Plastic Free July: Start Your Plastic Detox at Home

By Vicki Patterson

Plastic Free July is just around the corner and it’s more than just a movement. It’s a wake-up call.

Recent research has revealed something alarming: chemicals found in plastics, like BPA, phthalates, and other endocrine-disrupting compounds, are showing up in our bodies and the consequences are real. Read more from this blog.

These substances don’t just pollute the environment. They interfere with hormone function, disrupt our immune system and impact fertility and reproductive health.

It's time we rethink our relationship with plastic, not just for the planet, but for our health.

The Hidden Dangers of Plastic

Plastic may seem harmless, but many types contain Bisphenol A (BPA), a chemical used to harden plastics and found in food packaging, water bottles, canned goods and even receipts.

BPA can mimic estrogen in the body and has been linked to:

• Hormonal imbalances

• Fertility issues in both men and women

• Increased risk of certain cancers

• Impaired immune function

• Developmental problems in children

The scariest part? BPA and similar chemicals leach from plastic into our food, drinks and even the air we breathe, especially when plastic is heated or degraded.

Your First Step? Join the Plastic Detox Challenge

We’ve created a Plastic Detox Challenge to help you get started. It’s a mindful and manageable checklist of swaps and habits to help you lessen your plastic footprint and the toxic load on your body.

Here are 7 Areas of Focus to guide your journey and 25 Action Items!

1. 🛒 Shopping & Consumer Habits

2. 🚫 Disposable Plastics

3. 🧼 Home & Personal Care

4. 🧵 Clothing & Laundry

5. 🥗 Kitchen & Food Habits

6. 🔁 Reuse, Repair & Repurpose

7. 🌎 Community & Daily Habits

   
   

   The Actions

   
   

   🛒 Shopping & Consumer Habits

   - Donate items to secondhand stores and shop there first

   - Choose snacks without plastic packaging

   - Shop local, buy organic, support local farmers markets

   - Bring your own bags for fresh produce or use a grocer box

   - Buy from bulk bins—bring your own bags or containers

   - Choose plastic-free chewing gum (yes, there’s plastic in gum!)

   - Choose companies committed to sustainability. Research their practices, look for B - -- - Corp certification and ask: are they truly making a difference or just marketing it?

   
   
   
   

   🚫 Ditch Disposable Plastics

   - Use reusable shopping bags and skip single-use plastic ones

   - Say no to bottled water, sodas, and other plastic bottled beverages

   - Use natural beeswax wraps instead of plastic cling film

   - Use loose leaf tea / ditch the tea bag

   - On the go? Always carry reusable straws, utensils, and a travel mug or bottle

   
   

   🧼 Home & Personal Care

   - Make your own cleaning products

   - Ditch the bottles—use bar soap, shampoo, and conditioner instead

   - Use plastic-free/reef-safe sunscreen! Always!!!

   - Avoid anything with “polyethylene” listed as an ingredient

   
   

   🧵 Clothing & Laundry

   - Choose to wear natural fabrics (don’t wear anything labeled polyester, nylon, acrylic,

   spandex (lycra/elastane), microfiber)

   - Dry clothes on a clothesline

   
   

   🥗 Kitchen & Food Habits

   - Make your own homemade yogurt, nut milk, snacks, and energy bars

   - Reuse glass jars and containers to store food

   
   

   🔁 Reuse, Repair & Repurpose

   - Share items with friends

   - Skip the landfill—repair, repurpose or donate to a secondhand shop instead

   
   

   🌎 Community & Daily Habits

   - Create recycle bins—recycle glass, plastic, paper

   - Pick up trash on your walks: “Don’t pass it up, pick it up”

   
   
   
   

My Plastic Detox Story: Progress, Not Perfection

I’m taking the challenge alongside you and I started with my kitchen. I realized how much plastic I had around my food, containers, wraps, lids, all potentially leaching chemicals.

So I donated all my plastic storage containers and dug out my vintage Pyrex glassware.

I also started using beeswax wraps instead of plastic wrap, and honestly? It feels great!

Next up: clothing. As someone who enjoys backpacking, I began investing in natural fibers last year, wool, hemp, and bamboo. While not every item in my closet is plastic-free, it’s encouraging to know that every choice I make reduces microfiber pollution in our oceans.

What’s Easy? What’s Tough?

Some swaps are surprisingly easy, reusable grocery bags, shampoo bars, refillable cleaning products. But others? Not so much.

I’ve noticed almost all my vitamins, protein powders and even my favorite yogurt come in plastic. I’m still figuring those out. If you’ve found alternatives, I’d love to hear your tips!

It Starts at Home—But Doesn’t End There

Reducing plastic starts with the small choices we make at home, but its ripple effect reaches far beyond. When we shop differently, we influence what businesses produce.

When we clean our beaches and neighborhoods, we protect marine life.

When we talk to our friends and family, we multiply the movement.

Join us this Plastic Free July and commit to your own plastic detox. Whether you take on one area or all seven, every action counts.

👉 Want to make a bigger impact?

Get involved in our beach cleanups, educational events, or community collaborations.

You can find everything you need to get started on our website or by joining one of our events!

Let’s detox our lives for our health, our future and our ocean. 🌊