By Nicole Walters, GreenisUniversal.com

Just in time for Mother's Day, let's explore the sensual side of green. If the mating habits of insects like the earthworm, bee and dragon fly can be sensual, that is. Who better than hot mama, Isabella Rossellini, to dress up in bug costumes and explore the "strange and scandalous ways that insects copulate"?  Lest you think she is just the pretty face in this short film series, you would do well to know that Green Porno (yes, that is the name!) was also conceived, written and co-directed by Rossellini.  The series was recently featured at the Sundance, Berlin and Tribeca Film Festivals where audiences were left shocked and, quite like myself, in stitches.

Now you will get to enjoy it too - and without the prying eyes of other audience members as you watch the series on your iPhone, iPod, Zune, cell phone, or home computer.

By Mary Beth Gonzalez, iVillage.com

Here at iVillage, we hear a lot about what Moms really want. And it isn't jewelry or a scarf or even breakfast in bed. What Mom really, really wants is a good night's sleep!

Mom has a lot on her mind at night and while we cannot make all Mom's worries or her To Do list go away this Mother's Day, we can help create the ultimate, environmentally-friendly, non-toxic, sleep environment so when her head does hit the pillow, she can have the best night's sleep of her life, every night.

Here are a few suggestions for the Ultimate Green Mother's Day Gift:

By Nicole Ohebshalom, Radiant Living Wellness

Who doesn't want to raise healthy kids and give them the best possible start in life? If you are a new mother you are probably beginning to make many new decisions. A very important decision is to decide what environment you want your baby to be raised in. Adequate nutrition is vital to keep your babies growth and health on track. Babies need more nutrients than adults because of their growing bodies. The best choice for your baby and the environment is to live consciously.

Take the plunge and begin pureeing all sorts of food!

By Anne Chertoff, iVillage.com

If you're looking to do a little more for Mother Earth on your wedding day, and you've already ordered recycled paper invitations and organically and locally grown flowers for your arrangements, here's another item to add to your eco-chic wedding.

Instead of reserving a limo or Rolls Royce for your trip from the church to the reception, put an eco-friendly car on hold. Commonwealth Worldwide Chauffeured Transportation is now offering environmentally friendly hybrid cars to customers in Boston and New York.

By Kim Jack-Riley, Petside.com

Depending on where you live, Spring means something different to people all over the globe. But no matter what your climate or geographic region, it's generally agreed on that it's a season for new birth and fresh air... or, well how fresh exactly is it? Mosquito repellents, BBQ smoke and pollen mixed with pollution, all add to breathing difficulties... even for your pet.

Over at petside.com we've got a unique take on Earth Week and celebrating Spring with your pet. There are some happy thoughts that come to mind, like bunnies and robin's eggs... there's nothing my Sheltie loves more than sniffing around in a field of daffodils. Check out some pet-friendly ideas for enjoying spring with your pet here.

By Anne Chertoff, author of From "I Will" to "I Do"

Can you believe it's April? Where did the time go?

Earth Day is today, and I thought it would be important to highlight eco-friendly wedding sites and products throughout the month. It's quite common for today's bride to look for organic and earth-friendly products for her wedding. From eco-favors and details to organically grown flowers, planning a "green wedding" is not difficult to do.

I think the best places to look for eco-wedding advice and ideas are from eco-bloggers who specialize in wedding content. I've written before about Emily Anderson's useful book and blog, Eco-Chic Weddings, but I've come across another great eco-blog that I wanted to share with you.

By Nicholas Gonzalez, MD

A few weeks ago, I shared my general concepts of "Green Medicine" involving three components: the use of dietary, nutritional and natural substances (what I call our "personal green"), living in a clean home and office (our "local green") and working to keep the greater world in which we all must live clean for the health of us all (our "global green"). As Earth Day approaches, I thought I would take a look at asthma - a specific, epidemic and potentially dangerous problem, particularly as the disease occurs in children, the most vulnerable of us all, and walk though my "Green Medicine" approach to this disease.

Asthma 101
First, some basics. Asthma is a major health problem in the US, its incidence increasing yearly and with cases up a whooping 75% since 1980. The American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology reports the disease afflicts 20 million Americans, and is responsible for nearly one fourth of all emergency room visits. Some nine million children under age 18 suffer from asthma, with some four million of these victims of serious attacks last year. The costs, in terms of missed time from school, are staggering; in 2002 for example, the disease accounted for over 14 million lost school days.

