Shark week.
Periods..
The bane of female existence. The mood swings, the bloating, the endless hunger for junk food for five days out of the month, the constant ability to show up in the most inconvenient time! Periods are a part of our lives from a young age.
I remember my first period, I was 11 years old on a day trip into Dublin with my aunt May and my uncle Slip (not his actual name obvs). The Luas was still pretty new so we decided to go out to Dublin and see it ( I live in Wicklow so going out to Dublin was a big deal okay...). I was wearing the the latest fashion for 11 year old's at the time, remember those cargo pants with all the random bits hanging off them?
Yeah...baby blue ones.
So we got off the Luas, wandered around the city centre and decided to go for some lunch in a nearby cafe, I went to the bathroom and that's when I saw the absolute bloodbath in my underwear... sorry, that's a little graphic haha! Anyway, thankfully I knew what was going on as I had already received the most basic sex ed class in school a few weeks earlier.
I stuffed my knickers with tissue, wrapped my jumper around my waist and informed my aunt that we had to go home "like right now!" Not ideal!
Though they're apart of our lives, period products aren't the most sustainable or Eco friendly. On average, one woman will go through 10,000 tampons in her lifetime! Sanitary pads are also 90% plastic with just one pack containing more plastic than 4 plastic carrier bags. It also takes the length of a woman's lifespan for one sanitary product to decompose, so whatever product you used when you got your first period is still here.
The Carbon footprint of one woman's sanitary products for a year equals 12 pounds of CO2. The plastic tampon applicators can not be commercially recycled nor can the wrappers they come in so unfortunately they end up in landfill or washing up on our beaches, they break down into micro plastics and make their way into our marine life who have mistaken them as food.
So are there more sustainable, Eco friendly period products available?
You betcha!
There are so many options available. The most popular being the Mooncup , A silicone cup, that, like a tampon, you insert into your vagina and it collects the menstrual blood. Then you simply take it out and empty the contents into the toilet. The silicone is non-absorbent so won't dry you out or leave any fibres behind like regular tampons would. I know lots of women who use moon cups and honestly swear by them!
Then there's period pants - super absorbent underwear specifically designed for periods, no tampons or pads necessary! thinx , modibodi and flux are just some of the brands I've researched. Period pants come in a range of different styles and absorbency levels, they're also good undies to wear in the gym as they're made from moisture wicking fabrics. They can be pricey but when you think of the amount of money you spend on period products in your life time (€1706) , a pair of these pants will last you 2 years or more if cared for properly!
Like the period pants, there is also reusable pads, like normal sanitary pads they line your knickers but you can simply wash and reuse them!
If you're not quite sold on the reusable options, there are brands, like Flo. Flo is a brand of sanitary products that use organic cotton and bamboo to make their products, so they're super breathable, comfortable but also durable! Flo also donates its products to help end period poverty and 5% of their profits go to the Orchid Project an organization that work to end female genital cutting (FGM)
I use Flo products myself but will be switching to period pants soon as even though organic products are much better they're still not great.
There are loads of different products out there, try some out and see whats best for you and your body.
Yours sustainably,
Hayley x
The bane of female existence. The mood swings, the bloating, the endless hunger for junk food for five days out of the month, the constant ability to show up in the most inconvenient time! Periods are a part of our lives from a young age.
I remember my first period, I was 11 years old on a day trip into Dublin with my aunt May and my uncle Slip (not his actual name obvs). The Luas was still pretty new so we decided to go out to Dublin and see it ( I live in Wicklow so going out to Dublin was a big deal okay...). I was wearing the the latest fashion for 11 year old's at the time, remember those cargo pants with all the random bits hanging off them?
Yeah...baby blue ones.
So we got off the Luas, wandered around the city centre and decided to go for some lunch in a nearby cafe, I went to the bathroom and that's when I saw the absolute bloodbath in my underwear... sorry, that's a little graphic haha! Anyway, thankfully I knew what was going on as I had already received the most basic sex ed class in school a few weeks earlier.
I stuffed my knickers with tissue, wrapped my jumper around my waist and informed my aunt that we had to go home "like right now!" Not ideal!
Though they're apart of our lives, period products aren't the most sustainable or Eco friendly. On average, one woman will go through 10,000 tampons in her lifetime! Sanitary pads are also 90% plastic with just one pack containing more plastic than 4 plastic carrier bags. It also takes the length of a woman's lifespan for one sanitary product to decompose, so whatever product you used when you got your first period is still here.
The Carbon footprint of one woman's sanitary products for a year equals 12 pounds of CO2. The plastic tampon applicators can not be commercially recycled nor can the wrappers they come in so unfortunately they end up in landfill or washing up on our beaches, they break down into micro plastics and make their way into our marine life who have mistaken them as food.
So are there more sustainable, Eco friendly period products available?
You betcha!
There are so many options available. The most popular being the Mooncup , A silicone cup, that, like a tampon, you insert into your vagina and it collects the menstrual blood. Then you simply take it out and empty the contents into the toilet. The silicone is non-absorbent so won't dry you out or leave any fibres behind like regular tampons would. I know lots of women who use moon cups and honestly swear by them!
Then there's period pants - super absorbent underwear specifically designed for periods, no tampons or pads necessary! thinx , modibodi and flux are just some of the brands I've researched. Period pants come in a range of different styles and absorbency levels, they're also good undies to wear in the gym as they're made from moisture wicking fabrics. They can be pricey but when you think of the amount of money you spend on period products in your life time (€1706) , a pair of these pants will last you 2 years or more if cared for properly!
Like the period pants, there is also reusable pads, like normal sanitary pads they line your knickers but you can simply wash and reuse them!
If you're not quite sold on the reusable options, there are brands, like Flo. Flo is a brand of sanitary products that use organic cotton and bamboo to make their products, so they're super breathable, comfortable but also durable! Flo also donates its products to help end period poverty and 5% of their profits go to the Orchid Project an organization that work to end female genital cutting (FGM)
I use Flo products myself but will be switching to period pants soon as even though organic products are much better they're still not great.
There are loads of different products out there, try some out and see whats best for you and your body.
Yours sustainably,
Hayley x
Comments
Post a Comment