Glitter | Fatal Conveniences™

The Darin Olien Show

All that glitters is gold, right? That may be just a line from a song. But the truth is that humans have found ways to decorate the things around us to glitter and shine for thousands of years. It doesn’t matter if it’s an art project, a sparkly outfit or glowing makeup– people LOVE glitter. But what are these tiny bits of plastic doing to our bodies, and to the planet? The answer may surprise you. WELCOME TO Fatal Conveniences™. Glitter is just shiny bits of toxic microplastics. But it sparkles, so we love it. Before plastic glitter existed, ancient cultures used to use bits of mica to make their skin sparkle. As humans, we have a primal instinct to be attracted to things that shine and glow. But this attraction has no pay off, in fact it’s the exact opposite. Today’s modern glitter is made from microplastics. These little bits of plastic seep into your body, and into the planet, causing damage to every living thing they come in contact with. Glitter doesn’t go away– and it can’t be recycled. So once it's in the environment, it’s not going anywhere. These little toxic bits of plastic will mess with your hormones, kill off fish and wildlife, and change the chemical makeup of the soil. All for a little sparkle. In this episode, we dive into the interesting history of humankind’s fascination with glitter and why we’re prone to love sparkly things. And we get into just how microplastics are destroying our health, and the health of our planet. But don’t worry, it’s not too hard to avoid glitter, you just have to know where to look. Instead of adding glitter to your day, be the sparkle instead! BREAKDOWN [00:02:58] Interesting history [00:04:50] Why we’re attracted to the appearance of glitter [00:06:09] The dangers of microplastics [00:13:35] Alternatives LINKS The History Taking a Shine to It: Why We’re Attracted to Sparkles Environmental Abomination To Save the Oceans, Should You Give up Glitter? First Evidence of Microplastics in Human Placenta Microplastics in Babies Compared to Adults Why is it Bad for the Environment? Alternatives Bioglitter Meadowbrook I really hope you enjoyed this episode of The Darin Olien Show! If you want to support or follow the podcast, here's how: Subscribe, rate or listen on Apple, Spotify, Stitcher Follow my Instagram to keep updated on the podcast, weekly deep dives and other projects that I'm supporting (and the occasional Chaga appreciation post) Sign up for my weekly Fatal Conveniences™ Email to get topic breakdowns & solutions delivered straight to your inbox. For feedback or suggestions, email my team at [e-mail] Find the list of brands & products that get the big tick of approval from me here. Comment below to join the discussion!