What's the Environmental Impact of Your Period?

Zero-waste, eco-friendly, sustainable, organic, natural: These are just a few of the buzzwords that pop up on social media and in marketing campaigns in our ever-more-environmentally-conscious society. “Organic” grocery stores and “bio” sections in supermarkets are on the rise. Reusable tote bags are a not-so-earth-friendly trend. Bamboo water bottles and zero-plastic travel mugs have spiked in popularity—you can find them everywhere from high-end shops to Tiger or Lidl. As we mention in our article about plastic pollution, by 2040 humans will have dumped approximately 1.3 billion tons of plastic waste on the planet unless we drastically change our habits in the next two decades. 

When discussing the source of plastic waste, the problem of disposable feminine hygiene products is the elephant in the room. But, like plastic bags, forks, straws, coffee stirrers, soda bottles and the most food packaging, disposable feminine hygiene products are single-use plastics, and they contribute significantly to the pollution problem. A big reason the world falls silent on this topic is because people just aren't comfortable talking about menstruation—it remains taboo. The euphemisms for women’s periods and their accompanying accessories are endless. A “sanitary napkin” sounds like something you’d see on a dinner table, and when I think of “personal hygiene products,” the first image that comes to my mind is deodorant or shampoo. It’s not something that many people are comfortable discussing openly, in spite of the fact that half the planet experiences menstruation once a month, every month, for an average of four decades. 

How Big a Plastic Problem Are They?

Menstrual products didn’t always contribute to the plastic pollution problem. When mass-manufactured pads and tampons went on the market in the 1930s, they were mostly composed of cotton and cardboard. Plastic started becoming part of the design in the 1960s, when scientists were inventing exciting new synthetic materials which were subsequently included in everything from cars to kitchen appliances to jewelry.

According to a study by the European Commission, discarded menstrual products are the fifth most common plastic waste product found in the ocean. Big brand sanitary napkins consist of up to 90% plastic—the equivalent of four plastic bags—and, because they are made of polyethylene and other plastics, they aren’t biodegradable. They aren’t recyclable either, because they are considered medical waste. In addition, legislation in many countries insists on individual wrapping for pads and tampons for sanitary reasons, making it difficult to go plastic-free even if you choose to purchase tampons without applicators. And, while some companies do offer paper packaging and paper applicators for tampons, choosing paper over plastic is really just swapping one problem for another.

Some sources estimate that a single woman will use and discard approximately 11,000 sanitary products in her lifetime, while others put the estimate at close to 16,000. Some of these plastic products can take up to 600 years to decompose. When you think about it, it’s mind blowing; 600 years is over twice as long as the country of the United States has been in existence. If the ill-fated Queen of England, Catherine of Aragon, had worn modern-day sanitary pads 500 years ago, they would still be sitting in a landfill or floating in the ocean. 

Apart from visible plastic debris, there is also the growing problem of microplastics, which are pieces of plastic smaller than five millimeters in diameter. Since plastic is a modern invention, the long-term impact of microplastics on plant, marine and animal life as well as on human health has yet to be discovered. If we are serious about reducing plastic waste on Earth, disposable menstrual products have to be included in the conversation.

Plastic Is Not the Only Problem

While the environmental impact of the plastic-loaded menstrual products on the market today is certainly reason enough to look for alternatives, there is also serious cause for concern when it comes to these products’ potential effects on women's bodies. Because manufacturers of feminine hygiene products are not required to disclose the materials used in their products (neither in the US or the EU), they often don’t. 

An organization called Women’s Voices of the Earth published a study in 2014 of the US megabrand Proctor & Gamble’s Always brand sanitary napkins. According to the study, chemicals found include “styrene (a human carcinogen), chloromethane (a reproductive toxicant), chloroethane (a carcinogen), chloroform (a carcinogen, reproductive toxicant and neurotoxin), and acetone (an irritant).” 

Another study done by the same organization in 2018 looked at a cross section of brand name, white label and even “organic” tampons and found that some contained “volatile organic compounds including reproductive toxins, toluene and xylene, as well as carcinogen, methylene chloride” and that those with rayon in them contained “carbon disulfide, a known reproductive toxin.”

Many menstrual products also contain synthetic fragrances, which can contain up to 3,900 different chemicals, some of which, like those listed above, have been identified as potential carcinogens, irritants, hormone disruptors and reproductive toxicants.

In these days of hypervigilance when it comes to anything health related, this lack of transparency and accountability is disturbing, to say the least.

What Are the Alternatives? 

