Do you use any cleaners with microbeads? You know, ones like this:
Microbeads are also in other lotions, sunscreens, and even toothpaste.
Did you ever think about how many microbeads are in one bottle of things like this? There’s a lot.
Why is that bad? Because these little microbeads are made of plastic, and they’re of a size designed to go right down your drain. Where do they end up?
Well, of course — they end up in the oceans, eventually. And they look just like fish eggs to animals, who eat them and eventually die.
There is a push to ban them, and measures are being debated in New York state and a few others. Johnson and Johnson and a few other manufacturers have promised to “phase out” use of microbeads — but they’ve set up a multi-year time frame for this and that’s way too long for me. And as the soaps are phased out, you can be sure that you’re going to see a lot of them on sale or even clearance and it’s going to be really tempting to buy them. Don’t.
If you like scrubs, you can use scrubs with natural exfoliants, for example, walnut shells/sugar/salt (I’m not a dermatologist, and some people say that some of those aren’t good for your skin, so maybe do some research on that.).
I’m not sure what we can do with those soaps we already own, but for now, don’t buy any more. And be sure to tell your friends.
A few links with more info:
- NPR Article on this topic with 4:30 minute podcast attached
- An article in Time Magazine about the push to ban these
- Article on Mother Jones
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