Periods are a lot like presidential elections.

Every American woman knows that when it comes to dealing with menstruation, we have a choice between two very similar candidates, both of which will probably have roughly the same results, cost us the same amount of money, and end up disappointing us in the end. So who’s going to win your vote this year, pads or tampons?

Well, I’d like to introduce you to another option that, unlike Jill Stein, is something that you actually CAN choose! But first, I think it’s essential to take a look at why the first two options are the only ones that we ever hear about.

We already know that we live in a culture of high consumption. And in order to maintain that over a long period of time, it’s essential that people continually have a need to consume. If we only produced durable, reusable goods that lasted a long time, we would have no need to keep buying new goods. For this reason, high consumption absolutely depends upon the disposability of products. This could mean things that are made only for one-time-use, things that are deliberately not built to last, or in the case of the technology industry, constant updating intended to make products obsolete. In the case of personal hygiene products, we’re dealing with the most elementary form of disposability: one-time-use products.

Historically, personal hygiene products were some of the first to be made disposable. The marketing strategy is very clear in this old Kleenex ad: convince people that reusable products are unpleasant and unhygienic. 

The population believes these claims, and the products sell; disposable products shape our material life as they become the norm. The idea that disposability is necessary and hygienic is perpetuated by our use of the products, and eventually that idea starts to be culturally reproduced without corporate influence. Our worldview has now been altered, all by something that started as an attempt to sell a product. (Interestingly enough, this is also how American women started shaving).

So just like no one thinks to use old-fashioned handkerchiefs anymore because tissues are the norm, no one uses cotton cloths anymore either, and we’re left with pads and tampons, which come with a whole host of personal and environmental consequences:

1. They’re expensive!

2. They create an enormous amount of trash:

  - Over 12 billion pads and tampons are used once and disposed of annually. (in addition to all of the wrappers and packaging that go along with them).

  - according to the Center for Marine Conservation, over 170,000 tampon applicators were collected along U.S. coastal areas between 1998 and 1999.

3. Although they are made with chemicals including chlorine bleach (which inevitably makes it into lakes and rivers), the FDA does not require the contents to be disclosed. Also, no pads or tampons have been sterilized.

4. I'm sure I don't have to tell you how inconvenient it is to be tied down to a purse full of tampons and a bathroom with a trash can for an entire week.
5. Ever tried to go camping or hiking while on your period? Good luck taking care of tampons without the luxury of indoor bathrooms.

Of course this is certainly not a comprehensive list of grievances; I'm sure one could spend days trying to write one of those up. But with all of the flaws of pads and tampons in mind, the question is, what else can we do? The answer is that there are other options which are more simple, convenient, healthy, and less environmentally destructive: menstrual cups and reusable cotton pads.

First, let's talk about menstrual cups. It's exactly what it sounds like: a soft cup that is used internally and collects fluid. My preferred brand is the Keeper, for a few reasons: they are more environmentally in the manufacturing process than other cups, they use fair labor practices (to the best of my knowledge), and they are generally less wrapped up in advertising and corporate flair. I find the cup significantly more convenient than tampons because it needs to be changed (washed out) less frequently, it leaks less, and you never have to worry about dragging supplies with you everywhere you go. Based on numerous conversations with other women about menstrual cups, here are some questions I have often been asked:
- How does it stay clean/ isn't that dirtier than using tampons?
It washes completely clean with soap and water. Tampons, on the other hand, contain chemicals like bleach, are not sterilized, and can leave fibers in your body.
- Can't it fall out?
No. Your muscles naturally keep it in place.
- What if it overflows?
It won't overflow. The capacity is about what a normal woman's flow is over an entire period.
- Is it hard to use?
It takes a little bit of getting used to, but once you're familiar with it it's very easy to use.
- Can you feel it?
Nope! You can't feel it any more than a tampon when it's in the right way. It does appear to be bigger than it feels, but it's shaped to fit your body.

Here is a complete explanation on how to use it, and other parts of the site have more information and the option to order one online.

And here's a little bit of propaganda:

If the cup isn't your thing, or if backup protection is, then another option is reusable cotton pads and pantiliners. Pretty much every kind that they sell in disposable form is also made in reusable form, from liners to thicker ones and special heavy or overnight sizes. They can be found at most health food stores, but the problem with these is that I find them to be a bit expensive (although still much cheaper than buying disposable in the long run). You can buy these in a store or online (one brand name is Glad Rags), or if you don't want to spend the money you can easily sew some up yourself, or just use regular cotton rags and fold them around your underwear to keep them in place.

They're easily kept clean by, naturally, washing them. A helpful tip is to soak them in some water and hydrogen peroxide in between wearing and putting them in the washing machine; this both disinfects and bleaches out stains.

In conclusion, the routine that I find most convenient and effective is using a cup along with light cotton liners. Switching to this from disposable products has made my life a great deal easier, not to mention the huge amount of waste eliminated. Although the culture that we live in demands that we throw things away constantly for the sake of "hygiene" (read: profit), it is in the best interests of your body, your planet, and your humanity to NOT support a system which does not support you.