Many of these cotton buds end up in landfills, or are flushed down the toilet and end up in our oceans where they're eaten by birds and fish and can cause serious damage. "Even after they break down into smaller plastic particles, they cause digestive issues and possibly other health impacts in wildlife and marine life that ingest the particles," Claire Norman, a spokesperson for Friends of the Earth , told Refinery29. "This is made worse by the fact that plastic micro-particles absorb persistent organic pollutants and other toxins, making them a million times more toxic than surrounding seawater, and this toxicity is concentrated as it moves up the food chain."