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Toxic Tampons: An Urgent Health Threat for All Women

A new study finds heavy metals—toxic substances linked to serious health issues—present in tampons. This is alarming news no matter when you last had a period.

Just when we thought it couldn’t get much worse for women in this country, a new study by the  University of California, Berkeley, found “measurable concentrations” of toxic heavy metals in tampons. This is cause of concern for everyone, the post-menopausal among us included, since even if we’re no longer menstruating, chances are we previously used these products.

What’s more, we know and love women—daughters, sisters, and friends—who are blithely putting the likes of arsenic and lead into their bodies on a regular basis. The study cautions that these substances can “be absorbed by the vagina’s highly absorptive tissue, resulting in systemic exposure.”

Horrified? No doubt. Exposure to heavy metals can cause potentially irreversible, life-threatening health problems, according to the Cleveland Clinic. Heavy metal poisoning, no picnic in itself—with abdominal pain, dehydration, diarrhea, and vomiting among its milder symptoms—can lead to liver, kidney, and brain damage, reproductive issues, and increased cancer risk.

Exposure had largely been associated with handling, inhaling, or ingesting heavy metals (through water pipes containing lead, for example); the UC Berkeley study reveals a previously unexplored means of exposure that solely endangers tampon users.

The Trouble With Tampons: Prepare to Be Shocked

Researchers at UC Berkeley analyzed 30 tampons across 14 brands—representing multiple manufacturers, name brands and store brands, product lines, and absorbencies, sold in the U.S. and abroad—and discovered heavy metals in all of them.

“We found concentrations of all metals we tested for,” remarked lead study author Jenni A. Shearston in a public statement.

Arsenic, barium, calcium, cadmium, cobalt, chromium, copper, iron, mercury, manganese, nickel, lead, selenium, strontium, vanadium, and zinc were detected to varying degrees. Among the most troubling, Pb (lead toxicity) was found in all the tested tampons, with researchers warning: “There is no safe exposure level to Pb; any proportion of Pb that may leach out of a tampon and reach systemic circulation might contribute to negative health outcomes.”

Lurking in tampons: Arsenic, barium, iron, mercury, lead, strontium, zinc, and other toxic elements. WTF?

This means that one of our most trusted feminine hygiene (an antiquated term if ever there was one) staples could put women at serious health risk. The cruel irony? Tampons are widely available, over the counter in pastel-colored packages at pharmacies nationwide, while such potentially life-saving medicines as mifepristone and misoprostol are not.

Time to Toss the Tampons?

The news may serve as a frightening flashback for those of us who remember the uptick in toxic shock syndrome (TSS) during the late 1970s and early 1980s. An outbreak of the rare, potentially deadly condition caused by staph (Staphylococcus aureus) and strep (Streptococcus pyogenes) bacteria was ultimately linked to the use of Rely, a tampon made of a synthetic material hyped as far more absorbent than the traditional cotton and/or rayon products.

Between 1979 and 1980, 1,365 American women were diagnosed with TSS, leading medical experts to better educate us on correct tampon use. (Essentially, no matter how absorbent the product claims to be, change the damn thing every four to six hours!) Rely was taken off the market, and the scare subsided—now, only one in every 100,000 Americans contracts TSS annually.

Tampon alternatives include menstrual cups, discs, and underwear, as well as revamped sanitary pads.

With heavy metals present in just about any of today’s tampons, women may want to rethink how they deal with their flow. The UC Berkeley study notes that the majority of menstruating people—as many as 86 percent—currently use tampons, but there are alternatives. These include:

  • Menstrual cups—small, reusable vessels made of medical-grade silicone or latex
  • Menstrual discs—typically, disposable circular devices similar in shape and size to a diaphragm and inserted in the same way
  • Menstrual underwear—washable panties with an absorbent crotch
  • Sanitary pads—more absorbent and comfortable nowadays.

Some women also employ sea sponges as a natural tampon replacement, but doctors tend to discourage their use because particles can break off in the vagina and lead to infection, plus sponges can’t be adequately sterilized for reuse.

Taking Action on Tampons

How worried should you be, for your own sake (whether your tampon use is past or present) or that of loved ones? Shearston, a postdoctoral scholar at UC Berkeley School of Public Health, doesn’t believe that the study’s findings warrant tampon terror, telling The Today Show: “What I would like to encourage people to do is support more research and ask more questions about this to try to make research on menstrual products and menstruation a priority.” 

It’s important for the personal health product industry as a whole to take this matter seriously; we can’t single out any one company, since the study found that no category or brand of tampons had consistently lower concentrations of all or most metals.

It’s time to make research on menstrual products and menstruation a priority.

While the study didn’t cite manufacturers by name, at press time, none of the major tampon manufacturers—including Proctor and Gamble (owners of Tampax) or Edgewell Personal Care (parent company of Playtex)—have commented on it. Frankly, we don’t expect them to—unless, of course, we women get busy, contacting these companies and holding them accountable, as Shearston suggests. You’ll find their contact info in the links above. Meanwhile, remember that wherever you are in your menses journey, sometimes the best defense is a good offense, especially if you’re a woman. Period!

By Nina Malkin

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