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Never, ever flush conventional dental floss down the toilet. Nylon floss is non-biodegradable, can wreak havoc if it reaches our waterways, and can even damage plumbing. Once flushed, floss can twist and tangle around hair, toilet paper and other organic matter moving through the pipes. Those clumps can form blockages that build up over time, causing problems in your home's plumbing and even public sewage systems. It may seem hard to believe that one tiny piece of floss could cause such a mess, but multiply it by everyone in your community, and the impact adds up quickly. Toss used floss in the trash instead.
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Here's another reason to swap bottled body wash for bar soap: You're getting a more concentrated product. Bottled body washes are often made primarily of water, while bar soaps contain little to no water, meaning their other ingredients are far more concentrated. And that's not all: Bar soap requires no plastic bottle, is lighter to transport (which can help reduce shipping emissions) and, for road warriors, is TSA-friendly. One small switch can mean less plastic, less weight and less waste.
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It may not be realistic to give the inside of your refrigerator a deep cleaning every week, so if you do just one thing, focus on the drawers that hold meat and vegetables. These areas can become breeding grounds for mold and harmful bacteria such as salmonella and E. coli, especially when juices and other substances drip onto the textured surfaces and settle into grooves and crevices. Every so often, remove the drawers and wash them thoroughly with warm, soapy water. Rinse, wipe dry and return them to the refrigerator. It's a small chore that can make your fridge a much cleaner place to store food.
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Are you part of the movement to live a more plastic-free life? It's easy to think about skipping plastic straws, single-use bags and disposable cups, but what about some of the less obvious plastic hiding in your everyday life? Take wine bottles. Not all wine stoppers are created equal: Some are made from natural cork, a renewable and biodegradable material, while others are made from plastic. When you have the choice, look for bottles sealed with natural cork. It's one simple way to keep a little more plastic out of your life, and potentially out of the environment.
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When you're buying a single-use beverage, reach for an aluminum can instead of a plastic or glass bottle. Aluminum can be recycled again and again without losing its quality, and recycling it uses about 95% less energy than producing new aluminum. Cans are also lightweight and stackable, making them more efficient to transport. Glass may be infinitely recyclable, too, but its weight means a bigger transportation footprint, unless you're buying locally and returning or refilling the bottle. Plastic bottles, meanwhile, are rarely recycled back into new bottles and can eventually become microplastic pollution.
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Buying pre-owned shoes is an easy way to shrink your environmental footprint; extending a product's life avoids the resources, energy and emissions required to make a new pair. But if you wonder about disinfecting them before you wear them, try this: Give used shoes a fresh start by removing and washing the insoles, then lightly misting or wiping the inside and outside with a 50/50 mix of 70% rubbing alcohol and water. Let them air-dry completely in a well-ventilated spot, preferably in the sun. For lingering odors and moisture, sprinkle baking soda inside overnight, then shake or vacuum it out.
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Want to make a difference in education? Instead of buying another gift for someone who has everything, help our public school teachers through AdoptAClassroom.org. The nonprofit connects donors directly with teachers who need everything from basic school supplies to technology and educational materials. Teachers can use donations immediately to purchase what their students need through the site's marketplace, and donors receive a list of what their gift helped provide. Since 1998, AdoptAClassroom.org has supported more than 330,000 classrooms and 7.8 million students.
Through his best-selling books, television programs, products and syndicated column, environmental lifestyle expert Danny Seo shares the creative ideas that have made him America's leading authority on modern, eco-friendly living.