Standard toilet paper swap to Unbleached bamboo toilet paper

Why make the swap

• Why switch to unbleached bamboo toilet paper

  Unbleached rolls made from bamboo fibre, not recycled paper. The maker says they’re PFAS-free and BPA-free with no elemental chlorine, and they come in paper with no plastic film or tape.

• What's the concern with standard toilet paper

  Researchers found PFAS, mostly a type called 6:2 diPAP, in toilet paper sold on several continents, though that study looked at wastewater, not skin. Another study found BPA in rolls made from recycled paper, likely from recycled receipts, and judged the dose through skin small next to food. White rolls are bleached, and EPA notes that adding chlorine during bleaching is one way paper mills form dioxins.

• General information, not medical advice. Ask your doctor, especially if you’re pregnant, nursing or have a health condition.

• Good to know before you buy

  It costs more per sheet than most supermarket rolls. PFAS-free is the maker’s word, not an independent test.

• Sources (5)

  1. Thompson et al. 2023, Environ Sci Technol Lett: PFAS in toilet paper and the impact on wastewater systems (wastewater only; no skin exposure assessed) (opens in a new tab)
  2. Technology Networks: toilet paper an unexpected source of PFAS (6:2 diPAP; regions sampled; PFAS may come from pulping or recycled fibre) (opens in a new tab)
  3. Liao & Kannan 2011, Environ Sci Technol: BPA in paper products including recycled toilet paper; skin dose small compared with diet (opens in a new tab)
  4. EPA 1997: rule to eliminate elemental chlorine in pulp bleaching; adding chlorine is one way dioxins are produced (opens in a new tab)
  5. Bamboo Story listing: unbleached, FSC bamboo fibres, PFAS-free, no elemental chlorine or BPA, plastic-free tape-free packaging (opens in a new tab)

  Health and safety facts on this page come from these sources. What a pick is made of comes from its maker's listing or website, as stated on the date we checked.