Should we be worried about the shocking new tampon study?

A world-first study has revealed that tampons can contain toxic metals such as lead, arsenic, and cadmium.

Scientists from the University of California Berkeley assessed the levels in 30 tampons from 14 different brands. They found metals present in all types of tampons, regardless of their location (US, UK and Europe).

Scientists suspect that the metals have made their way into the period products during manufacturing. They also suggest that the cotton material could be absorbing the toxic metals from water, air, soil, or a nearby contaminant.

"Our study clearly shows that metals are also present in menstrual products, and that women might be at higher risk for exposure using these products," study co-author Kathrin Schilling said.

Study lead author Jenny Shearston added: “Despite this large potential for public health concern, very little research has been done to measure chemicals in tampons.

"To our knowledge, this is the first paper to measure metals in tampons. Concerningly, we found concentrations of all metals we tested for, including toxic metals like arsenic and lead."

Valentina Milanova, founder and CEO of Daye, an organic period product brand with an aim to raise the standards in gynae health through innovative products and services, told people "not to panic."

While the study raises important questions and understandable concerns, Valentina told Indy100 that "more research is needed to understand if and how these metals could potentially be absorbed by the body during tampon use."

"We believe this study highlights the need for higher industry standards overall, including the need for regular testing of tampons before they are shipped out to consumers, which is something we have been doing voluntarily since 2019," Valentina said. "We also publish our lab results transparently on our website, alongside our lab protocols, so other tampon brands can adopt the same quality standards, should they decide to."

Many people have understandably raised questions about tampon safety off the back of the findings. Valentina suggested they are.

"The presence of trace metals doesn't necessarily mean they pose a health risk, but it could and we should recognise and control for the potential risks," she said, adding that Daye has a focus on creating tampons with carefully sourced organic cotton and "conducting extensive safety testing."

"Regulators should introduce more stringent standards, including mandatory metal detection lines, clean room manufacturing, and a requirement for sanitisation and lab testing of different tampon batches. At present, none of these are required."

Valentina believes manufacturers should be doing more.

Similarly to Daye, she said "all manufacturers should be held to high testing standards and be fully transparent about their ingredients and processes. This study highlights gaps in current industry practices that need to be addressed. Consumers deserve full information about what's in the products they're using."

Valentina concluded: "While this study raises valid concerns, it also creates an opportunity for the industry to evolve and prioritise consumer health and transparency. Daye remains committed to setting a new standard for menstrual products and women's health."

It's not clear whether the detected metals have contributed to any sort of health effects.

The scientists have called for further studies to investigate this and to see how much of these toxic metals are being absorbed into the body.

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