Share and Voice: HP goes GREEN too

For health 4000 I had to buy a new printer to print off all of my papers.  I went to the school store, and really had no idea what to buy.  I was looking at the different options than something cool caught my eye.  I saw the HP box and on the side was a big section titled  "eco SOLUTIONS" I was very curious to see what this was.  On the box some of the information included:

• made with 30% percent recycled plastic
• you can recycle 100% of the packaging 
• includes a reusable to put it in
• printer cartridges contain up to 70% recycled materials

Also it seen that it was an energy star related product which I thought was really cool.

I checked out the website www.hp.com/ecosloutions and it included some really neat information.

• it included a carbon footprint calculator for your printer
• information about a HP Powers UN Climate Change Conference
• and information about HPs own recycling center. I found out that HP was the first computer company to have their own recycling center in 1997, and is on its way to recycling 2 billion pounds of products and materials

I think that its great that big companies are starting to do this.  And its definitely something to look for when shopping.

Eco-Chic Lifestyle Change Week 5: Weekly Update and Overview

What was your SMART goal? How did you do in achieving your SMART goal?
I will eat 2 servings of vegetables (serving= 1/2 cup) and 2 servings of fruit (servings= 1/2 cup) 4 days a week, for the next 4 weeks.
Address successes and challenges. What strategies helped you to be successful?
I had a lot of success this week. Each day last week I brought fruits and vegetables with me to school. I brought things that were easy to snack on in between class such as carrots and celery. I also brought apples and had bananas. It also helped when I set my food together before school. Then when I woke up.. No matter how late it was I had no excuse not to bring them.

What challenges did you face? How did you deal with them?
I didn’t face to many challenges this week. I almost think that I should have made my challenge a bit harder. My only challenge that I had was eating fruits and veggies on the weekend. For some reason its just so hard for me. I think I just need to treat it more like a weekday. Maybe if I went to the library that would help.

What feelings did you experience? When did you feel them?
I felt great this week after eating so healthy. I had a lot more energy until the weekend came around. I was also very proud of myself that I met my goal this week. However I was kind of upset how easy it was.

What did you learn this week?
This past week I learned that being more prepared makes attaining your goal very easy. I also learned that I would like to continue my goal, but be more creative when eating fruits and vegetables. I want to learn some new vegetarian recipes.

What are your plans for next week?
Next week I plan to continue my goal, but modify it just a bit. I want to try to start eating organic fruits and vegetables, and up my servings of them. Im not exactly sure to how much. I have to plan out my budget first.

What was your SMART goal?
I will eat 2 servings of vegetables (serving= 1/2 cup) and 2 servings of fruit (servings= 1/2 cup) 4 days a week, for the next 4 weeks.


Did it change at all during the project? 
I did not change my behavior at all during our time in class. However I do think that I am going to modify my behavior, when I continue it on my own. I want to increase the servings of fruits and vegetables that I eat daily.

What helped you be successful?
It helped me to be successful when I was more prepared the night before. Also it helped me to see how great me peers were doing in reaching their goals, and that motivated me to my best that I could.

What things got in your way? How can you address these in the future?
One of the biggest things that got in my way was Thanksgiving. Its important for me to remember that I cant stop being healthy just because it is a special occasion. Its ok to tweak things here and there, but not to totally forget about it. Also having low finances also created some issues for me. Some weeks I had more money than others. Buying expensive things when your broke is tough.

How did you benefit from this project? 
I benefited from this project because I am now eating much healthier than I was before. I feel alot better and I am doing great things for the environment.


What did you learn about yourself? 
I learned that I can achieve things that may seem hard to do with time constraints and low funds.  I am happy that I was able to follow through with this.

How did others and/or the environment benefit from you changing this behavior?
The environment and local economy benefited from me eating more fruits and veggies because it is more Eco friendly. It has lower impact on the earth because a lot less water is used to produce vegetables than is used to produce meet. Others may have benefited because I am in a much better mood when I am eating right.

Will you continue this behavior?
I plan to continue this behavior and hopefully keep using it throughout my life. I want to try to continually increase my fruit and vegetable intake.

What recommendations do you have for others about making a lifestyle change?
My biggest recommendation to anyone trying to make a lifestyle change is to remember just that. It is a lifestyle change. Its something that you have to do everyday, and it had to be become routine in your life. So many people just do things temporarily, that makes it important to remember that a lifestyle change is not just temporary. Also I think its very important for people to start small. You can always make your goal harder and tweak things here and there. It might seem to overwhelming if you start with a goal that is to large, and you may give up easier. I also suggest that everyone try to make a lifestyle change. It is very rewarding when you achieve it.

"Blogged for the Eco-Chic Lifestyle Change Week 5 hosted by Amy@Amy in the Rain."

Advocacy Project: Letter and Fact Sheet

Facts about Asthma and Allergies

According to the CDC asthma is a disease that affects your lungs and it affects both children and adults. And is a key component in the Healthy Peoples 2010 respiratory goals.


Asthma Prevalence Rates


17.5 million of U.S adults suffer from asthma


7.1 million children in the U.S have asthma


According to a study done by the CDC overall children born in the U.S have greater odds than children born outside of the U.S to develop asthma.


Number of visits to health care facilities in which asthma is the primary diagnosis is just over 13 million


Nearly 3,500 people in the U.S die annually from asthma


Some important triggers of asthma include:
• outdoor air pollution- caused by industry and automobile emissions, therefore it is important to pay attention to air quality.
• Dust mites
• second hand smoke- also called environmental smoke


American spend nearly 90 % of their time indoors therefore indoor allergens can be a big factor in asthma rates.


By 2012 it is the EPA’s goal to reduce indoor asthma triggers and has created a variety of educational activities to do so.


May has been designated as possible National Asthma awareness month, therefore it is important for our representatives to keep informed and vote Yes as on the issue.


All information found at: http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/asthma.htm


http://www.epa.gov/asthma/awm/index.html
Letter to representative:


December 3, 2010


James Oberstar
U.S Senate
2365 Rayburn HOB
Washington , D.C. 20515


VOTE YES ON H.RES. 407 Designate the month of May as National Allergy and Asthma Awareness Month


By allocating the month of May as National Allergy and Asthma Awareness Month we will be able to better educate the American people of the effects and problems that asthma creates. Designating a month toward awareness will create more educational programs in schools and in workplaces. As a college student pursing a degree in health education I feel that there is great need for such recognition towards the problem of asthma in our country. If people become more aware of it will be able to begin working on ways to reduce the number of people effected by eliminating the factors that cause it whether they be environmental, or not.


The educational programs created for the month of National asthma and awareness month will help to education the public on the following issues: causes of the diseases, disparities to the condition, and environmental factors that may contribute to it. Some of the most common factors that are linked to asthma are secondhand smoke, dust mites, and outdoor air pollutions. Industry is the main concern of outdoor air pollution. Some of these risk factors are very modifiable. Just over 20 million U.S citizens suffer from asthma and by becoming more aware of these issues people may take the steps necessary to help prevent themselves and their families from developing asthma. In turn if less people are getting sick this means that they will have lower health care costs and me more productive in our economy.


Industry and health care companies would be the biggest opponents of this bill. Industry that produces the harmful pollutants, such as nitrogen dioxide, may not want to reduce their emissions of this. It may cost them more money and less productivity. Health care companies also may oppose such awareness, they like them money that they receive from all of peoples health care bills. Yet we should all know that health is more important than money.


I appreciate your past support on related issues. We hope that you vote Yes on bill H.RES. 407 Designate the month of May as National Allergy and Asthma Awareness Month.