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Crib Mattress – Many of the materials used to manufacture most cribmattresses can produce chemical off-gassing that poses serious healththreats to your child. Because your baby will be in direct physical contactwith the mattress on an almost continuous basis, it’s important to investin one made with the safest materials possible. In our online search,we found one company, Naturepedic, that actually lists the key materialsused to manufacture their product in detail. Their mattresses consist ofU.S. grown certified organic cotton for the filling, food-grade polyethyleneto cover the surface, steel innerspring and the unique combinationof baking soda and food-grade hydrated silica as a fire retardant. Theirmattresses do not contain natural latex, rubber or coir, wool, mohair orhorsetail hair, vinyl/PVC, polyurethane foam, perfluorocarbons (PFCs),fire retardant chemicals, or antibacterial biocides (naturepedic.com).BeddingKeep your baby comfy and cozy in bedding and blankets made ofsoft organic cotton. You can find an excellent selection of organic cottonbedding online at sites such as landofnod.com, sagecreekorganics.com,ecosleepshop.com and katequinnorganics.com.Organic Baby FoodBabies have a limited ability to break down harmful substancessuch as pesticides and other chemicals used to grow conventional fruitsand vegetables because their gastrointestinal tract is not fully developed.Give your baby a healthy start by choosing organic baby food. You canmake your own baby food from puréed organic fruits and vegetables, oropt for the convenience of organic baby food offered by the followingcompanies. Yummy Spoonfuls is 100 percent USA certified organic babyfood, made-from-scratch from all natural ingredients. Their productsare free of salt, preservatives, gluten, dairy, additives, sugars and/or fillers(yummyspoonfuls.com). Created by Chef Tyler Florence of FoodNetwork fame, Sprout Baby Food is made with organic fruits, vegetablesand whole grains free of additives, preservatives, artificial flavors or colorsor added sugar (sproutbabyfood.com). Plum Organics features baby foodmade from organic fruits and vegetables free of added sugar, juice, colorsor flavors (plumorganics.com).DiapersAccording to the Sustainability Institute, disposable diapers comprise80 percent of the diapers used in the U.S. today and are the thirdlargest single product in the waste stream behind newspapers and beveragecontainers. However, unlike newspapers and beverage containers,which can be recycled, disposable diapers are trucked away to landfillswhere they remain for up to 500 years before decomposing. Choosealternative options such as organic cotton cloth diapers available at anumber of online retailers including Ecobaby Organics (ecobaby.com)and Under the Nile (underthenile.com) or eco-friendly gDiapers whichconsist of a washable, cotton outer pant, a nylon snap-in liner, and aplastic-free flushable refill (gdiapers.com). ■HERLIFEMAGAZINE.COM 53