Leslie of Cycle Technologies joins us for a guest post with answers to some of the most commonly asked questions about CycleBeads. We love this all-natural family planning method, and hope you’ll consider giving CycleBeads a try!

What are CycleBeads? When were they invented?

CycleBeads (www.CycleBeads.com) is a visual tool that helps a woman plan or prevent pregnancy naturally. Specifically, CycleBeads is a color-coded string of beads that represents the days of a woman’s menstrual cycle. It helps a woman track her cycle and know if she is on a day when pregnancy is likely or not. CycleBeads and the family planning method on which it is based, the Standard Days Method , were invented by the Institute for Reproductive Health at Georgetown University (irh.org). The Institute tested the Standard Days Method using CycleBeads in large-scale clinical trials and found CycleBeads to be more than 95% effective at preventing pregnancy and very easy to use.

My company, Cycle Technologies, launched CycleBeads in late 2002 once the efficacy results were published.

How do you use CycleBeads?

A nice thing about CycleBeads is that it is very visual. In fact it might be easier to just show you a picture than to try and explain it in detail.

As you can see it’s a lot of information when you try to explain it someone. I think that’s one of the reasons why CycleBeads is such a cool tool – it provides a wealth of information in a very simple way so you don’t have to keep track of a lot of numbers or do any calculations.

I should note that to use CycleBeads a woman’s cycles must be between 26 and 32 days long. This is the one medical criteria for using this family planning option. Most women’s cycles are in this range, but it’s important to know this before using CycleBeads especially if you are using them to prevent pregnancy. Of course, if you are unsure if your cycles are in this range, CycleBeads can also be used to help you figure this out.

Why would someone choose to use CycleBeads?

Most women tell us that they choose to use CycleBeads because they don’t like the side effects of hormonal contraception. A lot of women just like the simplicity of it. It’s a very intuitive family planning tool. It’s also useful both to plan and prevent pregnancy so many women like to use it as birth control and then switch over to using it to help them get pregnant when the time comes. Most importantly is the fact that it’s a natural family planning method that is highly effective. CycleBeads is more than 95% effective at preventing pregnancy which puts it on par with or better than other user-directed family planning options such as condoms in terms of effectiveness.

What are the benefits of using CycleBeads?

Well the primary benefit is that it’s an easy way to use an effective natural family planning method. As a natural family planning method there are no side effects, it helps a woman get in touch with her body, and it’s inexpensive. And since it’s easy, it means a woman will actually use it correctly.

You recently launched iCycleBeads, a smartphone app. How does it differ from other fertility/period tracking apps on the market?

Right now iCycleBeads is available on iPhone and Android devices and we plan to make it available through other interactive technologies soon. iCycleBeads differs from other fertility/period tracking apps on the market in a number of ways.

While there are a number of fertility and period tracking apps on the market, there are only a handful of apps that help a woman plan AND prevent pregnancy by tracking her cycle. Most of the apps that claim to identify the fertile days based on just your period dates are unclear about their methodology and cannot be used to prevent pregnancy. iCycleBeads is the only app based on the Standard Days Method of family planning so it’s methodology is very clear and well researched; it has been designed to be used as birth control as well as to plan a pregnancy..

There are also apps that are based on FAM or the symptothermal method of family planning. These apps can be quite effective at planning and preventing pregnancy. However, they require a woman to track a lot of information about fertility signs such as cervical mucus and temperature. If a woman already knows how to use these methods and is comfortable doing so, these apps can be very useful. But for women not familiar with these methods, they can be challenging to use.

One feature of theiCycleBeads app that I also really like and differentiates it from a lot of apps is that it proactively sends you alerts when you are key days in your cycle. So even if a woman doesn’t open the app and check it every day, she’ll get a message letting her know when her fertile window starts, when it ends, and when a new cycle is likely to come. It also proactively alerts a woman if she has had a cycle out of range and reminds her to input her cycle data if she forgets.

Tell me about your efforts to make family planning tools accessible to women in developing countries.

We are really proud of the impact that CycleBeads has had in the developing world and we work hard to make this family planning tool available to all kinds of health programs in developing countries at an extremely low cost. CycleBeads is being used in many countries in Africa, Latin America and Asia and has been made available in over 50 countries total.

