TLDR: It’s really hard to make stuff out of 24K gold because it’s such a soft metal. If you are very sensitive, even items that are 18k gold can cause an allergic reaction.
Why you should care: It sucks to have an allergic reaction.
Did everyone know about the percentages rules of gold? I was totally in the dark. “18K gold is 18 parts pure gold and 6 parts other metals. And therefore, it is 75% gold and 25% other metals.” https://luxe.digital/lifestyle/jewelry/gold-karats-guide/ If the jeweler doesn’t tell you what those other metals are, it could contain something you’re allergic to, like nickel. About 18% of people in North America are allergic to nickel. https://www.aad.org/public/diseases/eczema/insider/nickel-allergy This would explain why my ears got swollen, even though I was wearing 18K gold earrings. Some people are just sensitive!
I haven’t done sustainability research on this one. Mostly because I rarely buy nice jewelry. Someone please get at me with your collected info!
TLDR: There’s no such thing as sustainable, healthy/safe-for-you honey. Buy vegan honey. It tastes the same.
Why you should care: Honestly, collecting honey on a commercial scale isn’t good for bees. Small honey purveyors don’t pasteurize their honey, which means you’re at a higher risk for illness and there’s nobody regulating their practices. BUT, not everyone cares about bees or pasteurization. So then the best reason NOT to eat honey is because most honey is polluted with nasty chemicals.
I eat a lot of honey—and I mean a LOT. It’s one of my guilty pleasures. I love it in my tea every day and drizzled on top of my cereal. Of course, it’s a staple of my PB&H sandwiches. So when I started doing research on honey, I figured I’d get something more sustainable. You know, switch to glass jars or whatever, and then call it a day. NOPE.
It turns out that this is WAY more complicated than I thought. There are four different types of honey (that I know of!). https://www.leaf.tv/articles/what-are-the-differences-between-raw-pure-natural-honey/ If a label says “natural honey” it means there are no artificial additives, but some companies still add non-artificial stuff like sugar, etc. “Pure honey” on a label means there are no additives at all, even natural ones. “Raw honey” means the honey hasn’t been pasteurized and has no additives. And “organic honey” means the honey has supposedly followed organic regulations. But here’s the kicker: the organic regulations are based on the specific country the honey comes from. And only about a quarter of all US honey comes from the US. That means the word “organic” is essentially meaningless (unless you happen to know about organic certifications all around the world).
But, for the sake of argument, let’s pretend all these companies are abiding by the “rules” I listed above. What’s the deal with raw honey? Why don’t we pasteurize it?
It seems to me that if you have any health issues or a history of stomach/intestinal issues, then you should steer clear of raw honey. I tend to be super cautious about what I put in my body so I like my honey pasteurized and bacteria-free.
OK, so you need to choose a type of honey AND THEN you can just buy it, right? NOPE. That’s because most honey is contaminated with a weed killer chemical called glyphosate. And government agencies don’t regularly check for it. https://www.huffpost.com/entry/fda-finds-monsantos-weed_b_12008680
In this case, it’s actually not the beekeeper’s fault. They can offer their bees an organic field of flowers but if the bees fly over to a neighboring field that uses weed killer OR if some of that weed killer gets in the breeze and onto the beekeeper’s field… basically it’s a nightmare to track.
Then there’s bee safety. Beekeepers are only supposed to harvest excess honey, since bees rely on the stuff they make. Some beekeepers are good about it, others probably aren’t. There’s really no way to tell.
The majority of bees that make sellable honey are not native and they compete with native bees for pollen. This can starve out native bees, which pollinate a lot of our local crops, flowers and gardens and can lead to big ecological issues. https://nsojournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/oik.08915
In conclusion, it’s a huge mess, and you really shouldn’t be eating honey of any type. Instead, go for vegan honey, which is made of plants. https://www.bonappetit.com/story/vegan-honey
TLDR: A lot of essential oils are adulterated because stores can’t test every batch. This means that if you’re buying essential oils at big box stores, you’re probably putting unidentified stuff on your body. https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-030-16546-8_9
Why you should care: It’s kinda scary to let stuff soak into your body and you don’t know what’s in it.
NOTE: Make sure you read up on how to properly use essential oils. Because they’re so concentrated, you generally shouldn’t put them directly on your skin without diluting them first. And because they don’t have preservatives, they often need to be stored in the fridge.
TLDR: Store-bought dishwashing soap is a waste of water and money. We’re getting scammed.
Why you should care: Check the ingredients of your dishwashing soap. It’s mostly water! All that water means a bigger carbon footprint when shipping. Plus, it’s a waste of plastic, which takes resources to make and then lives in our landfills and oceans. Gross.
I like Etee dishwashing soap for SO many reasons. They’re based in Canada so they’re not too far away. They donate to good causes. They don’t do plastic. They don’t test on animals, and use safe materials. They care about their workers and supply chain. Their soap doesn’t have a strong scent, which is great if you have smell sensitivities. And it works for cleaning dishes.
If you want to be even more eco-friendly, buy a bar of soap (Etee sells those, too). But if you’re gonna go with liquid dishwashing soap, this is your brand.
