Sustainable Menstruation: Better for our Bodies and our Planet

In this week’s waste reduction venture, I tackle everyone’s favorite topic—menstruation! Alright, so I know it might not, in fact, be a popular topic for public discussion, but as anyone who has ever menstruated knows, the process can be messy, uncomfortable, and unpleasant. In trying to function while actively shedding the lining of one’s uterus, us menstruaters have turned to a plethora of products, which aren’t always exactly eco-friendly.

Two of the most commonly used menstrual products include tampons and pads. According to an article on Planet-friendly Periods in Stanford Magazine, in the US alone, approximately 12 billion pads and 7 billion tampons are discarded each year. Upon their disposal, these products either end up in landfills, clog sewers, or end up in our oceans where they can take over 20 years to break down and pose a threat to marine animals who can unwittingly ingest this refuse, leading to health complications or even death. From the product itself, to its applicator, to its packaging, mainstream disposable menstrual products have undoubtedly been a boon to the plastic industry. 

And it’s not just our planet these products are harming. 

Many pads and tampons are made using synthetic materials such as rayon or SAPs (super absorbent polymers) that are often bleached with chlorine to give them a pristine white appearance. Byproducts of the bleaching process include dioxins and furans, which have been linked to cancer, endocrine disruption, and reproductive toxicity. Pesticide residues linked to cancer have been found in products made from traditionally-grown cotton (as opposed to organically grown cotton). And undisclosed fragrance ingredients found in scented varieties of pads and tampons often contain chemicals which have been known to cause cancer, endocrine disruption, and allergic reactions. 

These incomprehensible, unfamiliar, and toxic chemicals have no business coming in contact with one of the body’s most sensitive and absorptive regions. As explained by Made Safe (which certifies products as being safe for both humans and the environment), pads and tampons are regulated as ‘medical devices’, so there is no government requirement that ingredients be disclosed, which makes it difficult to avoid using products that contain these chemicals.  

On average, people with periods will spend 2400 days over the course of their lifetime menstruating, according to an article on menstruation in National Geographic . (For an enlightening history of menstrual management, I highly recommend reading the article). Using single-use, plastic-based menstrual products to absorb those 2400 days worth of blood creates a significant amount of waste. 

As if the burden of menstruating wasn’t enough, people with periods now have to deal with the added pressure of burdening our ecosystems with all this waste. 

However, there are numerous alternatives to the single-use, plastic-based, harmful menstrual products that have thus far pervaded our modern period culture. [A note: this post is not meant to shame anyone who decides to continue using conventional menstrual products—you do you—but is instead meant to educate and inform on options that exist for managing your period more sustainably, should that be something that appeals to you]. 

These options include:

Using reusable products, such as reusable pads, menstrual cups or period-capturing-underwear:

With an arsenal of just ten reusable cloth pads, you can expect these products to last upwards of 5 years. Cloth pads made from organic cotton or bamboo have the additional benefit of shielding your sensitive parts from chemicals typically found in disposable products. You can keep thousands of disposable products out of the landfill and our environment. And, you can buy cloth pads in a variety of patterns and prints to match your style. Have more questions about reusable pads? Check out this helpful Reusable Pad FAQ to learn more. 

Menstrual cups are another reusable option with an impressive longevity of up to 10 years with proper care. These small, flexible cups made of medical-grade silicone are inserted into your vaginal canal, where they seal and stay in place, collecting your menstrual blood. Every 12 hours you remove the cup, empty its contents, rinse, and reinsert.

The prospect of using a menstrual cup can be admittedly daunting. Like many of my peers, I grew up using disposable menstrual products. With heightened awareness as to the waste I was generating in my daily life, my period waste was an inescapable blot in my quest for greener living. At the start of summer, I decided it would be a fun quarantine project to acclimate myself to the wonders of sustainable menstrual care, ordering an affordable $6 cup called The June Cup online. Menstrual cups typically cost around $30.

According to a USA Today business article, people with periods spend, on average, $150-$300 annually on disposable menstrual products. Even if you replace your menstrual cup every year, that still amounts to significant savings. 

I’ll admit, my first time using the cup was rather daunting. However, luckily there are a plethora of online resources, guidelines, and videos to help orient you to using a menstrual cup. Four months and four periods later, I completely love my menstrual cup and will never return to the wasteful ways of disposable menstrual products. An added bonus: my second month using the cup I was in the midst of a backcountry hiking adventure. Not having to pack out bags of soiled disposable products was a welcome change, and after using my cup successfully in a backcountry setting, I felt truly invincible!

