As I have been getting older, I've been more conscious of what I put into my body. Healthy eating has become more of a permanent fixture in my life, which is a welcomed consequence of aging.
Alongside natural food consumption, and a mostly organic diet, I began learning about plastic. One of my good friends from high-school turned me onto the movie Bag It. I had been apprehensive about plastic before this movie, but watching it changed my opinion completely!
I had not considered just how much plastic I was consuming among the various daily activities,
Turning off my morning alarm (plastic phone cover)
Washing my hair (plastic shampoo bottle + plastic in shampoo)
Brushing my teeth (plastic toothbrush)
Making Breakfast (plastic tupperware + plastic dishes + cups)
Putting on Jewelry (plastic rings)
Leaving the house (putting on my plastic sunglasses)
Walking to the subway picking up a coconut water (plastic bottle)
The shop keeper put the coconut water in a plastic bag
Stopping to grab coffee (paper cup is lined with plastic)
Entering the subway (plastic card, plastic seats, plastic ads.)
You get the point....
Once I began thinking about this the possibilities were endless, bags, containers, utensils...
A few small things I have done to change my daily life are I've begun carrying around a canvas bag with me, particularly when I know I will be heading to the store to pick up groceries, I refrain from using a bag at all when possible, I've begun choosing glass over plastic bottles when making purchases at the grocery store (for example honey and peanut butter), and I've begun storing my goods in glass jars as well.
The last two points work well together. Because I've begun purchasing more products in glass jars, this allows me to wash them after and re-use them for storage or for use when packing my lunch (As the photo above illustrates).
I would like to conclude with the fact that, yes, I do still consume plastic. There are some instances where there is no escaping it, and I use it. I'm not as intense as I may seem by this post, however, if I can help it I will.
Pictured Above - Left to Right
Glass Jar from Dollar Store - Inside: Dried Cranberries
Jelly Jar - Inside: Red Quinoa
Local Glass Honey Jar - Inside: Raw Pumpkin Seeds
Glass Kalamata Olive Jar - Inside Dried Figs
Claussen Pickle Jar - Inside: Raw Almonds + Raw Organic Cashews
Smuckers Peanut Butter Jar - Inside: Flax Seed
Gerber Baby-food Jar - Inside: Homemade Trail Mix
Gerber Turtle Baby-food Jar - Inside: Hemp Granola
Gerber Lion Baby-food Jar - Inside: Mini-Banana Flax Corn Muffin (below)
The Trail Mix & Hemp Granola are re-used baby-food / apple sauce jars, which are perfect for individual serving sizes and great for travel. You can read my brief discussion of them HERE.
Plus they make some with cute animal lids!
