Sanitary items

What you can do

Choose to refuse single-use tampons and pads.

How you can do it

These days, there are many reusable alternatives to single-use sanitary items. This includes the increasingly popular menstrual cups, which are made by numerous brands and can be purchased online and in many health stores and chemists. These cups are inserted like a tampon, and typically need to be emptied and cleaned out a couple of times a day.

Period underwear and washable cotton pads and liners are also reusable alternatives, again with many brands available to choose from. These work more like pads, and can all be washed in the washing machine. 

Taking the next steps

Choosing natural materials, and avoiding plastic based products such as microfibre, for reusable pads ensures a totally plastic free solution. There are also a range of social enterprise and ethical online stores that ensure sustainability benefits beyond reducing your plastic use.

The impact

• The packaging used for applicators, tampons, and sanitary pads all contain single-use plastics. A huge number of these are flushed down the toilet, blocking sewerage pipes and waste water treatment plants. 
• Reduce the impact to wildlife by choosing to refuse these items. They can end up in our rivers and oceans and cause ingestion issues for animals.