Dental Lace Refills

Silk is a natural protein fiber which can be woven into textiles. The best-known silk is obtained from the cocoons of the larvae of the mulberry silkworm Bombyx mori reared in captivity (sericulture).

Silk was first developed in ancient China. The earliest example dates back 8,500 years.

Production

The process of silk production is known as sericulture.

Extracting raw silk starts by cultivating the silkworms on mulberry leaves.

Once the worms start pupating in their cocoons, these are dissolved in boiling water in order for individual long fibres to be extracted and fed into the spinning reel. To produce 1 kg of silk, 104 kg of mulberry leaves must be eaten by 3000 silkworms. It takes about 5000 silkworms to make a pure silk kimono.

Since silk cultivation kills silkworms, possibly painfully, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) urges people not to buy silk items.

Candelilla wax is a wax derived from the leaves of the small Candelilla shrub.

It is yellowish-brown, hard, brittle, aromatic, and opaque to translucent.

It is mostly used mixed with other waxes to harden them without raising their melting point. As a food additive, candelilla wax has the E number E 902 and is used as a glazing agent. It also finds use in cosmetic industry, as a component of lip balms and lotion bars. One of its major uses is as a binder for chewing gums.

Candelilla wax can be used as a substitute for carnauba wax and beeswax. It is also used for making varnish.

Safety

Candelilla wax is considered safe (“low overall hazard”) by EWG.