Eco-Friendly Feminine Products

Consider what I’m about to tell you about as the final frontier in terms of eco-friendly personal care. It’s the last thing any woman wants to talk about, let alone deal with when it comes around once per month. Yup, that’s what I’m talking about.

What we don’t always think about is how safe feminine hygiene products really are. After all, the packaging on these products does not list what they are made of. There are alternative feminine hygiene products to choose from, but what’s the big deal? The truth is that most feminine care products have many environmental and health drawbacks because of their ingredients and disposability. And, the more you know about them, the greener and healthier your decisions can be. Here are the facts:

• Sanitary products such as tampons and pads contain trace amounts of dioxin, a chemical the EPA believes to be carcinogenic and a possible link to endometriosis.
• The FDA does not require the ingredients in tampons or pads to be displayed on their packaging.
• Although most women tend to think that feminine hygiene products have been sterilized, there is no proof showing that is the case.
• More than 12 billion tampons and sanitary pads are disposed of each year.
• Plastic tampon applicators are one of the most common forms of beach trash.
• A woman will dispose of up to 15,000 sanitary pads or tampons in her lifetime.
• The average woman throws away 250 to 300 pounds of sanitary pads, tampons or applicators in her lifetime.
• In North America alone, there are 85 million women who are of menstruating age.

Most of these tampons and pads contain surfactants, adhesives and polyethylene plastic, which can leach into our groundwater, lakes and streams and pose several health risks for women. These days, we have many more options, including ones that are healthier for women and the environment.

Menstrual cups were first created in the 1930s from rubber latex, but can cause allergic reactions. The ISO-certified DivaCup, however, is made from silicone (a different type than breast implants) and contains no BPA, plastic, latex, phthalates, chlorine, dyes, coloring or additives. It can be cleaned with mild soap and water and lasts about a year.

Organic cotton pads are another alternative. Lunapads are reusable and come in a variety of colors and patterns. Each is a pad with wings that fasten around your underwear. It comes with liners that get inserted between ric-rac bands on top for extra protection and snaps to keep them in place. Lunapads claim to be softer and more breathable than disposable pads. They can be hand or machine washed and last three to five years.

Disposable, non-bleached tampons and pads by Natracare and Seventh Generation are the closest thing to traditional feminine hygiene products, but without chlorine bleach, dioxin, dyes, perfumes, rayon, plastics or any other synthetics. Instead, they are composed of natural ingredients like organic cotton, wheat or plant cellulose. They look just like traditional pads or tampons, absorb just as much and can be worn for just as long.