Review by Michael Smith
Green Goes With Everything: Simple Steps to a Healthier Life and a Cleaner Planet
by Sloan Barnett
Published by Atria Books
ISBN: 978-2426578451
Published in September 2008
320 Pages Hardback
US$ 19.95
Sloan Barnett lives a mother's worst nightmare when her small son developed a cough followed by severe heart palpitations. A trip to the emergency room in the hospital lead to a dire verdict: reactive airways dysfunction syndrome; in other words, chemically induces asthma.
That is when the author began using the skills that she has honed as a consumer reporter and learned about the skyrocketing asthma rates amongst children – and one should add to that “not just children – as well as other health effects of the chemicals that are all around us, and especially that are in our homes.
After changing the way that her family lives Sloan Barnett wrote the book “Green Goes With Everything: Simple Steps to a Healthier Life and a Cleaner Planet” to educate other families about the toxins that exist in everyday household products and what we can do to make our homes the safe sanctuaries we want and need them to be.
While most people everywhere thing as far as the term “green” is concerned about pollution, recycling and all that jazz – which, indeed, is very important – Sloan Barnett in “Green Goes With Everything: Simple Steps to a Healthier Life and a Cleaner Planet” expands the definition of “green” by raising awareness about pollution in our bodies. She takes a tour through our homes and explains how our everyday products – from laundry detergent to toothpaste and lipstick (well, I don't use any lipstick) and other seemingly benign items – may contain harmful substances and even toxins that can lead to adverse health effects.
In the pages of her book she offers solutions and alternatives so that we can all live greener and healthier lives.
While the book is extremely well written and gives a lot of information Sloan Barnett uses it also to shamelessly advertise the cleaning products of her husband's company, the Shaklee Corporation, and this could be considered something of a strange affair by some readers. To some degree this book could be seen as a medium of advertising the products of that company and this may be seen as unethical by some people and I am myself rather close to taking the same view on this, but then again she is open about it as well so and says so herself that she is a blatant ambassador for the natural cleaning products of the Shaklee Corporation, the company of which her husband is CEO.
The information, though, that is presented in the book is rather interesting and the author does give the appropriate details to back up her claims so, as it were, there may be a case there.
I have also been told by my adopted Dad who uses Shaklee cleaning products and who, because of his allergies, does so that the products are good and work extremely well and that they do not cause him any reactions. Therefore, as said, there may be something there.
On the other hand, I personally cannot comment on the company's products as, so far, I have not been able to obtain any for a test and review, say.
The book is, however, as I said, a very informative read and make me, who lives in an area governed, so to speak, by EU legislation, happy to be here, as so many dangerous substances in use in cleaners and other such household items that are “legal” in the USA, for instance, have been banned as hazards to health in the European Union (EU).
The sovereigns of the United States – for remember people over there, you are not just mere citizens, you all, each and everyone of you, according to the Constitution, are a Sovereign – should put definite pressure on the administration of the country to have the EPA either given more teeth or in other ways simply have those substances declared a hazard to health and banned. If the EU has done so then it is time to do so everywhere.
As reader and reviewer of the book I found it an eye opener and, as said, I am glad that I like in the UK rather than the USA as far as those chemicals are concerned.
Maybe it should be noted that all the proceeds of the book goes to charity so, aside from the fact that it is a very useful and helpful book for the reader, this should be the final inducement, if any further would be needed to go out and buy this book. (And no, I do not get paid for this review – chance would be a fine thing).
Inc closing I would like to say that I have enjoyed the book and that I have learned a great deal from it and that including the facts that make me grateful to live in the EU.
© M Smith (Veshengro), January 2009
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Green Goes With Everything – Book Review
