October saw the start of me living life without throwaway plastics, and if I needed an incentive to do my small part then watching the recent BBC documentary Drowning in Plastic sealed my desire to make it work. I’m not ashamed to say I cried at the enormity of the problem and it’s impact.
In my last post I mentioned I was going to find a more natural toothpaste to eliminate throwaway plastic tubes and to help in my other quest – to not use anything containing palm oil. Making my own toothpaste is still a work in progress but I did find a company who makes it and sells it in glass containers you can reuse or recycle. It’s a new adventure after years of having a mouth full of minty foam, the grey ‘ash-like’ product is startling. But I’ve found it does a really good job of cleaning, and my teeth are actually looking brighter. I worried about having fresh breath but the minty stuff can just mask a problem, not eliminate it. The toothpaste isn’t cheap but will last some months and for me will work out no more expensive than the tubes I would have bought. Win win!
Next was to find an alternative to a plastic toothbrush. These biodegradable bamboo toothbrushes are lovely, they come in a pack of 4 and have a different symbol on them so each family member can pick their own. The bamboo stand the pack comes with makes me smile every time I reach for my brush .. that has to be a good thing!!
The bristles are a little softer than I’m use to but then I use to scrub my teeth like I would the kitchen floor! A combination of the new toothpaste and the brush seems kinder to my teeth and gums but still giving a squeaky clean mouth.
I know we are inundated with information about what we should and shouldn’t be doing, and the enormity of the plastics problem makes you wonder what on earth individuals can do to make a dent. Each of us makes our own decision how we want to move through life.
I decided I want to walk softly on this dear earth, and not leave a scar behind me.
* this article was based purely on personal choice and not a paid promotion
Done Dreaming 
Very interesting! There’s so much plastic in our lives now but our grandparents/great-grandparents managed without them, so hopefully we can come up with alternatives…
LikeLiked by 1 person
You are right Ann. Can’t understand why plastic manufacturers didn’t think about what was going to happen to all their indestructible product when they made it. Where did they think it was all going to go?!
LikeLiked by 1 person
We humans need to come up with some natural-based, bio-degradeable alternatives that can’t harm the environment. I’m horrified to think of the mountains of waste that we’re drowning the world with.
LikeLiked by 1 person
And in reply to the question about the manufacturers – they didn’t think – they simply don’t care, so long as they make money…
LikeLiked by 1 person
Perhaps we should call a halt on all new plastic production and have the manufacturers collect and recycle every piece of used plastic so it keeps going in a complete cycle.
LikeLike