(WSJ) – Men are switching to underwear made from natural fibers after becoming concerned polyester pairs were harming their fertility, hormones and general health

Though natural-fiber undergarments have been around for years—big-box brands such as Hanes and Calvin Klein sell boxers and briefs marketed as 100% cotton—new companies including Ryker are upping the ante, eagerly marketing their products to men increasingly interested in self-optimization.

Much of contemporary men’s underwear is made from polyester-based fabrics, which are themselves derived from petroleum. Men avoiding these fabrics have two main concerns. One is that synthetic fabrics, when washed, shed “forever chemicals” and microplastics that recent studies have found present in all manner of human organs. The other is an anxiety that nonnatural fibers negatively affect male fertility. (Read More)