It’s Plastic-Free July, so we’ve updated earlier posts and added new ones to bring you almost 30 ways to go plastic-free in 30 days. Our goal: to bring you as many ways as possible to help you replace your plastic stuff with, well, stuff that’s not plastic.

We’ll be saying a lot more about what’s wrong with plastic throughout the month. But for starters, one of the biggest problems with it is that the darn stuff just doesn’t biodegrade. In other words, it lasts forever (some of it lasts for thousands of years, which is forever as far as I’m concerned).

Even when you think it’s gone, it’s just broken down into tiny pieces of micro plastic that are getting into our food (like fish and oysters) and water.

Many plastic products also contain endocrine disrupting chemicals that leach into the food or water they touch. These are chemicals that can interfere with our ability to reproduce, as well as cause learning disorders in kids, and maybe even cancer.

Why continue to use plastic when there are so many better, healthier, more eco-friendly options?

A big reason is that you might not know how many great alternatives to plastic there really are.

That’s why we’re devoting this month to all things that are NOT plastic.

What You Can Switch Out During Plastic-Free July

Here’s what’s on our list to help you switch out during Plastic-Free July:

√ Plastic straws 

√ Plastic picnic and party-ware (look out, 4th of July)

√ Plastic face masks

√ Bathroom plastic (like shampoo and lotion bottles and plastic microbeads in face wash)

√ Plastic cups

√ Plastic water bottles

√ Plastic soda bottles (refill instead)

√ Yogurt in plastic tubs

√ Plastic holiday wrapping

√ Plastic cleaning products

√ Plastic Halloween trick-or-treat bags

√ Plastic ink cartridges

√ Plastic sunglasses

√ Plastic toys for babies and toddlers

√ Plastic produce bags

√ Plastic Easter stuff

√ Plastic pet supplies

√ Plastic ocean trash

I could keep adding to my list, but I want to know what you need the most help with when you think about getting plastic out of your life.

Please let me know! Either leave a comment below, or head on over to the Big Green Purse Facebook page and weigh in there.

Plus, let me know what your biggest challenges are when you think about going plastic-free. If I can help you, I will!

Full disclosure: Big Green Purse has affiliate relationships with several companies that offer plastic-free products we may highlight. We will earn a small commission if you purchase a product using our affiliate links. But please know that we’d never do business with any of these folks if we didn’t think they were terrific. And the commissions do enable us to bring you the expert information you need to live the greener life you want, at no additional cost to you. Thanks!

The post 30 Days, 30 Ways to Go Plastic-Free During Plastic-Free July appeared first on Big Green Purse.

  Hence my delight at using the Soda Stream, a counter-top sized carbonator made by Soda-Club whose handy CO2 cartridge infuses my water with all the fizziness I want – but none of the throwaway mess.

The fizzer I have comes with a CO2 cartridge and two refillable liter-sized plastic water bottles (other models come with glass carafes). It couldn’t be easier to use, and it takes up very little room in my kitchen.

I’m also impressed with the statistics the company offers on the environmental benefits of the product:

Says Soda Club, Americans drink more than 55 billion liters of soda and seltzer each year. That’s almost 200 liters — about 600 cans! — for every adult and child in the United States. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, that adds 10 1/2 cubic feet of packaging per American — over 3 billion cubic feet! — to our landfills and recycling facilities every year.

A family of four could slash their home soft-drink-related packaging usage by over 90% by using a Soda-Club soda maker.  Soda-Club’s plastic carbonating bottles are reusable for up to three years, and their Penguin glass carbonating carafes will last even longer than that with proper care. A typical American will toss away over 1500 aluminum cans (and/or hundreds of plastic 2-liter bottles) over three years — while a Soda Stream owner will use just one or two reusable carbonating bottles or carafes that come with the home soda maker.

The Soda Stream offers concentrated sodamix syrups that also reduce waste. The company claims a single bottle of sodamix will make 12 liters of soda, the equivalent of 34 cans or six 2-liter bottles. Personally, my family found the sodamixes way too sweet in some cases and medicine-y tasting in others. We prefer to carbonate the water, then add a squeeze of fresh lemon, lime or orange juice.

In the interest of full disclosure, I was put off by the Soda Stream’s $99 price tag and probably would not have bought it had the company not sent me a model to try. I’m a complete convert now. Many different  Soda Stream combos are on sale through the holidays, with prices for the simplest option (the one I have) starting at $79.99. If you don’t need to buy this nifty product for anyone else, get it for yourself.

The post Replace Bubbly Water from the Store with Water You Bubble at Home appeared first on Big Green Purse.

BPA, an artificial sex hormone, has produced irreversible damage in test animals. It has been under fire from environmentalists, scientists, and, increasingly, concerned moms.

FDA, the federal agency charged with regulating food safety, has argued that BPA can continue to be used in consumer products. The agency cites 2 studies indicating that the chemical is safe, despite the fact that both studies were funded by the chemical industry.

Environmental Working Group, the consumer watchdog research institute, says, “The FDA has refused to take into serious consideration more than 100 independent animal studies suggesting the toxic chemical could be linked to serious disorders in humans, including prostate cancer, breast cancer, diabetes, early puberty, obesity and learning and behavioral problems.”

University of Missouri research scientist Frederick Vom Saal today released one of the most comprehensive studies ever published on BPA. The study links heart disease and diabetes to continual, low-dose exposure to BPA — exactly the kind of exposure you would get from drinking canned sodas regularly or drinking regularly from plastic bottles.

In an article published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, scientists report a strong correlation between levels of BPA in American adults and these diseases, both of which are increasing.

“These startling results only increase the urgency of removing BPA from products used by young children,” said EWG senior scientist Anila Jacob M.D. M.P.H. “If the adult population in the U.S. is seeing links between this toxic chemical and heart disease and diabetes, imagine what impact much higher exposure levels are having on babies whose bodies are just developing.”

The National Toxicology Program, an arm of the National Institutes of Health, has asserted that it has “some concern” for BPA¹s negative impact on “development of the prostate gland and brain and for behavioral effects in fetuses, infants and children.”

“If this weren¹t so serious, it would be laughable,” said EWG VP for Research, Jane Houlihan. “Here we have an agency that time and again makes the wrong call on everything from pharmaceuticals, tomatoes and toothpaste, and we¹re supposed to take them at their word over a toxic sex hormone found in baby products.”

Until state or federal laws pass outlawing BPA in consumer products, you can protect yourself by:

* minimizing your consumption of canned food and canned beverages, as BPA may be used to line the cans; choose fresh or frozen food and bottled juices instead

* buy only water bottles or baby bottles that explicitly say they are BPA-Free

* use glass baby bottles and reusable water bottles made from stainless steel or aluminum

* avoid plastic food and beverage containers that are made with #7 plastic; you should see the number in a triangle on the bottom of the bottle.

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