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I am so saddened by this epidemic and truly want to scream from the rooftops some days….other days, I’m just exhausted thinking about that we have created our sicknesses and it’s time for this to be recognized. 

When will this recognition happen?

I’m ready for it to be obvious that until recently human kind didn’t have such prevalent and debilitating diseases  that stem from elements that have mutagenic and carcinogenic effects.  CHEMICALS.  Some necessary, most are not, they are absolutely creating a high percentage of our illnesses and the painful part of this is that it’s PREVENTABLE.

Breast cancer is afflicting more and more women every year and if you spend five minutes researching prevention, you will find that the “naturalists” will tell you to be aware of chemicals that are in your environment, essentially what you breathe, use on your body and what you eat. 

Chemicals enter our bodies in three ways; ingestion, inhalation and absorption.  Now take two minutes, look under your sinks, in your shower, in your kitchen and notice the labels on all these products.  And take it a step further…where are they going and how are they affecting our perfectly created bodies?

Chances are, they are storing in our systems, unable to get out and create an overload of  toxic “stuff” that our bodies cannot get rid of as we:

1) Clean and breathe chemicals

2) Shower and absorb chemicals

3) Eat/drink and ingest chemicals

As co-owner of Modern Mermaids Eco-Friendly Products, my focal point is the cleaning chemicals but I do like to address all aspects of this disturbing issue that we need to start realizing and changing.  Not obsessing over (as I admittedly have done), but just think about.

The day I looked up and saw the billboard in Canada was a pivotal moment in my life, made me almost cry and helped inspire me to start MM with Amy.  Here’s what it read:

” Do you know that 80% of cancer is preventable; look at your environment…” these words hit me hard and I had three weeks in Alaska to ponder them.  A month later, our company was born.

This month, as the country turns its’ attention to breast cancer, so do I.  I will reiterate what the billboard read and hopefully you will feel as I did when I read it.

CANCER IS PREVENTABLE, LOOK AT YOUR ENVIRONMENT.

 * I’m sorry for those afflicted and hopeful that we all will “wake up” and change our chemical epidemic sooner rather than later.  If you need simple ideas to change, call me directly.

Peace,

Audra

My name is Audra Conklin and I am the founder and owner of a product company that makes truly non-toxic products for the home.  As the health of our country continues to deteriorate, it is my mission to get the word out just how much the health of human beings is comprised daily with the exposure to harsh chemicals that are in our environment, both indoor and outdoor.  When considering the fact that we are finally recognizing the impact of our diets and healthcare, isn’t it time to also raise awareness of what breathing harsh toxins is doing to our delicate systems?  Window cleaners, bathroom cleaners, furniture polish and air “fresheners” all have dangerous elements that affect our health on many levels. 

I would like to initiate an advisory board so that the government can begin to make changes within their own buildings.  Chemical sensitivity and building sickness is a constant in the work force in the last few years and it’s quite simple: we need to change what is used to clean.  Imagine the impact on the people within the buildings and the overall environment!

This is my first contact…..but not my last.  You will be hearing from me as I continue my company’s mission to educate the public on perhaps one of the most detrimental factors that is proven to cause illness. 

One more thing….health is our own responsibility but if it is unknown just how unhealthy our conventional cleaners are, how can we change? 

Please help me get the word out.  I’m a credible, knowledgeable person who created this business from the heart and will do this for the rest of my life….it’s that important.

I’m from the Cape and wanted to get my products to Mrs. Obama on the Vineyard but am not that intrusive. I will hope to get them to her in person another time.

Thank you for passing this on.

With Sincerity and In Health,

Audra Conklin

Founder/Owner

Modern Mermaids Eco-Products

who sprayed me with her unbelievably toxic, “smelly” hair spray yesterday at Whole Foods in Dedham, MA causing my eyes to water and my nose to hurt. Thanks for the:Butane/Propane - human toxicant
Octylacrylamide Acrylates - Banned in the EU; not sure why
Butylaminoethyl - Banned in the EU; not sure why
Cyclopentasiloxane - Persistent, bioaccumulative in wildlife. Animal studies show sense organ effects at moderate doses
Propanol - animal studies show reproductive effects at moderate doses; possible carcinogen, skin irritant
Fragrance - always unsettling as fragrances can be made of all sorts of toxic chemicals. They aren’t required to be specified in this country as they are “trade secrets”

I COPIED THIS LIST FROM GREEN LIVING (being lazy and giving credit where it’s due) but I have one thing to say:
 
WHY ARE YOU IN THE WHOLE FOODS BATHROOM SPRAYING DISCUSTING CHEMICALS WHEN NOT 50 FEET AWAY ARE THE MOST GORGEOUS, NATURAL PRODUCTS THERE ARE?   Answer:  People are sometimes so incredibly non-thinking.
 
Peace to those who do… and of course, to those who don’t, too.

