No, tissues and paper towels can not be recycled in the traditional sense. One problem is that used tissues and paper towels are likely to be contaminated by bacteria. Additionally, the fibers in these products tend to be short and break down, so they aren't useful for making new paper products. There are a few companies that recycle these products as mulch. Paper products such as paper towels can also be composted. However, if you are concerned about your environmental impact your best bet is to cut back on your consumption of throw away products in the first place.