Sanitary environmentalism
Ladies, this one’s for you: the Guardian last week ran this scary story about how environmentally harmful sanitary products like pads and tampons are.
That, in fact, is the worst thing about most of these products: they are an astonishing waste of resources and will lead to horrible amounts of rubbish. Take the Tampax Compak Fresh: each tampon comes in its own plastic wrapper with its own bright blue plastic applicator. I asked P&G if this plastic is particularly biodegradable and was told that plastic applicators have been around for a long time, from which I infer - sorry if I’m wrong - that it is not. I also asked P&G if the scent is plant-based or synthetic: P&G replied that “as a matter of policy and for competitive reasons, we do not disclose the formulations of any of our products”.
Are there New Zealand alternative products? Sure are - here’s a couple of links I found from a quick search - although I’m not sure what to make of Silk Sea Sponges. Perhaps others know of more alternatives?
(Sorry boys, one for you tomorrow)
August 29th, 2006 at 11:48 pm
I am reminded of a favourite old joke of mine, of a man who writes a letter to a sanitary product manufacturer:
Dear Johnson & Johnson,
I have been using your product for six months now and I still can’t ride a bicycle, play tennis or swim.
All joking aside tho, it comes as no surprise to me that modern sanitary products would start to become as problematic to the environment as disposable nappies, with all the plastic products they contain. Is it just me who finds all that plastic, synthetic fibre and artificial perfume around your private parts just makes you itch and sweat? Ewwwww.
The sanitary products industry is marketed on the premise that a woman’s natural bodily functions are “not so natural” and targeted towards women in a way that shames them into believing they must spend ridiculous amounts of money for excessively packaged, flowery scented, environmentally unfriendly boxes of artificial fluff. The cost of menstruating is absolutely ridiculous these days.
I had the good fortune many years ago to belong to the Ponsonby Women’s Collective and it was from an information leaflet there that I discovered the benefits of natural sea sponges, which I used for a number of years until I became pre-menopausal and my periods too heavy to rely on them. So now I use NatureCare natural cotton napkins, which have way less packaging than supermarket brands, but they are hideously expensive.
As I see it, sponges are the only comfortable and environmentally friendly alternative for women, although they may not appeal to the squeamish because you have to deal with your own menstrual fluids in a rather intimate way. Some women are afraid of loosing them inside their vagina, but that can easily be solved by tying a little dental floss around them to serve as a tampon string.
Aside from the obvious recycling advantages, sea sponges do not excessively dry out the vagina like cotton tampons do and I can vouch for the fact that they are perfectly comfortable for a mostly-mess-free menstrual intercourse. For women who have really bad cramps, there are a variety of herbal infusions you can soak your sponges in which help ease those, Clary Sage being one of the best I have found.
The key thing to remember when using sea sponges is to keep them hygenic to avoid pelvic infection. I used to cycle about four at a time, one in use, the other soaking in a natural antispectic I made with cider vinegar and tea tree, another drying on a sunny windowsill and the fourth in a little self-seal plastic bag to carry for spare.
Changing sponges can be somewhat of a disadvantage when you are away from home though, but fortunately these days you can usually find a wheelchair friendly toilet which has its own wash basin on the cubicle where you can rinse your sponge and swap it for fresh one in your self-seal baggie.
I guess the only other environmentally friendly alternative would be the old-fashioned use of rag-napkins, but personally I find that option neither appealing, or comfortable.
I personally abhor having anything synthetic next to my skin and I find the idea of artificially scented toilet paper and sanitary products uttery hideous.
I don’t think this is a discussion we can have as women without overlaying a feminist perspective, so I would be very interested to hear other women’s have to say.
Cheers,
Z
PS: You used to be able to buy a brand of sanitary pads which had cotton lining and natural peat inside them, but I haven’t seen them for years and they were way more expensive than synthetic cotton alternatives. Not sure you could say they are environementally friendly, but they sure were fresh, natural and comfortable.
August 30th, 2006 at 12:00 am
Sorry Frog,
Most green femmes have found this out themselves, and amongst the stroppiest there’s been a few initiatives to go back to home-made or mass-produced cotton-towelling-with-fabric-covers towels. Mooncups are another alternative. There are at least two brands of non-bleached cotton tampons available.
http://www.commonsense.co.nz is worth a look for personal care products, and probably a good description of the Mooncups!
Women worked out that our internal environments were being polluted by the mainstream manufacturers, not to mention the GBH to the wallet, some time ago, hence what I’m posting hardly qualifies as “news” to most of us.
But good on you for going where very few members of the masculine gender would dare to tread!
August 30th, 2006 at 12:49 am
OK, recomposing now….
It comes as no surprise to me that modern sanitary products would start to become as problematic to the environment as disposable nappies, with all the plastic and synthetics they contain. Is it just me who finds all that plastic, synthetic fibre and artificial perfumed stuff around your private parts just makes you itch and sweat? Ewwwww. I am seriously averse to anything synthetic next to my skin and especially so when it comes to things like scented toilet paper and scented womens products.
I am suddenly reminded of a favourite old joke of mine about the bloke who writes to a sanitary napkin manufacturer:
Dear Johnson & Johnson,
I have been using your product for six months now and I still can’t play tennis, ride a bicycle or swim.
That is an ironic commentary on my opinions of the sanitary product industry and they way it markets it’s products to women on the premise that their natural bodily functions are somehow “not so natural” after all. The more they can promote these myths, the more they can sell grossly over-priced, over-packaged, over-perfumed boxes of synthetic fluff to women who are self-conscious about how they perform, look, and smell during their menstruation. So this is a topic which, for me, requires a feminist overlay to the discussion.