I am now fully committed to my menstrual cup, but in addition to cloth pads, some companies are offering period underwear which have a special layer that prevents blood from seeping through. As with reusable pads, you throw these suckers in the wash after use, and you’re good to go. Check out Good Housekeeping’s list of 7 Best Period Panties (if you are able to overlook the unforgivable use of the word ‘panties’). 

Again, although these options tend to come with a higher price tag upfront, you’ll save money in the long run by not having to purchase products every month. 

In addition to utilizing the reusable menstrual products detailed above, you can also reduce period-specific waste by choosing tampons without applicators.

 

Choosing tampons and pads made from natural fibers also reduces the amount of toxins and plastics you are subjecting both your body and the environment to. 

Lastly, there is also the option of using birth control (such as IUDs or the pill) to eliminate periods altogether. Talk to your doctor or gynecologist to discuss your options and determine what, if any method, is best for you. 

There’s also the option to free bleed, often utilized as a movement to normalize menstruation in society or out of financial necessity and lack to access of menstrual products. Check out this Healthline article on free bleeding

to learn more. 

Of course, menstruation is steeped in misogynistic bullshit that creates feelings of shame surrounding what is a natural biological function, making those of us with periods feel the need for discretion. Along with the sustainable menstruation movement comes an increase in open discussion and acceptance of this biological process, which can be as waste-free as it is natural.

Just like snowflakes, every vagina is unique, so what works for one menstruating human may not work for everyone. 

Periods might not always be fun, but at the very least, with sustainable options in the form of reusable cloth pads, menstrual cups, and period underwear and the lower-waste options of applicator-free tampons and products made from natural fibers as well as the product-free options of skipping your period or free bleeding, they can ultimately be healthier for our bodies and our planet. 

If you’re someone who menstruates, what are your thoughts on sustainable period products? Do you use cloth pads, menstrual cups, period underwear? Feel free to drop your advice, product recommendations, viewpoints, and grievances in the comments section below. 

As always, best of luck on your path toward greener living. 

The Pandemic Problem: Unprecedented Waste in these Unprecedented Times…

In a previous post recommending environmental content to stream while in quarantine, I outlined some of the ways in which the global pandemic and ensuing lockdowns, economic shutdowns, and reduced travel have ultimately benefited the environment (fewer emissions, reduced fossil fuel consumption, etc.) However, unfortunately there are two sides to every coin, and the flip side of these temporary benefits is a whole lot of single-use waste. 

The worldwide outbreak of COVID-19 spurred panic, uncertainty, heartbreak, and one of the most egregious regressions in sustainability in the form of rollbacks of numerous plastic bans in favor of single-use disposable items, rationalized as an "abundance of caution." As science writer Lauren Tenenbaum explains, “Concern about safety and cross-contamination has caused statewide, municipal, and corporate repeals of single-use plastic bans and this has translated into a heightened demand for bottled water, PPE, plastic bags and packaging.” 

What’s more is that with many recycling and waste management services operating at limited capacity as a result of the pandemic, it’s possible that this influx of extra plastic will not ultimately get recycled. The potential for plastic ban rollbacks to persist coupled with the inability to properly manage our (now overflowing) waste streams may result in an unprecedented increase in the level of plastic pollution in our oceans, which activists have fought so tirelessly to reduce (see my Plastics Purge series). In fact, as reported by the LA Times, a new form of plastic pollution is beginning to pervade our oceans: disposable masks.

There has also been a major uptick in the amount of single-use plastic waste being generated from take-out dining—an option which has soared in popularity in the midst of a pandemic where people have been either prohibited from or uninterested in in-person dining. As cited in the above LA Times article, a survey found that during an eight-week lockdown, Singapore’s 5.7 million residents generated an additional 1,470 tons of plastic waste from takeout packaging and food delivery alone!

Additionally, environmentally friendly measures like the use of reusable cups at coffee shops and reusable bags in grocery stores have been disallowed in the fear that these items may serve as a vector for the Coronavirus. This, in spite of the fact that medical experts believe that reusable materials pose no additional risk, as long as they are routinely sanitized. 

Furthermore, as reported on Earth.org, the reality of the virus encouraging more people to socialize and recreate outdoors has resulted in heretofore unseen quantities of litter entering our natural spaces including parks, beaches, and hiking trails. 