CycleBeads is a good fit for developing countries because it addresses a lot of issues. Issues that are particularly acute in developing countries which CycleBeads help address include:

1) concerns about side effects – many women in developing countries, like women in the US, are concerned about side effects and unwilling to use a family planning method that they perceive might cause health concerns,

2) costs – CycleBeads are low cost and can be used indefinitely – one study showed that CycleBeads is the most economical family planning option for programs to offer, and given that they are one time purchase, we know that they are extremely economical to the end user,

3 ) ease of use – because CycleBeads is visual and intuitive, it can be used by women who have very little education,

4) access – CycleBeads can be offered in a variety of settings such as retailers and through local programs; it doesn’t require a highly skilled health practitioner to offer it. Also, unlike most other family planning options, it doesn’t require re-supply, break down over time, or need special storage so it’s easy for a program to keep them in stock and make them available. And since a woman only needs to learn about it one time, she doesn’t need to constantly go back to her health provider for refills.

5) couple communication – in many developing countries, couples may not be able to talk openly with each other about family planning or a woman’s cycle. CycleBeads have been shown to be a great tool for helping couples communicate.

We also donate a portion of proceeds to programs that help expand women’s family planning options and to empowerment programs for women.

It seems we’re all striving for simple, frugal living these days. And we’re always looking for ways to save time and money, decrease our stress, and protect our health.

We all know we can recycle, drink tap water and stop using chemical cleaning products Those are the basics. But what about the feminine issues that we often have a hard time making changes with; the things we put off because it seems like a hassle or too expensive?

Just like switching to cloth or reusable feminine products took a few minor adjustments, it can be just as easy to adopt these following simple, frugal living ideas, as well:

Hair Care

Normal shampoo and hair care products are full of chemicals and additives we can’t even name, many of which have been linked to cancers and various other health or environmental problems. But organic shampoo can be expensive. And the resources involved in producing, packaging, and shipping organic shampoo is still extensive.

The solution is actually very simple. First, women can adopt an easy-to-manage cut or style that requires fewer or no products. Next, we can transition into washing our hair less often – remember the days when women only washed once a week? It worked because they weren’t stripping their hair of its natural oils, which causes the scalp to produce even more. This also keeps the scalp and hair follicles healthier, just as nature intended.

And we can switch out our regular products for simple, natural products instead. Many women have great success with “no poo” – washing with water only, or water and baking soda. Others use small amounts of liquid castile soap (at about 1-2 drops per ounce of water a bottle of Dr. Bronner’s will last ages). And try rinsing with watered-down apple cider vinegar (approx. 2 parts water to 1 part ACV) as an alternative to conditioner.

Lastly, when you must use products opt for those organic versions but use them in smaller amounts.

Skin Care

This is perhaps the easiest area to adopt simple, frugal living practices. Skin care should not be a big messy affair! There are four essentials to healthy skin: a healthy lifestyle with well-managed stress and plenty of sleep, a healthy diet full of lots of fresh fruits and veggies and plenty of water, gentle cleansing and gentle moisturizing as necessary.

My favorite product for moisturizing: Coconut oil! It’s rich in the same vitamins and minerals found in expensive wrinkle creams, is well-absorbed by your skin, and is even reported to help with things like age spots and healing. And it smells good! Use organic virgin coconut oil in small amounts under your makeup or before bed at night.

And hands-down the best thing to use to clean your skin is warm water and a wash cloth. Gentle washing with a cloth increases circulation and removes dirt and excess oil. If you feel it’s necessary, baking soda is a fantastic way to gently exfoliate and leave your skin feeling clean and fresh. As for removing eye makeup, use the same organic virgin coconut oil described above to remove makeup and moisturize around the eyes.

Natural Deodorant

The ingredients in conventional antiperspirants are often called into question, and rightfully so. But least often spoken of is whether it’s a good idea to stop our body from sweating in the first place; it is after all a very important way to eliminate toxins from our lymphatic system and being that those lymph nodes are so close to our breast tissue, quite possibly putting us at risk for cancer.

Whenever possible (at least once a week), skip the antiperspirant and allow your body to do its job. If you don’t sweat often or much, or you’re going to be in a cooler climate (such as during winter or in an air conditioned office) choose a natural deodorant to mask odors instead. Freshening up throughout the day or using cloth shirt guards for excess sweat is also an option.

And when an antiperspirant is a must, choose one that uses mineral salts or alum instead of one that lists any form of “aluminum.” And especially avoid conventional aluminum-based antiperspirants after shaving, as small unnoticeable nicks may allow more chemicals into the bloodstream than normal.

Natural Fertility

This topic is a biggie, but probably most important. Birth control pills have been linked to breast, ovarian and uterine cancer, stroke, heart disease, and so much more. There is also the dangerous affect of synthetic hormones making their way into the water supply simply by flushing the toilet.

