Don’t you love that scratching, aggravating feel of anti-bacterial soap with microbeads? Guys, don’t you feel like the “man-stink” is scrubbed away even better with those abrasive beads? What do you think those beads are made of? To be honest, I thought they were made of some kind of disintegrating material, like the sugar or salt in a natural scrub. They are actually made of plastic and all these little beads are becoming a BIG problem!
According to a recent article in Environmental Science and Technology, scientists “calculate that 8 trillion microbeads per day are emitted into aquatic habitats in the United States [ ]. If you line these microbeads up side by side, assuming they are 100 μm spheres, the United States emits enough microbeads to cover >300 tennis courts daily” (2015). What a lot of waste for something so unnecessary! The pollution aspect is not the only issue of concern. As these microbeads enter aquatic habitats, “it attracts persistent pollutants like PCBs, which studies show can cause cancer and harm immune, reproductive, nervous, and endocrine systems in animals…As DDT and PCBs latch onto microplastics, they become biomagnified up the food chain” (PBS.org). Not only do these pollutants affect animals, but they affect humans since we are the top of the food chain. I was shocked to learn that such a minuscule piece of plastic could cause such harm!
Unfortunately, our perception of “clean” has caused this mess. Companies tap in to this perception to market their products. We feel clean when we scrub harder and feel the abrasive soap scrape the dirt out of our pores. At least that is what we think is happening. Many of these products scrub away not only the dirt, but the natural oils that protect our skin. Clean is not a feeling or a smell. It is the removal of dirt, sweat, excess oil, and bacteria.
Don’t scrub harder, scrub smarter! I love Norwex personal care products because they scrub away the dirt without polluting or spreading harsh soaps over my skin. Your skin is the largest organ of your body so you must protect it! Norwex microfiber scrubs smarter by using super dense, super fine microfiber “fingers” to collect the excess oil, dirt, sweat, and bacteria from your skin. Once trapped in the cloth, Norwex’s BacLock™ feature uses microsilver to self-purify so your cloth is clean and ready for the next use. Check out the Body Pack, Makeup Removal Cloths, and the Back Scrubber as alternatives to microbeads and harsh soaps. If totally ditching soap isn’t for you, try the Peppermint Foaming Hand Soap, Shower Gel, or Timeless Natural Hand Cleanser. These products contain natural ingredients that will give you a green clean! Be a part of the solution and change up your personal care routine today!
To learn more about Norwex, you can shop online HERE or CONTACT ME; I’d love to connect!
~ Suzanne
Wow, I had no idea microbeads was such as issue. Just never thought about it. Having said that, I didn’t think they were very disintegrate-able (if that’s a word) as I always found them tough and quite frankly, annoying. For that reason, I have personally only used products that contain these beads a couple of times in the past and have never used them since.
300 tennis courts. That is a shocking statistic.
Never heard of Norwex before though.