Leather - Why It's So Bad, What's The Alternative?

2017-02-23T01:54:17Z

Dryer29walrus: Створена сторінка: This article explains more about the 'down' side to leather - the well-known product that is used for all sorts of items, from furniture, car seats and belts to...

This article explains more about the 'down' side to leather - the well-known product that is used for all sorts of items, from furniture, car seats and belts to shoes, clothing and handbags.First of all, what is it? Leather is a material created through the tanning of hides, pelts and skins of animals, primarily cows - but... whose skin are you in? When the milk production of cows on dairy farms decreases, the cows are killed and their skins are made into leather. The hides of their calves, who are frequently raised for veal, are made into high-priced calfskin.Leather is also made from horses, sheep, lambs, goats, and pigs who are slaughtered for meat. Other species of animals are hunted and killed specifically for their skins, including zebras, bison, water buffaloes, boars, kangaroos, elephants, eels, sharks, dolphins, seals, walruses, frogs, turtles, crocodiles, lizards, and snakes.But, you say, it looks good and feels good - sitting in your leather couch, your leather car seat, paying your bills with that calf-skin wallet, carrying that leather handbag or briefcase. How about that it wears well? Kangaroo leather is favoured by motorcyclists specifically because of its lighter weight and higher abrasion resistance as compared to cowhide. Leather car seats last longer than material ones, don't they?There are yes and no comments to that. Leather needs to be chemically treated to ensure it does not rot. Lots of chemicals...Since ancient times, human beings used animal skins and learned to make them leather. The process of using chemicals to turn skins into leather is called tanning. The leather making is a combination of series of processes that starts from skin recovery to curing, soaking and unhairing, deliming and bathing, to vegetable or mineral tanning, lubrication and dyeing, and finally to finishing.

Leather Is Bad for Human HealthMordants and other chemicals often used to treat leather are linked to nervous disorders, asthma, premature death, gynaecological disorders, weakness, dizziness, headaches, abdominal pain, nausea, constipation, skin and respiratory infections, cancer and other serious illnesses. According to an investigation by the New York State Department of Health, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and other agencies, those who work in tanneries may be greatly increasing their risk of testicular cancer. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that in an area near one Kentucky leather tannery, the incidence of leukaemia was five times the national average.Hmm... perhaps we shouldn't be so quick to purchase that leather lounge suite?Leather Is Bad for the EnvironmentAlthough some leather makers deceptively tout their products as "eco-friendly," turning skin into leather also requires massive amounts of energy and dangerous chemicals. Often, animal skins used for leather are kept from biodegrading (going rotten) by using a variety of dangerous substances, including mineral salts (chromium, aluminium, iron and zirconium), formaldehyde, coal-tar derivatives and various oils and dyes, some of which are cyanide-based. All waste containing chromium is considered hazardous by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and other bodies.In an attempt to appear environmentally conscious, some tanneries are now trying to make improvements, but even if tanneries did not create any pollution, leather would still be bad for the environment. Leather seats are hot in the summer and very cold in the [https://www.mandujour.com/blog/ Leather] winter.

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Leather - Why It's So Bad, What's The Alternative?