Ethical Naturism

  Sorry that it has been a while since my last post.  Time just gets away from all of us.  If you have been checking back occasionally to see if I have posted anything new,  leave me a comment.  If I see that people are actually reading this, I will try to post more often.

  As you know from my posts, I listen to a podcast called “The Naturist Living Show”.  This is the effort of the owner of a naturist park near Toronto Canada.  Throughout his podcasts (there are over 40 of them now), he talks about “Ethical Naturism”.  He even has one show dedicated to the subject.  You can listen to it here:   http://feeds.bareoaks.ca/~r/NaturistLivingShow/~5/fPyupSI66sE/Ethical-Naturists.mp3 .

  So what in essence is ‘Ethical Naturism’?  According to Stéphane – and I wholeheartedly agree with him – an ethical Naturist has as their guiding principal the practice of “Respect for Self, Respect for Others and Respect for the Environment.”   Also, the true ethical naturist follows the practice of a non-clothing optional policy.  That is to say that when practical – weather and safety permitting – the ethical naturist is nude.  It seems that that should go without saying, but at many resorts and clubs, clothing optional is the norm.  As mentioned in the podcast listed above, if a person is not encouraged by policy to be nude at a resort or club, they may never be and then they or those that are nude will feel self-conscious about being around the other.  This limits the ability for them to get the complete naturist experience.   It is that complete experience that has been shown to remove the fear and self-consciousness that people are often concerned about when trying naturism for the first time.

  I would encourage you to either subscribe to the Naturist Living Show podcast through iTunes or however you can get them and listen to them all. Download them to your iPod or MP3 player and listen to them as you commute or travel. Start at the beginning and learn how Bare Oaks Family Naturist Park is a shining example of Ethical Naturism.  As you listen, you will get an amazing amount of the good, wholesome, family naturism  philosophy that seems to be making a naturist resort in the cold north country of Canada an extremely popular place to go.

Peace,

Jeanluc

Breast Cancer??

You might wonder how Breast Cancer relates to nudism.  Well, it doesn't - not directly anyway.  However, in my searching for ways to dispel the nudity=sex atmosphere from the minds of those in my family, I stumbled across something that was absolutely astounding.
  In their book, Dressed To Kill: The Link Between Breast Cancer and Bras, authors Sydney Ross Singer and Soma Grismaijer state:

"We had written about this, and the results of our 1991-93 Bra and Breast Cancer Study, in our book "Dressed To Kill: The Link Between Breast Cancer and Bras" (ISCD Press). Our study was conducted on approximately 4700 U.S. women, about half of whom had breast cancer. We asked these women about their past bra-wearing attitudes and habits. What we discovered was that the women in the cancer group had a history of wearing bras tighter and longer than did the non-cancer group. In fact, many women in the cancer group slept with their bras on. Almost none were bra-free. This differed greatly from the non-cancer group.

When the results were analyzed, they revealed that women who wear bras over 12 hours daily have a dramatically increased risk of developing breast cancer compared to bra-free women. In fact, bra-free women have about the same chances of developing breast cancer as men have, and this is over 100 times less than that for women wearing bras 18-24 hours daily. When you consider that smoking increases the incidence of lung cancer 20-30 times, this makes the link between breast cancer and bras 4-5 times greater than the link between cigarettes and lung cancer!"

It is  important to note that this has been the only study on this subject that I can find.  Numerous rebuttals have surfaces saying this was not a scientific study, it was too small of a study to be accurate, yada, yada, yada.

  What I found interesting is that the results were so one-sided even for 2400 women on each side of the line - cancer survivors vs non cancer women.

  I showed this article to my wife and she pretty much said the same - "I don't really believe wearing a bra can cause cancer.  If that were true, the medical profession wold be telling us all to stop wearing bras." 

  Really, I understand any women's skepticism.  After all women have been told from pre-teen onwards that you have to wear a bra.  And mainly it is because not wearing a bra is showing your breasts to men who might take it as a sign that you are inviting sex with them.  There we are right back to the nude=sex bit.

  What I told my wife was this "What if it IS true?  What if taking your bra off when you come home from work instead of wearing it from 7am until 11pm (16 hours) or wearing a camisole or loose fitting shirt to work if possible prevents even 1% chance of you getting breast cancer?  Would it really be so horrible to go without a bra for that reason?"

