When you consider that the women during their reproductive life will use thousands of pads in their lifetime, the health risks multiply.
So here are the controversial issues:
- Synthetic petrochemical materials in the tampons and sanitary pads that may cause discomfort and health problems;
- Toxic Shock Syndrome (TSS) that may be caused by tampons;
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Toxic chemicals released into skin or mucosa.
The last controversial issue is a contamination with dioxins, a by-product of the bleaching process.
What are dioxins? Dioxins are a group of toxic chemicals that share a similar chemical structure and induce harm through a similar mechanism. They have been classified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer as a human carcinogen. They are on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s list of priority pollutants. They are persistent (they do not break down easily in the environment) and bioaccumulative (they build up in our bodies).
Tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) is the most toxic and best studied of this family of chemicals. TCDD “has been associated with a panoply of adverse health effects in people,” including heart disease, diabetes, cancer, endometriosis, early menopause, reduced testosterone and thyroid hormones, immune system disorders and abnormalities of the skin, teeth and nails.
Carolyn DeMarco, M.D., a women’s health specialist in British Columbia, theorizes that lifelong exposure could increase a woman’s risk for breast cancer and endometriosis (in which uterine tissue grows outside the uterus). Scientific studies have already suggested a connection between dioxin and endometriosis. Because dioxin mimics estrogen, and because estrogen has been associated with breast cancer, experts feel dioxin may have similar effects. (Tanenbaum)
In its statement, the FDA informs that manufacturers now use an elemental chlorine-free bleaching method (i.e., they use chlorine dioxide instead of elemental chlorine gas, which is supposed to release no dioxins).
Again, women use thousands of feminine hygiene products over the course of their lives. Even if there are only trace amounts of dioxins in each product, they are bioaccumulative. In other words, bit-by-bit those things accumulate in our bodies. Would you want to increase the risk of cancer or birth defects?