To understand asthma, we need at least a basic primer in lung physiology. To live, we need to breathe, and with each inspiration, fresh air, and with it life sustaining oxygen, travels into the lungs within the bronchi and bronchioles, tube-like structures that reach into the furthest recesses of the lungs, the small alveoli. Here, our red blood cells absorb much needed oxygen and release carbon dioxide, good old CO2, a byproduct of normal metabolism, which we then breathe out of our lungs with expiration.

Now smooth muscle cells line all these air passages along what anatomists call the bronchial tree. These cells, when contracting, can actually reduce the diameter of the bronchi and bronchioles. Such activity can be of benefit, for example when we are exposed to severe pollution, or say smoke from a fire; with reduced air intake, we actually lessen our exposure to potentially dangerous materials.

We also lose considerable water through breathing; just think of a cold day, and the white vapor that follows each expiration. That white smoke is water vapor, exhaled with each breath day and night. If we're dehydrated - during a hike on a hot summer day, for example - we can lose a fair amount of water this way. So it makes sense that our lungs might slow down a bit to reduce the losses, and help keep our fluids in balance until we re-hydrate as needed.

Asthma occurs when our bronchi and bronchioles overreact to irritating exposures in the air, or dehydration, shutting down air flow to the point we find ourselves struggling and fighting for each breath, sometimes, ironically, fighting even for our lives. Scientists recognize a variety of substances that commonly provoke asthma in susceptible people, including pollens in spring and animal dander, as well as a myriad of pollutants. These irritants can lead to an inflammatory reaction in the immune cells lining the bronchi, which in response release histamine and leukotrienes. It's these molecules that then set off the smooth muscle contractions that can, if excessive, lead to asthma.

Asthma's Connection to the Environment
Scientists aren't sure why in so many people the bronchi over-react, but some suspect our constant exposure to increasing amounts of toxic materials in our air must be at least partially to blame. After all, our poor lungs must deal with a constant barrage of noxious materials in the air, literally thousands of different compounds, many of which are irritating to the lungs.

Infection, which creates inflammation, cold air, even exercise can provoke attacks in asthma prone children and adults. Since we tend to lose considerable water vapor via breathing both when it's cold outside, and when we're breathing heavily during exercise, I suspect these situations result when we're just not adequately hydrated, and our lungs desperately try to conserve water - perhaps too desperately.

Standard treatments for asthma include steroids, which reduce inflammation along the bronchi, and bronchodilators, which relax the smooth muscle. In our office, we have some simple approaches to the problem that often help enormously, though I must advise any patient with asthma to follow strictly their doctor's advice, and never change or stop medications without their doctor's approval.

Green Medicine Asthma Solutions
First, as a simple intervention, I always make sure any patient with asthma understands the need to drink plenty of fluids. Considerable debate rages about the amount of water humans need, and a recent study just last week said we should only drink when we feel thirsty. But with asthma, often our thirst centers in the brain seem a little slow to react, so patients end up chronically dehydrated, even though they don't feel thirsty. In my office, we advice anyone with asthma to drink at least 6-8 glasses of water daily.

I have also had a number of patients who improved substantially with the addition of simple apple cider vinegar, two tablespoons in a glass of water 2-3 times daily. Apple cider vinegar contains ample quantities of acetic acid, which we quickly absorb and which quickly acidifies the blood stream. We find that with the blood slightly on the acid side, the inflammatory responses tend to subside, and bronchoconstriction lessens. And though much nutrition advice these days promotes low fat diets, we find many of our asthma patients do better with a fairly regular intake of, yes, red meat. There's a reason, biochemically speaking, why red meat might help. Red meat contains nutrients called phosphates and sulfates that our bodies quickly convert to acid in the blood. Once again, a slightly more acidic blood seems to blunt the exaggerated inflammatory response so typical of asthma.

But, whatever diet an asthmatic chooses to follow, the cleaner the food the better, and that means organic. Fortunately, we live in a time when few doubt that organic food, be it plant or animal, not only provides more nutrients than conventional, but is cleaner. For an asthmatic, I believe organic is the only way to go.

