWR). Contains biodegradable vegetable surfactants	N/A	No	No	No	No	No
	Pink Solution	$0.12	Yes	No	No	No	No
Image	Detergent Brand and Name	Cost Per Load	Enzymes	Brighteners	Dyes	Fragrances	Softeners
	Planet Ultra Powder	N/A	No	No	No	No	No
	Purex Purex	N/A	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
	Purex Baby	N/A	No	Yes	?	Yes	No
	Purex Free and Clear Note: Many moms have expressed satisfaction with this detergent.	N/A	No	Yes	No	No	No
	Rockin Green Soft, Classic & Hard	$0.25-.30	No	No	No	Optional	No
	SA8 Sensitive	N/A	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes
Image	Detergent Brand and Name	Cost Per Load	Enzymes	Brighteners	Dyes	Fragrances	Softeners
	SA8 BioQuest Concentrated	N/A	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes
	SensiClean SensiClean Note: Some burns and rashes have been reported by users of this detergent.	N/A	No	No	No	No	?
	Seventh Generation Natural Laundry Baby	$0.53	Yes	No	No	No	Yes
	Seventh Generation Free and Clear contains vegetable based surfactants and enzymes including those derived from coconuts	$0.53	Yes	No	No	No	Yes
	Seventh Generation Natural Laundry	$0.46	Yes	No	No	Yes	No
Image	Detergent Brand and Name	Cost Per Load	Enzymes	Brighteners	Dyes	Fragrances	Softeners
	Shaklee Liquid-L Note: HE version has been linked with rashes	$0.38	Yes	Yes	?	Yes	No
	Sport-Wash Residue Free Note: Some burns and rashes have been reported by users of this detergent.	$0.59	No	No	No	No	No
	Sun Free Note: Many moms have expressed satisfaction with this detergent.	N/A	No	Yes	No	No	No
	Sun and Earth Deep Cleaning	$0.24	No	No	No	No	No
	Sunlight Ultra Sensitive Skin	N/A	No	Yes	No	No	No
Image	Detergent Brand and Name	Cost Per Load	Enzymes	Brighteners	Dyes	Fragrances	Softeners
	Sunlight Ultra Sensitive Skin HE	N/A	No	Yes	No	No	No
	Surf Surf	N/A	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	No
	Surf Aloha Splash	N/A	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	No
	The Laundress The Laundress Baby Detergent	$1.21	No	Yes	No	Yes	Yes
	Tide Tide	$0.25	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	?
Image	Detergent Brand and Name	Cost Per Load	Enzymes	Brighteners	Dyes	Fragrances	Softeners
	Tide Free	N/A	Yes	Yes	No	No	?
	Tide HE	$0.33	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	?
	Trader Joe’s Cleanliness is Next to Godliness	N/A	No	No	No	No	No
	Vaska Herbatergent Lavendar and Non Scented Note: Contains plant based surfactants and lavendar contains essential oils	$0.32	No	No	No	optional	No
	Wisk Free Clear Ultra	N/A	Yes	Yes	No	No	No
	Woolite HE Note: Woolite has an alkaline pH that may strip wool fibers so wool users should use caution.	$0.25	No	No	No	?	No

Disclaimer:

This information was taken from DiaperJungle.com which says best efforts have been made in the preparation of this information.  The information contained within this site is given without warranty, either expressed or implied. The Diaper
Jungle nor Sckoon cannot be held liable for any damages caused directly or
indirectly by the links and information on this site. In addition,
changes and improvements to the information provided herein may be made
at any time.

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When your crying baby can’t be calmed, you may be tempted to try just about anything to get the tears to stop. You may be worried that something is wrong and get anxious, but the most important thing is to calm down yourself first. Then cover the basics; does the baby fed, burped or changed? Does he or she have enough sleep? Babies cry because they want attention, or they have needs. Babies, especially newborns, like to be snuggled. Use organic baby blankets to snuggle your baby.

If all doesn’t work, get moving! Put your baby in the stroller, or put him/her in a baby sling and go outside for a short walk. If you can’t go out, you can even move around inside a house. Tell yourself, it’s okay to be frustrated. It’s all part of parenting. Never shake your baby. Put her/she in the crib and let your baby cry while you go to another room to calm yourself.

If you feel it is best to seek for experts’ help, contact your doctor. If not, simply lie down with your crying baby. Tell yourself, I’m lying down with my crying baby, and this is all that I can do now. It might sound like magic, but your calm, accepting vibe travels through the air and reach out to your baby. Just be a parent; an imperfect, loving, parent, that’s all your baby needs.

