Do you *really* need that white toilet paper with the floral print? It may come as a shock, but our butts really don't care :). The mind boggles at how many trees are cut down each year, just so we can wipe our bums.

Buying toilet paper made from recyclables is great but even this can present some dangers.

Recycled paper needs to be deinked before it is pulped and processed. This deinking process may involve chlorine to bleach the paper. Chlorine based chemicals can react with paper fibers to create toxic compounds such as dioxin and organochlorines.

Dioxins cause cancer, learning disorders, decreased immune response, diabetes and all sorts of other nasty problems in the environment.

When shopping for earth friendly toilet paper look for statements such as "unbleached", "processed chlorine-free" or "totally chlorine free"

You can also save on paper (and save yourself some cash) by opting for 1 ply paper. While a roll of 1 ply can be more expensive, there's more usable paper and studies have shown that people tend not to use more 1 ply. 1 ply also breaks down faster, which is particularly a good thing in septic systems. Less paper, less pumping out, less cost.

There you go, interesting bits of trivia to impress your friends at your next dinner party! What are your thoughts, comments or tips relating to this article? Add them below :)