Etee also sells dishwashing detergent. I think it’s great, but I have not yet tried to compost their bag. Most bags that say they’re compostable, actually aren’t. Take that into account.
OK, can we all just agree that toothpaste tubes are annoying and inconvenient? Forgetting to put the cap back on the right way… Toothpaste exploding in my carry on luggage… Trying to get the LAST bit of toothpaste out of the tube… YUCK. Plus, who had the childhood experience of squeezing out ALL of the toothpaste and then your dad made you keep it in a jar and use it until it was gone? BLAH.
I like Etee toothpaste for SO many reasons. They’re based in Canada so they’re not too far away. They donate to good causes. They don’t do plastic. They don’t test on animals and use safe materials. They care about their workers and supply chain. Their toothpaste tastes great. It has fluoride, which dentists recommend. https://www.nidcr.nih.gov/health-info/fluoride/ask-expert-why-fluoride-good-dental-health They also have a no-fluoride option if you really need it: https://www.shopetee.com/pages/fluoride-chewpaste It’s also great for little ones who have trouble squeezing the right amount! And you don’t have to worry about taking it on a plane!
I asked a friend to buy these washcloths for me from Costco (I don’t have a membership) because they were on sale and they’re Oeko-Tex certified. I keep a pile of them in the bathroom. I got an aluminum spray bottle and filled it with a few drops of witch hazel and lots of distilled (or boiled) water. I use that to clean my face. Lots of people avoid witch hazel because it dries out the skin, BUT that’s only the witch hazel you get at the store, which is full of alcohol. The ALCOHOL is what dries your skin. Pure witch hazel doesn’t.
Note: Store the remaining witch hazel in the fridge.
TLDR: Paper towels are a waste of money and shouldn’t exist.
Why you should care: The average American spends about $200 annually on paper towels. Yuck. Do something fun with that money. Also, deforestation, water pollution, etc. https://www.greenmatters.com/p/impact-paper-towels
What you should buy: Don’t buy anything! Cut up old clothes and sheets that can’t be donated. Don’t have any? Ask your neighbors. These make cheap paper towels that can be washed and re-used or just tossed if the mess is truly too yucky.
TLDR: Disposable feminine hygiene products contain up to 90% plastic, which is bad for the environment. Plus, studies show all those chemicals could be dangerous for your body. Get a menstrual cup if you can.
Why you should care: “While in a landfill, disposable pads are estimated to take 500 to 800 years to break down, and materials such as plastic never truly biodegrade. This is of major concern given that each menstruator will use and dispose of between 5000 and 15 000 pads and tampons in their lifetime.” https://obgyn.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/ijgo.14311 Plus, studies show all those chemicals could be dangerous for your body. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9876534/
My personal favorite is the MeLuna, but everyone’s body is different. It’s worth it to try out a few different products until you find the best fit. It’s an upfront cost, but the cups will last for years and cost much less than disposable pads/tampons.
What if you don’t have a period? If you don’t menstruate, consider donating menstrual cups to people in need! Or talking about them with your kids, neighbors, friends, etc. An educated menstruator can advocate for themselves and for others.
NOTE: You can clean your menstrual cup by sticking it inside a metal whisk and boiling it for 10 minutes. (The whisk keeps the cup from touching the sides of the pot.) Or you can buy cleaning tablets that you drop into a glass of water along with your cup and leave overnight.
What you should buy: https://lastobject.com/products/lasttissue-refill
I bought these GOTS-certified hankies. You can order them with a silicon box, but I asked them not to send me one and just filled all the old tissue boxes I already had around my house. You can use OCEAN10 for a 10% discount.
I also added a wet-proof bag that says “dirty tissues” on a hook in each bathroom in the house. When someone uses a tissue they drop it into the bag. I wash them all once a week. Now I’m set for years.
It helps the environment and saves you money in the long-run.
I usually don’t recommend buying products on Amazon, but it was out of stock on the brand website. I chose Merkur because of the good reviews, its sustainability and the fact that it works for both men/women. (Price discrimination is ridiculous!! https://www.inc.com/sonia-thompson/women-are-charged-100000-more-for-same-products-as-men-heres-what-you-can-do-to-stop-it.html) Please note that Merkur has differently sized handles. I chose a short handle because it was less expensive, easier for me to control and took up less space in my toiletry bag.
I bought a Merkur because it takes generic razor blades that you can buy at any store. Many of the other options require you to use their special razor blades, and the idea of 1) paying for shipping 2) remembering to order them in the first place 3) adding to my carbon footprint… well, it just seemed silly and impractical.
I also liked that it was a heavier razor, which means it does the work for you, and there’s no need to press down. It’s cool that it only has one blade. Contrary to what you might think, one blade is better because multiples can cause ingrown hairs. Go figure! https://www.menshealth.com/style/a19526899/single-blade-razor-shave/
Don’t forget that you can drop your used razors off at any Whole Foods stores that run a razor recycling program called Gimme5. Or you can save them in a tin can and recycle them that way.
Store your razor outside of the shower to reduce the risk of rusting. This is supposed to last you for ages!
UPDATE: I’ve been using the razor for a few months now and have yet to cut myself! It even works well on your bathing suit area, and I got ZERO razor burn. I’ve recommended it to all my girl and guy friends!
