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App: Beat the Microbead

App: Beat the Microbead

Posted on May 28, 2018January 24, 2023

Today, for the first time ever, I want to share an app with you! This app can help you avoid plastics, very small plastics. So small that you usually can’t even see them. Micro-plastics. They pollute the environment. Micro-plastics end up in the oceans, in animals and also: in humans. It is a good thing to try to avoid micro-plastics as much as we can. The next app can help you with that: Beat The Microbead!

What Are Micro-Plastics?

Micro-plastics are very small pieces of plastic. Usually so small that we can’t see them with our bare eyes. Most people think micro-plastics end up in the environment because big pieces of plastic break into smaller ones. And then again and again and again. After this proces you end up with micro-plastics so most people are right. However, there are also other sources of micro-plastics. One is plastic clothing. If you wash plastic clothing (like polyester) micro-plastics are released and can’t be filtered by the washing machine. They are too small and so they end up in our sewage.

There is a solution to that (besides not buying plastic clothing), but I’ll talk more about that later. The source of micro-plastics I want to talk about today are cosmetics. Micro-plastics are intentionally put in cosmetics. Cosmetic companies claim these will cleanse your skin better or do other magic (which is bullsh*t). Think about scrubs, the hard pieces in there are usually plastics. And plastic is not only in scrubs, it’s in all cosmetics, make-up, toothpaste, day-cream etc.

Why Avoid Micro-Plastics?

I wrote a post about plastic in general. 8 reasons to ditch (especially single-use) plastic. If you read that you’ll understand why I don’t like plastics. However, micro-plastics are a little special in this story. They are a really nasty form of plastic pollution. That’s because they’re small and most of the time you can’t see them. And because they are so small they spread easily. In the oceans, in animals and in humans. Micro-plastics have been found in a lot of our food already. In beer, in water, in honey, etc. It is not healthy to have micro-plastics in your body.

‘There are doubts about nano-plastic ingredients used in products like sunscreen. Nano-plastic ingredients may easily penetrate skin due to their extreme small size. Also, micro-plastic ingredients in the sea absorb toxic chemicals as if they are little magnets. The particles become polluted and are eaten by fish and other sea animals.’

Beat The Microbead

Zero Waste

I try to avoid all plastics, you probably know that. And since most cosmetics which contains micro-plastics also have a plastic packaging I barely buy those products. I usually make my own cosmetics, like deodorant and make-up remover. But when you don’t make things yourself it’s good to know what’s in your product.

Beat The Microbead

That’s where the app Beat The Microbead comes in. If you install this app you can scan the bar code of (almost) any cosmetic. Then the app immeadiately tells you whether the product contains micro-plastics or not. Useful, right? Of course you can also see if the product contains micro-plastics by reading the ingredient list. There is a basic rule to use: if one of the ingredients has the word poly in it then it’s usually plastic. However, I can image that you don’t want to read that extensive list every time (ingredient lists in cosmetics are always long). And what if you already have products that contain micro-plastics? A shampoo which is still half-full for example. You never hear me say this but my advice would be: throw it away. The trash can is better than the oceans.

If you don’t want to install the app because you don’t want one more app and want to keep your phone clean: I get that. There is also a website available from Beat The Microbead. There you just search for the product you want to buy by name and then the website tells you if it has micro-plastics in it or not. It works the same but the website also contains a lot of extra information on micro-plastics.

Bar Code

You probably think: ‘But if it has a bar code on the products, that means it is not zero waste?’. Yes, that’s right. And so, I’d want to urgently tell you: I am not advising you to buy cosmetics in plastic. If you have a zero waste option available I would always suggest you choose that. But be aware: even zero waste products can contains micro-plastics. With this app you can also check those products. And also: zero waste is not always an option for everyone. But now, am option free of micro-plastics is!

Do you use the app: Beat the Microbead?

Yours sincerely,
Romee

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ABOUT ME

 

when a teen goes green

Hi! My name is Romee Hoeksma and I am on a journey to an eco-positive life. An eco-positive lifestyle is a lifestyle in which I have a more positive than negative impact on the beautiful planet earth. On this blog you can follow my journey to a life with only positive impact. At this blog you can find all sorts of things, from tips to recipes to personal experiences, but most of all fun (I hope!). I write about how I want to change the world, but don’t look at it as if I’m judging you. If anything, I like responses from my dear readers the most, so don’t hesitate to contact me or respond to any of my posts!

Yours sincerely,
Romee

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Vandaag een artikel op mijn blog over Pieter Pot. Een webshop voor verpakkingsvrije boodschappen πŸ₯œ. Een geweldig concept die jou helpt je afval te verminderen Γ©n er ook nog eens heel goed uit ziet in je keuken #nospon. Je leest het nu via de link in mijn bio. Een greep uit de vegan maaltijden die ik at in mei 2023 πŸ§†. Als ik zo terugkijk heb ik de italiaanse weer helemaal ontdekt, haha! Maar het hoogtepunt was wel echt de vegan, zero waste, kaassaus die ik maakte voor over de nachoschotel 🫘. Welke vegan ijs-, toetjes- of yoghurtproducten zijn het lekkerst? Ik zette het voor je op een rijtje in een artikel die vanaf vandaag te lezen is 🍧. Je vindt de link in mijn bio. Spoiler: deze van Hertog staat er zeker tussen! #plantaardig #vegan #blogger ✨ 4 tweedehands outfits die ik droeg in mei 2023 πŸ‘—. Ik had op iets beter weer en iets koudere outfits gehoopt, maar goed, dat schuiven we dan maar naar juni! Ik ben poepdonor πŸ’©. Ja, Γ©cht. Ik doe mee met een wetenschappelijk onderzoek waarbij mijn darmflora gebruikt wordt om mensen met een leveraandoening te genezen. Ik ben zo blij met de positieve impact die ik hiermee kan maken! En ik krijg er nog betaald voor ook. Meer weten? Lees het artikel dat ik erover schreef via de link in mijn bio. Binnenkort zal ik er ook een Youtube-video aan wijden. #donor #positieveimpact #nafldnashresearch Minimaliseren en ontspullen blijft een ongoing process πŸ“¦. Ik vind dat ik niet al te veel spullen heb, maar toch geef ik nog geregeld spullen weg aan de kringloopwinkel. In deze reel laat ik de laatste 5 items aan je zien. Plantaardiger eten hoeft niet moeilijk te zijn, je moet net even weten welke producten vegan zijn. Vandaag deel ik een makkelijke swap voor mayonaise 🍟. Het is weer mei! En dat betekent dat er weer een artikel met podcast-tips op mijn blog staat (de vijfde in de reeks inmiddels!). Vandaag lees je over 4 podcasts die ik aan bijna iedereen zou aanraden 🎧. 5 vegan maaltijden die ik at in april 2023 πŸ₯™. En ja, Γ©cht alles is vegan. Want elk gerecht is te veganizen.

Read my latest posts

  • Zero waste groceries at Pieter Pot
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