Bidets vs. Toilet Paper
Now that you’ve got your GlowBowl set up, you’re probably wondering what other fancy gadgets you can add to your bathroom repertoire. Well, there has been a debate for many years over whether a bidet works better than toilet paper. Bidet’s are, for one, more sanitary and they are also less stringent on the environment.
Toilet Paper Cons
On average, it’s believe that Americans use 36.5 billion rolls of toilet paper on a yearly basis, which equals to around 15 million trees being used for your wiping needs. On top of that, there is the usage of water to produce the paper as well as the usage of chlorine for bleaching. Not to mention that at least 16 terawatts of electricity will need to be used annually to package and transport the toilet paper.
Bidet Pros
It’s generally believed that bidets are unsanitary; however, take into consideration that water would gently clean the area while toilet paper smears. On top of that, wiping too much can result in irritation. While some believe a bidet wastes water, a bidet uses around 1/8th of a gallon, which is less than four gallons of water you use per flush. And no, you do not need soap to properly clean yourself with a bidet because that can result in the drying out of the mucosal lining. Plus, when do you use soap to clean up when you wipe with toilet paper?
Which is Cleaner?
From a public health perspective, a hands-free bidet would be a safer alternative because it is reported that almost 80 percent of all infectious diseases are passed on by human contact. And only about half of the population actually washes their hands after using the facilities. Additionally, there are health benefits to using a bidet such as increased cleanliness and it offers therapeutic effects in cases where one might be affected by rashes or hemorrhoids.
So, now that you’ve been handed valuable information on the endless debate. Consider what might work best for you. And if you would like to try a bidet before buying one, we recommend you take the opportunity to travel to Europe and try one out yourself. That way you can kill two birds with one stone!