Tampons
From EcoWiki
Tampons, those small white handy menstural devices cause massive problems for the enviroment and often for the women that use them.
Contents |
Environmental impact of tampons
Manufacturing tampons
First, the environment. Tampons are made of a mixture of cotton and rayon. Rayon is cheap, nasty, but absorbant stuff that has been made from bleached wood pulp. The bleaching process is often done using cholorine which is bad for the environment (see chlorine bleaching) and also produce dioxins as a side effect which is bad for womens health. On average a woman will use between 9,000 and 14,000 sanitary products in her lifetime.
Disposing of tampons
If that woman flushes her used products down the toilet she will be regularly contributing to the estimated 2.5 million tampons, 1.4 million sanitary towels and 0.7 million panty liners that end up in the UK sewage system every day. Source [1]www.parliment.uk Whilst manufacturers claim that they are biodegradable and can be safely flushed down away this is disputed by Water authorities and beach users around the country.
Health issues with using tampons
Toxic Shock Syndrome
Toxic Shock Syndrome (TSS) is a rare potentially fatal illness. It will make you very sick very quickly and if not recognised and treated can result in death. TSS is caused by the bacteria Staphylococcus aureus. S, aureus is a common bacterium that lives harmlessly on the skin, in the nose, armpit, groin or vagina of a third of the population. Occassionally the S.aureus start producing toxins which causes a type of blood poisoning. The toxin affects the immune system and attacks the bodies organs. The poisioning is treatable if recognised, symptoms include, a sudden high temperature, vomiting, diarrhoea, a rash, dizziness, confusion, msucle aches and fainting. In the UK half of the reported cases of TSS are associated with women using tampons.
Doctors are not sure exactly what it is in the tampons that causes the usually bening S.A bacteria to produce toxins but high absorbancy tampons and tampons left in for long periods of time (over 6 hours) have been suggested. A 1995 published in the Journal of Infectious Diseases in Obstetrics and Gynaecology looked at 20 different kinds of tampons. They found that only the 100 percent cotton tampons did not produce the Toxic Shock Toxin.
Dioxins
Side effects of the bleaching process.
Alternatives
There are a couple of alternatives to tampons.
The Keeper
- the Keeper - a small rubber or silicone cup that is inserted into the vagina and used to collect the menstural flow. The keeper must be removed, emptied and rinsed regularly and can be worn for up to 12 hours. You can buy one on the Net for around $50.
Natural sea sponges
- Natural Sea Sponges – are what they say they are. A natural, non toxic, alternative to tampons that can be washed out and reused indefinately. These can also be bought on the Net, though anecdotal evidence suggests they're not so not good when you laugh or sneeze...
Organic cotton tampons
Both are worth a try but if you find these impractical (for example, when swimming) then stick to organic cotton tampons or for everyday use try sanitary towel alternatives.
See also
Books
Movies
External links
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