Period Care
Avoiding exposures to harmful chemicals should not fall on the consumer. People who experience periods face an additional exposure risk when using tampons, pads, and even products that are marketed as “sustainable alternatives”. We hope this page helps you make period care choices that align with your individual health needs and values.
People who identify as women, men and non-binary can all experience periods. When discussing period care, it’s important to use gender inclusive language.
For example, instead of using the words "women" or "girls" exclusively when discussing periods, we will use language like “people who menstruate", "people who have periods", or "menstruators". Instead of referring to tampons, pads, liners, menstrual cups, etc as "feminine hygiene" products or "women’s health" products, we will simply use the term “period products.”
Menstruators could use over 10,000 menstrual products over their lifetime. Despite the potential for chronic exposure, little is known about chemicals in menstrual hygiene products. Let’s review where current research stands.
Tampon use is a potential source of metal exposure.1
A new study led by a UC Berkeley researcher revealed that tampons from several popular brands can contain toxic metals like lead, arsenic, and cadmium. This is the first paper to ever investigate the presence of metals in tampons. Further research is needed to determine if and how these metals contribute to negative health effects.
Key Findings
Researchers evaluated levels of 16 metals (arsenic, barium, calcium, cadmium, cobalt, chromium, copper, iron, manganese, mercury, nickel, lead, selenium, strontium, vanadium, and zinc) in 30 tampons from 14 different brands.
They found that metals were present in all types of tampons.
Lead concentrations were higher in non-organic tampons but arsenic was higher in organic tampons.
Other chemicals of concern in period products
PFAS are intentionally or accidently involved in the manufacturing process, and make products more resistant to water. Two researchers at Notre Dame tested 100 period products for fluorine, an initial measure used to estimate PFAS, and found low levels of fluorine in about half of more than 100 products tested. It’s not yet clear how many PFAS in period products might be dangerous, but exposure to these chemicals at even the lowest concentrations has been shown to harm human health.
Menstrual products contain a variety of endocrine-disrupting chemicals including phthalates, volatile organic compounds, parabens, environmental phenols, and fragrance chemicals. Endocrine-disrupting chemicals can interfere with human hormones and cause medical issues, including gynecological conditions such as endometriosis and uterine fibroids.2
The myriad of chemicals hidden under the generic label of “fragrances” are regarded as a trade secret. The FDA does not require companies to disclose details about fragrances in pads and tampons, leaving consumers in the dark about the full list of ingredients they are being exposed to when using these products.
Dioxins are a byproduct of manufacturing processes that use chlorine bleaching, a process used when making tampons. The FDA has stated that tampons do not contain dangerous levels of dioxin. However, as stated by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, “even trace levels of dioxins are concerning because these chemicals have been linked to cancer, hormone disruption, and endometriosis.”
”The consumer is supposed to trust that when these products are put on shelves they've been vetted by the government.
But it's basically a rubber stamp. ~ Laura Strausfeld, an attorney and a co-founder of Period Law
Period products don’t usually have labels that list what’s in them. Here is a collection of articles explaining why consumer protection regarding period products is critical, and what you can do about it:
Sustainable Alternatives
References
1 Tampons as a source of exposure to metal(loid)s
Authors: Jenni A. Shearston, Kristen Upson, Milo Gordon, Vivian Do, Olgica Balac, Khue Nguyen, Beizhan Yan, Marianthi-Anna Kioumourtzoglou, Kathrin Schilling
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160412024004355?via%3Dihub#b0130
2 Endocrine-disrupting chemicals found in menstrual products
Endocrine-disrupting chemicals can interfere with human hormones and cause medical issues
December 15, 2023, George Mason University
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/12/231215140214.htm
Back to Personal Care Products | Back to Toxic-Free Living home page
