A New Obsession: Avoiding Microplastics

Here’s my new thing … eliminating as much plastic from my life. We all should. At least, it’s a trend and movement I’m ready to embrace – even if eliminating all plastic is impossible. But some is better than nothing, at least if I believe the Netflix documentary The Plastic Detox.

Here’s my takeaway from watching the documentary … it followed 4 couples trying to get pregnant. All four couples had been trying for a long time. Then a lady came to their houses and threw away as many plastic things as possible – plastic things that could be replaced by non-plastic things – and by the end of the documentary, all four couples conceived and/or had babies.

Hey. I wasn’t taking notes. And was probably on my phone while also watching. But my takeaways are good enough for me.

First thing I did was go right out and I bought 100% cotton sheets. I figure, if I spend 7 hours per night and 49 hours a week in bed, a simple thing would be sleep in 100% natural fibers. I’m also going to replace all my disposable and reusable plastic containers with glass storage containers for my food. I’m going to buy milk in glass bottles from a place that recycles them. I’ve switched to Dr. Squatch soap because they brag that their soap is all natural, good for rivers, streams, and lakes when it washes down your drain, and it comes in a cardboard box instead of plastic wrapping.

No more plastic water bottles or plastic drinking glasses for me. No more plastic spoons and forks.

I know. It’s impossible to eliminate all plastic. I mean … stop reading right now and look around whatever room you’re in. Plastic is everywhere. But … if my toothbrush and floss can be natural fibers, and my clothes (Life is Good and Charles Tyrwhitt) can be synthetic free, and I can buy things in paper containers whenever possible . . . as proven by the couples in The Plastic Detox, every little bit counts.

As Usher says, “this is my obsession.” (NOTE: Usher’s lyric is actually “this is my confession,” but sing it using the word “obsession” and you’ll probably never hear it the same again.

Next up .. another documentary … Plastic People from 2024.

The award-winning feature documentary Plastic People investigates our addiction to plastic and the growing threat of microplastics on human health. Almost every bit of plastic ever made breaks down into “microplastics.” These microscopic particles drift in the air, float in all bodies of water, and mix into the soil, becoming a permanent part of the environment.

You can watch your Euphoria and that wrestling thing . . . I’ll watch documentaries and let them scare me silly and I’ll try and get just a wee bit better.