Welcome to the 30-day Eco-Living Challenge! We’ve been doing an eco-activity every day for thirty days. Here’s day 4, which is all about plastic-free periods.
On average, around 10,000 menstrual products are used in a lifetime, resulting in more than 45 billion tampons and pads globally per year. This all ends up as seven million pounds of plastic waste per year. Period products are actually the 5th most common item you’ll find on an European beach.
If they don’t end up in the ocean, they end up in landfill, where they take over 500 years to decompose, meaning even the oldest modern sanitary pads are still centuries away from decomposing.
I’m not quite ready to use a menstrual cup just yet, so I’m trying out these Natracare period products for my first step to plastic-free periods.
On first impression, I can’t tell that these are made of other componants than the sanitary towels I’m used to. The wrapper is identical, despite being made from biodegradable and non-toxic starch. The towel itself is soft to the touch with a strong adhesive. They’re made from organic cotton and cellulose from wood and pulp and contain no plastic, chlorine or perfumes.
Conventional pads are bleached, which means toxic chemicals can permeate the delicate skin and get into the bloodstream. These pads feel safe in comparison, and still felt secure, leak-proof, absorbent and odourless.
On average, each Natracare pad costs 43p, whereas the leading brand costs 90p each (and that’s the cheaper packs!).
However, these pads still create a lot of waste. In my eyes, nothing beats reusable pads.
I’ve had some made by Charlene over at Candy Cat Pins and I’m sold! The comfort and cool design won me over, as well as being secure, absorbent, odourless and leak-proof. Candy Cat Pins aims to bring pretty-yet-practical cloth reusable products, helping us all do one small thing to make a big difference.
