Choosing a yoga mat can be a very daunting task. There are many different types of yoga mats in the market, Like NBR Material Yoga Mat, JUTE Yoga Mat Material, PVC Mat Material Etc. It is not easy to know which is best for you or not. Sometimes, you can be driven mainly by price without seeing how bad Yoga Mat can be for your health or environment.
The right things for your Yoga Mat need comfort to be present, keep you warm from the cold floor and hold well. If you plan to exercise in the park, you may want a long-lasting and easy-to-wash yoga mat.
With your practice of yoga, you will be more inclined to enjoy smooth surfaces. However, it is not all about our yoga practice. Yoga also takes care of the environment and encourages living in a more natural way.
For this reason, choosing a low-level yoga mat is a task for us and for our children. Some yoga mats have a very polluting production process. Choosing a friendly yoga mat over time is better for our planet and for all of us.
When buying a yoga mat, check how it is made. The label will give you a clue as to whether the text is perishable, reusable, or harmful to the environment. For more information, read this guide on How to Choose the Best Yoga Mat.
Most yoga mats have a large carbon footprint and will take a long time to degrade. Some yoga mat products often have negative effects on our health in the future.
I will explain the different things made of yoga mats and explain what is good for the environment.
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TPE (Thermoplastic Elastomers) Yoga Mat Material
This means that it is made of polymers, a type of plastic with flexible and elastic properties.
TPE materials can be easily shaped, extracted, and reused. However, they do not work anymore.
TPE does not require stabilizing agents, stabilizers, or therapies that make it less efficient and polluting than PVC. So, another better way to PVC.
Pros
- Provides good separation from the cold ground.
- Easy to wrap and ship.
- Simple.
- Resist the growth of germs.
- Have a long life if you are cared for
- It is washed
- Cheap
- It is reused in some places
Cons:
- Decreased waste disposal but does not cause hazardous products.
- Overall, it is better than PVC but has a larger carbon production capacity.
PVC (Polyvinyl Chloride) Yoga Mat Material
PVC is one of the first plastics produced and is one of the most commonly used items on a daily basis. Almost every day you use it, products made of PVC with shower curtains, sewer pipes, cords, vinyl records, yoga mats among many others. These polymers can take centuries to degrade and when they do, they emit toxic chemicals.
The production of PVC requires the use of Organochlorides and bulk electricity. In fact, it consumes about 1 percent of the world’s total electricity output. Organochlorides are active compounds in nature.
They form harmful toxic products on animals and plants such as dioxin, furans, phthalates, plasticizers, and lead. Organochloride chemicals accumulate in fatty tissue that reaches all levels of the diet. These chemicals also have the ability to concentrate in breast milk and cross the placental barrier.
PVC is the most toxic plastic to our health and environment. PVC is thought to cause cancer, disrupt the endocrine system, disrupt embryonic development, and suppress the immune system.
The PVC yoga mat has some nice features compared to other yoga mats. Cheap. easy to wash, resistant to bacterial growth, has good grip and repellent, and has a long life. However, its weight exceeds any benefits.
It has a strong plastic odor that does not move easily. At the moment PVC mats cannot be reused. They end up in landfills where they react with other chemicals and produce dioxins and highly toxic chlorine chemicals.
Pros
- Cheap.
- Good grip
- Easy to wash
- Resists bacterial growth.
- Have a long life
Cons:
- Strong plastic odor.
- Reusable at this time
- It reacts with other chemicals to create toxic chemicals that harm the health of animals, plants, and humans.
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JUTE Yoga Mat Material
Jute is a natural fiber derived from the Corchorus plant. It is second only to cotton in terms of production and consumption. Jute is a rain-fed plant with little need for fertilizer or pesticide, unlike heavy cotton requirements. Production is concentrated in Bangladesh, as well as in the Indian provinces of Assam, Bihar, and West Bengal.
This yoga mat has one side of Jute and the other side of PVC or PER. PER stands for Polymer Environment Resin.
PER is more friendly than PVC and less harmful to the environment compared to PVC.
PER is actually PVC synthetic plastic and stabilized with acetyl tributyl citrate, instead of its phthalate-based plasticizers (DEHP) its endocrine properties that give PVC its bad reputation.
Pros
- Part of it is reused (part of Jute)
Cons:
- Natural fibers may be a slow course on the skin.
- PER is not reset.
- Degradation of landfills.
NBR (Nitrile Butadiene Rubber) NBR Material Yoga Mat
NBR is a synthetic rubber commonly used in the automotive and aviation industries. It has become very popular among yoga mats as it offers good separation and strengthening.
NBR production is not environmentally friendly. In fact, production is restricted to Europe, the USA and Canada due to toxic substances used in its production, such as Butadiene.
NBR can be degraded if it has some additional additions to speed up the process.
Pros
- Cheap
- Available in a variety of sizes
- Resistance to oil and water
- Provides good differentiation
- Easy to wrap and move
- Simple
- Resist the growth of germs
- Have a long life if you are cared for
- It is washed
- Cheap
Cons:
- Reusable. Slow deterioration in landfills.
EVA (Ethylene Vinyl Acetate) Yoga Mat Material
EVA is made up of composite copolymers of ethylene and vinyl acetate. It is often found on the soles of shoes, toys, foam tiles, athletic helmets, among many other things.
Pros
- Very light
- It has a hot substance
- Good protection
- It is soft
- Flexibility
- It is considered non-toxic
- Wipe clean
- Transportation
- Water resistance
- Anti-bacterial
- Inefficiency in oil and oil.
Cons:
- It has the smell of new plastic that disappears after a while
- Content will be less relevant to use
- EVA materials can degrade the environment if they contain additives to speed up the process
- Reuse of EVA materials is very low and very localized
- It usually ends up in landfills
