There is around 63% probability that the person reading this is a young girl.
As a result I wanted to bring into your attention that pads and tampons are really expensive products, but you probably already knew that. Also, they are damaging to the environment to a great extent. They take many years to decompose and women can use up to 16,000 disposable menstrual products in her lifetime.
Around 40 states in the United States have a luxury item tax on period supplies. Whatever the cause may be, having a period with tampons and pads is not a luxury but a necessity.
I didn’t know about the possibility of using a menstrual cup, or organic pad until last year. Surprisingly usable commercial cups have been around since 1937. Nevertheless, the road to make them a better product than the disposable tampons and pads was a long hard process. The art of being on your period and not having anyone notice is something that has been carried generation to generation. What else than period shaming hindering convenience and sustainability.
There are various brands, materials, shapes and costs, for non disposable pads and cups. However I only wanted to highlight the benefits these have, for consumers.
Cups are about $30-40 dollars and last a minimum of five years. If you never heard of cups they are basically a cup made of silicon that you would put in like you would a tampon. After some hours, blood will be collected in the cup. When you pull it out you throw the blood away, clean it and put it back on.
Non disposable pads are around $20 dollars each but they last about five years. They are used just like disposable pads, however after use you can wash it and use it again. Some of these pads are made with textiles that are hard to stain so they are easy to wash, and they don’t look gross and damaged after one use.
I’ve heard people claim they have shorter periods after changing to these, because of the lack of exposure to synthetic ingredients in disposable pads. Not to mention the obvious impact it can have on your carbon footprint and your bank account.
Do you think cups and organic products are a sustainable threatening competitor for disposable pads and tampons? I would love to know what you think.
(TMI warning:)
I. Love. Menstrual. Cups.
I absolutely, 100%, I believe that reusable pads and cups are competitors to traditional pads and tampons. I’ve been loosely following this industry and peoples’ awareness of these products for almost 5 years now, and I’ve definitely noticed more and more people 1) being less weirded out by the idea of it, 2) who have head of it prior to me awkwardly bringing it up, 3) who use it regularly. I’ve also noticed it showing up in more mainstream magazines, or beauty youtube channels that with high viewership.
It’s definitely going to take some more time for things like this to become accepted as the norm, but I think we’re less than 10 years from it being there. The idea of sticking perfectly new fresh bleached cotton inside or against a human body only to discard it after a few hours is ridiculous, especially when there are these cheaper, safer, and more sustainable options available.