STOP Plastic Toothbrush Pollution

Project Mission:

Bring Awareness to the plastic toothbrush pollution and provide alternatives.
Request retailers and dentists to provide biodegradable options.

Project initiated by Amita Gowda, High School Student in 2021

Let’s use our CONSUMER POWER!

Stop buying any new plastic toothbrush
Refuse to take free plastic toothbrushes distributed through dentists
Permanently switch to buying only eco-friendly options.
Responsibly dispose any used or new plastic toothbrushes you might have at home – ideally this should only be a onetime procedure for a househo

Drop-off your plastic toothbrushes at the Fremont Earth Day Fair

THE ISSUE

Plastic toothbrushes are not recycled because they are made of mixed materials such as plastic, nylon, rubber, and other materials, which are hard to separate for recycling. Separation of materials requires additional processes and increases the cost of recycling, so recycling centers in the USA do not accept it, and it ends up in the landfills.

One billion toothbrushes are thrown away every year in the United State alone. It’s appalling to even think about the global disposal amount!
Plastic toothbrushes add 50 million pounds of waste to landfills every year in the United States
Plastic toothbrushes take 1000+ years to start to break-down and will never fully degrade.These tiny pieces of plastic cause huge destruction to marine and land wildlife; infact impacting humans too.
Additionally, the plastic from the packaging also contributes to more plastic pollution
Electric toothbrushes are no exception, it is in fact made of plastic and rubber. Additionally the batteries, even the rechargeable batteries, cause more environmental harm when disposed improperly
Plastic toothbrushes are made from crude oil (fossil fuel) depleting the precious non-renewable natural resource, and the emissions from the manufacturing process adds to the increase in anthropogenic greenhouse gases which causes climate change

THE IMPACTS

AIR POLLUTION:

Plastics are made from fossil fuel (crude oil and natural gas) which releases lots of toxins into the air like benzene, toluene, and more
Toothbrush bristles are made of nylon which when being manufactured releases nitrous oxide
Over 40% of the world’s plastic waste is burnt and burning releases more hazardous chemicals such as hydrochloric acid, sulfur dioxide, dioxins, furans, etc.

LAND AND OCEAN POLLUTION:

According to the EPA 2018 report, only 4.47% of the plastic we discard is being recycled and only 16.27% combusted for energy recovery. Much of it ends up in landfills, taking 1,000+ years to break-down into microplastics and leaching potentially toxic substances into the soil and water.

Plastic from land is carried into the ocean through wind, rain, storm-drains, streams, and rivers.

Soil quality is degraded from toxic chemicals leaching out of plastics and impacts all vegetation and biodiversity.
Farm lands are being polluted with microplastics and the chemicals that leach out of it.
Microplastics are very small plastic pieces that are often mistaken to be food and eaten by land and marine animals which leads to choking, starvation, and even death
- Over a million marine animals are killed each year from plastic
- Over 700 species of marine organisms are close to extinction due to plastic
- More than 90% of birds and fish are reported to have plastic in their bodies
- Plastics can also carry invasive microorganisms into another territory which can hurt food chains and more organisms
- Organisms that consume plastics will die with many health issues:
  - organisms’ body structures can change
  - Block digestive tracts
  - Diminish the urge to eat
  - Reduce growth & reproductive health

THE HUMAN IMPACT:

Toothbrush bristles are commonly made using nylon, polyester, wire, etc. which are all common breeding grounds for bacteria. If the toothbrush bristles are not sterilized or disinfected properly, you are essentially cleaning your teeth with what is a dirty toothbrush allowing bacteria to enter your mouth
Microplastic and Nano-plastic particles are now discoverable in human organs. It enters the human body through food, water, and air we breathe. When microplastics enter the human body, it can have a huge negative impact on one’s health causing issues like:
- Inflammation
- Genotoxicity
- Oxidative Stress
- Apoptosis
- Necrosis
Lots of toothbrushes are made using BPA (Bisphenol A) which can cause lots of health issues such as:
- Disrupting Hormone Levels
- Increase Cancer Risk
- Affects Brain Development
- Can lead to major heart diseases

THE SOLUTIONS

SWITCH TO BIODEGRADABLE TOOTHBRUSHES WITH CHARCOAL BRISTLES

BENEFITS:

Antimicrobial – as bamboo properties allow it to kill bacteria on its surface unlike plastic, no harmful bacteria will form and spread on the toothbrush handle,
- Just as effective as plastic toothbrushes in cleaning, and is used the same way
- Biodegradable – Less environmental concern
- Organic – Bamboos are grown organically, and it does not need pesticides or fertilizer
Charcoal bristles remove stains on your teeth
- Activated charcoal binds to acidic components, removing stains
Charcoal toothbrushes have antibacterial properties
- Researchers found that charcoal bristles had less bacteria left on them after brushing than nylon bristles

How to become a Collection Point?

COLLECT AND SHIP PLASTIC TOOTHBRUSHES AT NO-CHARGE TO TERRACYCLE/COLGATE PROGRAM

OR, TO THE ORAL-B’S RECYCLE ON US PROGRAM

ORAL-B and Crest are taking back the Plastic Oral Care products directly through their Recycle On Us program. Print the Shipping Labels from this page: ORAL-B RECYCLING https://oralb.com/en-us/recycling/

TerraCycle® and Colgate® have partnered to create a national recycling network for all brands of used or empty plastic oral care products and packaging.

Your school, church, community organization, office, etc., can sign-up for this program at:

https://www.terracycle.com/en-US/brigades/colgate-local-recycling-solutions

After acceptance into the program, you can use any collection or recycling bin for collecting at your location. Once you have collected at least 10 pounds, you are ready to ship. Download a prepaid UPS shipping label and affix it to any empty box to send to TerraCycle for recycling.
You can collect the following items for this program:

Plastic Toothbrush
Plastic Floss container
Packaging plastic from the box of any oral products
Used Toothpaste Tube with lid

NOTE: Please do not send in any electric toothbrushes, battery toothbrushes, and/or their parts through these programs.

Dispose responsibly all of your plastic oral care products and switch to biodegradable products for a real permanent solution.