At least 62…and when we count them from 50 years ago there are over 70,000 unnecessary chemicals in our homes.

How many do we need to be “clean”? NONE, ZERO, ZIP.

Sad, isn’t it?  Think about what our great-grandparents used…vinegar and water…soap and water…that’s about it and now in 2009 what do we use? Thousands of chemicals and we couldn’t be sicker!

Health care, toxic cleaners….anyone get it and want to help me???  Write to Michelle Obama on our behalf as she discusses healthcare and women….It’s time to rock the boat and I don’t care if my name is MUD.  I am Audra Conklin, Founder and Owner of Modern Mermaids Eco-Friendly Products and I am sick and tired of people being sick and tired from the chemicals that they are unknowingly being exposed to.  I have spent two years living in financial limbo (and will continue to do so) to see the light go on in an “average” American woman’s eyes when I teach her that her chemical “air freshener” is perhaps making her child have allergies, asthma or ADD. 

I am someone who will write to Ellen, Oprah, Dr. Oz, The Shark Tank and Michelle Obama because, dammit, if any one of them would take the time to hear what I can offer this country for education, it would be amazing…NO ONE would use a conventional toxic cleaners and the health of our country could change dramatically.

Our lungs (and therefore heart and bloodstream), water (ecological balance), children (asthma and allergies), pets (the new pet ONCOLOGY (NEVER EXISTED BEFORE) as our beloved animals die from our chemicals).  I can go on and will.  And why?  Unlike the companies in the major markets who have sold out lately, (and they know who they are) I think of my best friend and business partner and her loss to cancer …her mother at 4 years old and her father when we were 32 years old…can you think of any better reason to promote the anti-cancer issue?  Both died of cancer and I have to talk about part of this.  Amy’s father and Senator Ted Kennedy died of the exact same brain cancer.  Amy’s house where she grew up is less than a mile from the Kennedy Compound and the Senator was also a friend of Barney’s and visited him in the hospital. It’s incomprehensible that he died of the same brain cancer that Mr. Baxter had.  Something bad on the Cape? 

Obviously I’m looking for a book deal ….are you kidding?! just running Modern Mermaids is more than I can handle most days…I’ll do the book thing when I’m  60.  Right now I want people to recognize Bertha and Eartha, our eco-mermaids, and Amy and me, the owners who do this with sincerity and care for our fellow humans, animals and earth.

Peace..

Audra, Amy, Bertha and Eartha

*You, the reader, are probably a convert already and “get” me ….your job now is to send this to everyone who doesn’t.  Feel free to give them my name, email address, number and anything else they need to contact me so I can get information out and help our country get healthier.

I did four demos in the last three days and I thank all of you who I spent time training or educating.

As I ran around Cape Cod today with a Modern Mermaids educational event and two store meetings, I was thrilled to reach as many as 35 people in the “conventional” category….not necessarily those who are using natural, chemical free household products as of yet.  BUT, after today if they don’t switch, they will soon!
Allergies, asthma? No more “air fresheners”!  Headaches, eyes hurt?  Watch that hair spray and perfume! 
It was so cool to see the people I spoke with today understand the importance of controlling their indoor environment in order to be healthier.

Scare them with facts, then offer alternatives….that’s what this Sea Hag, ahhhh, Modern Mermaid tries to do everyday.  And every time I reach one person and they go green, at least three more will follow!  
Thanks to those who I taught today…and the now four people who read this blog. Green on!

Ever hear of it?  You will!  Let’s see what gives me a headache..

Fabric softeners, perfumes, most hair products, body lotions, gels, sprays, dish detergents….shall I go on?

So, readers, any of this sound familiar?  It’s a ten second time span and depending upon the nature of the synthetic, unnecessary fragrance of so many products, I get a headache, sinuses hurt, etc.  And do not tell me it’s psychosamatic!  I’ve been this way since I was four and when I teach people about chemicals I often see the light go on and they things like “oh! that’s why I can’t breathe well when I smell such and such a product”  (not allowed to name names).

When I am negative about things not natural, I need to make amends by offering alternatives.

Go to natural stores for your hair and body care! Use non-toxic cleaners. Mix essential oils for perfumes (one of the worst things!) and just think. Chemical fragrance = neurotoxin.

Do you like your sense of smell?  I do.  Please preserve.

As one of the owners of Modern Mermaids, I hope that it’s obvious that I am eco-conscious and care about our world and the “greening”  of it. 

So here’s my issue of late and if anyone knows anyone who can get this to whoever our new Eco-Advisor to the President is, great!

For four months last winter South Florida was gloriously cool.  So cool that most of our doors and windows remained open during the day and were actually closed in the evening as it was chilly.

