Mouse, watch, toy, remote control … In the office or at home, we all use batteries every day. Thousands of tons of batteries expire yearly and they should not be thrown away with regular household waste, but deposited in a collection point for recycling.

Each year, billions of batteries and accumulators (PA) are placed on the market, excluding industrial or automotive use. This represents approximately 300,000 tonnes of material. And above all, no less than 18 PA per inhabitant. Knowing that most of them are manufactured locally. Half come from the European Union and the other half from the United States and Asia.

Note that the batteries themselves – these non-rechargeable devices that convert chemical energy into electricity irreversibly – still account for 89% of this figure, or more than a billion units.

Since 1991, cells and batteries have been considered hazardous waste materials. They should not be thrown in the regular trash. They are therefore the subject of selective collection. And producers of batteries or devices that contain them have an obligation to take back and process these items within their recycling and waste management solutions.

However, according to a study carried out with the industry in 2018, out of 100 batteries placed on the market, only 45 would be collected and then recycled. At the same time, 5 would remain stored in homes and 15 would simply not be sorted. The remaining 35 are in use in aircraft. Some 500 million used batteries, or nearly 14,000 tonnes, would be collected each year.

Sort and Recycle Batteries

Batteries contain, in addition to plastic and paper, different types of toxic metals such as lead, zinc, nickel or even mercury. Throwing them away with your household garbage is orienting them into a completely unsuitable treatment system. Because burned or buried, they will end up polluting the environment as a whole.

Furthermore, natural resources are not inexhaustible and their extraction is also expensive for the planet. Know that 73% of the materials from which batteries are made can be recovered – by pyrometallurgy, hydrometallurgy, distillation or fusion – and recycled. Lead can be used to make new batteries, nickel, associated with iron, can be transformed into household items. Zinc is interesting for producing gutters. And mercury can be used in industrial applications.

So have a recycling reflex and return your used batteries to collection points and favor rechargeable batteries.

In Europe, the law dictates not to throw the batteries in the trash, because batteries have been considered since the 1990s as hazardous waste. They must therefore be oriented towards an appropriate recycling facility.

Some 1.3 billion batteries and accumulators (rechargeable batteries, batteries) are placed on the French market each year. In these batteries and accumulators, plastic and paper, but above all, still many heavy metals which can be toxic – for human beings and more generally for all living beings – and very polluting for soils in particular: nickel, cadmium, mercury, lead, zinc, lithium, etc.

Thrown in nature, the batteries degrade under the effect of corrosion. Thrown in the trash, they are buried – and end up degrading there too – or incinerated. They release these metals which can pollute the environment. Nickel can therefore be responsible for eczema or sinusitis. Mercury, which fortunately has almost disappeared from our batteries – causes gingivitis and damage to the nervous system. Cadmium, which is also disappearing from our batteries, is carcinogenic.

Mandatory recycling

Throwing batteries in the trash or in nature is also wasting natural resources, some of which are precious. Because their extraction is polluting and expensive. However, almost 75% of the materials that make up a battery can be recycled. Over a year, this represents several thousand tonnes of recovered metals. Metals which are then used to make various objects: zinc gutters, stainless steel cutlery, car sheets, etc.

Used batteries must therefore be brought back to the points of sale – as all the stores which sell batteries are required to provide a collection point, certain town halls or spaces welcoming the public or recycling centers.

They can then be removed by a specialized transporter and sent to storage centers where they will be sorted by type (alkaline batteries, saline batteries, button batteries, etc.). It is only from there that they can be retired. Part of their elements will be recycled and the rest will be placed in the ultimate waste storage center so as not to contaminate the environment.

The so-called side sleeper pillow is one of the most commonly used in the presence of cervical arthrosis one of the most common causes of pain in this delicate body area. It should be placed under the normal lumbar curve of the neck to maintain the cervical vertebrae in light traction and due to the presence of lateral elevations, to avoid unwanted movements of the head.

The same structural scheme is common to many other types of shaped pillows, always useful in the presence of cervical pain and to be used strictly in the supine position. Some of these help to properly support the head, preventing the latter from getting misplaced positions even during resumption on one side.

A normal pillow to be placed under the knees helps to decrease the lumbar spine of the column and can, therefore, be useful for those suffering from lower back pain. Always placed under the legs, there are also special pillows, the so-called lift cushions, for those who suffer from circulatory problems, particularly widespread in the female sex. Much higher than traditional pimples, they facilitate the venous return to the heart and are therefore useful in the case of tired, swollen legs, varicose veins, water retention, calf cramps, and pregnancy.

The second category of pillows, united with the wedge shape, has been studied and reproduced to keep the shoulders and chest raised during rest. This type of pill is a good choice for those who suffer from dorsal hyperacidosis or respiratory disorders such as asthma, nighttime apnea, and snoring; the slight frontal flexion of the bust facilitates the respiratory action. There are also pillows devoted solely to the female public and especially to newcomers and those suffering from premenstrual syndrome, dysmenorrhea or mastopathy. Shaped on the chest, with two cavities at the sinuses, allows sleeping belly-down without painful compressions.

Even for pregnant women, there are special pillows, which must be passed under the belly and between the legs so as to sleep on one side avoiding dangerous pressure on the bacon. In any case, the choice of an orthopedic or special pillow for side sleeper should always be performed in relation to the individual characteristics which may make it counter-indicated in one case, use in another or vice versa. BackAware can aid you to take control as well as improve your health. For this reason, it is very important to consult a specialist with a specialist.

Therefore, in large lines, a standard pillow should be about a meter wide for a height ranging from 10 to 20 cm. Do not underestimate the individual preferences and feelings both in the short but especially in the long run. To avoid turning into a germ and dirt, it is good to air it every day, preferably not exposing it to the direct rays of the sun; It is also important to wash it whenever possible and use replaceable cotton liners. The average life, depending on usage and wear, is 2-5 years.

Generally, according to the currently available products. The best pillow is the one that has the following features: easily washable and non-hysterical, breathable, with the permanent anti-theft system and made up of a form memory.