If you use pads, but especially if you use tampons read this and pass onto
your friends (for the men receiving this email, please forward it to your
friends, significant others, sisters, mothers, daughters, etc.). Thanks!
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- Have you heard that tampon makers include asbestos in
tampons ? Why would they do this ? Because asbestos makes you bleed more
. . . if you bleed more, you're going to need to use more. Why isn't this
against the law since asbestos is so dangerous ? Because the powers that
be, in all their wisdom (not), did not consider tampons as being ingested,
and therefore wasn't illegal or considered dangerous.
-
- This month's Essence magazine has a small article about
this and they mention two manufacturers of a cotton tampon alternative.
The companies are Organic Essentials @ 800-765-6491 and Terra Femme @ 800-755-0212.
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- A woman getting her Ph.D. at University of Colorado @
Boulder sent the following: "I am writing this because women are not
being informed about the dangers of something most of us use -tampons.
I am taking a class this month and I have been learning a lot about biology
and women, including much about feminine hygiene.
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- Recently we have learned that tampons are actually dangerous
(for other reasons than TSS). I'll tell you this, after learning about
this in our class, most of the females wound up feeling angry and upset
with the tampon industry, and I for one, am going to do something about
it. To start, I want to inform everyone I can, and email is the fastest
way that I know how.
-
- Here is the scoop: Tampons contain two things that are
potentially harmful: Rayon (for absorbency), and dioxin (a chemical used
in bleaching the products). The tampon industry is convinced that we, as
women, need bleached white products - in order to view the product as pure
and clean. The problem here is that the dioxin produced in this bleaching
process can lead to very harmful problems for a woman.
-
- Dioxin is potentially carcinogenic (cancer-associated)
and is toxic to the immune and reproductive systems. It has also been linked
to endometriosis and lower sperm counts for men - for both, it breaks down
the immune system.
-
- Last September the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
reported that there really is no set "acceptable" level of exposure
to dioxin given that it is cumulative and slow to disintegrate. The real
danger comes from repeated contact (Karen Houppert "Pulling the Plug
on the Tampon Industry"). I'd say using about 4-5 tampons a day, five
days a month, for 38 menstruating years is "repeated contact",
wouldn't' you?
-
- Rayon contributes to the danger of tampons and dioxin
because it is a highly absorbent substance. Therefore, when fibers from
the tampons are left behind in the vagina (as it usually occurs), it creates
a breeding ground for the dioxin. It also stays in a lot longer than it
would with just cotton tampons. This is also the reason why TSS (toxic
shock syndrome) occurs.
-
- WHAT ARE THE ALTERNATIVES?
- Using feminine hygiene products that aren't bleached
and that are all cotton. Other feminine hygiene products ds/napkins) contain
dioxin as well, but they are not nearly as dangerous since they are not
in direct contact with the vagina. The pads/napkins need to stop being
bleached, but obviously tampons are the most dangerous.
-
- So, what can you do if you can't give up using tampons
? Use tampons, that are made from 100% cotton, and that are UNBLEACHED.
Unfortunately, there are very, very few companies that make these safe
tampons. They are usually only found in health food stores. Countries all
over the world (Sweden, Germany, British Columbia, etc.) have demanded
a switch to this safer tampon, while the U.S. has decided to keep us in
the dark about it. In 1989, activists in England mounted a campaign against
chlorine bleaching. Six weeks and 50,000 letters later, the makers of sanitary
products switched to oxygen bleaching (one of the green methods available).
(MS magazine, May/June 1995)
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- WHAT TO DO NOW: Tell people.
Everyone. Inform them. We are being manipulated by this industry and the
government, let's do something about it!
Please write to the companies:
Tampax (Tambrands),
Playtex,
O.B.,
Kotex.
Call the 800 numbers listed on the boxes. Let them know that we demand
a safe product - ALL COTTON UNBLEACHED TAMPONS.
-
- ---
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-
- Comment
-
- From Joy Williams <hummer13@mindspring.com
- 2-15-00
-
-
- The post on your news says:
-
- "Rayon contributes to the danger of tampons and
dioxin because it is a highly absorbent substance. Therefore, when fibers
from the tampons are left behind in the vagina (as it usually occurs),
it creates a breeding ground for the dioxin. It also stays in a lot longer
than it would with just cotton tampons. This is also the reason why TSS
(toxic shock syndrome) occurs. "
-
- This is inaccurate. Dioxin is a by-product of the bleaching
process of the tampons, a chemical, so it doesn't "breed". However
these fibers could create a breeding ground for other kinds of pathogens.
-
- NTL, it's a good idea to be concerned about these hazards.
There is definitely no "safe" dosage of dioxin.
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