Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

Everyone is becoming more environmentally-friendly nowadays--for a good reason. Less and less plastic is being used, especially when it comes to grocery bags and drinking straws. A lot of stores and restaurants have switched to reusable cotton bags and paper straws that help the environment tremendously. Not only do these products reduce environmental waste, but they also keep ocean life and other animals safe. You may be thinking that reusable products are ideal, but not practical, since plastic is something we've been using since the '70s. However, this is not the case; find out more below.

Switch to Reusable Products

Save the Animals

Hundreds of thousands of sea creatures and birds die each year from ingesting or being strangled by plastic products. Sea turtles can get plastic straws lodged in their nose and esophagus; seagulls eat toxic plastic waste left over on beaches; larger fish might get stuck in plastic soda rings. These poor animals have no say over human actions, but we do. By switching to cardboard drink cartons and paper straws, we can save so many innocent animals from harm.

Reduce Waste

Most importantly, we can litter less (that's a huge issue). Realistically, though, there will always be people that insist on throwing trash everywhere, so we can at least make that trash biodegradable. As plastic sits and wastes away in landfills, it can take up to 15,000 years for it to fully "break down", but it still leaves behind toxic pieces in the landfill or another place it flew away to. Paper bags, ironically, really aren't that much better. Since landfills are full of trash, obviously, the paper isn't surrounded by the right environment to biodegrade, making it almost as bad as a plastic bag. Switching to cotton bags to carry your groceries home not only saves our planet, but also saves you from the fear of having your bag ripped open.

Spend Less Money

Overtime, your investment in buying a couple of reusable cups will pay off. Instead of buying a $5 crate of 20 plastic water bottles a week, simply buy a reusable water bottle for $5 and fill it up with your own water. You'll save $5 a week, which is roughly $260 a year--52 reusable water bottles! Bonus: if you bring in a reusable cup for your drink at Starbucks, you save $.10 on your order! If that isn't something to look forward to, then I don't know what is. To take it one step further, you can also purchase metal straws to use in place of plastic straws. If you focus on the long-term effects of "going reusable", then you can easily make your $5 back, and then some.

Feel Good

"Be the change you want to see in the world." - Mahatma Gandhi

These suggestions aren't here to stress you out about being the sole person to save the world; we just want you to know that you can do your part to change it for the better. I guarantee you that after you use your reusable Starbucks cup and cotton bag for a week, you'll start to feel like you're making a real difference in the world--and you are. That's seven less plastic bottles going into the ocean and one less plastic bag going to a landfill. If all you feel like doing is using metal straws instead of plastic ones, then go for it; make a difference, one small step at a time.

If you feel like making an even bigger impact on the world, then feel free to take full advantage of You've Got Maids' Green Cleaning. We use eco-friendly products in your house to make sure that you have the best, sparkling house clean. Go ahead and grab that reusable Starbucks cup and save 10 cents on your order, but make sure to click the button below before you go to get your free cleaning estimate today .