Polyester Clothing

Synthetic fabrics that shed microfibres.

54Moderate burden · out of 100

Cleaner swapNatural fibres — cotton, wool, linen; a microfibre laundry bag

How this score is built

100Start
86.2Chemical hazard 3 × 4.6−13.8
69.2Everyday exposure 5 × 3.4−17
54Persistence 6 × 2.6−15.6, then rounded to 54
ModerateThe band54 sits in 40–59.

What each input rests on

The three ratings behind the score, and the studies each rests on
Input	Rating	Evidence
Chemical hazard	3/10	unsourced input
Everyday exposure	5/10	Real-scale household washes released 124-308 mg of microfibres per kg of synthetic garments, i.e. 640,000 to 1,500,000 microfibres. The contribution of washing processes of synthetic clothes to microplastic pollution · Sci Rep 2019 DOI 10.1038/s41598-019-43023-x · PMID 31036862 · Abstract, Results · read 2026-10-02
Persistence	6/10	unsourced input

Ratings are editorial. A study listed here supports the rating; it did not compute it. How the index is built

What this means for you

Synthetic clothing sheds plastic microfibres in the wash and through wear, adding to microplastic exposure. Natural fibres and a filter bag cut the shedding.

Evidence strength: moderate

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