 I know what cancer is.  I had testicular cancer 20 years ago and remember the surgeries, chemotherapy and sitting at home recuperating while my body groaned with the pain of it all.  I really don't want that to happen to anyone I know, much less the women in my life that might, just might have a chance to prevent it.

  How about you.  Are there any women in your lives.  Wives, daughters, sisters friends that you would like to prevent this from happening to?  Show them this blog.  Ask them to love you enough to at least take their bras off when thy don't need to have them on.

  Have them take a look at the following web sites   007 Breasts - Woman's breasts are for breastfeeding!  This site has links to many other topfreedom sites as well as an entire page related to the Bra vs Breast Cancer discussion.  Another site I have mentioned earlier is Topfree Equal Rights Association (TERA) .  There are many others that have similar information.  Of course there are also many others that link going without a bra or a top by women to be sexual, so beware of what you search for.  Stick with known naturist sites and not necessarily nude sites and follow the good links.

Peace,

Jeanluc

Republished Wiki on nudity in the home

I thought this article interesting even though it specifically mentions that it is not intended for promoting public nudity.  Since social nudity is common with nudism, the idea of not promoting public nudity needs to be taken as outside of the nudism aspect.

Peace,
Jeanluc

How to Practice Nudity in Your Family

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

Despite the good intentions of many parents, prohibiting household nakedness can have negative consequences for children.  In our media saturated urbanized world, children like this are primed with an appetite for nudity related subject matter (of which most is unhealthy.)  It takes a bit of work for the affected parent, but you can get over this and help your children to avoid some of these pitfalls of modern living.  Fortunately as a parent you have the unique opportunity to provide a healthy environment for nakedness right in the refuge of your own home. 
Disclaimer:  The purpose here is not to promote public nudity as a method for this How To; quite the contrary (see Warnings section below).  This guide is intended primarily as a tool for parents who want to teach their children a wholesome understanding of human nakedness. This How To is intended primarily for use by parents in their home.

  Steps

1. Encourage family nudity without being abnormal. Young children have not yet acquired a sophisticated understanding of modesty, and really don't care who sees them naked. This is the time when the parent can mold their conscience without making them self-conscious of nakedness.  This, in turn, will help children associate nakedness to routine activity instead of exclusively naughty activity, helping illicit forms of nakedness to lose their appeal later in life.
2. Allow your children - from birth - to see you in ordinary nude situations (e.g.- dressing, bathing or showering, using the toilet) or any activity where nudity is a natural part.  By being comfortable with your own body you will naturally convey the message to your children that nudity really is okay and not something to fear. There are naturally times in life when clothes must be worn for protection, for comfort, and to adhere to societal norms. However, by talking with your children about being comfortable with nudity at home, your children will grow up understanding that being nude & being seen nude at home isn't something "uncool, horrible, and utterly embarrassing."
3. Start allowing/encouraging family nudity during potty training & continue through the school age years and beyond. You'd be surprised how quickly potty training takes root when your toddler/preschooler is allowed to go bare at home, but...be prepared for occasional "accidents" as well, and handle these situations calmly without anger or revulsion.
4. As they begin to recognize differences between themselves and you or your spouse, explain to them the reason for these differences.  Suggested explanations are: "Mommy's breasts are for giving milk to babies like when you were small"? or "Mommy and daddy have hair down here because our bodies are warmer, and it helps keep our bodies cooler (by retaining sweat)."

