Greening your Everyday Diet

Eating and drinking better foods and beverages is great for our overall health of course, but did you realize that by doing so you may also be helping to make the planet a better place to live? TipthePlanet, the green wiki for people looking to educate themselves about the environment while picking up some great advice for greener living offers some great tips for eating and drinking to save the planet and trim your waistline at the same time:

The advantages of buying local produce http://www.tiptheplanet.com/index.php?title=Local_food

Why going organic is good idea for you and Mother Nature http://www.tiptheplanet.com/index.php?title=Organic_food_tips

Understanding Raw Food Diets http://www.tiptheplanet.com/index.php?title=Eat_raw

Ditch the fast food drive through and discover why you should be brown bagging it http://www.tiptheplanet.com/index.php?title=Make_your_own_lunch

Beer is for drinking right? Well, yes, but there are lots of other great uses it can be put to as well.http://www.tiptheplanet.com/index.php?title=Alternative_uses_for_beer

One of the best things about Tip the Planet is that not only can you learn from us but you can share your own wisdom as well. If you have a great green food tip why not share it with us?

7 Tips for a Green Wedding

7 Easy Steps to a Greener Wedding from Tiptheplanet (www.tiptheplanet.com)

Want to add a little green as you plan the perfect white wedding? As the big season for brides approaches here are seven ways you can stage an event that is as eco-friendly as it is romantic:

Begin with the Invitations – If you must send paper invitations make sure you use recycled paper, but if you truly want to have an eco-friendly wedding why not go paperless? It’s a very unusual person these days that does not have an email address and there are dozens of free software programs that let even the most creatively challenged person come up with some beautiful looking “e-vitations”

Some couples are going a step further and setting up their very own wedding websites where their guests can RSVP, find accommodation if they are from out of town and view the gift registry all with just a few clicks of a mouse.

Choose a Green Gown – Well, probably not literally but you should be looking for eco-conscious materials when you are wedding dress shopping. Natural cottons, peace silk and even hemp are all great choices and a number of designers are incorporating them into their regular lines. Alternately you could do your bit for global recycling by purchasing a dress from your local thrift or consignment store.

Grow your own Wedding Flowers – Even those without a green thumb can cultivate blooms such as mums, dahlias, daisies, tulips, hyacinths, and miniature roses. All of these flowers are gorgeous and have the added green advantage of being replantable as well.

Make Your Own Green Centerpieces – Table décor can be eco-conscious as well. How about a small potted plant that guests can take home and plant after the occasion is over? Or if you want something that is truly unusual consider an Ecosphere - completely self-contained and self-sustaining miniature worlds enclosed in a recycled glass globe.

Set up Carpools – If your wedding and reception sites are not within walking distance of one another encourage your guests to carpool to save on gas. If you get some of them to travel together to the wedding in the first place you will be doing even more for the planet.

Recycle and Reduce Waste – Donate any leftover food to a local shelter or soup kitchen and take any flowers or other decorations to a hospital or retirement home so that they can brighten up someone else’s day as well.

Have more green wedding tips not included on this short list? Share your wisdom by submitting them to TipthePlanet, the most comprehensive green wiki on the internet.

Natural Remedies in the home

Who knew that so many of our household items can be so useful, without needing to head out to buy a bunch of chemicals? Tiptheplanet (http://www.tiptheplanet.com) is a green wiki that aims to help people find natural solutions, and learn more about the environment. Here are some of our latest tips:

Vinegar can be used to Kills grass on walks and driveways and weeds, deter ants and fight dandruff (after shampooing, rinse with vinegar and 2 cups of warm water). http://www.tiptheplanet.com/index.php?title=Uses_for_vinegar

Using Chili and garlic as an insecticide - http://www.tiptheplanet.com/index.php?title=Make_your_own_insecticide_with_chillipepper_and_garlic!

Cleaning your shoes with a banana skin - http://www.tiptheplanet.com/index.php?title=Clean_leather_shoes_with_banana_skin

Use Tee Tree Oil as a disinfectant - http://www.tiptheplanet.com/index.php?title=Use_tea_tree_oil_as_disinfectant

If you have any of your own, please go to http://www.tiptheplanet.com and add your own, or find some more!

Home chemicals

• Be aware that many chemicals commonly used around the home are toxic. Select less toxic alternatives. Use non-toxic substitutes wherever possible.

• Buy chemicals only in the amount you expect to use, and apply them only as directed. More is not better.

• Take unwanted household chemicals to hazardous waste collection centers; do not pour them down the drain. Pouring chemicals down the drain may disrupt your septic system or else contaminate treatment plant sludge.

• Never pour unwanted chemicals on the ground. Soil cannot purify most chemicals, and they may eventually contaminate runoff.

• Use low-phosphate or phosphate-free detergents.

• Use water-based products whenever possible.

• Leftover household pesticide? Do not indiscriminately spray pesticides, either indoors or outdoors, where a pest problem has not been identified. Dispose of excess pesticides at hazardous waste collection centers.

• Use tea tree oil as disinfectant

• Make your own natural disinfectant

• Remove rust with a environmentally friendly rust remover

• See here for a vast list of non-toxic or less-toxic alternatives to hazardous household chemicals.

• Look here for recipes to make your own non-toxic cleaning products - from all purpose cleaner to stain remover, bleach and wood floor polish.

• Paint tips

Fire-preventer

Here are some top fire-prevention tips

• Fit smoke alarms on each level in your home. Keep them free from dust and test them once a week. Consider buying a 10-year alarm; otherwise change the batteries in your alarm every year.

• Make a fire action plan so that everyone in your home knows how to escape if there is a fire.

• Keep the exits form your home clear so that people can escape if there is a fire. Make sure that everyone in your home can easily find keys for doors and windows.

• Take extra care in the kitchen - accidents while cooking account for over half of fires in homes. Never leave young children alone in the kitchen.

• Take extra care when cooking with hot oil. Consider buying a deep-fat fryer which is controlled by a thermostat (if you don't already have one).

• Never leave lit candles in rooms that nobody is in or in rooms where children are on their own. Make sure candles are in secure holders on a surface that does not burn and are away from any materials that could burn.

• Make sure cigarettes are stubbed out properly, disposed of carefully and never smoke in bed.

• Get into the habit of closing doors at night. If you want to keep a child's bedroom door open, close the doors to the lounge and kitchen, it may well help save their life if there is a fire.

• Don't overload electrical sockets. Remember one plug for one socket.

• Keep matches and lighters where children cannot see or reach them.

• Take special care when you are tired or when you've been drinking.

• Don't leave the TV or other electrical appliances on standby as this could cause a fire. Always switch it off and unplug when not in use.

Accidental snares

Always think about what your throwing away from more than just a pollution perspective... Those innocent looking soft plastic holders for soft drink cans and other products can entangle birds, fish, and small animals. Snip apart each ring before throwing it in the trash, or inquire whether they can be recycled locally.

Rainforests

Saw a lovely documentary about rainforests last night, and thought that we'd pass on some information about what brilliantly splendid ecosystems they are... so check out how you can save them here.