With a recent relocation to the Hawaiin island of Kaua'i, I began listening to the podcast Are We Doomed? And Other Burning Environmental Questions, in which host Claire Caulfield investigates and answers questions about the environment in Hawaii. She discusses this very issue in a June 29th episode titled, Is the Pandemic Creating More Litter? (Spoiler alert: the answer is yes). She discusses how part of the increase in plastics and other waste can be attributed to disposable gloves, masks, and other medical equipment essential to protecting frontline healthcare workers. 

And while the abundance of caution may have been warranted at the start of the pandemic, as science continues to learn more about COVID-19, certain wasteful precautionary measures are no longer necessary. For example, with the best defenses against the virus consisting of washing your hands thoroughly with soap and water, wearing a mask, and practicing social distancing, for non-frontline workers disposable gloves and single-use masks are simply not necessary: reusable masks and handwashing are an effective defense. 

While I realize it may be seen by some to be a privilege to care about the well-being of our environment in the midst of a pandemic, recession, and social upheaval, I believe it is necessary to do so. We cannot sacrifice the future for the sake of convenience and comfort in our present. In some instances, the increased waste generated as a direct or indirect result of the pandemic is not easily avoided. However, in other instances, there are things that you can do to adopt greener practices, even in the midst of a global pandemic. 

Portland radio station Live 95.5 lists these five tips for reducing waste during the pandemic:

1. Break down your paper and cardboard delivery boxes and put them out for proper recycling. (Even if some recycling operations have been disrupted, we should still attempt to divert such items from landfills).

2. Instead of throwing disposable bags away, find other ways to re-use them, such as lining wastebaskets and using them for your next car trip to collect trash. 

3. If you’re ordering takeout, reduce waste by opting out of receiving plastic silverware and napkins. 

4. Buy a large resealable bottle of your favorite beverages instead of buying multiple smaller cans. 

5. Divert food waste from landfills by creating a composting spot in your yard. (For tips on how to start a household compost, check out my previous post on household composting).

Additional suggestions for waste reduction come from a June article in the Bangor Daily News:

6. Wear a reusable cloth mask. 

7. Bag your own groceries. (In which case many stores will allow you to use your reusable grocery bags)

8. Buy locally! Shopping at your local farmers market can reduce the amount of plastic generated from your groceries. Likewise, making local purchases can reduce the amount of waste from packaging and transportation that results from online shopping (for more reasons to buy locally, check out my post on shopping small).

9. When getting creative with socially distant celebrations or parades, celebrate with bubbles as opposed to balloons. Escaped or discarded balloons are another form of litter and can pose a choking hazard to birds and other wildlife. 

10. Use this time to conduct a trash audit to increase awareness of your personal / household waste management practices and to create goals to work toward reducing, reusing, and recycling. If you are perhaps trapped at home with your kids, this could be a fun and teachable project for the whole family!

Clean River Recycling Solutions also suggests the following:

11. Reduce food waste by not overbuying more produce than you can use, freezing what you can to extend shelf life, and opting for non-perishable items. 

12. Utilize eco-friendly / reusable cleaning supplies at home such as reusable rags vs. paper towels, bottles of cleaner rather than wipes, and natural cleaning solutions such as vinegar. (Again, for more details and tips, see my previous post on nontoxic housecleaning).

13. Reuse or re-purpose worn out household items and waste into arts and crafts projects and DIYs opposed to throwing them away. Also a great activity to entertain the kiddos!

And some tips of my own:

14. Pack it in, pack it out. Please recreate responsibly and make sure that you are packing out and properly disposing of any trash you generate while enjoying the great outdoors. 

15. Take part in socially distant beach clean ups or pick up trash in an area near you!

16. Revisit my previous posts for additional ideas for projects and practices to reduce waste in your everyday life. 

So, as you can see, there are lots of ways to continue on our paths toward greener living, even in the midst of a global pandemic. Times are tough right now—socially,  financially, and emotionally. We are all doing our best, and I offer my understanding and compassion in these trying times, but the fact of the matter is that unless our best includes incorporating sustainable practices and reducing waste with an outlook toward the longevity and well-being of our planet, our best simply isn’t good enough. If you are able, please strongly consider disrupting our wasteful and destructive habits fueled by extractive capitalism and refusing to accept the pandemic as a means by which to trash our environment. 

Have you implemented any sustainable practices in your life as a result of or in response to the pandemic? Are there other tips you'd recommend in combating our new wasteful reality? As always, please share your thoughts in the comments section below.