Friday, October 5, 2012

A Swab of Fresh Air

Cotton swabs may seem like a small issue, but cotton as a whole is a very large issue. Cotton crops occupy only 3% of the world's farmland, yet they receive around 25% of the world's pesticides. Chemical pesticides are often sprayed in excess and then leach into the soil and water. They can also drift through the air to the lungs of unsuspecting neighborhoods. These chemicals can be dangerous to humans and the local environment - sometimes leading to cancer and in extreme cases death. During processing the cotton is also exposed to things such as bleach and heavy metal dyes. Agriculture is not always as pretty as we think, and so it is good to remember that. Whenever you can try to buy organic cotton rather than conventional cotton. Cotton swabs could be a good place to start. 
As another plus, organic cotton is hypoallergenic.

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