Could there be a more lovely topic to consider than toilet paper?  It certainly is a personal one, and quite honestly, is nearly as essential in our culture as food, though rarely discussed.

All toilet papers are made different, so limiting yourself to 3 panels may or may not be do-able based on the make of the toilet paper.  However, if you fold the paper down into quarters it will do more for you.  As well, stick with non-chlorine bleached paper, and preferably recycled if possible.

Can’t wait to see my kids do this one today… giving up the 45 extra sheets they seem to think are required for their toilet hygiene.

I also ran across an article by Lori Popkewitz from GroovyGreenLiving.com on additional ideas on greening your toilet paper habits…

1. Use recycled toilet paper. I know what you’re thinking, but no worries the recycled toilet paper is made from recycled paper NOT recycled toilet paper! The Natural Resource Defense Council (NRDC) says that if every household in the United States replaced just one roll of virgin fiber toilet paper (500 sheets) with 100% recycled ones, we could save 423,900 trees. Not only will we save trees-we’ll also save water and cut back on paper waste that continues to fill our overflowing landfills.
2. Don’t use toilet paper that’s been bleached with chlorine.  White doesn’t necessarily mean bleached-there are other ways to whiten toilet paper. Look for products that are chlorine free.
3. Count your squares. Be aware of how much you are using.  According to TreeHugger there is actually a right and wrong way to load your toilet paper onto the holder. If you stick to the “right” way (with the sheets coming over the top of the roll) you will waste less paper. Who knew??
4. Don’t buy toilet paper that’s individually wrapped. Those individually wrapped rolls produce a lot of extra waste. Try to buy your toilet paper in bulk-there is much less packaging waste.
5. Make sure the toilet paper has no added dyes and fragrances.