The next time you find yourself ordering a beverage, ask yourself one question: “Do I really need a straw?” Currently, my reply would be absolutely not, because you’ll be healthier without one. The hot topic surrounding straws is typically about pollution, but another important issue has been overlooked. We’re referring to the health risks associated with drinking out of straws.
Straws, especially plastic straws, aren’t actually helping us with anything. Maybe drinking out of fun straws made us feel like we fit in as kids, and maybe you’ve carried that into adulthood. We also get that straws are convenient. However, once you discover the harm they can cause, you’ll want to let all those straws go straight into the recycling bin.
1. Stained Teeth
I know you’ve been told that straws prevent stains from forming on your teeth because I’ve been told that, too. But have you ever heard this from an actual dentist? According to Bustle, Dr. Timothy Chase, a dentist practicing at Smiles NY, you can shut that rumor down. He says that drinking out of a straw might slightly keep liquid from touching your teeth, but that it does not guarantee you a stain-free smile.
2. Mouth Wrinkles
This should be your deal-breaker. In a HuffPost article, it was stated that constant muscle motion from drinking out of a straw could result in wrinkles around the mouth area. Smokers have this same issue because the mouth movements are the same. One of the many reasons I don’t smoke is to avoid harming my skin (and, you know, the rest of my body). If drinking out of a straw causes a similar problem, that straw has gotta go.
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3. Excessive Gas
Drinking any type of beverage out of a straw is the gateway to getting unwanted air in your stomach, which will leave you gassy. When we drink from a straw, we are inhaling air along with the beverage. This gas can make our days very long and very uncomfortable. And this can all be avoided by drinking straight from the cup.
4. Bloating
Unfortunately, excessive gas has other effects on the body. When gas arrives, bloating does too. So no matter how many cookies you remove from your diet, if you continuously drink out of straws, gas will still enter your stomach and you will remain bloated.
5. Cavities
Straws have direct contact with the inside of your mouth and sometimes, that can place sugar and acidic substances in places we don’t want them to be — like on our teeth. If a straw is not positioned correctly in your mouth, it could lead to cavities. According to WebMD, the straw should be placed in the back of your mouth to help prevent cavities. But let’s be real, who’s really thinking about the position of the straw in their mouth when it’s a scorching hot day and you spot an iced beverage? Something’s gotta give.
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6. Straw Pollution
Remember: Pollution affects us, too! The University of Santa Barbara’s NCEAS conducted a study that found that, per year, eight million metric tons of plastic end up in the ocean. Plastic straws that are constantly left behind play a major part in this. This pollution is killing off animals that we need to keep our ecosystems balanced. Also, no one wants to see an ocean filled with plastic, so let’s keep our environments clean and get rid of this drinking utensil. Several cities in the United States are even banning plastic straws, and Starbucks plans to get rid of them by 2020.
7. Injuries
I can’t speak for anyone else, but one of my biggest fears is being rushed to the emergency room with a bizarre injury. According to The Plastic Pollution Coalition, around 1,400 people get injuries from straws a year. The injuries vary from mouth ulcers to…insertions through the nose. Yikes!
I’ve decided that this is the last straw. I don’t need them anymore. Will you be joining me?
