Going Green

Some friends have asked why I’m eating healthier and making more eco-friendly choices. Since April is Health and Environmental Awareness Month, I thought I’d share my reasons.

It all started with a New Year’s resolution to eat better. As I cut out unhealthy foods, I noticed that what’s bad for me is usually bad for the environment too. One change led to another.

Here are a few things that have helped me.

Food

• Check the labels, not just the “organic” sticker. Organic doesn’t always mean healthy. The FDA has strict rules for organic foods, but those rules don’t cover everything. Watch out for additives, high sodium, and too much fat. Healthier food can cost more, but you might find you need less to feel full.
• Try swapping sweets for healthier snacks. I used to eat a lot of junk food, but now I go for whole wheat crackers with hummus, fruit, yogurt, or cottage cheese. The cravings go away faster than you’d think.
• Watch how much caffeine you’re having. It’s a drug, and once you rely on it, you need it just to avoid headaches. If quitting is too hard, try switching to half-caf.

Home

• Use reusable shopping bags. Think about how many plastic bags you use in a year. Most grocery stores sell reusable bags for about a dollar, and many are made from recycled materials.
• Switch to CFL or LED bulbs if you can. I swapped out most of the bulbs in my apartment for compact fluorescent ones. CFLs do have a little mercury, but power plants release even more mercury when making the extra electricity that regular bulbs use. LEDs are even better if you can pay a bit more at first.
• Adjust your thermostat to save energy. There’s no need to heat or cool your place when you’re not home. Turning it down by eight degrees while you’re at work can make a big difference.
• Check your fridge temperature. My energy bill was higher than I expected until I bought a cheap thermometer. I found my fridge was set to 24°F and the freezer to -30°F, which was much colder than needed and wasted a lot of electricity.

I’m still figuring this out myself. Recycling is something I need to work on. But I’ve learned that small changes add up over time.

What do you do to live more sustainably?