My personal solution was to use natural sea sponges for several decades, until my pre-menopausal periods started to become too heavy to use any kind of tampon. Sea sponges have many advantages in that they are recyclable, they fit comfortably, they don’t dry out the natural vagina wall, you can infuse them with herbal solutions (like clary sage) to treat cramps and I can personally verify their benefits during menstrual intercourse. I discovered sponges when I belonged to the Ponsonby Women’s Collective way-back-when, so on a personal level I found their use very empowering as a woman on a path to love and own her natural body.
Some downsides to sponges are the hygene issue. You have to keep them thoroughly clean - I used to soak mine in a cider vinegar and tea tree antiseptic solution for a day before recycling. Some women are scared of loosing them inside - quick solution to this is tie a thread of dental floss round them to make a tampon string. For many there is the squeamish factor of having to be so intimate with their own menstrual fluids. And then there’s the inconvenience of having to change them outside your own home - not such a problem if you have access to wheelchair friendly toilet with hand basin in the cubicle.
My original reply that I lost was much much longer, but Katie has already covered most of what I said and much more succinctly than I did hehehe. I strongly feel that solutions to this issue must come hand-in hand with feminist discussions about reclaiming our natural bodies and I’ll be very interested to see what other women have to contribute to that discussion.
Cheers,
Z
August 30th, 2006 at 1:15 am
like fwwog can wee have a real boy talk???
August 30th, 2006 at 8:25 am
Thanks katie - I know it’s old news, but good to see it covered in major news outlets!
August 30th, 2006 at 8:37 am
If you are happy to do internet commerce, then I can recommend Gladrags.
You will probably enjoy the Menstrual musings page.
I hadn’t seen an equivalent here when I bought from overseas a number of years ago (maybe I shop in the wrong places). If anyone know of a local source of purchase I’d be interested to hear about it.
August 30th, 2006 at 10:37 am
Get real. Do you really think women are going to go back to rags!! Tampax was all part of women’s liberation.
August 30th, 2006 at 11:27 am
My short term memory isn’t great thanks to menopause but mylong term memeory is fine . what BS from P&G PR people.Plastic applicators have not been around for a long time. Tampax invented the applicator tampon and it was always made from cardboard. Tampons should be made from hemp anyway which unlike cotton could be sucessfully grown commercially in NZ and doesn’t need bleaching.
August 30th, 2006 at 11:31 am
crikey frog.
i dont watch much telly. i especially avoid the pre-news slot. a not insignificant reason being the extensive sani-ads. so, as usual, i seek alternate means of information… only to find this!
although i do now feel somewhat better informed…
thanks (i think).
August 30th, 2006 at 11:45 am
have a look at the “keeper” for the option of a rubber cup that stores about 6-8 hours worth!
see http://www.keeper.com/ - I bought mine in NZ but not sure if they are still available locally.
It does take a little bit of practice to get it to sit right (if it doesn’t sit right it can leak a bit), so try it out with a cloth pad as backup, especially on heavy days.
they last around 10 yrs at least, and save a lot of money as well as waste! I’ve had mine for about 7 yrs, it has mostly worked well.
August 30th, 2006 at 12:15 pm
too much information…!…too much information…!
(hands over ears)..aaaarrrggghhhhhh!!!!
phil(whoar.co.nz)
August 30th, 2006 at 12:52 pm
Huge fan of the natural sea sponges-way more comfortable, cost effective in the long run, no needless packaging and no horrible chemicals inside you. As well as buying over the internet you can purchase them from the cosmetic section of most good chemists (they’re used for make-up application aswell). Got to keep them hygenic though-soaking in tea tree oil is great.
August 30th, 2006 at 1:26 pm
I know a women who uses washable pads at that time of the month. It’s got an outer cover and an inner absorbant pad, both are machine washable.
Sorry, don’t know anything else useful like where to get them.
August 30th, 2006 at 1:32 pm
Some excellent links in this thread, thanks for sharing them all. I wish I had heard of The Keeper a few decades ago - what a nifty concept.
Phil, if you can’t handle it then stop peeking through the hole in the locker room wall
August 30th, 2006 at 8:19 pm
I was intrigued by the mooncup, and found these links:
http://www.livinglegacies.co.nz/mooncup.html
This site sells the mooncup in NZ. This is the site of the Lynda Hannah who was selling her book on natural funerals at the recent Greens AGM.
You can see the home site of the mooncup here: http://www.mooncup.co.uk. The Greens Party could possibly add the mooncup to our list of environmental items that we sell for fundraising.
I’m off to order mine…
August 30th, 2006 at 8:20 pm
Mooncups for sale for $48 on trademe… now why didn’t I think of that first?
September 2nd, 2006 at 10:06 pm
There are certainly some great new ideas and products out there for women, but it can take a bit of searching. While I have no current need of sanitary items, when I do need them again I will be trying some of these… http://www.outrageouscloth.com.
September 12th, 2006 at 6:38 am
The Guardian article is very scary. Just the thought of all those parabens in ones private parts . . . For those of us with chemical sensitivity it is a nightmare just walking down the washing powder and toilet paper aisle in the supermarket because of the overpowering smell of synthetic perfumes, let alone trying to find an unperfumed product. Even supposedly unscented toilet paper is usually perfumed, along with paper towel, all types of sanitary pads (except Natracare which unfortunately has glue on the back which comes off on your underwear). One doesn’t always want a tampon or substitute. On the subject of perfumes and chemicals - guys, this also affects you, as men’s aftershaves and personal care products also contain many toxic and carcinogenic substances, just like women’s products do.
September 27th, 2006 at 3:58 pm
I have used the Keeper for several years now and not touched a disposable sanitary product in that time. They haven’t been available in NZ for awhile but you can now find them on http://www.naturalbasics.co.nz wouldn’t be without mine it certianly makes that time of the month a lot easier.
December 28th, 2006 at 1:43 pm
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