So you've switched over to eating more natural foods, using natural household cleaning supplies, and applying natural fertilizers in your garden. What's next? How about choosing clothing made from natural fibers!
Synthetic fibres have been infiltrating the clothing industry for the last 60 years, bringing more chemicals, cheaper items and faster fashion.
With the on-going news of microfibers from synthetic clothing polluting the ocean, it’s time to cut-down on synthetic clothing and bring back natural fibers.
What are Synthetic Fibers?
Synthetic fibers are made from oil byproducts. When oil companies use crude oil (from the ground) to make gasoline, part of the crude oil (the part not used for gas) is used to make other items, or byproducts. Among those products are synthetic fibers that are man-made through a chemical process, and include:
- polyester
- nylon
- acrylic
- rayon
- microfiber
What are Natural Fibers?
Natural fibers are made from natural products, or products produced from a living organism, such as a plant or animal. Natural fibers can be classified into five categories: seed fiber, phloem fiber, tendon fiber from plant stems or leaves, trunk fiber, and fruit or nut shell fiber:
- Seed – cotton
- Phloem – hemp, jute
- Stem or Leaves – hemp
- Trunk – palm
- Fruit or Nut Shells - coconut
Natural fiber materials include these popular options:
- cotton
- wool
- hemp
- bamboo
- linen
- silk
Is there an advantage of natural fibers over synthetic fibers?
Synthetic materials are made of plastic, so producing these materials have similar externalities as oil extraction and plastics production. Plastics, and thereby fabrics that are synthetic, may be causing health conditions due to the chemicals they are made of:
- Rayon may contain chlorinated hydrocarbons and dioxin, which has been linked to endometriosis.
- Acrylic is made from acrylonitrile, a chemical found to be a “probable human carcinogen” (cancer causing).
- Polyester is created by reacting terephthalic acid ethylene glycol which in low levels has been found to cause chronic respiratory irritation.
In addition, recent studies have found that clothing made from synthetic materials are shedding microfibers during the laundry cycle. Waste water treatment plants are not able to capture and screen out the microfibers so these fibers can end up polluting our waterways, and as a result could be contaminating our aquatic food supply.
Natural fibers on the other hand, are not made from chemicals. However, natural fibers may contain chemicals used by growers. The fibers are often sprayed with pesticides, herbicides, insecticides and other chemicals during the growing period. Organic natural fibers are grown without chemical treatments and are a healthier option in the natural fiber family. Due to the reduction of chemicals during production, these fibers have not been linked to health conditions.
What Else Should Be Considered?
Dyes
Textiles are not only made from fibers, but often times dyed with color and have finishes added to them.
There are two types of dyes that manufacturers use – synthetic and natural dyes. Similar to the principles of synthetic and natural fibers, synthetic dyes are an oil byproduct made from chemicals and natural dyes are made from natural materials produced by a living organism (plant or insect for example). Synthetic dyes have been linked to health conditions ranging from irritating conditions to life-threatening cancer.
As with textiles, choose textiles dyed with natural dyes instead of synthetic.
Finishes
Finishes are commonly added to textiles and help them resist water, stains, wrinkles, flames and more. We see these finishes advertised as “water resistant”, “stain resistant”, “wrinkle free”, “flame retardant” and “no iron”. While convenient, these finishes may not be so good for health - for example, "wrinkle-free" finishes often employ an application of formaldehyde on the clothing. Studies show that finishes like these may be causing asthma, cancer, and other health conditions.
While many products on the market today are covered in polyester and nylon synthetic materials, there are healthier cotton and wool natural materials available – and becoming more popular among consumers!
Water & Energy Usage
It takes around 1,800 gallons of water to grow enough cotton to produce just one pair of blue jeans, plus gallons of water every time we wash our clothes (and energy to heat the water if you are not washing with cold water!). Also, water usage varies depending on the natural fiber - for example some consider bamboo to be more "sustainable" as a fiber source than cotton due to it's fast-growing nature.
So in terms of resource use, consider buying less clothing, or buying second-hand (and natural fibers if possible!), and depending on the item of clothing and what you wore it for, it may not need to be washed after every use. And air-dry when possible too - this helps save energy (no dryer involved) and reduces wear-and-tear on your clothing as well.
Sources:
https://www.nontoxicliving.tips/blog/safer-textile-materials-to-detox-your-home
https://www.patagonia.com/synthetic-microfiber-pollution.html
https://thegreenhubonline.com/2018/08/13/clothing-made-from-natural-fibres-that-actually-look-good/
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