Micro-Plastics and Lustful Leggings

Posted On

No doubt you’ve heard about the March 2019 letter-to-the-editor written by Maryanne White to The Observer, an independent newspaper that serves the University of Notre Dame, St. Mary’s, and Holy Cross.  The mother of four sons complained that women who wore leggings in public made it hard for men, namely her sons, to control their sexual urges. “Leggings are so naked, so form-fitting, so exposing,” Maryanne White lamented in her letter. “Could you think of the mothers of sons the next time you go shopping and consider choosing jeans instead?”

For what it’s worth, and in the spirit of full disclosure, I wear various name-brand synthetic leggings for yoga and typically run errands in them before and after class.  I never considered that this form-fitting, supportive, comfortable, and breathable fitness staple could foment lust and become the object of protests.  If beauty is in the eye of the beholder then so, too, is obscenity — and by that, I mean this prurient curiosity about leggings is a knot that lustful men — and perhaps a helicopter mom or two — need to untangle.   

There are, however, more substantive issues regarding the synthetic fibers in leggings, workout clothing, and outerwear. The synthetic fibers commonly used in work out and other types of clothes are environmentally problematic as we deal with a global climate crisis that is, in part, pushing more endangered marine life to the brink of extinction.

“In 2011,” according to Nature World News, “ecologist Mark Browne discovered that microplastics from the fibers of our clothes are flown unknowingly to oceans, killing and polluting ecosystems. Now, Patagonia, one of the biggest synthetic clothes producers, admits that there’s indeed a problem.”

The problem is that fibers of polyester, polypropylene, and polyamides get washed into oceans and water supplies on laundry day. It doesn’t matter if the tiny threads are made of biodegradable plastic or not.

“The truth about these biodegradable plastics is that they are still plastic,” according to the Plastic Bites Blog.” Animals do not know the difference when they eat them. It may ‘break down’ in one or two years instead of ten or a hundred, but that doesn’t make a difference to an animal who picks it up today.”

There are “many innovative grassroots” efforts aimed at keeping fibers from being deposited in rinse water, according to Plastic Soup: “In the United States, for example, the Cora Ball is now being produced after a successful crowdfunding campaign. The natural filtration system of coral formed the inspiration for this ball, which filters tiny particles out of the rinse water in the washing machine.  Another example is the Guppy Friend, a special bag for in the washing machine created by a group of surfers, skaters, and creatives from Berlin. The bag traps microfibers and prevents them from reaching the water supply.”

Now that we know what the issues are, it’s time to stop making excuses and start making a positive difference. Here are five things we can do to be a part of the solution rather than the problem:    

1. Stop buying clothing containing synthetic fibers.

2. Too hooked on synthetic fabric? Then, purchase and use devices like the Cora Ball and the Guppy Friend on laundry day.

3. Join, support, and actively participate with organizations pressuring washing machine manufacturers to include plastic microfiber filters.

4. Encourage Patagonia, an organization that has long been on the cutting edge of recycling, fair trade, and other issues, to search for alternatives to synthetic fibers in their clothing. https://www.facebook.com/PATAGONIA/

5. Watch the progress of G-Star, a medium- to high-end clothing brand, that has pledged to reach 100% sustainable cotton and to replace 90% of all other fibers with sustainable material by 2020. https://www.facebook.com/gstarrawoutlet/

Please post your thoughts and solutions.     

For more info visit these sites: 

• https://www.plasticsoupfoundation.org
• https://www.natureworldnews.com/articles/41357/20190606/estimating-microplastic-consumption.htm
• https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/es201811s

Oh, let’s go back to Ms. White’s complaint about lustful leggings.  In response, hundreds of students on the campuses organized.  They wore leggings to class for a week in protest. Their response said, women can wear whatever they want, and they will not accept otherwise.