Although it's still pretty common to see people in short sleeves in Auckland, the colder temperatures around the country have kept a lot of people at home with the flu. I thought that was a good reason to share this great advice on natural foods, vitamins and herbs to help you stay healthy from Dr. Helen Smith.

You don't need to wet your hands before using the hand wash, the foam they make is light on your hands and easy to spread as you rub your hands together, so they're not as wasteful as some soaps that slide right off as soon as you put your hands under running water.

For many of us it probably doesn't matter if there's gluten in our moisturiser or shampoo but for people with Coeliac disease or a heightened sensitivity to gluten it could make a lot of difference.

Dr. Helen Smith shares her tips and advice for anyone wondering if they might have a gluten related health problem or who simply wishes to avoid gluten in their diet.

Canstar Blue is a division of financial research and ratings company, CANSTAR, which has been operating in NZ for nearly a decade. They use market research to determine customer satisfaction ratings across a range of products and services to help consumers make the best purchasing decisions for their needs.

Labour day is a public holiday in New Zealand, celebrating the 8 hour working day. It falls on the last weekend in October when we're enjoying longer daylight hours and warmer weather which makes it a great weekend to get stuck in to the garden so I asked an experienced organic gardener (and my hubby) Malcolm Rands to share his tips for vegetable gardeners.

Did you know that dishwashers can not only save you time and give a much more efficient clean than washing by hand, they can also save you money and can even be more eco-friendly.

Despite concerns over the safety of Sodium Laureth Sulphate (SLES) coming from scientists and research groups such as EWG these chemicals continue to be the darlings of manufacturers of household products because they're cheap and they perform a simple task really well.

You might be wondering whether the energy used to make and wash a cloth napkin is higher than the energy it takes to manufacture a paper towel which is why I did some digging and found that if you use your cloth towels and napkins mindfully, then cloth is definitely the greener way to go.

Over the next few weeks I'll be writing about ways to reduce waste at home, based on the 5 R's - Rethink, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and Respect. These are not meant to be hard and fast rules because it's hard to get it right all the time but hopefully you will find practical tips and ideas to use and it's good to remember that every little bit helps.