Microbeads are very common house when
it comes to exfoliation in health and beauty products, such as body and facial
wash. The majority of people probably have used some kind of product at one
point that contains it. We may also currently be using products that contain
these toxic little beads without even knowing how detrimental they are to the
environment.
Companies may claim to use
‘natural’ exfoliants, but how do we know whether or not that is true? And if we
know they are dangerous to the environment and wildlife, why do we continue to
use them? One may think “Oh, they are tiny enough to just wash down the drain
and dissipate. They won’t really affect the environment” or “One person can’t
make that big of a difference.”, however little do we know that microbeads are
sponges to various toxic chemicals. We are endangering not only the
environment, but ourselves each time we use a product that contains these balls.
Each bottle of facial or body wash contains roughly about 350,000 microbeads. An
estimated 8 trillion microbeads washes through the US water systems daily.
“But exfoliation is good for your
skin.” Exfoliation has its benefits. They can help detoxify our skin, get rid
of dead skin cells, kill bacteria that may clog up your pores, and much more. That
doesn’t mean one must rely on products that contain these toxin sponges. Avoid
purchasing products that contain the following in the ingredients:
- Polypropylene
- Polyethylene
There are many natural alternatives
that can be made using common household products including:
- Raw honey: a staple found in many recipes for homemade cleansers, as well as containing many health benefits
- Konjac: sponges created from the fibers of the konjac plant
- Oatmeal: provides mild exfoliation that is gentle on dry and irritated skin
- Yogurt: contains skin-smoothing lactic acid, and helps skin retain moisture
Sources:
http://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/john-calvelli-ban-microbeads-save-wildlife-article-1.2450893
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