Is Zero-VOC Paint Really Non-Toxic?

Green Diva Lisa was out this week, so EcoKaren, captain of EcoEtsy and editor of this very blog, sat in as guest Green Diva. We had Green Dude Paul in the studio and we all had a pretty good time! Some surprising and disturbing news from green house expert, Chris Murphy of Smart Little House on how zero-VOC (Volatile Organic Compound) paint may not be exactly non-toxic. We aired the rest of our interview with Jessica Alba and Christopher Gavigan about how they each arrived on the green living path and their new eco-baby and green lifestyle business the The Honest Company.

The Sleeping Naked is Green

Use Low-VOC or Water-Based Paints

Chris Murphy of Smart Little House called in for this one – VOCs (Volelite Organic Compounds) are chemical compounds that vaporize into the air when they dry, so we breathe them in, and they can cause a variety of health and environmental issues. Chris kind of surprised us when he said that not all non-VOC paints or household products are necessarily toxic free. He points out that similar to the food industry, not all ingredients have to be listed and are not currently regulated. So, while low or zero-VOC products are good, they are only low in the hundreds of toxic chemicals being regulated and the reality is that there are hundreds of thousands of NON-REGULATED toxic chemicals that could be and are sometimes included, but not listed. Oh boy. Lots of homework to be done here!

Chris noted that a Harvard study showed that kids have a higher rate of asthma and allergies when their rooms were freshly painted while they were newborns or before they were born.

For information on choosing healthier paints, Chris recommended going to SmarterPaint.com

Listen this Sleeping Naked is Green 5-minute segment.

Why We Should Care

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Meanwhile, we are busy lining up some interesting high-profile folks, who are passionate about a variety of causes that help to make this a better world, for this ongoing feature on the radio show. Look forward to hearing from Fran Drescher, Frederique and Carol Alt – all beautiful, passionate women using their power of celebrity and success for good – in the coming few weeks! More fun surprise guests for this segment soon to be announced!

Feature Interview

We played the last 10 minutes of our recorded interview with Jessica Alba and her business partner, Christopher Gavigan. They talked about their awesome green living company called the Honest Company, which is focused on providing green alternatives for babies, children and families in general.

You can listen to the entire show or download the podcast from here.

Please visit Green Divas website for LOTS of relevant links & resources from the show.

NOTE: Jessica Alba will be LIVE on the show on 3.31.12 along with Christopher to talk more about why they started this company and why they call it the Honest Company . . . mark your calendar and be sure to post any questions for them on the Green Divas Facebook Page!

The Green Divas Radio Show, podcasts, audio vignettes and blog posts feature fun and low-stress ways to live a deeper shade of green, while maintaining some comfort and style. Green Diva Meg, co-host Green Diva Lisa and various guest green dudes offer tons of easily accessible information and resources to help make the journey to a more sustainable world easier and a little more fun and entertaining. The radio show broadcasts live every Saturday morning from WMTR 1250 AM in Northern, NJ/NY Metro area, streaming live on WMTRam.com, or catch up on the podcast.

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Tags: healthy home, non-toxic home, non-toxic paint, non-voc paint

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The Green Divas The Green Divas share low-stress ways to live a deeper shade of green through a weekly radio show, podcasts, videos and blog posts. Working with talented partners and credible sources like myEARTH360 the Green Divas produce content on a variety of topics relating to a healthy green lifestyle. Visit The Green Divas website to learn more, and check out The Green Divas on Facebook, Google+ and Twitter too!