Be Environmentally Friendly in Organic Cotton Shirts

Cotton shirts are among the most popular wardrobe choices for most people.  Due to the versatility of cotton, as well as the countless styles and colors available, most people wear a cotton shirt every single day.  For many years, standard cotton was the only type of cotton available on the market.  However, manufacturers have recently become more and more concerned with the state of the environment.  As a result, the production techniques of many common everyday products have come under scrutiny.  

Standard cotton, as well as its’ production process has been identified as a large environmental hazard.  Not only does the manufacturing process of standard cotton harm the environment, but it could also be harmful to some people as well.  As an alternative to standard cotton, many are now choosing organic cotton shirts.

In the production of standard cotton, hormones and chemicals are used from the very beginning of the process.  These hormones and chemicals are fed to the cotton plants in order to encourage larger cotton output, which creates larger cotton harvests, which generates more profit for the manufacturers.  Some argue that this process not only harms the environment with the chemicals used, but also creates additional stress to the cotton workers involved in the process.  As an alternative, the manufacturers of organic cotton shirts take care to ensure that these practices to not occur in their productions.

Standard cotton plants naturally produce white cotton.  These natural white cotton plants will of course create the white yarn that eventually creates the white fabric of standard cotton shirts.  Due to the fact that standard cotton is white, but manufacturers wish to make colored shirts, dyes are needed.  Unlike in the production of organic cotton shirts, the dyes used in the production of standard cotton shirts are very toxic.  These dyes are not only harmful to the environment, but they can also be irritating to some people’s skin.  For this reason, many avoid wearing brightly colored shirts on their sensitive skin.

The production process of organic cotton shirts uses no harmful dyes.  In fact, generally no dyes at all are used in the process.  Many switch to wearing only organic cotton products for this reason alone.  Organic cotton naturally grows in a few different colors.  The most common colors are neutral tones such as beige, tan, brown, and reddish brown.  Although the color choices are not as vast as with standard cotton, many feel that the environment and personal benefits outweigh the heavily diminished color selection. 

Another benefit that many find with organic cotton shirts is in its’ soft texture.  Although this fact has not been scientifically explained, people who wear these shirts report that they usually feel softer than their standard cotton counterparts.  For this reason, many choose organic cotton for their baby and children’s clothing, to provide the most comfort to their young skin.  Much like any other cotton, organic cotton is also available in various thread counts, so the thickness and texture can also be altered.  The higher the thread count, the thicker the fabric will generally be.