Unfortunately the topic is way to big to cover in a few paragraphs. I’d highly recommend picking up a copy of the book, Taking Charge of Your Fertility: The Definitive Guide to Natural Birth Control, Pregnancy Achievement, and Reproductive Health. Knowledge and awareness are important parts of this area of simple, frugal living.

Feminine Products

And you ladies already have this covered, right? Choosing non-disposable feminine products, such as GladRags or the Moon Cup, supports your simple, frugal living efforts by reducing your waste and saving you money. And by avoiding synthetic and dangerous products and ingredients you’ll be decreasing your risk of infections and allergic reactions.

Of course all of this is just the beginning. If you’re interested in more ideas, click here for additional ways to incorporate simple, frugal living ideas into your life.

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Tara Wagner writes SustainableBabySteps.com, an online resource for people wishing to go green one step at a time. Visit the site for ideas and articles for every area of your life and subscribe to Going Green for updates and additional information and inspiration on simple, frugal living.

Here we are back from a bit of break to bring you the latest menstrual news, art, and more!

• In Which I Discuss Periods in which one mother/blogger shares her thoughts on the Keeper Cup.
• Interesting take on the attractive male type of advertising campaign– Disposable pad ads featuring shirtless dudes: creepy?  funny?  condescending?  What do you
• Great blog, EmpowHER explores the menstrual cup in this article.
• Easy to read, Fast Facts about alternative menstrual products.  Informative and fun, especially designed for teens!
• GladRags was featured in the Better World Shopping Guide and we got an A! Their highest grade!
• Green Your Period: Menstrual Cup Replaces Disposable Tampons gives some well deserved love to the Lunette Cup.
• On the nature of writing The fantastic, the mundane, and menstruation.
• The new Chinook Books are out!  They have tons of great coupons along with an awesome one from GladRags.  So if you live in the Bay Area, Boulder/Denver, Portland, Seattle, or the Twin Cities pick one up today!

If you’re trying to reduce your contribution to the landfill, composting is a great way to go!  Perks of composting include saving money on trash pick-ups, better soil in your garden, and lowering your garden water needs by up to thirty percent!

Still need a reason to give it a try?  Consider the fact that yard trimmings and food scraps accounted for 25% of all solid municipal waste in 2006 — that’s one quarter of all trash that could have been turned into fertilizer for home gardens!

Depending on where you live, you may be able to get a compost bin for a reduced price.  If not, you can inexpensively build one of your own.  Once you’ve got your compost going, read this list of astonishing items that can be safely composted!

Composting doesn’t require a huge lifestyle change, either. Just keep a small bin in your kitchen where you can toss food scraps as you cook.  Then empty it into the larger bin outside.  You will need to pay attention to the ratio of things you put in, however.  Compost works best when it contains equal amounts of “green” and “brown” organic material.  Green materials are things like fruit rinds and grass clippings, while brown materials include twigs or dead leaves.  Keeping your compost moist at all times will also help to break it down quickly into super fertilizer!

Are you already a master composter?  Leave us your best tips in the comments!

It’s hot here today in Portland, and all I want to do is stretch out in a shady park and read a good book.  Below you’ll find a selection of books that are both great summer reads and excellent inspiration for eco-friendly lifestyle changes.  Pick one up from your local library, or purchase a used copy from independent bookstore Powells.com.

• No Impact Man: The Adventures of a Guilty Liberal Who Attempts to Save the Planet, and the Discoveries He Makes About Himself and Our Way of Life in the Process

• Sleeping Naked Is Green: How an Eco-Cynic Unplugged Her Fridge, Sold Her Car, and Found Love in 366 Days

• Green Metropolis: Why Living Smaller, Living Closer, and Driving Less Are the Keys to Sustainability

• Make Your Place: Affordable, Sustainable Nesting Skills

• Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life (P.S.)

• Farmer Jane: Women Changing the Way We Eat

• The Urban Homestead: Your Guide to Self-Sufficient Living in the Heart of the City

• The Farm to Table Cookbook: The Art of Eating Locally

• Radical Homemakers: Reclaiming Domesticity from a Consumer Culture

Leave your own suggestions for green summer reading in the comments!

• Just in case you’d forgotten why you love your GladRags (or need a link to pass on to a friend!), Green Upgrader has a great post called “Reusable Menstrual Products Help You Reduce Waste, Save Money.”

• MSNBC shared a brief but intriguing article about the effect of having brothers on a woman’s reproductive development.

