Living on the edge -- bypassing long-term health issues, insensitive to environment

 

Living on the edge:  bypassing long-term health issues, insensitive to environment

Whilst every day is a new one, life goes on each to his or her mundane routine.  Do we ever contemplate on:  what fabric is good for me and what is bad?  Seriously, I think colors, texture and design should no longer be the only criteria for an impulsive buy. You and your family need to be aware of that in the first place rather than checking on what is trending.  With online shopping and best buys for the season, it’s time to seriously look into the FABRIC aspect that makes a potent cocktail when you hit town.

Many a times we are confronted with unhealthy choices of fabrics that resemble the Siamese twins. We love the design, get into raptures , unaware of the material’s hazards, due to lack of knowledge or sheer ignorance. When was the last time you checked on an aspect that your skin should be the criteria for a buy?

Today the women’s market of apparels is flooded with Dupattas, Stoles, Cardigans, Coulotte’s, Palazzos, Shoulder-less tops, Minis, Maxis, Wraprounds, Shrugs, tattered Jeans, Pants, Tights, Capris,  Mid-thigh shorts, Churidhars, Salwars, short Tops, Lehengas, Corporate style suits ,  Indian + Indo-Western styles and more, each vying with attention and screaming to get off-the-shelf and wanting to be in your wardrobe. You are helpless as you invariably award a 5-star rating for their collective appearance and not once have based it on environment sensitivity or perhaps the luxury of a flawless skin. 

As a long-standing participant in this space struggle for competing to be the best in terms of looks and dress sense, you get provoked by the seller who has honed his skills to a fine art to anticipate your thoughts and with his ability to predict and anticipate, ensures you land up with a ‘good’ buy … one that certainly is not good for you and definitely not for the environment too, yet good for his pocket!

Show compassion for your skin.  You need to introspect whether you have the power to revoke the pain evoked by abrasions you may have caused to your skin that has several layers constituting the dermis and epidermis -- as a sheath to house your body and one that needs to be given its due respect, by donning the right fabric. The rest is nondescript. 

Reflection: Is there a solution to the discomfort of the environment at large and an equally grave situation for the humans alike --- as students, workers, housewives, executives, senior citizens, fashion conscious teenagers and toddlers seem to be blissfully unaware of the consequences thrown open to the environment as well as the health hazards it poses in the long run.

Deepavali, Christmas and the year ending festivals throw open their doors to usher in a host of Bonanzas that lure you with midnight sales and not to mention, the enticing Buy 2- Get 1 free baits which hooks you to landing up with more than your genuine requirement.  With online purchases, the scenario has gotten worse as one impulsively clicks to buy without looking at the small print of description which states the composition of the fabric.  Nobody cares. I too didn’t until I faced the wrath of my skin.

Small truths are what I need today, I told myself, truths that jump out at me from tiny gaps and holes in the distracting dress sense and culture.  Living in a climate that actually does not exhibit the mandatory four seasons that gracefully toe one behind another, Chennai is best described as one with hot, hotter and hottest climate. And such being the scenario, skin sensitivity is at stake when one opts for fashion rather than comfort. When your skin develops rash and burns with redness of sores that jump into action, your skin pores get clogged one fine day. That’s when your search for the best type of fabric/ material will surface. Until then, nobody knows how much their skin is tolerating the long hours of constant chafing or the sporadic off ‘n’ on official- touch with their skin, which sometimes one tolerates with DIY medications off-the-counter indiscriminately, with sheer disregard to possible skin’s consequences.  Skin Sensitivity snarls with its ugly face, only when it cannot tolerate any more and it is literally on a blazing fire. A skin specialist would always advice you on Cotton wear or Khadi as your best bet for our kind of humid climate.

Would you prefer to bypass your skin’s thirst for pure Cotton when it comes to daily wear?  Pure Cotton as well as Khadi is undoubtedly the best as your skin needs to breathe.  Viscose, Polyester, Synthetic fiber, Polycot, Rayon, Fluid cotton blend twill fabric, Georgette, Chiffon, silk, man-made fibers plus a multitude of blends with the above permutations and combinations are available as an array of fabrics as options, confusing you totally into deceiving that its good for you as an ethnic wear! It’s your choice now. Act before it’s too late.  Opting for  Pure Cotton wear paves the way for good deliverance with the planet too, considering Cotton and Khadi are biodegradable and won’t land up in landfills. Solid Waste Management is a conscious decision. 

A mixed fabric with percentages favoring cotton on the higher-end is a better bet than one that is bereft of cotton and is purely synthetic.  Get your priorities right.  Health is wealth.  Many fabrics are not biodegradable. You pervade the environment. May the issue of fabrics ring in a bell in your subconscious mind to be a game-changer in your life for your next buy. Look beyond chic n ethnic!

MALINI KALYANAM

The writer is a social activist, holistic healer and therapist, pottery artiste, parent and environmentalist but not necessarily in the same order.  

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