Day 173 / 365
Throughout this series, I’ve taken a hard look at myself and questioned, as the products or habits cross me, whether what I’m using or doing is really as kind and conscious as it could be. 9.9 times out of 10, I’m not. Dental floss included.
THE PROBLEMS WITH DENTAL FLOSS
Conventional dental floss is made from waxed nylon, which is derived from crude oil (a non-renewable resource). It takes up to 200 years for nylon decompose , and then the small plastic box all that nylon floss is rolled up in takes another 500 – 1,000 years to break down. In addition to the pollution, discarded floss jams pumps in sewage treatment facilities, (don’t put your floss down the toilet!). Dental floss also gets wrapped up around / in wildlife causing harm and sometimes death.
SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS
VEGAN BIODEGRADABLE FLOSS
** post updated ** I wrote this post originally two years ago and came through to update it now because … there is a biodegradable vegan dental floss company, finally, meaning you can have zero waste dental floss cruelty-free!
WHERE TO BUY?
TEURA (glass container, refillable) HERE
** post updated ** I wrote this post originally two years ago and came through to update it now because … there is a biodegradable vegan dental floss company, finally, meaning you can have zero waste dental floss cruelty-free!
WHERE TO BUY?
TEURA (glass container, refillable) HERE
SILK FLOSS
Silk floss is compostable which is brilliant, and biodegrades in under two years. The only problem is, in order to create silk you need to boil silk worms alive. Which is a pretty grim visual; however it is still better than nylon floss which doesn’t biodegrade and harms animals in both its creation and disposal.
WHERE TO BUY?
GEORGANICS (glass container, refillable) AMAZON
TREEBIRD (glass container, refillable) AMAZON
WOWE (metal container, refillable) AMAZON
DENTAL LACE (glass container, refillable) AMAZON
VÖMEL (glass container and refillable) SIN PLASTICO | MONOMEER | ZERO WASTE LADEN
VÖMEL (glass container and refillable) SIN PLASTICO | MONOMEER | ZERO WASTE LADEN
WOODEN PICKS
There are picks on the market which are made up of wood tapered to a point. They’re similar to a toothpick but thin enough to fit between the gum line. Because they’re made of FSC certified wood, they’re biodegradable – and the wood is FSC certified basswood which means it is sustainable – but they process the wood in China which means it is probably not ethical.
WHERE TO BUY?
DIY FLOSS
Zero Waste blogger Béa Johnson unravels a piece of silk fabric and twists the threads together to create floss. I tried this with strip of silk I had in my fabric offcuts, but my teeth are so dang close together they snapped the thread. That said, there is an eco haberdashery I used to work for called Offset Warehouse which has Peace Silk Thread (with peace silk they let the silkworms hatch) which might be stronger as it’s properly spun. Not only is it kinder, sustainable, biodegradable options, but it is also zero waste as it can be washed and reused continuously.
WHERE TO BUY?
OIL PULL
In order to reduce my use of silk floss, I oil pull twice a day. Oil pulling doesn’t replace brushing or flossing, but it does help reduce plaque and cavity-causign bacteria (plus it has a lot of other great health benefits).
Shoot! I've been using Tom's of Maine and just looked it up to see that it's nylon, too. I'm going to restock with wooden toothpick thingy you suggested, even though the glass bottle is the cutest!
I know! We were doing the same … the plastic bottle is the cutest thing since sliced bread (is sliced bread cute … I think so 😉 let me know how the wooden toothpick thingy – I couldn't find them this side of the pond … lets start a dental floss brand together 😉 <3