How toxic is my/your tampon?
Quick answer, we just don't know.
Why you may ask? Because there are currently not enough studies that explore the female body and its capabilities including the effects of menstruation and the effects of period products in our body.
I am going to keep this short and simple to get the point, so carry on reading.
TOXIC TAMPONS?
Before you go on and change your lifestyle completely and get rid of the tampons under your restroom vanity, the ones in your purse or backpack, the ones in your car's glove box, even the one at your work desk and every other corner of your life, lets get into why it first need to make sense to you that you change your lifestyle and period product choices based on that one article that came out.
By the way if you want to know what article I am referencing its this one:
Many of us choose our period products based on the following 1) how much flow can it sustain 2) affordability 3) comfort 4) compatibility to our lifestyle. I ask you, does it make sense for you to really ditch your tampon based on your current day to day? Is it sustainable on the long run?
Should you worry about toxic metals in your tampons? Absolutely. But based solely on this study, its a hard NO. The study presented is performing tests in an environment that doesn't even mimic the environment of the vagina. And in case you didn't read the entire article, they microwaved the tampons. Sizzle Sizzle! It also did not demonstrate if these levels of toxicity can even go into our system. 🤷🏽♀️
Well then why the heck did they perform this study? Even the conclusion of the study does not mention at all that you should stop the use of tampons.
Choosing a period product that makes you feel safe, fully covered, and confident is personal and we also have to make sure our period product choices match our beliefs, our pockets, and our lifestyles. If you are in the possibility of choosing a better option, please absolutely move to that, but do not participate in shaming our other menstruator friends who need to keep using what they use now. We obviously recommend that if you are making a switch you check out our organic reusable menstrual pads 😜 on my website www.jessperiod.com.
Conclusions of the study
The biggest conclusion from the above study is that there aren't enough studies of the effects of period products in our bodies, but other than that it really isn't demonstrating that the metals found are even going to go into your system.
Just an additional study that causes confusion and further stigmatize what menstruation is and how we as menstruators choose to manage our periods.I applaud the intent but we also need to be social media literate (find a quick definition of social media literacy here:
The Future for Period Products: UNKNOW if we don't do something about it
What we need to do is advocate that the FDA sets higher standards for Period product manufacturing companies and make sure they are the ones performing these tests in advance with transparency. And FYI, currently there are no regulations for these manufacturing companies to disclose all the "ingredients" they put on period products. This right here is what should be really worrisome, what is only requested is "good practice" (statement directly from FDA website).
Add your little grain of salt and keep talking about periods as casually as possible, have a healthier relationship with your menstruation, if it came its likely not going away for a good time so better make friends with it sooner than later. Ask your mom, your grannie, your cousin or your friend about their periods and little by little we can normalize periods and get the attention our bodies so badly need soon in our generation and if not, at least for the new generations to come.
Thanks for reading this,