In terms of our local environment, we always encourage our patients to think green. The fewer toxins in the environment, at home, in the office, and at school, the better an asthmatic patient will do. Use non-toxic cleaning agents, and if your house needs painting, use the gentler, greener low VOC paint readily available today. Patients often ask me to recommend air filters, but frankly, we find the best air filter to be plants - but of course, only those that won't lead to an allergic asthmatic response! Scientists now know that plants very efficiently remove pollutants, even the nastiest, from the air around us. One article on healthgoods.com reported that spider plants remove 96% of carbon monoxide, and 99% of nitric oxide, both noxious gases, after only 24 hours. Spider plants, philodendron, and aloe plants are among the most powerful pollution fights around. Plants also give off oxygen, as an added benefit for all of us. In my home and office, we have plants everywhere, and for good reason - not only do they bring a bit of nature to my city life, but they keep the air around me, my wife, and my patients clean.

The cleaner the world, the less pollution and the better it is for all of us, but particularly, the better for asthmatics. Get involved with friends and community groups; help organize a tree planting initiative in your neighborhood. Join national organizations that fight to keep the earth clean. Small efforts can add up, bit by bit, and ultimately have a powerful global effect.

Nicholas Gonzalez, MD
www.dr-gonzalez.com

By Jennie Baird, iVillage.com

I grew up in the 1970s, the daughter of Lola Granola and Hippie Al.

Summer vacation involved tent camping, outdoor "comfort stations", and a weekly (yikes!) 3-minute shower for four quarters. We lived in an old house that was always cold in the winter, but mercifully, was usually cold in the summer, too. Money was tight and my parents weren't so organized when it came to paying the bills (as an adult, I now understand these two things often go hand in hand), and after the power being shut off once, we kids learned well to always turn off the lights when leaving a room.

Flash forward 25 years and I have kids of my own. My sister has carried on the mantle of Lola Granola in my family; me, not so much. I did (briefly) drive a hybrid car, but wound up back in a minivan for practicality's sake. (I kept the hybrid in the family, passing it on to Lola Granola the Senior).

But two kids, one divorce, a mortgage and a career have all pretty much taken a front seat to any lingering environmentalism that might have carried over from childhood. Then, one typically gloomy winter evening two years ago, as I battled off the "I'm boreds" and the "You're a pests", of my loving children, there came a knock at the door. I answered it only to discover a long-haired Hippie Al the Junior type. He was from a local environmental organization and was collecting signatures for a petition to protect our nearby wetlands. I signed the petition, because after all, who could argue against protecting the wetlands? He asked if the children would draw pictures to send to Governor Pataki and said he would be back in an hour or two to collect them.

The children worked diligently for the next hour and a half. Calm reigned in my little house. No one was bored. No one was a pest. It was a miracle. Dare I say it was a miracle of environmentalism? Beautiful pictures featuring crocodiles and beavers and seagulls and "Protect the Animals" slogans were created by my loving children and handed off to Hippie Al upon his punctual return.

We never saw Hippie Al again, but over the next year or so, we saw the many family films with an environmental message that were released - Over the Hedge and Happy Feet come to mind. We took many long walks through the wetlands and on the cliffs above. As we walked, we noticed the birds - blue herons and egrets and hawks and cormorants. And as we walked, we talked. We talked about how turning out the lights and turning off the water can help the animals and the environment. And then at home, I pestered the children to actually turn off the lights and turn off the water. And after that, my son started pestering his friends at school about turning off the water and the lights. Then one day, he got into a fistfight with a kid who refused to turn off the water. Hey, suddenly, we were environmentalists!

So I guess it shouldn't have come as that much of a surprise to me when, one day last January, as we sat in traffic in our minivan, listening to the radio for news of a break in traffic, my son, now five years old, said to me, "Did they just say there's a new governor?"

"Yes", I replied in a moment of I'll-teach-you-about-citizenship parenting, "His name is Governor Spitzer. He was elected. He replaced Governor Pataki."

"Oh, then I better write and tell him about the swamp."

And sure enough, when we returned home, he got out his crayons, drew his crocodiles and beavers and seagulls, and with the help of his older sister, wrote this poignant message to the State:

"Dear Governor Spitzer,

Things are bad in the swamp."

Jennie Baird
Editor-In-Chief, iVillage.com

By Lynda Baquero, WNBC

As a mother of two young children, I know firsthand how many snack bags and juice boxes and paper towels and sheets of construction paper toddlers can go through in just a single day. A LOT. That's why I was curious about meeting Alix Clyburn, another mother of two, who writes a blog called "Alix In Wonderland" for "The Green Guide". I thought her advice on Going Green would involve a lot of preparation and planning (i.e. time). It was a relief to hear about simple things parents can do to minimize waste and help the environment.