The most environmentally-sound alternative to mass market pads and tampons is a menstrual cup. Like a tampon, this small, flexible cup is inserted into the vagina. But, unlike a tampon, it collects—rather than absorbs—menstrual blood. It can be worn for up to 12 hours at a time and needs to be periodically removed, emptied and cleaned.

It used to be a relatively fringe option in the world of feminine hygiene products, but its popularity has grown exponentially since the first company to popularize the product, Mooncup, was started by two female cyclists nearly twenty years ago. Now you can find menstrual cups in big-box retailers, pharmacies and eco-friendly shops. While a menstrual cup has a bigger up-front cost than a box of tampons or pads—most cost between 20 and 30 euros—one cup can last for up to 10 years. This can add up to significant savings in the long run and eliminates several boxes of plastic that would otherwise have been sitting in landfills for centuries. 

According to the Mooncup official website, its design is so comfortable that you don’t notice you’re wearing it. The site also highlights that “while tampons absorb 35% vaginal moisture, the Mooncup menstrual cup won’t dry you out or leave fibers behind and holds three times more liquid than a regular tampon. It is latex-free, hypoallergenic and contains no dyes, perfumes, BPA, phthalates, plastic, bleaches or toxins.”

Menstrual cups are also being promoted as a viable alternative in low-income countries, such as Kenya, where actress Ebby Weyime even developed her own, the Grace Cup. Another brand called Ruby Cup has launched a “buy one, give one” program that has provided menstrual cups to over 50,000 women and girls living in poverty in 10 different countries where the high cost of basic feminine hygiene products makes them inaccessible to many.

Most menstrual cups are fabricated using medical-grade silicone, which is a pretty “green” ingredient. As silicone degrades over time, it reverts back to silica—essentially a type of sand, and the second-most abundant material in the Earth’s crust—making the disposal of a cup safe for the environment. Other materials commonly used to make them include natural latex and thermoplastic elastomers (TPE) both of which are also biodegradable.

Another Approach

For women who prefer a different alternative, reusable menstrual pads are an option. They are typically manufactured using mostly organic cotton and are washable and reusable for up to several years. Most of these alternative pads include some polyurethane laminate (PUL) fabrics—fabrics treated with a laminate to help avoid leakage and are considered to be relatively environmentally sustainable—as well as a small amount of micromodal fabrics (made from tree cellulose), which are touted as being exceptionally eco-friendly when compared to traditional rayon in terms of the relative amount of waste created by their production.

Another possibility is period underwear, which are specifically designed to absorb menstruation, are also washable and reusable and are made from the same materials as reusable pads. Their design can vary from basic, utilitarian-looking underwear to lace-edged briefs.

While these cotton-based options do cut down significantly on the plastic waste generated by industrially-produced pads, cotton is still an environmentally problematic product. Don’t let the term “organic” fool you, the growth of organic cotton still includes the use of natural pesticides and fertilizers (which are not non-toxic by any means) and still requires massive amounts of water relative to other kinds of crops that could be grown on the same land. Organic may be the better choice when it comes to cotton, but at the end of the day, it’s still an unsustainable crop. 

A few shops are beginning to carry reusable menstrual products made with bamboo fabrics. Bamboo, a relatively new fabric in the textile industry, is being touted as a more environmentally-sustainable alternative to cotton. But is it? Bamboo requires no fertilizer or pesticide use, needs very little water, is highly adaptable, has a remarkable growth rate (up to one meter a day) and regenerates from its own roots so the soil doesn’t need to be disturbed to plant a new crop. It absorbs five times more carbon dioxide and produces 35 times more oxygen than a similar stand of trees. As a crop, it holds a lot of promise. But, since most bamboo is still grown in Asia, the industry is largely unregulated, lacks transparency and has a sizable carbon footprint if it is to be used in products sold on this side of the world. If you are set on buying bamboo products, the best option is fabric made using the Lyocell process—a closed-loop production system that uses fewer chemicals and produces almost no waste byproducts. Bamboo-based viscose made in this way is sold under the brand Monocel.

Buy Local

While you can find numerous alternative feminine hygiene products online that can be packaged and shipped to you from around the world, several local stores also offer sustainable menstruation options many of which are made in Spain. In fact, the period underwear available in local shops are actually made right here—produced by a Barcelona-based, female-run company called Cocoro. 

If you haven’t already made the switch and you’re interested in trying out a less “plastic-y” option every month, there are many options to choose from. You can feel good knowing that you’re taking care of your own body, as well as looking after the future of the planet. 

Check out our list of the local shops that offer alternative menstrual products in our article: Where to Buy Sustainable Menstrual Products in Barcelona