Think you're doing your bit for the planet by recycling your beer and wine bottles? Well, good effort, but if you own yoga pants, then you're probably still damaging the planet. A study conducted in Florida has revealed that plastic fibres found in some gymwear may be polluting the ocean and harming marine life. Just when you thought that yoga was all pure and good, eh?
The study showed that clothes made from synthetic materials such as nylon and polyester, shed tiny plastic fibres (that are smaller than microbeads) every time that they're washed. These then make their way into the ocean, causing serious harm to fish.
In fact, some marine life are even using these microfibes as a food source, which obviously isn't great for them, but it's also bad news for us, seeing as we're next in the food chain. So, if you're a big fan of seafood, odds are you're probably ingesting some small fragments of your yoga pants. Nice.
The dire finding has even prompted some environmentalists to consider targeting washing machine and activewear manufacturers in a bid to reduce the amount of plastic pollution the oceans.
So, while yoga pants may help you detox and clear out your mind, they most certainly won't do the same for the ocean. Andwe're pretty gutted that our workout wear is a potential threat to the environment, so we're going making a bid to check out the ingredients on the product labels of clothes before we buy them.
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This article originally appeared on The Debrief.