This video may help you;

Organically yours,

Sckoon organic baby clothes & SckoonPads; organic cloth menstrual pads

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Someone asked the Dalai Lama what surprises him most. This was his response:

“Man, because he sacrifices his health in order to make money. Then he sacrifices money to recuperate his health. And then he is so anxious about the future that he does not enjoy the present; the result being that he does not live in the present or the future; He lives as if he’s never going to die, and then he dies having never really lived”

What a wonderful saying. Advocating mindful, organic living is one of the missions of Sckoon Organics, but we often forget the simplest thing. Art of presence.

Organically yours,

Sckoon organic baby clothes & SckoonPads; organic cloth menstrual pads

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When you make a simple mistake, what do you say to yourself? “Oh, stupid me, why did I do that?” or even worse, when it goes wrong, you would say “Why do the bad things always happen to me!?” Watch what you say to yourself, because that has an impact on you.

Instead of saying negative things to yourself or making a judgement, just say, “OK, I made a mistake.” Stop there; say no more. Learn from your mistake and move on. Bring your awareness back to the present, not the past, nor the future.

We all know that a judgmental parent creates a negative effect on her child. A good parent constantly looks at their child’s best attributes and praise them so that the child’s potential grows fast and builds a good self esteem.

Liking yourself no matter what, without being egoistic, is bliss. What you can do every day is to watch over yourself with warm, caring eyes, and to accept facts as mere facts; don’t develop any story to label others, or yourself. For example, your friend tells you that she will call you in the afternoon, but she forgets. You immediately think, “She is such a forgetful person!” or “Maybe I am just not important to her.” You must cleanse your mind of such thoughts, and just see the fact as it is; she didn’t call.

When you don’t label incidents, others, or yourself, life is much simpler. And you will feel a calm, happy person inside of you. Nurture that happy being, just like loving mothers do.

Organically yours,

Sckoon organic baby clothes & SckoonPads; organic cloth menstrual pads

Cover photo; Ashes and snow. Find more on Sckoon Pinterest

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Let’s just say for grins, Beyoncé IS in Houston today to give birth to her baby, although we think it’s a bit early.  But if she is, what advice would you give the new mom?  Houston baby planner Shenequa Aranda of Premier Baby Planning helps educate new moms on what to do and what not to do. She offers Bey (and others) some helpful tips:

1. Get in formed about things. Do you know how to install a car seat correctly? Time to learn.
2. Take time for yourself.  Use this time out of the limelight (and your social circle) to spend with your baby and your man.
3. Connect with other moms. Find other moms (like Miss Tina or sis Solange) for support on baby issues.
4. Use your intuition. Deep down inside you know what feels right.
5. Pay attention to product ingredients. Aranda says there are plenty of organic products designed for new babies without all those harsh chemicals.

When it comes to outfitting the nursery and wardrobe,  Aranda has these suggestions:

• Stroller. Orbit baby stroller. It’s super easy with organic interior and great for tall guys, like Jay-Z.
• Skin care: Episencial Organic Baby Skin Care or  Oh, Baby Organic Skin Care.
• Crib/carrier items: Boba Baby carrier and Oliver B bumpers.
• Baby clothing: Sckoon Organics.

Check out Premier Baby Planning for upcoming events, including play dates with Gymboree and workshops on how to baby-sleeping strategies and greening your nursery. BUT if you still don’t care if Beyoncé is having a baby, read music critic Joey Guerra’s 10 Things I Care About More than Beyoncé’s Baby.

This is a reprint of choron.com with permission of sharing from the author.

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The stats show that this year there will be approximately 20 percent more people giving gift cards than last year. Gift cards are practical, especially when sent to a mother of a baby, as most babies already have everything they could possibly need. Sckoon Organics offer e-gift certificates that will be sent instantly to recipients. Unlike many drawbacks of other gift cards;

1. There is no expiration date – recipients can redeem the certificate any time.
2. No wasted balance – Sckoon e-gift certificates can be used over and over until the remaining balance is $0
3. No Fees & No shipping costs – while some gift cards, the Visa, Master Card, and Mall cards, add fees (frequently $3-$5 per card),  Sckoon’s gift certificate is no fees. And Because Sckoon will email the gift card to the recipients, no shipping cost.
4. Send instantly - order Sckoon e-Gift certificates and the recipient will receive your gift instantly.
5. Recipients can choose from a wide selection of eco-friendly gifts – Sckoon Organics offer 400+ items of organic baby clothes, baby accessories, baby kimonos, baby diapers, organic plush toys, baby blankets, organic dog clothes and toys, organic cloth menstrual pads as a healthier alternative, and menstrual cup for practical women.

