Many of my colleagues in the "whole foods" movement don't share my view, but all tinkering with food isn't a bad thing. By adding iodine to salt, we've probably eliminated mental retardation caused by iodine deficiency. We already have flaxseed oil, designed to have higher levels of cancer-fighting lignans, and I can certainly envision, for example, a tomato with higher levels of vitamin A.

So should food technology be used to engineer lower-calorie food?

If you're expecting, not only should you not count calories, you should be wary of pesticides too, according to recent reports. In studying childhood obesity, researchers discovered a strong link between chemical contamination in the womb and cases of obesity in children. Just why this link exists is not yet clear, but it's thought that these findings could forever change the way foods are processed worldwide.

Chemicals that showed a link to obesity (called Obesogens) include organotins, bisphenol A (BPA), hexachlorobenzene (HCB), and phthalates. Unfortunately, it's believed the nearly everyone in the world has traces of these chemicals in their bodies.

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Not only are we constantly barraged by noise and air pollution, we're regularly filling our bodies with garbage: chemicals, additives, even poisons. So it's never been so important to cleanse both our minds and our bodies of the toxins we can't seem to escape in our day-to-day life.

But detoxing doesn't have to mean forking out a small fortune at an uppity spa. Divine Caroline offers a number of ways you can give your body a break, naturally:

• Drink lots of water. It flushes the system.
• Sweat, either in a sauna or steam room, or through exercise.
• Meditate or pray regularly, and take deep, cleansing breaths when you do.
• Eliminate electronics from your bedroom.
• Cleanse your body with natural herbs like dandelion and ginger root.

There are plenty more tips where these came from -- head over to Divine Caroline for more detox data.

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There are chemicals everywhere in our every day life. Though some are absolutely necessary from a public health standpoint -- chlorine to sanitize drinking water, for one -- others have been linked to certain health issues.

Though it's impossible to avoid chemicals altogether in our modern world, there are steps you can take to reduce your own "chemical load," or the amount of chemicals that you carry around with you in your body. At Mark's Daily Apple, they recently suggested 8 different ways to reduce you chemical exposure in your day-to-day life.

We gave up household cleaning solutions several years ago in our house, because they'd often trigger my asthma. Instead, we use a variety of natural ingredients like vinegar (great odor absorber), baking soda, and good old hot, soapy water. When I smell a chemical fragrance or cleaner now, it doesn't smell "clean" to me, it smells toxic.

Want to learn more? Check out this NYT article on how to reduce chemicals and make your home more environmentally-friendly.

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The Environmental Health Perspectives journal recently published a paper claiming that certain ingredients in sunscreen are killing coral reefs. National Geographic, among others, picked up on it, and now beach-goers the world over are worried that the sunscreen they use to protect their skin is damaging coral reefs.

The Beauty Brains were asked about this last week, and they broke the issue down into an easy-to-understand format, explaining exactly what the concern was (certain chemicals found in sunscreen can cause bleaching in the reefs). The fact is that, yes, there are chemicals found in sunscreens that are detrimental to the environment, but the quantities listed in the paper failed to take a number of factors into account, such as those same chemicals being present in pollution as well as in sunscreen.

Their final opinion was that sunscreen use is not likely as big a culprit in the death of coral reefs as the paper indicates. However, if you're concerned because you swim near reefs (or just because you don't want to use sunscreen that could be damaging to the environment), you can look for natural sunscreens, or look out for the ingredients The Beauty Brains list as problematic.

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I was in the checkout line at Target the other day and spotted a steam mop on the conveyor belt behind my stuff. I asked the woman behind me about it. She was trying it for the first time. At $40, she figured she couldn't lose. Well, anything but $40. But anyway, it piqued my curiosity. Turns out, it's the hot new trend in cleaning supplies.

A recent Washington Post article on the subject offers a pretty nice overview of the method. As for effectiveness and the potential to provide relief for allergy sufferers, steam cleaners seem promising. They are not a "magic wand," but myriad types of steam cleaners can apparently clean things from floors to outdoor grills pretty well. And because hot steam is touted for its ability to kill dust mites, mold and other allergens, they appeal to allergy sufferers.

Another lure is that the method offers a healthier alternative to chemical cleaners and is therefore kinder to the environment, especially waste water. But as with many eco-friendly efforts, there's an "inevitable weighing of pros and cons." Steam cleaners require electricity to use and energy for production and transport and will eventually add to solid waste in landfills.

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Here's some interesting news I learned from The Beauty Brains: Dirty hair might save the environment. Ok, maybe that's stretching it a bit, but dirty hair is at least good for the environment because it absorbs ozone from the air. In fact, dirty hair absorbs seven times as much ozone as clean hair does. And according to scientists, this can help cut the amount of harmful ozone floating around your head. Surprising? I think so.

But, as the brains are quick to point out, this isn't going to save the world or anything. In fact, the ozone in the air can interact with oil in dirty hair to produce other harmful chemicals. Still, washing your hair too often will waste water. Instead? Try to find a balance. Or, just shave your head.

