It looks like feminine product culture has finally jumped on board the organic train. There are several lines on the market today that offer a variety of organic feminine products, including tampons, liners, pads, condoms and lube. Now, if you are like me, you don’t want to mess around (no pun intended). I use a brand that spares me the need to carry an extra pair of panties in my bag, but it doesn’t make organic tampons. So, what to do? Do I risk it and switch? In search of the answer, I looked into why organic feminine care is so important.
The first thing I discovered was that feminine hygiene products are categorized as “medical” and therefore aren’t beholden to the same labeling regulations as food, cosmetics or drugs. Uh, so what’s really in our pads and tampons, then? Common drugstore brands use cotton that isn’t grown organically, which means that even after it’s farmed and processed, pesticides and insecticides are still present. What’s more, most companies bleach their cotton, leaving dioxin residue on their products, not to mention synthetic fragrance and preservatives. And we put these products on the most absorptive parts of our bodies, the mucus membranes, which take in all that disgustingness. The cotton also comes from GMO plants, which adds another set of concerns.
Organic lines, however, promise products made of 100% cotton that are also 100% free of harmful chemicals. They use BPA–free plastic applicators and non–GMO plants, and often their materials are completely recyclable and/or biodegradable. Many companies also offer a kickback to girls in Third World countries, who don’t have access to feminine care products and reproductive education.
Here are a few organic menstrual brands we love:
Cora
Not only does this brand offer great organic menstrual products, but they also believe in empowering girls with reproductive knowledge and providing feminine care products to those in need.
Lola
Touted as “a company for women run by women,” Lola takes the stress out of period prep by offering a customizable subscription package that includes organic tampons, pads, liners, vitamins, oils, condoms and lube delivered right to your door.
L.
L. believes that women deserve the best menstrual care products out there, free of chemicals, pesticides and the many other ingredients typically found in tampons and pads that no one can pronounce. L. also partners with organizations across the globe to spread both the word about and the access to organic feminine hygiene products because periods should not be shameful.
7th Generation
A brand that’s been around for over 25 years, 7th Generation is a well-trusted green organic tampon company that offers a wide variety of products, all easily accessible and at a very good price point.
Rael
Rael is an amazing organic tampon company that was founded by women who shared a desire to give you healthy, organic and effective protection for your periods. The company has a wonderful campaign on Instagram right now to help provide women in need with menstrual products.
It’s worth noting that there has been some backlash against organic tampon brands that claim that their products are chlorine- and pesticide-free, given the lack of research that’s been done to prove the harmful effects of traditional (i.e. non-organic) products on the body. However, manufacturers say that our exposure to pesticides and dioxins is far greater when it comes to the food we eat and our surrounding environment, than when it comes to our pads and tampons. But without any strict regulations in place to eliminate the use of harmful chemicals in period products, our choice, in the end, was easy: we’re going green during our code red.
