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Everyday swaps

Bamboo or replaceable-head toothbrush

A plastic toothbrush weighs about 18 g and is replaced every three months; a bamboo handle composts and only the nylon bristles remain.

Swap out
Plastic toothbrush
Swap in
Solid bamboo toothbrush or replaceable-head brush
Impact
1 / 5
Cost
1 / 3
Effort
1 / 3
Grams of plastic avoided per person per year
70
Watch out for
Bristles are still nylon on most bamboo brushes; avoid glossy bamboo-fibre composites, which are melamine plastic.

Buy a solid bamboo toothbrush, or an electric or manual brush with replaceable heads so the handle lasts for years. When a bamboo brush is done, pull the bristles out with pliers and compost the handle.

Four plastic toothbrushes a year at about 18 g each is around 70 g of plastic; the bamboo version leaves only about a gram of nylon bristle per brush.

The catch: most bamboo brushes still have nylon bristles, and any rigid, glossy bamboo-fibre product is likely a melamine composite; look for solid bamboo and a Plastic Free certification or clear material declaration.

Page updated 22 September 2026. How we check sources