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Do you keep a little tree hanging from your rearview mirror so your car won't smell? Well, it turns out those seemingly benign (save for the awful, pine scent, that is) air fresheners may contain chemicals that affect hormones and reproductive health.

Twelve out of fourteen brands of car air fresheners tested during a recent study (and reported by the Natural Resource Defense Council) were found to contain chemicals that have been linked to reduced levels of testosterone and poor semen quality.

While being around these chemicals (known as phthalates), which are also found in many cosmetics and household cleaning products, won't have an instant effect, daily exposure may eventually take its toll.

Looks like it may be time to finally get rid of that Little Tree air freshener. Besides, those things are so '80s.

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Millions of homes have air fresheners -- mine included, until I started looking into the issue further. Sure, they make your home smell pretty, but how much do you know about air fresheners?

If your answer is 'no much', I suggest you educate yourself by checking out this slideshow from our friends over at AOL Body. The down-low: Most air fresheners contain chemicals called phthalates (pronounced thal-ates), which have been linked to birth defects and hormonal imbalances. And citrus and pine scents usually contain terpenes, which are not toxic on their own but can produce toxic compounds when they interact with other elements.

This is scary stuff, but stuff you need to know. So go on, educate yourself. And in the meantime, freshen your house with natural scents like fresh air, fresh flowers and fresh baking.

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I'll bet big bucks that if many consumers knew about the exact components used in most mainstream laundry detergents, they'd never use them again -- even with that attractive discount price.

Chemical additives, fragrances and other components used to give off smells and also clean clothes are surprisingly classified as "endocrine disruptors" according to many scientists.

Research the role of the endocrine system and you'll find that it's something you do not want to disrupt. The popular but disgusting chemical monosodium glutamate is also in this classification, and you may be eating it every day. Gross, right?

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Have you ever measure the level of industrial chemicals circulating or at rest in your system? If you live nearby a chemical plant or are in a smog-ridden city, you probably have high levels of some chemicals inside your body.

Scientists have been increasing the testing for industrial chemicals in newer techniques that were developed less than 10 years ago, and some have found the results very shocking. Could you imagine an 18 month-old having toxic substances in his body that would lead to a heavy potential for sickness if found in an adult? This new "biomonitoring" is telling the tale for some parents.

Even household chemicals and shampoos are generally nasty, unless they use biodegradable and organic ingredients. Problem is, many don't. Research methylparaben (in shampoos and lotions) and the items used to make dyes (like FD&C Red 40), and prepare to be shocked.

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It's not a secret that pollution isn't good for the planet or the many creatures that inhabit it, but still I find the results of the study reported on here are absolutely mind-blowing. According to a study conducted at Cornell University by a professor of ecology and agricultural sciences along with a team of graduate students, various forms of pollution can be blamed for up to 40% of deaths across the globe.

Numbers that large offer a pretty scary wake-up call. Water, soil and air pollution are the biggest killers, with air pollution alone being blamed for up to 3 million deaths a year. The piece points out that toxins in the environment can lead to a range of potentially deadly health problems including cancer, immune system defects, birth defects and more.

I think that this sort of news really brings home that fact that we all need to think more about not only what we put into our bodies but also what we're expelling into the environment, as eventally a lot of that junk will end up in our bodies anyway. What do you think?

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If you believe organic produce is grown without fertilizer, then you are wrong. But don't get too upset, as you envision chemicals dripping all over your sweet squash and succulent strawberries.

All plants require nutrients to thrive, therefore, organic farmers must fertilize their plants. But they do it with natural materials like compost and manure. Hmmm. Which sounds better -- chemicals or manure?

Anyway, anything used in organic farming must be produced following the guidelines set forth in the USDA National Organic Program Standards. Take a look for yourself and discover exactly what these farmers do to make our food flourish.

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In honour of halloween I'm going to make a list of ingredients fit for a scary witch's stew with help from this article from eDiets. Be forewarned; they might scare the bejebus out of you:

• Beef lips, innards and joints.
  
• Ground horse bones
  
• Biscuits made of science-lab chemicals
• Curdled milk and bacteria cultures

Sounds gross, right? Well, surprise. These are all items that are part of a normal diet. Beef lips? Found in hot dogs and processed meats. Ground horse bones? That's jello for you. And the cookies and crackers at your grocery stores are made almost entirely of chemicals. Cheese is made from curdled milk and bacteria cultures.

My point is not to freak you out or keep you away from these things -- I believe that cheese, for instance, can be part of a healthy diet. But it's important to know what you put into your body ... in all it's grossness. Eat organic when possible and learn about you're food; afterall, you are what you eat!

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Keep your kids away from diet foods and beverages unless you want them to gain weight and become possibly overweight. Sounds like an oxymoron, but that is the suggestion from a recent study published in the medical journal Obesity.

How is this possible? In a study involving rats (naturally), the study found that when these test subjects were "tricked" into thinking they were eating low-calorie foods, they ended up overeating. Yes, you can over-consume low-calorie foods.

End result: the test rats became overweight due to overeating. Are kids the same way? If fed in a way that mimics the conditions of the test, they sure could be. These results have been seen before in different studies, but this is the first one that deals with how kids associate tastes to levels of food intake when it comes to diet foods.

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