  Tips

• A focal point for nudity that enables the whole family to participate together is very helpful.  An indoor swimming pool is ideal, but not practical for most families.  Saunas are also excellent for this, but are not as common in the U.S. as Europe.  Other water related ideas could be an outdoor pool below or above ground.  A cheaper yet more practical idea that works year round would be a hot tub.  Children see this as a heated kiddie swimming pool they can use water toys in too.
• A great side benefit to wholesome understandings of the naked body in the home is that when the time comes to explain human reproduction, there will be less tension from the children.  They will not have the distraction of embarrassment when discussing (what for others can be) 'shameful' body parts.  This in turn, will keep the communication lines open during adolescence.
• There are many great books on pregnancy and adolescence that separate the romantic (i.e. sexual) aspect from the physiological changes of puberty.  These books provide a very neutral clinical look at breast and pubic hair growth during the teen years, and include very candid photos of actual births.  Influences like these help separate nudity from sex in the child's mind, and provide a framework where family nudity can flourish to the benefit of all.
• Realize that not all shame is bad shame.  Good shame is ingrained to help us avoid compromising situations.  But other shame is the result of social conditioning during childhood, and unnecessarily predisposes us to clothes compulsiveness.
• Respect others' standards.  One good approach is to point out that other people are not accustomed to nudity, and it's kind to respect their wishes.  This may mean keeping the curtains drawn, or willingly closing the bathroom door when guests are present, for example -- a practice that encourages courtesy, but not shame.
• Young adolescents naturally develop increased modesty around the time of puberty.  Don't force someone to be nude.  Wearing pants for a while may help the transition.  Being around other teens who role model comfort with their bodies will be reassuring.
• For families where the children are older it may be difficult to change attitudes.  In some cases big decisions may need to be made in order to break free from habits.  Such changes may include ridding the home of magazines (men's magazines, fashion, or sports related material), television, or other media that subtly foster a "nudity is sex"? mindset.  Peers are also part of the equation.  It may be necessary to move to another region to get a fresh start.  Teenagers especially are very keen on whether the parents walk the talk, so if a parent still models these attitudes so will the teens.
• The goal is to provide children the opportunity to see nakedness in a way that is almost non-existant in our society:  to make it a neutral, non-sensuous part of everyday life in its proper context.  This goes a long way toward innoculating them from the enticements so easily found outside the walls of your home and in the marketplace.

  Warnings

• Be careful about with whom you share your family practices.  Not all people will easily come to the conclusions you intended.  Nudity and sex are still considered to be related in our society; this stems partly from puritanical attitudes, but also from decades of hedonistic influence by the swingers movement, from influences such as Hedomism II in Jamaica, the SunnyDaze Resort in Colorado, and events like Nudes-a-Poppin in Indiana.
• Although this should be obvious to any well-meaning parent, care is advised during moments of intimacy and marital relations.  Since the genitalia are a major source of pleasure during these times, be careful to instead emphasize the primary functions (birth canal, urination) of genitals to younger children.  Anything beyond that may overpower their emotional stage of development and work against the wholesome environment you are trying to maintain.  Marital intimacy is best left behind closed doors.
• Avoid exposing children to nude photography from fine art, or internet sources as some of this has a subtly skewed pornographic message that untrained eyes will not immediately recognize.  The best example is you, your spouse, and older siblings or relatives who bring a very real element to human nakedness.
• Exercise proper hygiene. When exercising family nudity, always encourage/require the use of a towel for sitting. As any parent can tell you, young children don't always exercise the very best cleaning methods after using the potty. Don't be embarrassed about teaching good, healthy personal toileting hygiene to your children. They look to you to teach them properly and correctly.

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Practice Nudity in Your Family.  All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

Naturism Podcast

I am not sure why I have not mentioned this before, but I have been a regular subscriber to a podcast that has covered many interesting naturist topics.  The Naturist Living Show is hosted by Stéphane Deschênes, the owner of  Bare Oaks Family Naturist Park in the Toronto Canada area.  Stéphane has interviewed numerous people including the latest who was the original owner of the property back in 1972.  It was a naturist park then also and has transitioned from naturist to textile back to naturist.  The podcasts can be subscribed to through ITunes or downloaded directly from their web site.
  You can see all about the Bare Oaks Family Naturist Park  at their web site.  Just click on the highlighted links to take you directly there or find them under the Links section to the right.   FYI, the history of the park is under the About Us>Historical Information>Park History section of the Bare Oaks web site.

Peace,
Jeanluc

Nudism can save you money?

Here is a link to a thought-provoking and interesting article about the ways living a nudist lifestyle may just save you money.  Enjoy!!
Save Money Being Nude

Peace,
Jeanluc

Topfree Rights for Women

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Too cold to be nude!

Is it ever too cold to be nude?  Well, of course.  True nudists live by the philosophy " Nude when practical, Clothed when not".  I think that sums it up nicely.  If it is too cold, there are people who would be upset by your nudity, or similar circumstances, wearing clothing is the way to go.
  Right now in Kansas it is COLD!!  Snow showers, freezing mist, temps in the high 20's (Fahrenheit), that about sums up the last week and even more.  I have been able to sit in front of the woodstove, but had a fall just before Christmas and am not moving too well yet.  I decided that being dressed in case someone comes to visit is the best way.  So it is practical to wear clothing even though I am home alone all day and would rather be nude.  Too much of a chance that someone would come and it would take me too long to get dressed to open the door.  So I will just have to wait until I am healed and the weather is warmer to start up being nude around the house again.

Peace,
Jeanluc