Why I'm switching to a Bamboo Hairbrush*
What I love about social media is it can have a hugely positive impact, very quickly, and nowadays I rarely see restaurants serving drinks with straws, Keep Cups are a regular sighting and I’ve switched my toothbrushes over to a Bamboo version which will naturally degrade.
So many other things such as razors, combs, nail brushes and even hairbrushes are also made of plastic frequently and sadly will not degrade. If you want to know more about when and why plastic was invented this is a well researched piece. I was surprised to learn it was originally made as a substitute for Ivory therefore a substance intended to help the natural world that has ended up doing far more damage than good.
One simple swop I made last year was to switch to a bamboo toothbrush. If you want to read my holistic dental care tips see >here<
Next up I wanted to start using a bamboo hairbrush and thankfully Irish Company Virtue Brush have created one that is not only beautiful, it’s also really effective at keeping my hair in great condition. When I am done using it, although that won’t be for a long time as it’s very well made and robust, it will naturally degrade.
Below are a few of the benefits of switching to bamboo:
Naturally Degrades
Bamboo naturally degrades. Depending on how you dispose of it it can take a little longer. If you just throw a bamboo toothbrush into your garden, it might take as long as 5-10 years to fully break down. Buried horizontally in the soil, it will take around 3 years. A home composter should take around 4-6 months (depending on the composition). You can speed this up by breaking the toothbrush down into small pieces. An industrial composter should break a toothbrush down in a few weeks (they are much hotter and more active than any home composter). (Source)
Strong, healthy hair
The Virtue Brush pins are naturally massaging on my scalp but also very gentle when it comes to detangling so I notice much less breakage. The natural massage has a knock on effect of helping to boost sebum which is your hair’s own natural conditioning. As I am constantly trying to grow my hair a little longer minimising breakage is really important to me.
Less Flyaways
Plastic hairbrushes increase the electrical charge of your hair, and as a plastic brush glides through your hair, the increased electrical charge leads to static. This can result in frizzy, flyaway hair which is not usually the look I’m going for. Wood has a neutral charge so I notice much less static and my hair feels smoother as a result.
Supporting Nature
VirtueBrush pledge to plant three trees per VirtueBrush sold online and one tree per brush sold in retail shops. Their not-for-profit partner for this initiative is ‘Trees for the Future’ (Trees.org). Nearly all of the trees planted are either native or naturalised in the environments where they are planted. They have set themselves a target of planting 100,000 trees by 2020 as part of this initiative, and 1 million trees by 2025 so buying from them contributes to this also.
A Simple Sustainable Change That Adds Up
If each of us were to use just one toothbrush annually this would generate 100,000 tonnes of plastic waste each year. This is plastic that can take up to 400 years to degrade alongside doing enormous damage to the environment. I’ve always felt that the world doens’t need a few people living ‘perfect’ lives, we need everyone making simple changes in terms of consumer habits that will cumulatively add up and make a huge difference. Switching more and more of my personal care items hasn’t compromised the results at all but over the course of a lifetime will have significant impact.
*Virtue Brush is an Irish company on a mission to make living a zero waste lifestyle practical with simple solutions and swops to everyday products. I am delighted to have collaborated with them on this post.
You can purchase the bamboo hairbrush >HERE< and check out their whole range of products >Here<
Images - Sean Macnamee
