Story by Zach Dunkin

Sara Snow never had many friends drop by for dinner when she was growing up in Ann Arbor, Mich. Although the college town had more than its share of liberal-thinking naturalists, few ’80s kids were into soy milk, hummus and sprouts sprinkled with Herbamare.

At the same time, Sara’s parents never prevented their four children from trying sugary foods like brownies and cookies.

“Although we were THE healthy food family, my mom would say, ‘Have one. See how they make you feel. Do they give you a headache? Do they give you a sugar rush, then you crash later? Make you tired? Just pay attention. See what it does to you,’.” recalled Snow, a 32-year-old Butler University graduate, who shares a two-story brick home on the Northside with husband Ryan (Ball State, ’97) and dog Makana. “We were able to grow up making smart, healthy decisions for ourselves.”

Living green comes naturally to Snow. The daughter of Tim Redmond, a green-movement pioneer and founder of the natural food empire Eden Foods, she describes her childhood as “growing up barefoot in a countryside home that was different from most.” Organic gardens. Solar panels. Compost heaps.

That helped set the foundation for Snow’s career. As host of the Discovery Network shows “Living Fresh” and “Get Fresh with Sara Snow,” and the author of “Sara Snow’s Fresh Living: The Essential Room-by-Room Guide to a Greener, Healthier Family and Home,” Snow has become an authority on healthy, eco-friendly living.

She’s the first to concede that “it’s not easy being green” and she condemns the current “greener-than-thou, holier-than-thou” mentality by eco-zealots.

“This movement started as a need for us to be making changes so that we can protect this planet we are destroying and raise a healthier culture of people. But now, it’s become a fad.”

Snow prefers to take a do-what-you-can, one-step-at-a-time approach.

“It shouldn’t be looked at as something that can be done overnight,” she said. “Give yourself some time to make these decisions, a few today, a few tomorrow.”

Earth-friendly tips

In the kitchen: Skip the pre-rinse. Pre-rinsing your dishes in the sink before placing them in the dishwasher is no longer necessary, especially if you have a newer-model dishwasher.

In the bathroom: Take a five-minute shower instead of a bath. A full bathtub can use as much as 50 to 60 gallons of water.

In the yard: Harvest your rainwater by attaching a rain barrel to a gutter downspout. Use the water on the lawn, on flowerpots and to wash the car.

In the bedroom: Practice green sex. Use natural latex condoms, adult toys that are labeled phthalate- or PVC-free and lotions and lubricants that are free of synthetic fragrances, colors, flavors and chemical preservatives and petroleum ingredients.

Source: “Sara Snow’s Fresh Living: The Essential Room-by-Room Guide to a Greener, Healthier Family and Home”

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