Skip Eating Fish for a while…

Dead fishies and sea gulls don’t lie. No matter what the government’s telling you, avoid eating fish. It’s just not safe anymore. Just a few months ago, eating a fish dinner was the smart thing to eat for wellness and health, but thanks to one corporation’s arrogance, and governmental neglect — this is no longer possible.

BP deliberately carpet bombed — through their planes of death — millions of gallons of CorEXIT dispersant into the Gulf of Mexico. This dispersant is one of the most toxic ones on the market. The government told BP to use a less toxic one, but because of the company’s cozy relationship with the makers of CoreExit, they ignored the government. Additionally, the Coast Guard and Environmental Protection Agency gave the BP corporation 74 waivers to use this toxic goo over a 48 day period.

Several governmental agencies say that the fish passes safety inspections are is okay to eat. Another fib. According to CNN, there is NO TEST available (and none in development) to see if fish are contaminated with CoreEXIT dispersant. So, governmental assurances that the fish are safe to eat, are simply not true.

Now fish are literally dying by the thousands. There have been reported fish (in the thousands) washing ashore in Alabama, the Carolinas, Georgia, Mississippi, and as far north as Maine, New Jersey. They’re dying off because of human neglect. Sea gulls — well known scavengers, who’d eat rotten fish if they could get it– won’t even touch the fish carcasses washing ashore. Maybe they can detect what these “scientists” cannot.

The cavalier attitude people have about this toxic goo really pisses me off. On so many sites, people joke about it as if there are not even serious consequences to contend with. CNNABCNBCFOXCBS and other “media” outlets in the hands of their corporate masters aren’t reporting this story. They’re not investigating whether or not the claims of scientists saying our food supply is safe is true or not. They just don’t give a damn. If millions die from contaminated fish, then it’s okay with them.

Maybe BP thinks that this problem will be “localized” to America, and keep mum about it so they don’t have to pay out millions more in damages. But, if it’s caught up in the LOOP current, dead fish are going to be soon washing up on British shores.

Review: Afroveda’s Shikakai Hair Growth Exilir

Product: AfroVeda’s Shikakai Hair Growth Exilir

Sample Size: 1 oz

Rating: 4 1/2 out of five stars

Website: http://www.afroveda.com

A few weeks ago, there was  a sale at Afroveda. I’ve always been fascinated about this company, since I found out that it uses Ayurvedic hair remedies to strengthen and treat African-American hair.

For those of you who don’t know what — Ayurveda is a traditional system of medicine used on the Indian continent. If you’d like to find out more about Ayurveda, I suggest that you check out Deepak Chopra’s (non updated version) of “Perfect Health” published before 2001, which  doesn’t push products, and teaches various forms of meditation, massage (abhyanga) and the three doshas(mind/body principles).

Anyway,  I decided to take the plunge and buy the CocoLatte Moisture Mask. I found out the hard way that Afroveda makes all hair /skin products by hand. It took 14 days for my order to arrive.  I haven’t tried the CocoLatte Mask yet, but I did try the sample of  Shikakai Hair Exilir I received in my package.

Advantages

The exilir has a minty scent — given off by the essential peppermint oil it contains. According to Cathy Howse, peppermint oil (like other essential oils) stimulates the scalp to encourage hair growth. When I placed the oil on my scalp, there was a pleasant tingle.

This product  does not contain any mineral oil. Yay! Mineral oil is known to clog up hair follicles and stop growth. It also contains bhringaraj (maka) oil — which also encourages hair growth. I’ve used a similar Indian formulation with maka in it (Ancient Formulae Mahabhringaraj oil). Ancient Formulae  is nice ande cheap, and it  help my hair to grow, and got rid of all of my remaining seborrhic dermatitis on my scalp completely. But I really didn’t care for the medicinal smell, or the mineral oil

But, Afroveda’s Shikakai Hair Exilir has none of those draw backs. It contains bhringaraj oil, which helps to prevent premature graying and hair loss, amalaki and castor oils which also prevents hair loss, along with shikakai — which is a natural astringent which strengthens hair roots.

Disadvantages:

It’s a little pricey at $17,99 for 8 oz. But, I am planning to purchase a bottle for my scalp massages, since I loved the sample so much.

Coincidentally, in ayurveda — both bhringaraj and amalaki are used internally to help improve digestive function. It also contains shikakai and castor oils, which are  natural astringent that help to strengthen hair roots.

Splitting Hairs: The Danger of Single-Strand Knots

For natural divas, single-strand knots stalk your hair like a bad, B-rated horror flick. Like Freddy Kruger in Nightmare on Elm Street, or Jason in Friday the 13th — these  knots hide in your curls, waiting to claim  hair’s health and growth — one strand at a time.For those of you who don’t know — single-strand knots happen when curly hair twists (or loops) around its upon itself and literally knots. Sometimes, when the knot forms, it can trap other hairs inside it, causing damage — not only to the knotted hair itself, but to other hairs that (may or may not) get caught in the loop.

I’ve always heard from other natural divas about the dangers of single strand knots — and their search and destroy methods to keep these killers at bay. But, it was only this past weekend that I learned why single-strand knots are particularly dangerous.

During a thunderstorm, while dry detangling my hair (for the first time) using Chicoro’s dry detangle method, I found a few single strand knots lurking. When I took a pair of hair scissors to one — a nasty surprise. Where the knot formed — the hair began to split upward toward the hair follicle. I quickly snipped off the knot … along with an inch of my hair with it.

I have been doing moisture treatments daily, and light protein treatments weekly (and the heavy ones every six to eight weeks)… and am keeping my hair up in protective styles — so I don’t think it’s excessive handling that caused the split hair — just the knot itself.

I’m not sure if any other natural-haired divas have talked about this danger — but, they should be on the watch, with a nifty pair of scissors during your detangling sessions — just in case a rouge knot decides to  sabotage the hard work you’ve put in.