This month is Plastic Free July and to help celebrate I have a giveaway for 4 bamboo toothbrushes from Gaia Guy. Find out how to enter at the end of this post.

For those of you who aren’t familiar, Plastic Free July “aims to raise awareness of the problems of single-use disposable plastic and challenges people to do something about it.” People are encouraged to refuse all single-use plastic for the period of a day, week, month or longer. Either that or refuse the top 4 single use plastic items: plastic bags, water bottles, takeaway coffee cups and straws. Sadly, it is estimated that by 2050, “there will be more plastic than fish in the world’s oceans. Most [of this plastic] comes from land and was was once in our hands.” Together we can refuse single-use plastics and keep oceans and waterways clean.

Toothbrushes aren’t single use items, but they are daily use items that are easily replaced with a non-plastic equivalent. Bamboo toothbrushes, with charcoal bristles, are recyclable and biodegradable. That means that even if you don’t have local recycling facilities your toothbrush will biodegrade and nourish the earth over time. Plastic toothbrushes will only breakdown into micro-plastics, at best, and will degrade the health of the planet over time. Not to mention toothbrushes prove deadly to sea animals who often mistakenly eat plastics and die as a consequence. Bamboo toothbrushes are affordable ($4-5) and last just as long as the plastic equivalent.

The bamboo brushes by Gaia Guy:

• are made from 100% natural bamboo – truly sustainable
• are vegan friendly, BPA-free, lead-free, phthalates-free, guilt-free
• have bristles that are biodegradable nylon-4 infused with bamboo charcoal
• are light, yet solid and are a naturally antimicrobial toothbrush
• have packaging that is eco-friendly with recycled cardboard and no glue that is recyclable, compostable and biodegradable
• last as long as conventional plastic toothbrushes
• are a great eco-friendly gift

Imagine the amount of plastic you will keep out of the environment by choosing to use a biodegradable toothbrush. One simple choice can create a powerful positive change for the environment. What’s more: small simple changes encourage us to make more small simple changes over time that really add up and have a ripple effect with our friends and family.

So, the next time you need a new toothbrush go find a bamboo one at a local shop or order one online. Gaia Guy sells them here.

• By the way, if you aren’t making your own toothpaste I would recommend that you check out Truthpaste – they make a superb paste that is free of plastic microbeads (yes, conventional toothpaste has plastic in it that you swallow and spit down the drain. Horrendous!)

I would also encourage you to visit Gaia Guy’s website to read about his passion for regenerative enterprises. (He didn’t ask me to share any of this or the facts on his toothbrushes, I just loved what I found on his site and wanted to share with my readers). As he explains “regenerative enterprises are about partnerships with living systems,” that is, business in harmony with the planet and its ecosystems. As he explains this is not an oxymoron. I truly think regenerative enterprise should be the model for business going forward. Thank you for your energy and inspiration on this Ian (Gaia Guy)! Everything Gaia Guy stocks is biodegradable, reusable and bio-based.

To enter the giveaway for 4 bamboo toothbrushes, visit my Instagram account and look for the photo above, and make sure to:

• Follow @higaiaguy on Instagram
• Follow me @hippieindisguise
• Like and comment on the giveaway photo
• Bonus entries:
  • Tag friends in the comments on the Instagram giveaway photo, separate each friend into a different comment so that it is easier for me to make the ballots ???? No limit to the number of friends tagged. Each friend counts for an additional entry.
• Get 5 extra entries: post a photo of yourself, your children, family or friends doing something good for the earth, like planting a tree or doing something in a more sustainable way. Use the hashtag #hippieslovegaiaguy so we can find your entry
• Get 2 extra entries for putting @hippieindisguise and @higaiaguy in your Instagram post
• Bonus entry if you follow Gaia Guy on Facebook

Contest closes Sunday July 31, 2016 at midnight and is open worldwide. Good luck friends!

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