Did you know that high-end hotels use 100% cotton bedding so your body can regulate it’s temperature and you sleep more soundly instead of using a cheaper cotton/polyester blend, like low-end motels use?

When Saddleback Leather was asked by our Texas governor to manufacture personal protective equipment instead of leather, we started using cotton. The more I peppered our weaver about fabric, the more I started digging into the quality behind it. Along with that, I learned the ills of Polyester and thought what has helped me may help you too.

Polyester is hated by everybody except for cheap clothing and bedding manufacturers and the people who peddle it. It is the filler to cheap fabric as sawdust is to cheap dog food, corn syrup is to cheap honey or lard is to cheap peanut butter. We can’t go live in a cave, but we can use less polyester when there’s an option. BTW, Microfiber is Polyester and Nylon together.

Miscarriages are tied to Polyester underwear, according to this National Institute of Health study. Another of their studies talks about just using Polyester undergarments for men as a 100% effective contraceptive. More studies show it can cause infertility in women and sterility and impotence in men. Did you know a lot of Hanes and Fruit of the Loom men’s and women’s underwear are 80%+ Polyester fabric? Other studies and scientists say that Polyester can be toxic and to keep babies away from it.

Skin exposure to Polyester can cause rashes, itching, redness, eczema, dermatitis, blistering or make existing skin problems worse for those with sensitive skin, up to 3 days later. Heat releases Polyester chemicals like Antimony oxide Sb2O3, which is used to make Polyester and is a known carcinogen. With body heat, it is partially dissolved with sweat and absorbed by the skin. It can cause heart, liver, kidney and skin ailments. When the Polyester gasses are inhaled, Formaldehyde and other Perfluorochemicals (PFCs) can cause lung problems and headaches. The American Academy of Pediatrics wrote about the seriousness of PFC’s. Kid’s pajamas with Polyester are terrible for them too. A huge study in New Zealand found fire retardants in 200,000 crib mattresses were the cause of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). They have some of the same chemical gasses as Polyester.

Polyester in pillows and bedding is a huge cause of insomnia, headaches, fatigue and bad rest since it doesn’t let your body regulate its temperature. High end hotels use only 100% cotton bedding. Cheap motels use the cheaper cotton/Polyester blends. Cheap towels made with cotton and polyester thread (filler) get musty. 100% cotton towels don’t.

This diagram of Polyester and how it’s made shows how truly dangerous and cancerous it can be. Please read this simple explanation of polyester and our health. They did a great job of explaining something so technical, so easily. This graphic explains the two ways of making Polyester.