From the moment you wake up, shower, get ready and head out of home, you have already used over 100 chemicals on yourself. Don’t believe us? Look hard at the labels on the toothpaste, shower gel, shampoo, conditioner and body spray you use daily.?
While your skin is not complaining, these products may be causing more harm to the environment, than you realise.?
While you save water and are judicious about food wastage, what about the chemicals that enter the ecosystem thanks to your daily beauty routine? Here is how you can get eco-conscious about your regime:
Bathing is an everyday activity and we have loads of options when it comes to shower gels. Each brand better than the last, in terms of fragrance, texture and lather. But if you look at the gel bottle, you will realise how much plastic goes in the packaging. While your shower routine only takes 15 minutes, the plastic bottle will be around forever.?
The micro beads?in your shower gel?that promise to remove all dirt and dead skin, are also a looming threat to the environment since they don’t get decomposed and pollute rivers and ponds. The best option may be to stick to your regular bar soap, according to a meta-study published by Hans Sanderson - a senior researcher at the Department of Environmental Science, Aarhus University, Denmark - “The compounds are designed to break down so fast that they don’t pose a threat to the environment.”
Bar soaps also come with less packaging and are easy to transport. The ideal option would be natural soaps or a home-made besan ubtan, like your grandparents did. They're definitely less polluting.?
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Sodium Laureth Sulfate - this is a chemical found in all synthetic shampoos, according to the Environmental Working Group - is mutagenic (it can change genetic material) in animals. The plastic bottle aside, other compounds like ammonium chloride and methylchloroisothiazolinone, too are not environment-friendly.?
A better solution can be plant-oil based shampoo and those made out of petroleum-free products, that contain fewer chemicals.
A common ingredient in sunscreen, Oxybenzone - also known as 'Benzophenone-3' - helps in absorption of UVA and UBV rays and hence protects your skin from the sun. When it goes down the drain and finally into the seas and oceans, it pollutes the water and the effect is seen in form of damage to coral reefs
Reports say that oxybenzone has been bleaching coral reefs and they're now exposed to 14,000 tonnes of sunscreen each year, across the world. This damage is affecting a lot of marine ecosystems due to damage to coral reefs.?
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Sheet masks are a huge rage, and while we get our dose of self care with a soothing mask, they end up polluting the environment. Wet wipes too which are made of synthetic non-biodegradable fibres, are responsible for clogging landfill sites across the world.
These used wipes and sheets also land up in oceans and are then consumed by marine animals. According to reports, the number of wet wipes being washed up on beaches in the UK has increased by 50 percent since 2014.
We need to switch to reusable wipes or disposable wipes made from 100 per cent organic cotton, bamboo or wood pulp.?
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