• Ever wonder why your digestive system seems to get a little wonky around your peroid?  Dr. Sugar explains it all for you in this Q & A post.

• Ashley reviews cloth pads and the Instead cup, and rates them according to comfort and effectiveness.  Find out which method she likes best at Domestic Chaos!

• We recently learned about the Sierra Club’s Beyond Oil House Parties from a GladRags user who hosted one at her home in Minnesota and contacted us for materials and coupons to share with her guests.  Stacy wrote, “This event is fun learning opportunity to inspire simple and eco-friendly lifestyle changes that will make a difference for our Earth.”  And of course, using GladRags is one of those easy changes that can help reduce our dependence on oil!  Check out Stacy’s pictures from her party (below) and let us know if you host an event of your own.

I’ve been a little under the weather and missed last week’s Green Goal post.  This week, I thought what better topic for the Green Goal than eco-friendly first aid?  It’s surprisingly easy to take care of minor issues without having to head to the nearest pharmacy.  And, when you do it yourself, you’re avoiding packaging and manufacturing waste and petroleum-based products.

Of course, if you have any medical concerns, are pregnant, breastfeeding, or may become pregnant, you should always ask your doctor!

Your Green Goal this week is to start stocking your medicine cabinet by following some of the tips below.  As always, please share your ideas and feedback in the comments!

•  Break off part of an aloe vera plant and what’s inside?  Aloe vera gel!  Use it to soothe irritated or sunburned skin naturally.

• To treat a stuffed up nose, crush up a few dried eucalyptus leaves in a bowl and fill the bowl with boiling water.  Cover your face and the bowl with a towel and breathe in the steam through your nose to help clear out congestion.

• Chewing on fresh mint leaves is said to ease indigestion.

• Rub lavender oil on insect bites and stings to reduce inflammation, or on your temples to help calm headaches.

• A common folk remedy for gas is to drink a strong tea made with basil leaves.

And of course, just taking time to rest, eat properly, and drink plenty of water can help you feel healthier!

Did you knows you could use solar power without spending a dime?  It is as easy as hanging your clothes outside to dry after washing.  And air drying your clothes is easier than you think!

Letting your clothing hang dry is actually doubly beneficial: not only do you avoid the energy use of the dryer, but your clothes will last longer.  Dryers are responsible for many of the reasons we replace our clothing, like pilling, lost elasticity, and of course shrinkage.  You can save money in electricity, repair costs, and/or quarters.  Additionally, I think clothes smell better when they are let out hung out to dry.

There is more than one way to dry clothes.  If you have a clothing line or can easily hang one up in your yard, go for it!  If not, a drying rack is a great tool and can come pretty cheap.  You can also hang them on a clothing rod or a few items in your closet if you make sure there is enough space for it to dry.  When I lived in a house with a very small backyard (about 4 feet wide) I would hang my clothes with hangers on the chain link fence.  Check out Air Drying Without A Clothes Line for more tips and tricks and Laundry Drying Dilemas? Pull a Solution Out of Thin Air!

And people say solar power is expensive!

Do you air dry your clothes or do you want to?  What are your experiences?

• Toni Weschler, author of Taking Charge of Your Fertility: The Definitive Guide to Natural Birth Control, Pregnancy Achievement and Reproductive Health, answers a few questions about menstruation on Scarleteen in Talking Menstruation with Toni.
• Lani Beloso, an artist with menorrhagia paints canvases with her own menstrual blood (see photo).  Read more about how she sees her work as catharsis and art in this article on Jezebel.
• The Huffington writes about reusables in How to Green Your Period!  Negative comments ensue.  Be sure to change that by posting about how much you love GladRags or your menstrual cup!
• The Diva Cup, Race, and Blood by Nuñez Daughter brings up some thought-provoking ideas about race, feminism, and alternative menstrual products.

Giveaways:

Win a 3-pack of the Color Cotton GladRags from the Rent Tent Movie!  Also check out their site; we can’t wait to see this film!

Now that it’s finally summer in most parts of the country, fresh produce is in abundant supply.  If you’re not able to grow your own, why not check out the farmer’s markets in your area.  Farmer’s markets are an easy, fun way to stock up on local fruits and veggies while supporting small farms in your area.  An added bonus is that many farmer’s markets focus on organically and sustainably grown crops, and the price is generally comparable — or better than — prices at the grocery store.  And many markets have vendors selling more than just produce; you may even be able to find locally made cider, honey, and cheese!

For your Green Goal this week, visit the Local Harvest website to find a farmer’s market in your area.  Bonus points for buying an item you’ve never tried before!