In recent months I have had a shocking reality check. I now despise tampons, towels and liners!
I wanted to switch to a menstrual cup from tampons but I'm still trying to find the right cup for me which obviously means I am still using tampons and liners for my period.
I wanted to switch for a few reasons, firstly I was becoming increasingly aware that female sanitary products are majorly contributing to landfills. Tampons and towels do not degrade. They stay putrefying in landfills forever. Each woman sends about 11,000 disposable sanitary products to landfill over their lifetime. Some of these can also end up in the sea, rivers and washing up on our beautiful British beaches. Gross right?! The majority of these products are made up of plastic, which doesn't degrade. Can you imagine, by the time you finish menstruating, you will have used 11k tampons or towels, which will be there covered in your blood for the rest of time?! In the UK, for every woman, this equates to 200,000 tonnes of waste per year! PER YEAR!!! Call me stupid, but this is shocking! I find it shocking because for the most part, its avoidable! There are alternatives out there that do not contribute to landfills and are much safer for your health. I’ll go into more detail about the alternatives later.
I also discovered that tampons contain chemicals that dye them white, and have been linked to immune system suppression, reproductive issues and cancer. The World Health Organisation has deemed these chemicals as persistent organic pollutants and carcinogenic’s, in other words they pollute our world and can cause cancer. Tampons are mostly made from rayon, which is a non organic cotton, and this means that traces of pesticides, herbicides, insecticides and fungicides can be found in the little white object that you put inside you every month. Can you imagine what is being absorbed into your body?! It doesn't bear thinking. Tampons can also leave tiny fibres behind, irritating your vaginal walls and increasing your risk of toxic shock syndrome, a life threatening condition associated with tampon use. Furthermore, tampons absorb every thing, your period blood but also your natural lubrications, drying out the vaginal canal and causing discomfort and dryness which can lead to rashes and infections.
Disposable sanitary products cost a fortune! Its been suggested that the average UK woman over her menstruating lifetime could spend around £18k on tampons, towels, liners, pain relief, new underwear from leaks or surprise arrivals of aunt flo, plus things like chocolate which are scientifically proven to release serotonin, a happy hormone! Lets say you have one period a month, thats 12 a year, thats around £500 a year on sanitary products!
This brings me to alternatives to conventional tampons and towels. The most cost effective and least damaging to the planet is menstrual cups. These are cup shaped and collect the period blood rather than absorbing it, you then simply remove it, pour the blood down the loo, give it a wash and pop it back in. Menstrual cups are suitable for everyone, from your first period to your last, the heaviest of flows to the lightest, the most active woman to the least. They come in all shapes and sizes, different firmness and a variety of prices. I personally have tried Mooncup UK size b, and Me Luna small classic, unfortunately I haven't yet found either of them suit me, with the Mooncup being too big and the Me Luna too soft. But there are a tonne of resources out there, one I want to mention is Bree from Precious Stars, check out her YouTube channel here. Everything I have learnt about menstrual cups I have learnt from watching her YouTube videos. I have also been in contact with her shop where she sells reusable pads and menstrual cups and they've been incredibly helpful in helping me find a new suitable cup.
Menstrual cups may look expensive to begin with, and maybe a little daunting, they are bigger than a tampon, theres no getting around that, but even people who haven't been able to tolerate tampons have got on extremely well with a cup. You can even use a cup from your very first period as a teen! I must also mention that a cup can take a little getting used to, most people who switch say they seem to have the hang of it around their 3rd period using it, so if you switch and don't get on first time, just relax and be patient. I have to keep telling myself this, I'm so desperate to stop using tampons that I'm becoming annoyed at myself that I cant make the two cups I've tried work for me but I will get there.
Most cups range in price from around £11 up to £25-30 but they can last 3 to 10 years. So if you exclusively switch to a cup, that £500 a year you spend on tampons and towels has reduced a crazy amount! Also you wont be sending anything to landfill. In my eyes this is a no brainer! Like I don't understand how cups aren't a heck of a lot more popular! I cant wait for the day I find my perfect cup and can stop using disposable products!
In the meantime while I'm finding my perfect cup, I've been looking into cotton tampons and liners. You have to be careful though, as there is a difference between cotton and organic disposable products. Cotton ones still use pesticides and contribute to pollution and have negative health effects like other tampons on the market, organic are what they say, they don't use chemicals on the cotton plants and are completely natural. One brand I am looking to buy from is Natracare, they provide 100% organic cotton products and their tampon applicators are cardboard so are also recyclable. I am also looking into Cottons which you can buy at Boots but so far I can’t see anywhere that says they are organic, only that they are chemical free, I'm not sure if thats the same thing but I shall investigate more!
Using 100% organic cotton sanitary products is much safer for your health, there is obviously no chemicals in them that your body can absorb, and Natracare also have a statement on their website that claim that the risk of toxic shock syndrome may be reduced by using organic cotton tampons as the bacteria that causes it was not produced with the cotton tampons compared to the “standard” rayon ones which did produce the bacteria.
Cotton also degrades, so when you dispose of your organic cotton towel or tampon you can rest assured it will degrade and wont seep chemicals into the planet.
Another alternative if you are a towel user is to invest in some reusable pads. I haven't looked too much into these as Ive always been a tampon user, but they have actually been shown to be more absorbent than disposable sanitary towels, which will in turn lead to less leakage. They're also supposed to be incredibly comfortable. Again head over to Bree at Precious Stars on YouTube, as she goes into so much detail about them, more than I ever could.
I have also heard of other natural products like sea sponge tampons but haven't looked into them in depth, but again there are so many resources out there for you to have a look at.
For me, I cant fathom why people will go and buy their packs of Tampax and other popular brands. I have been using up the last of a box of Tampax for my current period and I've been feeling all sorts of things, mostly shame, that I have been using products for well over a decade of my life that could be negatively effecting my health and the thought of my used tampons and towels still sitting in a landfill somewhere makes me cringe. In some way it has made me feel ashamed to be a woman, to have periods, and thats wrong. I really want to try and make alternative sanitary products more known about with this post. I want it to make a difference. If each person reading this made the switch to a cup or a natural product, think what a difference that makes to the planet. If you buy a pack of organic cotton towels instead of your usual popular brand, thats 4 plastic bags you wont be sending to landfill.
If you spend say £20 on a cup, in 3 or so periods you've made your money back, after that you're laughing! You can strut past the feminine care isle in Boots, head held high, cup in place, going fuck you! I don't have to spend my hard earned cash on you anymore! I don't have to absorb your dangerous chemicals, I don't have to send you to landfill! I’m in control!
Come on girlies! Lets try and take a long hard look at sanitary products, and see how you feel about it. Do some research and see if you might be better off with an alternative. You'll be looking after your health, saving the planet and you're bank balance all at the same time!
Thanks for reading and have a happy period!
Vikky
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