Saving the planet is a huge task. None of us can do it alone, but if we all make a few small lifestyle changes, we can make a difference. All it takes is one or two minor adjustments that won’t inconvenience you in any way. The following six products are super easy to implement. And the best bit? They don’t cost the earth.

Re-usable Water Bottle

How much water do you drink each day? How much of that water comes in disposable plastic bottles? We are encouraged to drink around 1.5 litters of water a day. That equates to six plastic bottles. Where do most of these bottles end up? Yes, in a landfill.

You can make a real difference by switching to a reusable plastic bottle. Buy a steel water bottle or one with a built-in filter. Take your bottle to work or the gym and refill it at the water fountain. It’s a quick and easy solution and you won’t have to empty your car of discarded plastic bottles.

Menstrual Cup

Seven billion sanitary pads and tampons end up in landfill each year. They contain all manner of nasty stuff, including toxic chemicals and plastic. You can save the environment and your wallet by investing in a menstrual cup.

Menstrual cups are made from flexible medical-grade silicone. It is inserted into the vagina during your period, where it collects menstrual blood. The cup only needs emptying every eight hours, so it’s safe to use overnight. It is reusable and if inserted correctly, leak-proof – even on your heaviest flow days. Once you have tried a menstrual cup, you won’t look back.

It’s estimated that if you switch to using menstrual cups you can save on the product material and packing of up to 10,000 tampons or pads during your entire life-cycle!

Programmable Thermostat

Smart homes are all the rage right now, but aside from looking cool, a programmable thermostat such as Nest can save money on your energy bills. Smart thermostats let you know when you are saving money. Use them to make fine adjustments to your home’s temperature. They can be operated remotely, via an app. You can turn the heating down when you are not at home, which is handy if the kids like to switch it up to tropical levels.

Programmable thermostats like Nest work with any heating system and can easily be DIY installed. Buy one for your home and you’ll soon notice a positive difference .

Re-Usable Grocery Bags

Millions of single-use plastic grocery bags are discarded each year. Most of them end up in a landfill. As we are all aware, plastic is an environmental ticking time bomb. Anything we can do to prevent the endless tide of plastic from destroying our planet is a good thing.

Re-usable grocery bags are inexpensive and last far longer than a cheap plastic bag. They are also much stronger and won’t break when you carry your wine and beer to the car. Invest in a few bags and keep them in your car for when you visit the grocery store.

Solar-powered Phone Charger

How often do you have to recharge your smartphone? Most people need to juice their device at least once a day. This takes time and energy. Whilst there will be times when you have to plug your phone into an outlet, a solar-powered phone charger is handy to have, especially if you spend a lot of time outdoors.

Leave your phone charging outside in the sun. Solar-powered chargers are water resistant, so they are good to go anywhere. It costs nothing to charge a phone using the sun’s rays, which is great for the environment and much better for your home energy bills.

Eco-Friendly Cleaning Supplies

Many of the cleaning products we take for granted contain numerous toxic chemicals . We want to keep our homes hygienic and spotless, but bleaching agents, corrosive oven cleaners, and harsh surface sprays often contain chlorine, ammonia, and lye. These contaminate the environment and cause respiratory and skin irritation.

There are plenty of eco-friendly alternatives that are much safer to use. Look for natural cleaning products that are certified eco-friendly and biodegradable. Simple kitchen cupboard items like bicarbonate of soda, white vinegar, and soap suds are often all you need to keep your surfaces shiny and clean.

Other products worth checking out include reusable coffee filters for your espresso machine, reusable bamboo dish towels, and eco-friendly shower heads.