Have you ever paused and asked yourself where you feminine pads and tampons end up? Let alone what materials are used to manufacture them?  Well, feminine hygiene as we generally practice it comes at a very high environmental cost.  It doesn’t need to be so as there are several eco-conscious alternatives that actually cost less.

Billions of dollars are spent each year by women to purchase disposable tampons and pads that end up in our landfills or in our waterways. These sanitary protection products are made of cotton, wood pulp and plastic. The very thirsty cotton industry uses many pesticides to grow its crops, which not only raises environmental issues but also these pesticides remain in the cotton pad or tampon as residues. The cotton used for tampons is bleached using chlorine dioxide or hydrogen peroxide. Dioxins can occasionally be detected in these products.

According to WEN (Women's Environmental Network), the average woman uses approximately 12,000 tampons or sanitary towels in her lifetime. In a 1999 study, they also estimated that around 2.5 million tampons, 1.4 million sanitary towels and 700,000 pantiliners were flushed down the toilet every day, some of which end up in sewers and eventually beaches.

This waste of resources and this pollution can be avoided quite easily. Your green alternatives are as follow:

The Menstrual Cup

This is the green alternative to tampons. There are currently three main models: the Diva Cup, the Keeper and the MoonCup. They all are designed to collect menstrual flow internally. You insert it in your vagina (as you would a tampon, no difference) and once the cup is full, you remove it, clean it with warm water and replace it. Depending on your flow, you can keep your cup for up to 8 hours, without feeling it at all. The Diva and the Moon are made of top-quality silicone, while the Keeper is made of natural rubber. They cost around $35 and can last for 10 years if used properly. What a saving!

Reusable Washable Towels

There are several brands which you can find in stores like Whole Foods or on-line, that offer reusable, washable 100% organic cotton pads. Manymoonsalternatives is one of them.

Make Your Own!

If you feel up for it, you can even make your own pads! Go to manymoonsalternatives or www.wen.org.uk to find out about all you need to make your own menstrual towels.