What if there was an easy, mess-free way to get the last few squeezes of toothpaste out of the tube and have far less go to waste?
One Redditor shared a genius hack for saving money on hygiene products while reducing plastic waste. The original poster wrote about needing specialty toothpaste that only comes in a standard tube and squeezing it down as much as possible, only to discover a lot more still inside.
The Redditor user explained: "As soon as I couldn't get any more out, I cut the tube open and until recently have been storing the cut open tube open air and just dabbing my toothbrush in. My MIL gifted us some consumables for Christmas that came in these tiny jars. Finished the food and saving these jars to store/make bathroom/beauty products in. Perfect size for the remaining toothpaste. Look how much was still in there!"
Followers of the r/Anticonsumption subreddit have been loving this hack and getting inspired by it.
"This is a cool idea!" commented one Reddit user.
"Jars. My goodness, what an idea. Why didn't I think of that?" a user wrote.
Little hacks like this can have a huge impact if more people learn about and try them. Today, there is double the amount of plastic waste in the world compared to just 20 years ago, and only about 9% of plastic is successfully recycled, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
Viral Reddit posts like this help the world see how easy, affordable, and convenient it can be to make small lifestyle changes to save money and contribute less to landfills. Meanwhile, startups are finding innovative ways to use plastic waste, scientists are using it to develop clean fuel, and major companies are increasing awareness through plastic waste campaigns.
It's also encouraging to see other Redditors sharing their hacks for maximizing product purchases and reducing plastic usage.
"I have some of these small jars...they were a set of different jams I was given years ago. I make my own toothpaste, and these jars are the ones I use. This way there is a small amount out and the rest go in the fridge," a Redditor wrote.
"I do this but for lotion!" wrote another Redditor.
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