Go Greener Everyday
- Laura Scott
- May 1, 2020
- 5 min read
Updated: May 21, 2020
After a bit of a hiatus from blog posting, I’ll be kicking things off again, starting with an easy going post on environmentally friendly products that you can easily switch to if you’d like to change up your normal go to products. The list of environmentally friendly products is so much longer than what I will cover here, it’s just a brief introduction to everyday items that can help make a difference. My biggest piece of advice for any of these is if you want to try a new product, try it when you’re getting towards the end of the life of the existing product you use, but have still got a little bit left for if you don’t like the alternative. That way, if you decide to make a permanent switch, you don’t have loads of the old product sat in the cupboard or being thrown away!
Disclaimer: I’m not being paid to say anything about any of the products mentioned, they’re just things I’ve found to be good through personal experience or research. Neither myself or the company receives anything extra from any clicks to links on this page.
Personal care
A lot of personal care items contain a lot of chemicals, and often come in plastic packaging – none of which is great for the environment. Ahead are a few ideas of alternatives, and some pros and cons of each.
Hair Care
As well as normally coming in plastic bottles, shampoos often contain chemicals such as Sodium Lauryl Sulfate; this is a palm oil derivative (see myth busting section on palm oil) which can be toxic to aquatic wildlife. There are plenty of alternatives out there to traditional shampoos, such as the Dr Organic range at Holland and Barrett. Whilst these may seem fairly expensive, if you shop during the 1p sale, they work out at a similar cost to traditional shampoos. These are plant based, and come in a range of different smells. I found switching to this shampoo range seemed to make my scalp feel a lot healthier, I can go longer between washes, and don’t need to use as much product as traditional shampoos. The Dr Organic range doesn’t stop at shampoos, they also have conditioners and non hair care products too. It’s always worth having a quick check of the ingredients list of potential environmentally friendly products. For example the Love Beauty and Planet range which is listed as vegan and environmentally friendly still contains Sodium Lauryl Sulfate.
These kind of plant based shampoos still come in plastic packaging, however. If you want to cut down on your plastic use, consider a shampoo bar. There are plenty available online, with lots of websites comparing different shampoo bars. These are just like traditional bars of soap, and another bonus is that if you’re going away on holiday, you’ll have a shampoo that doesn’t count towards your liquid allowance!
Soaps
On the subject of soaps, well known brands such as Carex now produce refill bags of soap for your bottles. According to their website, these can save up to 85% plastic compared to buying a new bottle of soap each time, and are available to buy at most larger major supermarkets. The original bottle can get a bit dirty though over time around the base of the pump, so make sure to give this a wipe down every so often.
Feminine Hygiene
Traditional disposable sanitary products are extremely harmful to the environment, clogging up waterways and harming marine wildlife. Thankfully, there are a myriad of alternative options to choose from. Menstrual cups are very popular, as their usage life is up to 10 years – not only is this much more environmentally friendly, it works out a lot cheaper in the long run as cups generally cost £20. The Put A Cup in it quiz helps match your lifestyle to particular products. They won’t work for everyone, and can take a bit of getting used to, but alternatives such as period pants and reusable washable pads are available, or if you're not a fan of the sound of these, there are more organic single use items available.
Skincare
On the topic of single use products, for anyone who uses single use make up remover pads, reusable ones such as these are brilliant. They are washed up to each use, and according to manufacturer instructions, can last up to 100 washes each. This is another product that in the long term is better value for money than single use alternatives, as well as helping you be more environmentally conscious.
Some other ideas of more eco-friendly personal care products:
Natural deodorant (free from aluminium and other chemicals in typical antiperspirants)
Natural toothpaste
Bamboo toothbrush, or more eco-friendly replacement heads for electric toothbrushes
Bamboo hairbrush
Eco-friendly make up or face cleaning products
Cleaning routine
Traditional cleaning products use a lot of chemicals, and produce a lot of plastic waste from the packaging. Several companies are trying to combat this by selling reusable bottles and refills, such as Dettol. Another example is a company called OceanSaver; their bottle is reused over and over again, with plant based refills that you just add to water, shake, and clean. The initial kit and the refills are relatively cheap, at £2.50 for the first bottle and pouch of product, and £1.50 for refills. This is probably a similar price to what most people spend on normal cleaning products. Products are currently sold online and at selected M&S stores.
Cling film. It’s made from PVC or low density polyethylene, and treated with chemicals to make it stretchy; for this reason, it can’t be recycled. It’s also a nightmare to use! Enter silicone lids. These lids come in multiple sizes and stretch to whatever shape container you are using it on. They are dishwasher, microwave, and freezer safe, and can be used again and again. However, it is worth bearing in mind that whilst the backbone of silicone, silicon, comes from quartz, the processes used to make silicone come from traditional fossil fuels. Whilst a better alternative to cling film, if you invest in these, it is worth making sure that it has a long lifespan. Another cling film alternative are beeswax food wraps. It’s made from bees wax, jojoba oil, tree resin, and organic cotton, and can be reused by washing in cold water and soap. The lifespan of it is about a year, and after this it can be composted. The downside is that is can be quite pricey, starting anywhere between £9-£15 for a set of three wraps.
Other
Recyclable wrapping paper, such as that from Paperchase
Reusable coffee cups not made from plastic: porcelain cups, bamboo coffee cups
Home composting bins – the getcomposting website has linked up with local authorities to provide home composting at a much lower price. The Boshaki kitchen bins (which at the time of writing are out of stock) appear extremely easy to use, just putting in your food waste and then sprinkling the powder on the top, and leaving to compost.
To conclude, there are plenty of environmentally friendly alternatives out there to normal everyday products. Some of then you may love, some of them you may not, but if you're at all interested it is worth a try - a lot of these can help cut costs in the long run, which is another incentive!
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