For example, most of us think that paying our bills electronically is more convenient in many ways... but it's also friendlier to the environment-- not so many trucks and airplanes utilizing fuel to get those checks from our homes, to their destinations. Along the same vein, Wendy Gordon, the Managing Editor of the Green Guide suggested subscribing to magazines and newspapers on-line, rather than receiving a print copy at home.

While my report on Moms Going Green contains several useful tips for parents who want to go green, I heard about many others that I couldn't fit in, simply because of time limits. But luckily, there are no time limits on the web. So here are some additional pieces of advice on Going Green from Alix, Wendy, and Samantha Delman-Caserta of 3r Living in Brooklyn, as well as the authors of "The Complete Organic Pregnancy"-- Deirdre Dolan and Alexandra Zissu.

- Buy foods at local farmers markets -- to cut down on packaging and transportation fuel use
- Buy large containers of juice, and pour servings into reusable cups or mugs -- to cut down on packaging from juice boxes which are thrown away after each use
- Reuse plastic containers from take-out meals, for example, and use them to hold glue, glitter and other materials for children's art projects
- Use both sides of paper when children draw
- Use cold water, rather than hot water, when doing laundry
- Use hand-me-down clothes and toys
- Refill plastic water bottles with tap water -- to cut down on plastic bottles

Lynda Baquero
WNBC News Anchor
http://wnbc.com/goinggreen/

By Christian Martin, iVillage.com

I'd always been a little conflicted about Global Warming. Intellectually I knew it was a bad thing, I'd watched Al Gore's documentary and was suitably scared and like everyone else I like Polar Bears and wish them all the best. On the other hand I live in New York City, hate winter and am quite fond of late falls and early springs. Not very PC? You bet but until now I felt okay about it; I take the subway to work, separate my paper and plastic and when I have a few extra dollars in my pocket I buy one of those swirly fluorescent light bulbs. I figured I was doing my part.

Then I had kids, two of them.

Now when I fly across country and look down and see subdivisions spreading like fungus across what was farmland only a few years ago I get upset. When I read that we are running out of water in the Southwest and the Southeast because we have built and built without any concern for the future but only with the idea of how many houses we can cram onto a single acre I get more upset. When I am forced to hug the shoulder of the road to avoid oncoming SUV's and Hummers driven by a single occupant because - well I can't fathom the reason people would drive a Hummer when gas prices are routinely above three dollars a gallon - I get angry.

So what can I do to secure the planet for my children besides huff and puff as I look out airplane windows and glare at oncoming traffic?

The first thing is to get involved. I routinely let my elected officials know how I feel. This means I e-mail my state assemblymen, my mayor, my congressman, my senators and my president to let them know how I feel about global degradation and what I am in favor of and maybe just as importantly what I am against - a continued over reliance on fossil fuels.

But there is also a lot I do in my everyday existence. I walk my kids to school. It is good for them and me, I save a few bucks on gas, lessen traffic and don't pollute the environment. I have made turning off the lights when you leave the room an absolute mandate in my house (points are added or subtracted for the kids depending on how well they do - redeemable for ice cream on the weekends). I make it a hard fast rule that if we bring something home - a toy or gizmo for dad - something also has to leave the house. It can't go into the garbage out front it needs to make its way to the Salvation Army, Goodwill or our church. I don't use lighter fluid when I start the BBQ and I only buy organic food. I wear a sweater in the winter and preach the benefits of an extra blanket at night. I installed double paned windows and put in low flow toilets. In short I do anything I can think of to leave a smaller carbon footprint.

Why? Because in the last few years my eyes alone have convinced me that something pretty serious is going on (99.9% of all scientists agreeing doesn't hurt either). The idea that the world will be even more difficult place to navigate for my children is unfathomable. I want my kids to be concerned with first loves, great jobs, what to name my grandchildren. I don't want them consumed with global warming, dwindling water supplies, a country that is a single vast suburb, clogged with traffic and few open spaces. I want my children and future generations to know the joy of a snowball fight, an endless view of pristine forest and rivers and streams that are clean enough to drink from and fish from. At the pace we are going that won't happen. So to everyone I say do your part, pitch in and find 5 or 6 ways you can be a little bit more green. It will save you a few bucks, make you feel better about yourself and help save the world.

Christian Martin
iVillage, VP & Executive Producer, Programming, Content & Integration
http://www.iVillage.com