Think about how many tampons or pads you use a month. Multiply that by the twelve months of the year, then by the forty years that most women will menstruate for. The average woman will use approximately 12,000 tampons or menstrual pads in her lifetime. It’s easy to see how these products are having a significant impact on landfill. Menstrual products can have an adverse effect on the environment in several ways, and can also pose a threat to health. By changing to an eco-friendly alternative, you can reduce the environmental impact of the products you use when you get your period, and may also benefit your health.

The cotton material that makes up a pad or tampon will take approximately six months to break down. The plastic backing and wrap are not biodegradable, and will take thousands of years to decompose.[pullquote]The water, energy, and other resources used in the production of cotton pulp for tampons and menstrual pads are responsible for about 80% of their total environmental impact, according to a life cycle assessment carried out by the Royal Institute of Technology in Sweden.[/pullquote]

The resources used in cotton production also have an ecological impact. The water, energy, and other resources used in the production of cotton pulp for tampons and menstrual pads are responsible for about 80% of their total environmental impact, according to a life cycle assessment carried out by the Royal Institute of Technology in Sweden.

Reusable cloth pads are one such option that have a reduced impact on the environment. They’re easy to use, and work much the same way as a regular pad. Rather than the adhesive back, they feature small clips that keep them in the right place.

Moon Pads is an Australian owned and operated company that produces reusable cloth menstrual pads. Moon Pads were the invention of Pip Buchanan, a Registered Nurse and keen seamstress, who came up with the idea after she suffered toxic shock syndrome. She sold Moon Pads from Hobart’s Salamanca Market for twelve years, to an enthusiastic clientele. The company is now based online.

Bruce Ransley is the current owner of Moon Pads, he and his partner were both passionate about living a sustainable lifestyle, and saw traditional menstrual products as having unnecessary amounts of packaging and waste.

Australian made reusable Moon Pads

“The supermarkets are filled with products that we’re told by big business are hygienic, but are actually filled with chemicals, pesticides, and other harmful products,” said Mr Ransley, who has a background in chemistry and genetics.

“Moon Pads don’t adversely affect the environment in the same way, nor do they contain harmful chemicals or pesticides.”

A Moon Pad lasts for about five years. Trials have suggested that cloth pads can be used up to 200 times. That’s a lot of cotton, water, and landfill space saved. Moon Pads come in a range of sizes and styles, each suited to a different flow or time in your cycle. They also are available in a choice of different fabrics, which not only look great, but are easy to wash and care for.

Reusable pads are far from a new invention. Tampons and disposable pads only hit the market in the 1930′s. Bruce Ransley sees products such as the Moon Pad as a new normal, or in fact a return to what was normal to women for so long.

He says that since taking the Moon Pad online and expanding its availability, sales have increased dramatically.

“The Moon Pad has been incredibly well received by women from all walks of life, in fact we are struggling to keep our supplies up with demand,” he said.

A menstrual cup is another alternative to traditional menstrual products. These cups are made of silicone, or a similar material, and are easy to insert, remove, and clean. Menstrual cups are also reusable, meaning their ecological impact is significantly less than tampons or pads.

Iznaya Kennedy has been using a menstrual cup since 2008. Her chosen brand is the Mooncup, other popular models include the Lunette, and The Keeper. The sheer waste of materials associated with tampons and pads led Kennedy to seek an alternative. Since making the change, she hasn’t looked back.

“I found using it to be as easy as a tampon, just without the dryness associated with cotton tampons. It was really very satisfying to know that I wasn’t sending biological and paper waste to landfill,” Ms Kennedy said.

She happily recommends the Mooncup to friends, and plans to teach her own daughter to use a menstrual cup when she reaches puberty.

Ms Kennedy agrees with Bruce Ransley that traditional paper-based menstrual products are something we have been conditioned to think are normal and more hygienic than other methods.

“We’re indoctrinated into this idea that periods are inconvenient, dirty, messy, smelly, and unhygienic, mostly because traditional products do smell and are unhygienic.”

Of course, you don’t have to give up on using tampons to reduce your environmental impact. If you’re using tampons, changing to an organic brand can make a big difference to your body and to the environment.

While many of the tampons on the Australian market are grown with the help of insecticides, herbicides, and pesticides, there are alternatives made from organically produced materials.

T.O.M founder Aimee Marks

Aimee Marks, founder of T.O.M. Organic, was led by her own conscience to develop the world’s first Australian Certified Organic (ACO), chemical free range of tampons. From a young age, Markswas passionate about living a healthy and sustainable lifestyle. When designing environmentally friendly packaging for tampons, she was overwhelmed by the list of chemical-based ingredients that tampons contained.

“Conventional cotton is a highly sprayed crop, and many of the current products on supermarket shelves contain pesticides, bleaches, and other synthetics,” Ms Marks said.

“It’s easier for women to pay attention to the products we use on the outside our bodies, it only makes sense to take care of our more intimate places as well.”

The chemicals are that are used to bleach a tampon and make it appear whiter, and therefore appear more hygienic, actually pose a risk to health. Dioxins are a product of chlorine that is used to bleach tampons, and are a known carcinogenic. Tampons and pads can also contain sodium polyacrylate, a super absorbent polymer that has been associated with staph infections, as well as toxic shock syndrome.

After further research, Ms Marks spent the next three years developing T.O.M, which stands for ‘Time of month’. T.O.M tampons are made of certified organic cotton, which is free of all chemicals, such as dioxins, as well as any genetic modification.

‘”T.O.M has seen an amazing response from women,’” Ms Marks said.

“Women that have suffered for years from allergies and reactions to regular tampons are able to use T.O.M without any problems,” she said.

T.O.M. is available for purchase online, as well as through selected pharmacies and health food stores throughout Victoria and NSW. From March, T.O.M. will be available nationwide.

Moon Pads are available for purchase online.

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About the author

Renee Mirabito

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