There are many kinds of fabrics in the market, but not all of them are environmentally friendly. Cotton, for instance, is widely used across countries of the world, but most of us don’t know that it has adverse effects on the environment. In today’s world, climate experts have continued to advocate for the use of only environmentally-friendly products, and doing otherwise makes you an enemy of the ecosystem. Cotton has low absorbing power, and the tendency of bacteria proliferation is high.
Recent studies have shown that cotton is not the ideal fabric for the 21st century. I understand that you may have become drawn to it because of what you’ve heard about it, but other options are more satisfying. One of them is the sustainable modal.
How is the sustainable modal better than cotton? This article compares both fabrics and leaves you to choose the one you think is better.
Comparing modal with cotton
You may wonder what the modal fabric is and what it stands for. You may have heard that it is anti-odor, meaning that it absorbs sweat without making you sweat. This design is achieved thanks to a textile technology that encourages it. Although cotton is the most popular fiber fabric in the market, it heats the body and is not an efficient heat absorber. Most people know this fact but ignore it because it seems like they don’t have an option. However, the sustainable modal fabric is breathable and has antibacterial properties. Let’s compare both materials using some parameters listed below:
Sweat absorption
If you want to own a dress that absorbs sweat and is made of natural fibers, modal best serves that purpose. Note that even though cotton is made from natural fiber, its level of absorption is limited. Cotton is not the worse when it comes to absorbing heat, but it is not so fast. It leaves you with wet skin that causes sensation and stains your clothes. The same complaint cannot be made for modal fabrics because they dry so fast, and your skin is free from that wet sensation you suffer when you wear cotton.
Breathability and thermal comfort
Cotton and modal have similar breathability, but cotton doesn’t come close in terms of execution. Well, modal fabrics heat a little, thereby giving it more thermal balance to the body.
Odor-free
For a fabric to be antibacterial, it needs to kill all the bacteria that cause your cloth to smell. A foul smell results from the proliferation of bacteria that occurs in a humid and hot environment. In other words, the odor is directly tied to the drying time of the clothes. While the sustainable modal dries faster, the same cannot be said for cotton.
Sustainability
When shopping for environmentally-sustainable fabrics, a modal should be your number one choice. What’s the point of wearing a beautiful dress if it adversely affects the environment? In this age of climatic change, environmentalists are canvassing for support for the ecosystem in all the possible ways they can. Solving perspiration problems consciously is directly linked to the kinds of fabric we wear. For instance, over 2700 liters of water is used to produce cotton in addition to pesticides and agrochemicals. Modal requires only 700 liters without any pesticide or a similar chemical. These pesticides contaminate the soil and water table where they are applied. They also pose a health threat to the professionals handling them and reduce life expectancy.
Although cotton is relatively cheaper, it is not advisable for use in the 21st century when healthier alternatives are less harmful to the environment. Insist on fabrics that protect your environment and not those that destroy it.