No need for last minute holiday shopping. Go to Sckoon e-Gift Certificates, or call us 1-212-228-6903.

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When it comes to feminine hygiene products, especially sanitary pads, Japanese manufacturers are probably the most advanced in terms of technology. Japanese disposable sanitary pads are super thin, just like a piece of a printing paper, yet surprisingly absorbent. However, sophisticated Japanese consumers are switching, more and more to cloth menstrual pads, especially organic cloth menstrual pads. Why? It’s because they know that there is something untold about those ultra thin disposable female hygiene products.

As more women get conscious about what are used in their hygiene products, the demand of organic cloth menstrual pads has increased. Sckoon’s cloth menstrual pads are presented over 60 retailers/online-retailers in Japan, and out of 33 countries that Sckoon organics exports its products, Japan is the largest market outside of US.

Recently Sckoon Organic Cloth Menstrual Pads were featured in two major magazines in Japan. Both of them emphasizes how pretty the color of organic cotton prints of Sckoon, dyed with metal free, environmentally friendly dyes. One of the strongest advantages of Sckoon cloth menstrual pads is they are all certified organic cotton products. Unlike other cloth menstrual pads that partially organic, Sckoon cloth menstrual pads are made of 100% organic cotton (other than built-in polyurethane sheet which doesn’t touch the skin) and certified organic as the final products.

Now Sckoon organics is the No.1 import brand of organic cotton cloth menstrual pads in Japan, and the number of demands are increasing every month.

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What can you do immediately to take care of your body and to impact the environment positively? Think about feminine hygiene products such as disposable sanitary pads or tampons you use. They are not even conventional cotton, rather made of plastic and loaded with chemicals such as  dioxin and chlorine.  As you know, a substance you place on your skin can pass right through it, straight into your bloodstream.

In addition to the health impact, think about the environmental effect. The average American women uses up to 16,800 tampons in her lifetime.  And that’s just tampons; many women use countless sanitary pads in place of, or in addition to tampons. These disposed feminine hygiene products require hundreds of years to biodegrade, particularly if wrapped in the plastic bags provided for this purpose as part of their packaging.

What you can do is to switch to organic cloth menstrual pads. These are reusable and washable. Yes, washable, just like your undies. Remember, made of “organic cotton” is the key as conventional cotton cloth menstrual pads contain chemicals such as remaining pesticides and bleaches. Make sure to choose certified organic cloth menstrual pads.

For you to choose the right organic cloth menstrual pads, we created a guideline, “cloth menstrual pads – how to choose“. Simply follow the steps below to find the right cloth menstrual pads.

Organic No Leak or Organic Breathable Pads?

First you can select from 2 types of Sckoon Organic Cotton Cloth Pads. If you have regular – heavy flow, or if you are a beginner of cloth menstrual pads, our No Leak pads are great. Because they have a built in (so it doesn’t touch your skin) polyurethane sheet, they help prevent accidents. If you have sensitive skin and relatively non-heavy flow, Sckoon Breathable Cloth Menstrual Pads are great for you. They are layers of 100% organic cotton. Nothing else. Both types of pads come with a liner (2 liners with Maxi Pads) to insert in the holder’s pockets.

Choose size – Mini, Day or Maxi

Now you select a size based on your flows. For regular flows you want day size pads and for heavy days you need maxi size pads. For lighter days you will need mini size pads.

If you chose “Organic No Leak pads” above, your next selection will be;

NoLeak Mini

NoLeak Day

NoLeak Maxi

And for those who chose “Breathable pads” above, your selection will be;

Breathable Mini

Breathable Day

Breathable Maxi

Choose Print

Select from a wide range of certified 100% organic fabrics

Choose Extra

Extra Liners

Although every mini, day & maxi Sckoon cloth menstrual pad comes with a organic cotton liner for absorbency, you can purchase extra liners for more frequent changes & less frequent laundry.

Bargain Set

Still undecided which pads to choose? Buy our bargain set and save extra money.

Menstrual Cup

Cloth Menstrual Pads and Menstrual Cup are perfect tools for a healthy and eco-friendly menstrual solution. Menstrual Cup can be used when you work out, swim, travel or any other occasions with and without cloth menstrual pads.

Carry Pouch

To complement the beautiful print fabric of your pads, choose our matching carrying pouch - with covered in a leak-proof sheet inside, along with divider to separate a used pad from a new pads, you can easily carry 2-3 mini or day cloth menstrual pads.

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