My Question:  WHY IS IT THAT IN EVERY STORE I ENTERED, WHETHER IT BE CLOTHING, GROCERY, DRUGSTORE, ETC., IT WAS COLDER THAN OUTSIDE???  Does it really take so many human brain cells to recognize that by somehow using the outside air to cool the inside it is not only environmentally corrrect but cost effective as well!  How many hundreds of thousands of dollars were spent by keeping the thermostat at 65 degrees when it could’ve been at 70 and comfy.  It was actually uncomfortably cold in many places and when walking outdoors was just as bad.  I understand the summer situation and hope to never spend another August in FL but in January when it’s a dry, gorgeous 68?

So it brings me back to my condescending manner of questioning the abililty of people to think!  Major energy deficit going…come on then and think!  Shut off the AC and open the doors!!!  If the thousands of stores would’ve done this last winter, imagine the energy savings….

Once again, if anyone knows who to send this to…let me know or just do it!

And for all three of you who read this…Bertha and I thank you. 

This is the coolest phrase I’ve heard for awhile….too bad I’m late with the coining of it! I was sitting around with my mom ( who is trying to figure out how she is going to get her MM investment money back) and as I told her about our latest sale, she said …… “you really need to be educating the “nouveau green”!

So welcome all neubey greenies…. it’s you and your changing behavior that’s going to make the changes that initiate healthier, happy lives for you, your children, your pets and  your planet.

So let’s do it…and please, buy MM products and let me try to get the money back to repay my mother! 

Bye for now. Peace

Nine-year-old Sherri has a brain tumor, ten-year-old Susan has breast (yes, TEN YEARS OLD and BREAST!) cancer, and these are just the two I saw on the news this morning.

My heart is getting weary of the devastation this illness is causing the human race; the families that suffer every day, the children who don’t understand why they were brought into this world to suffer a disease that is seemingly “incurable”.  I lost a friend to brain cancer.  She was 28.

Now, is anyone else sick of it!?  If so, open your minds for a few minutes and while I’m going to sound a little edgy, bear with me and my ranting and raving.  Everyone is saying “Why is breast cancer on the rise? Why, why, WHY?!!!  Firstly, I will give a small percentage to genetics.  The rest, CHEMICALS!  Chemicals in our hair care, skin and body care, toothpaste and in this instance, DEODORANT!  Here’s how it goes ladies (and please feel free to look this up or challenge me on any level).

We put a blend of toxins directly into our bodies everyday through our underarms.  Now read carefully…

1) We shave, leaving our skin more susceptible and ready to absorb anything put on it.

2) We apply toxic chemical filled anti-perspirants and deodorants to this sensitive area and what do you think happens…we absorb them! And there’s more.  If it’s an anti-perspirant, the ingredients are put into the skin and then essentially “sealed” into our bodies, clogging our pores that are there to allow our skin to breathe.

3) So now two things are happening. One, chemicals that are a possible link to cancer and Alzeimer’s (aluminum zirconium) are now in us and two, they are staying there as the purpose of an anti-perspirant is to keep us from sweating.  This is another scary issue as WHERE DO YOU THINK THE TOXINS THE BODY NEEDS TO RELEASE ARE THEN GOING?  Back into our bodies to recirculate causing more stress to our liver, kidneys and lymphatic systems.

4) And there’s more of course… add bras into the mix.  We women need them to be comfortable. BUT the straps are right under the lymph nodes that need the ability to create lymph flow throughout our bodies. As this isn’t Anatomy and Physiology class I won’t go too far with what the lymphatic system does but need to write that it is a very important part of our bodies “cleansing” system.  We all know that if you have cancer of the lymph nodes, the chances are pretty slim of getting well. Back to bras…they are needed but are messing with our lymphatic flow and it’s thought that the chemicals from the underarm products are being stopped and are going back into our breasts.  And possibly causing breast cancer?

I’m just a person, not a chemist, not a doctor, I don’t make “natural deodorants” to sell and I’m not paid to say anything for anyone.

I am, however, a thinker.  As I did research about this starting over ten years ago as a holistic spa therapist, I noticed the increase in cancers, especially breast, in this county and started to question why.  Beginning to understand that our skin is like a million little mouths that absorb all that is put on it, I looked into what kinds of chemicals we must be absorbing everyday in the shower and with lotions, etc.  I, fortunately, have been using natural deodorants most of my life so that wasn’t an issue for me.  It is for millions of women, however!  Millions of women who are being brainwashed by the companies that produce the products that are PROVEN to be carcinogenic, mutanagenic and neurotoxic.

In conclusion…. please stop with the WHY? and look at the WHAT and the HOW!  We are in an epidemic! One, in my humble (or not so humble) opinion if we used more of our brains could begin to correlate what is happening to us.  We aren’t meant to introduce toxins into our beautiful, perfectly working machine called the human body.

DO NOT be misled by the studies from the companies that produce the products or the scientists they pay to make the studies work for the good of the companies.  It’s common sense at this point.

WE DIDN’T USED TO HAVE A CANCER EPIDEMIC.  WE DO NOW.

SO..IS ANYONE ELSE SICK OF CANCER….I SURE AM.