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Climate change has triggered a growing need for more sustainable life choices. Menstruation is one such facet of life. Although everyone should have access to products and services for comfortable and safe periods, sanitary pads and tampons often end up in our landfills, oceans, and waterways. Traditional menstrual products are manufactured with synthetic materials like rayon. Conventional pads also commonly use SAPs (superabsorbent polymers), which are designed to hold enormous amounts of liquid. The problem is that SAPS are commonly composed of sodium polyacrylate, a synthetic material that is not biodegradable. As the world wakes up to the disastrous environmental impacts of a use-and-throw economy, period care is increasingly becoming an area where menstruators must make a conscious lifestyle choice. Devidutta Dash – CEO and founder at Lemme Be explains why using sustainable menstrual products is a better option and how to use them.
In India, where ‘period poverty’ is a very real phenomenon, there is a need for an effective solution. Enter menstrual cups and discs and their obvious benefits, which have proven to be a gamechanger. Most menstrual cups and discs are made with medical grade silicone. Some also have unique designs and are soft yet sturdy. These life-changing menstrual products have turned out to be the best alternatives to plastic-infused pads and tampons. They can provide safer period care that is free from rash, leakproof, pliable, comfortable, and easy to use. Not to mention the money one can save by reusing these pro-planet products for 3-5 years.
According to a study from the European Commission, menstrual products are the fifth most common plastic product found in the oceans. A 2007 study estimates that an urban woman will, in her lifetime, utilise anywhere between 5,000 and 10,000 plastic-based disposable feminine hygiene products like pads and tampons. The Menstrual Hygiene Alliance of India (MHAI) noted that disposable sanitary pads are still the go-to period care product of nearly 121 million women and girls. The time it takes for a tampon or pad to degrade in a landfill is a staggering 600–800 years! Besides, should these products ever catch fire, which is very common in a landfill or in areas where waste management is a challenge, they will emit toxic gases into the atmosphere.
There are many different folds you can use for a menstrual cup, such as the ‘C’ fold or ‘punch-down’ fold. For discs- the rim of a disc is pinched in half to form a long, thin shape. You insert a menstrual cup into your vagina and allow it to ‘pop’ open and make contact with the vaginal walls to create a seal. A menstrual disc is inserted flat and pushed to the very back of your vaginal canal where one end of the rim is placed in the space behind the cervix, then the other end is tucked behind the pubic bone.
Using a menstrual cup can last more than five years with proper care. Menstrual discs may be a better choice for people having heavier flow and menstruators who have severe cramps. Menstrual cups create a suction and sit at the bottom of the cervix and it reduces cramps by up to 60%. The full capacity of a disc can be variable, as the base is so flexible and can become compressed inside the body depending on how it is positioned. A menstrual cup holds five times the amount of period blood than a tampon does, and definitely more than a pad too. Menstrual discs give comfort during periods. You can wear a disc for an entire day and you won’t even feel it. No rashes, no irritation or itching. It does not make you feel uncomfortable or lead to irritation since it is inside the vaginal cavity.
However, while advocating for sustainability in period care, we also realized it is also crucial to acknowledge that the shift from age-old single-use products is not an easy one. Not everyone can be expected to be bold enough to try something unconventional. Considering all the obstacles created by stigmatized myths and taboos, it will take people some time to shift to sustainable alternatives. Although the adoption of menstrual cups and discs for period care might be slower, given the benefits, once menstruators make the switch, the frequency of going back to a sanitary pad will be reduced.
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