Alternatives to Facial Tissues

I feel like my family usually gets a break from runny noses during the summer months, but this hasn’t happened this year. One or more of my kids has had a runny nose since December. Some of these runny noses have been from colds, but many have been from allergies. Regardless of the cause, we’ve been going through ridiculous quantities of facial tissues.

This is problematic for several reasons. One is cost. Facial tissues, especially the soft ones that don’t make my kids’ noses sore, aren’t cheap. The second reason is this issue of sore noses. If used often enough, even soft tissues leave my kids noses red and sore. The third reason is concern about the environmental impact of using so many tissues. Tissues, of course, come from trees. Vast swaths of forests are destroyed each year to gain wood pulp to make them (source) and a lot of energy is consumed to manufacture and transport them.

In order to address these issues, I’ve been considering alternatives to facial tissues.

Facial tissue alternatives

There are really only two alternatives to facial tissues: Other paper products and cloth products. Just like facial tissues, other paper products (e.g., toilet tissue, paper towels) are pricy, leave my kids’ noses sore, and aren’t very green. Cloth products, such as handkerchiefs, are reusable (which cuts down on their expense and environmental impact) and are gentle on noses, but I’ve shied away from these because I’ve been concerned about the spread of germs.

Given the volume of snot I wipe off of my kids’ faces each week, I decided to give handkerchiefs and other cloth products of second look.

Cost

Plain white cotton handkerchiefs are pretty affordable. I’ve found them for around $0.80 per handkerchief. Other cloths that can be used as handkerchiefs are priced similarly. For example, bandanas cost about $1.00 each and cloth baby wipes cost about $0.70 each. If you have old cotton or flannel shirts around the house, you can cut these and use them as hankies. This won’t cost you anything!

It certainly is cheaper to buy a single box of tissues than a set of handkerchiefs, but you’ll soon have to replace the box of tissues while you can wash and reuse the handkerchiefs indefinitely.

Softness

Cotton and flannel are much gentler on the nose than paper tissues, even those that contain lotion. Moreover, as long as you don’t use fabric softener, the cotton and flannel won’t contain chemicals that have the potential to irritate the skin. Tissues that contain lotion, on the other hand, may irritate the skin of the face because they contain various ingredients (e.g., oils, alcohols, emollients) that are supposed to keep the skin soft.

Environmental impact

According to one source, it takes three times the amount of energy to produce tissues than cotton handkerchiefs. Once produced, cotton handkerchiefs can be reused for years while tissues are tossed out after a single use.

It seems to me that handkerchiefs are greener than tissues. However, it is important to keep in mind that not all fabrics have the same environmental impact. For example, conventionally grown cotton isn’t particularly friendly to the environment because of the pesticides used to grow it. Thus, fabrics like organic cotton or bamboo may be better options. One especially green option is making handkerchiefs from old cotton or flannel clothes.

Effectiveness at stopping the spread of germs

Many people have concerns about handkerchiefs spreading germs. I shared these concerns until I gave some thought to the various ways one can use handkerchiefs. If you continue to use a single hankie all day then, yes, you will be spreading germs around. The germs will get on your hands and in your pocket (or wherever you store the handkerchief). However, if you use a hankie and then set is aside in a small bag or container to await washing, then you won’t be spreading any more germs than you do when using tissues. Travel wet bags (small, washable bags made of waterproof cloth that zip closed) or waterproof cosmetic bags are great options for this.

Given handkerchiefs are thicker than tissues, I think there is the potential you may actually spread fewer germs. This is because, unlike a tissue, a handkerchief will not tear down the middle while you are blowing your nose, nor will it tear when wet. Another important thing to consider is handwashing. You really should wash your hands (or use hand sanitizer) each time you blow your nose (or wipe a kids’ nose). Even if you use tissues, some germs get on the hands. Thus, neither option really stops the spread of germs unless it is accompanied by hand hygiene.

When it comes to washing handkerchiefs, it is very easy to get them free of germs. We’ve cloth diapered; let me assure you that gross hankies are a cinch compared with dirty diapers! If you’ve only used a hankie for tears or sneezing when you don’t have a cold or flu, then special washing isn’t really necessary. After all, do you do anything special to wash a shirt if you’ve sneezed into your elbow? However, if the hankies are covered in snot or have been used for sneezes or coughs by someone with a cold or flu, you can get rid of the germs by washing them in hot water with an additive-free detergent and adding a disinfectant such as Grapefruit Seed Extract or vinegar to the rinse cycle or tea tree oil (with low Cineole and high Terpinen-4-ol numbers) to the wash cycle.

Final thoughts

We haven’t stopped using tissues completely, but we have cut back on our use of them in favor of using cloth wipes. We’ve been saving money by not purchasing as many tissues and I think my kids, especially my 9-month-old, appreciate the gentleness of the cloth.

Do you use handkerchiefs? Why or why not?

Shared at the following:

Farm Fresh Tuesdays, Busy Monday, Over the Moon, and Tuesdays with a Twist.