I see all sorts of answers online, but am not fully convinced. I tried finding some research on the longevity of clothes between wash and wash + dry. Considering that it dries for hours just the mechanical movement should damage the clothes I would assume?
It depends on the fabric. A lot of synthetic clothes are now made to do well in the dryer. But if it’s 100% cotton, it can be permanently ruined in the first dry.
I only wear cotton. It’s taking a long time for me to notice a difference in size/thickness but that prob depends a lot on the type of dryer and clothes you have. However, I still prefer leaking cotton into the environment instead of microplastics