The change within
Feminine hygiene has more to do with the environment than you’d care to imagine.
Ever wondered what your period has to do with the Great Pacific garbage patch, carcinogens or chemical pollution? No, not many women do, but that’s the unfortunate downside of choosing conventional sanitary products.
For decades, the feminine hygiene industry has known that the processes used in the production of their products are linked with health risks to humans and the overall biosphere, but have chosen to do nothing. Which is why in 1989, one English woman made it her mission to change the system.
“I saw a documentary about the growing danger to human health from dioxins and furans, carcinogenic by-products of the chlorine bleaching processes, involved in the making of paper products such as tampons, pads, baby diapers, toilet paper, coffee filters,” recalls Susie Hewson, founder of ethical company Natracare.
“I was inconsolably angry at the dismissive response of the international feminine hygiene brands to the evidence. My immediate reaction was to begin to research and develop a safer option for women and the environment so Natracare, the world’s first organic and natural tampons, pads and liners, were launched.”
Natracare’s wide range of products are made from renewable, biodegradable and compostable materials including organic cotton, bioplastics, and wood pulp – which offers better and heavier absorbency than cotton alone – and explains the wide range of products in Natracare’s offering, that cater to everything from light to super heavy and maternity absorbency needs.
When it launched, Natracare was the world’s first brand to offer chlorine- and plastic-free liners and pads, but Hewson didn’t stop at products. The former graphic designer and teacher also began what she calls “a campaign not a business”, committed to exposing the issues within the personal care industry. Dedicated to women’s health and wellbeing, over the past 27 years Hewson’s mission has seen her exposing the chlorine bleaching of pulp with its known-carcinogenic residuals, the rayon contained in most conventional tampons and its shedding abilities and links with toxic shock syndrome, and the fact that conventional sanitary pads are made with approximately 90 per cent plastic – despite being labelled with “cotton” claims.
“Natracare is my promise to women to provide quality, organic and natural solutions for intimate hygiene and personal care without ever compromising ethically. It is not that women are happy to risk their health and pollute our environment; we are all conscious of the need to avoid toxins and damaging ingredients and keep our habitats clean,” explains Hewson.
“I believe that there are a lot of false claims misleading women out there… ‘cotton-like’ or ‘cotton feel’ are common boasts for mainstream brands of pads that are actually over 95 per cent plastic; conventional cotton tampons passing themselves off as organic cotton I have seen happening for years; the arbitrary uses of the terms ‘natural’ and ‘organic’ for products that are made from pesticide-sprayed cotton. Our resolve is to continue to educate women about the irritating and damaging types of ingredients that go into leading brands and their effects on health and wellbeing.”
According to Natracare, more than 45 billion feminine hygiene products are disposed of globally every year. Despite years of campaigning and the exposure of many of these issues, conventional sanitary products continue to be produced in the same manner, leaving concerned consumers with the only option of seeking ethical and caring alternatives.