Cotton: A Valued Plant for Thousands of Years

22 Cotton: A Valued Plant for Thousands of Years Humans have been using cotton to make fabric for clothing for more than 7, 000 years. The ancient Egyptians produced it. So did the Incas of Peru and the ancient Persians. Today, it remains the most commonly used natural material in the entire world. You might not be aware of it, but in your everyday life, you come in contact with cotton everywhere. When you wake up in the morning, chances are that you slept on bedsheets made of cotton. You take a shower and when you dry yourself, you probably use a towel made of cotton. You put on your clothes, which probably have at least some cotton in them. In fact, until 1890, when the first synthetic fabric (rayon) was developed, most clothing was made of cotton.

Cotton has many properties that make it an excellent clothing material. On hot days, cotton clothing feels cool. It absorbs body sweat and draws it away from the skin, keeping you cool and comfortable. Fish nets, filters, surgical masks and even paper are made from cotton. Cotton fabric is made from the cotton plant, a small plant that's easy to grow. The seeds of the cotton plant are surrounded by fluffy white fibres for protection. These fibres are collected and spun into cloth, which can then be made into many products. The cotton seeds are not wasted either. They are squeezed in a machine that presses the oil out of them. This oil is a valuable product for cooking and is used in many foods. The mush that's left is used to feed animals such as pigs and cows. Nothing is wasted. That's why cotton is such an amazing plant. Even more importantly, cotton is a natural product. It doesn't require a lot of energy to produce, and it can be renewed every year simply by planting a new crop. As the world searches for natural products for a sustainable world, the simplicity of cotton production assures its value well into the future.