For Felix’s tenth birthday, we surprised him with 4-day trip to Disney World with his cousins (who are his favorite people on this planet—he was actually more excited to see them than he was to be at Disney World, if that’s possible!).My husband and I are not theme-park people, but we can appreciate the magic of Disney, and decided that we had one trip in us before the kids were too old to
Pregnancy, Childbirth, & Postpartum
Safe Infant Formula Guide
I wrote this guide on how to choose organic baby formula for the first time in 2012. Overall, things have moved in a positive direction on the formula front.Here are two ways the industry seems to be changing for the better:Many companies have ditched corn sugars in favor of lactose. Lactose occurs naturally in cow (and goat) milk and much more closely mimics human milk. Many
Organic Prenatal Vitamin Guide
By Maia James, with research and recommendations by Michael Hopkins, PhD Important CYA Statement With this guide in particular, I feel like it’s SUPER important to stress that we aren’t doctors. (Well, Michael is actually a doctor—he has his PhD—just not THAT kind of doctor). Please consult with yours before taking our advice! I’ve been trying to write this guide to help my pregnant or TTC
Essential Nutrients During Pregnancy
All medical experts emphasize that humans, including pregnant and lactating women, are best able to obtain our essential nutrients through our diets.So before even thinking about which prenatal vitamins are the best, women should familiarize themselves with which foods provide the highest levels of the most essential pregnancy nutrients. What Are the Most Essential Pregnancy Nutrients? I’ve
Should You Do Cord Blood Banking?
Did you choose to do private cord blood banking after your baby's birth? This is one of the first decisions you'll make about something that may affect your child's health, and parents naturally agonize over it.My husband, Daylon, is the Director of the Reproductive Endocrinology at Weill Cornell Medical College as well as a embryonic stem cell research scientist. My pregnant friends often ask
Safe Baby Bottle Cheat Sheet
All bottle-feeding moms want the best non-toxic baby bottles for their babies, whether the bottles are is filled with breastmilk or formula or even water. Here's how to make sure you're using truly non-toxic baby bottles. 1. Avoid Plastic Baby Bottles (including “BPA-free” ones!) Plastic bottles are tempting---they are inexpensive, readily available, lightweight, and hard to break. But plastic
HiPP Versus Holle: Which European Infant Formula is Healthier?
Below is an email I recently sent to a private client of mine. Since the number one question I receive is "What is the safest infant formula?," I thought some of you might be interested in my analysis of the two safest brands of baby formula, HiPP vs. Holle (both from Europe). Note that whichever formula you choose, you should always use a water filter to remove chlorine (carcinogenic) and
How I Nursed Three Kids Without Going (Too) Crazy
Until recently, I was nursing three kids: a newborn, a two-year-old, and a four-year-old.When other women hear this, the most common thing they say is, “Oh my gosh, I could never do that!” Moms often share stories about how they weaned their older child in anticipation of a new baby arriving.I don’t think nursing two or more kids is as hard as many people assume, but it’s also not for
Updated Nipple Cream Guide & a Lanolin Horror Story
My big project for the next few weeks is going through all our Safe Product Guides and updating each one with additional information I have learned since their original publication, plus of course adding new products that have entered the market (or changed their formulas) and are Good, Bad, or Sneaky.A recent email I received from a reader (pasted below) prompted me to start with the Safe
Honest Company’s Infant Formula Review
As soon as The Honest Company’s infant formula hit the market, we were flooded with emails asking, “Is this the Good Stuff?” After putting the Honest formula through our research and review process, our answer is…sort of.Essentially, Honest’s formula is the same as the rest of the Jessica Alba product line: definitely well-intentioned, definitely better than most conventional stuff, not quite
