Here is an interesting post in regards to a report released from the Women�s Voices for your Environment called �Chem Fatale� that examined the toxicity of numerous feminine hygiene products. They found out that tampons, pads and other feminine hygiene products contain unwanted chemicals and pesticides, and is detrimental to women�s health.
Below is the complete discussion. Products applied vaginally can enter in the circulation quickly, making it particularly significant for women to be aware of this. - Dr. Gina Nick
In health,
The Dirty Tricks of Feminine Hygiene Products
The Gerson Institute
I am aware menstruation-and the vagina, generally-is a conversational topic that frequently prompts expressions of disgust, mockery, gross-out jokes or pleas for ignorance, particularly from men. But let�s all consent to be responsible grownups here, and talk seriously in regards to a health problem that affects nearly every woman on the planet, and it is many times ignored from misguided politeness or squeamishness.
The common woman may have about 350 menses in her lifetime, which, given approximately average period length of 6 days, means she's going to spend as many as nearly 6 numerous years of her lifetime menstruating. It�s estimated that the average woman can burn to 11,800 tampons in her lifetime. So that�s plenty of sustained contact with menstrual products. And in addition to menstrual products, around 10-40% of females use other feminine hygiene products for example douches, wipes, deodorants and creams
The feminine genitalia may be the where you can an extremely delicate balance of bacteria and yeast. If that balance is disturbed, it's possible to end up having painful conditions including bladder infections (UTIs), vaginitis, pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) and candida albicans. Many of these infections, particularly UTIs, may become quite acutely severe.
The simplest way to safeguard against these common, but costly, infections would be to prevent them altogether, and also to keep your bacteria and yeast levels in balance. While there are lots of actions you can take to prevent UTIs, candidiasis along with other problems-such as urinating before and after sexual activity, avoiding over-washing the region with harsh soaps, wiping front-to-back, avoiding bubble baths, and wearing cotton underwear-another will be very cautious about what sorts of materials and stuff you put �down there.�
6 Nasty Substances Present in Feminine Hygiene Products
Chlorine: Used to bleach cotton menstrual products, particularly tampons and menstrual pads
Dioxins and furans: Known carcinogens that can cause reproductive, developmental and hormonal problems, and may possess a detrimental influence on the defense mechanisms. They are by-products with the chlorine used for the bleaching process.
Pesticide residue: Most cotton employed for tampons and pads is made of conventionally-grown cotton, that is treated with heavy pesticides. Even though the FDA �recommends� that tampons be free of pesticide residue, testing on the popular brand o.b. detects the presence of pesticides like pyrethrum, procymidone, mecarbam and fensulfothion-which are possible carcinogens and linked to endocrine disruption. And, as the Chem Fatale report does not mention this specifically, I might also love to cover that some brands use genetically-modified cotton. If you�re avoiding eating GMO foods, you�ll probably want to reconsider putting GMO products in other regions in the body too.
Fragrance: That one simple word can contain multitudes of harmful chemicals-none which must be listed or disclosed on labels. �Fragrances� may include chemicals known to be carcinogens, endocrine disruptors, irritants and allergens. While these fragrances are commonly seen in douches and sanitary wipes (more about that topic later), it�s also common for pads and tampons in the future with �scented� versions. Feminine deodorants and perfumes are also well-known to cause irritation and allergy symptoms, in large part as a result of fragrances used.
Parabens: Seen in vaginal anti-itch creams, feminine wipes and feminine washes, typically like a preservative. Parabens are skin irritants and allergens, and may even have damaging estrogenic properties.
Synthetic materials: Most tampons and pads are not 100% cotton these days, they're made from synthetic fabrics like rayon, or Super Absorbent Powders (SAPs). Some of these substances, combined with other chemicals and fragrances, can cause rashes and skin irritation, specially when found in menstrual pads.
As well as the toxicity of those various chemicals found in feminine hygiene products, I might also love to note that there are also certain kinds of items that are harmful to vaginal health not only because of their ingredients, but as their actual functions and purposes are inherently problematic.
Why �Douchebag� Should be considered a Bad Word
There�s a good reason that the words �douche� and �douchebag� have grown to be popular pejorative insults. Douches are well-deserving from the negative publicity its common usage in the current lexicon has granted it. Douches are associated with a number of problems: vaginitis, chronic candida albicans, pregnancy complications, infertility and pelvic inflammatory disease (PID). Research indicates a correlation between regular douching and cervical cancer. They could also cause women to become more vulnerable to sexually-transmitted infections (STIs). So, what makes them so harmful? And so why do they continue to be so popular?
The reason douches cause so many problems is because they disrupt the natural self-cleaning objective of the vagina, wiping out the beneficial bacteria inside the vagina and leaving it vulnerable to candida albicans and �bad� bacteria. The vagina is a self-cleaning organ; the mucous that lubricates in addition, it eliminates any harmful substances that enter it, for example infection or viruses than could cause infections. A proper vagina needs no cleansing agents; it can perfectly on its own, thanks. It certainly doesn�t need the host of disinfectants, �fragrances� or another chemicals that douches, wipes and washes contain. Yet there is still significant amounts of stigma and shame regarding the vagina in regards to perceived uncleanliness, or anxiety about odors, so some women feel compelled to wash it or �freshen� it. And yet, because douching can disrupt the all-important flora-yeast balance within the vagina, douches can actually cause the very odor issues they presupposed to eliminate.
Teen girls are particularly prone to these fears, given the multitude of anxieties surrounding puberty and the start of menstruation, but douches will also be all-too-commonly-and somewhat disproportionately-used by low-income and minority women.
Despite the near-universal condemnation with the practice from the medical and gynecological communities, the belief that douching is �an expected and necessary section of feminine hygiene� likely persists as a result of advertisements that perpetuate these beliefs by preying on women�s insecurities, but additionally by well-intentioned but poorly-informed friends and family members.
In the 1950s, a now-notorious number of manipulative ad campaigns directed at housewives informed them that the vaginas were dirty and smelly, and made them repulsive for their husbands. The reply to their marital woes? To �freshen up� by douching with Lysol (shudder!).
There�s even the persistent myth that douching prevents pregnancy. This is because archaic contraceptive methods involving douching date back practically to prehistory, and remained popular through a lot of the twentieth century, due to the aforementioned Lysol ad campaigns, that have been subtly angled at selling Lysol douches being a contraceptive. If you notice that, within the ad above, the tag-line describes Lysol as a �germ-killer,� which just occurs rhyme with �sperm-killer,� among others described Lysol as a �germicide.� Lysol was, frighteningly, the most used contraceptive in the usa from your 1920s before the early 1960s. Obviously, it didn�t really work; a 1933 study showed that half the ladies surveyed who used Lysol like a contraceptive became pregnant. Sometimes, douching can increase chance of pregnancy by pushing sperm up into the cervix, instead of washing out!
So please, if you spot a container of Summer�s Eve below your friend, wife, daughter or partner�s bathroom sink, share these details together, that assist stop the-if you�ll pardon the not so good pun-�flow� of bad information regarding women�s health. And, utilize this information to create conscious and informed choices concerning the products you determine to put in your body-especially in this sensitive area! - Dr. Gina Nick