Best Zero Waste & Eco-Friendly Period Products

Tampon manufacturers formerly used chlorine gas to bleach the rayon used in tampons, but the method was abandoned in the nineties to reduce the formation of dioxin compounds. All brands now use either Elemental Chlorine-Free (ECF) bleaching without chlorine gas but chlorine dioxide, or Totally Chlorine-Free (TCF) bleaching agents, which is the cleanest technology available.

Dioxins are a group of highly toxic chemical compounds that are harmful to health. They accumulate in the food chain, mainly in the fatty tissue of animals and more than 90% of human exposure is through food, mainly meat and dairy products, fish and shellfish, but can also be formed from manufacturing processes such as chlorine bleaching. Even though ECF and TCF bleaching methods prevent the formation of dioxins in tampons, the compounds are present throughout much of the environment, so there can still be trace amounts, but our exposures to dioxins from tampons are approximately 13,000-240,000 times less than dietary exposures. 

Despite the common misconception that organic means zero pesticides, organic cotton is grown with pesticides approved for use in organic farming. Are organic practices perfectly pristine? No. But are they preferable to synthetic chemicals? Certainly. Organic growers are, in general, better stewards of soil health, water quality, and public health compared to industrial farmers who are reliant on synthetic chemicals.

Carbon disulfide is a chemical that is predominantly used in the manufacture of rayon and is a possible reproductive toxin. It is also released into the environment at very low levels from natural sources such as soils, marshes, volcanoes, forest and grass fires. An independent analysis of tampons found it in 4 out of 6 U.S. brands of tampons that contain rayon. It was not detected in the all-cotton tampons that were tested. However, it is important to note that it was found at a maximum level of 22ppb (parts per billion), and the UK's threshold limit value is 10ppm (parts per million) which is the reasonable level to which a worker may be repeatedly exposed day after day, 40 hours a week over a working lifetime.  The highest level found in this study was 455 times less than this.

This one is a little more straightforward as fragrance truly does cause irritation for lots of people, but luckily there are plenty of fragrance-free options.

Found in herbicides and is routinely used everywhere. It has been found to be a probable carcinogenic by WHO. There is no published peer-reviewed data about the presence of glyphosate in tampons, however, a researcher from Argentina claims 85% of tampons he tested presented it at maximum levels of 4ppm, slightly less than the control areas in the ground without application of herbicide at 5ppm. This level is deemed of no risk to the consumers by all scientific literature reviews. More on this claim from Dr. Jen Gunter at: No, your tampon still isn’t a GMO-impregnated toxin-filled cancer stick. 

TSS is a rare but serious complication that can result from certain bacterial infections. You can get it using tampons, pads, cups or no period at all. In fact, even men and children can get TSS and only half of TSS infections are related to menstruation. To put it in perspective you are more likely to die from being struck by lightning than from TSS. However, there are things you can do to reduce your risk.  Always use the lowest absorbency tampon during the different stages of your cycle (and it doesn't matter if it's organic or conventional). Thoroughly clean or boil menstrual cups between uses (helps to maybe have 2 cups in rotation), and never wear menstrual products for longer than the specified maximum time. It also helps to break up your tampon or cup use with pads (or for less waste try reusable pads or period pants).