As they are composed largely of the plastic polypropylene, cotton buds are a part of the wider plastic pollution problem. The Marine Conservation Society have described cotton buds as one of the ...

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or ...

The plastic will be replaced by rolled paper in a bid to cut down on waste and save marine life COTTON buds are we know them are set to disappear from supermarket shelves, with the plastic being ...

This month, Environment Secretary Michael Gove confirmed a ban on plastic-stemmed cotton buds in England, in addition to plastic straws and drink stirrers. This comes as it’s estimated that 1.8 ...

If you’ve been using cotton buds to clean your ears, it’s time to reconsider. Many of us grew up thinking that using cotton buds (or Q-tips) was the best way to clean our ears. After all ...

Although cotton buds are marketed as make-up application and removal aids, large numbers of consumers use them to clean their ears, a practice that continues despite numerous warnings from medical ...

We've all been there, reaching for a cotton bud to give our ears a quick clean. But according to ITV's Dr Amir Khan, we should be avoiding this seemingly harmless habit. In a frank Instagram video ...

Cotton buds are widely available in every home for cleaning ears, but many people are shocked to discover that they might have a major impact on their hearing. Cotton buds could give off a fleeting ...

You may have heard the warning never to put anything smaller than your elbow in your ear, or shuddered at the story of a friend’s friend who ruptured her eardrum with a cotton bud. While eardrum ...