Is Bamboo Viscose Really Bamboo?
The FTC has fined retailers $6.8 million over one word on a label. Here’s what happens to the plant between the field and your underwear drawer.
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What Does “Compostable” Actually Mean on Packaging?
The good news is that certified compostable packaging really does break down. The bad news is where it almost certainly isn’t going.
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Is Food-Grade Silicone Safe? The Honest Answer
Silicone is the default zero-waste swap for plastic wrap and bakeware. The research on what it releases is more interesting than either side of the argument admits.
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Who Owns Birch Mattress? The Answer Is a Private Equity Firm
Birch sells organic, non-toxic mattresses. Its owner is Cerberus Capital Management, the firm behind Remington and the Steward Health Care collapse. Here’s the full picture.
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Does Antimicrobial Silver in Activewear Actually Work?
Silver-treated leggings promise you’ll never smell. When somebody ran the experiment on real people rather than in a petri dish, the treated shirts did no better.
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Do Plastic Cutting Boards Shed Microplastics Into Your Food?
A 2023 study put numbers on what your knife does to a plastic board, and the numbers are large. The same paper ran a toxicity test that came back clean. Both halves are true.
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Is Propylene Glycol in Deodorant Safe?
Yes, it’s in antifreeze. That’s true and it’s beside the point. The real reason to watch this one is that dermatologists gave it an award in 2018, and your armpit is its worst-case scenario.
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Why Does Baking Soda Deodorant Give You a Rash?
Red, stinging, sometimes peeling underarms after switching to natural deodorant. It isn’t a detox and you’re not allergic. It’s chemistry, and the fix is one word on the label.
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Is Aluminum in Antiperspirant Bad for You? An Honest Answer
The breast cancer claim doesn’t hold up and neither does the Alzheimer’s one. There’s still a warning printed on every tube, and it’s there for a real reason.
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What Does bluesign Approved Actually Mean?
It’s the certification serious outdoor brands actually bother with, and it works from the opposite end to every other one. It also says nothing about what your jacket is made of.
