A Study into Public Awareness of the Environmental Impact of Menstrual Products and Product Choice

Abstract

This paper explores the level of awareness people have about the environmental impact of menstrual products. Currently the most popular types of product are also the most detrimental to the natural environment, particularly due to the amount of hidden plastic in disposable items. This research seeks to find out whether people realize that this is the case and whether those that are more aware of the damage are likely to make choices that are less harmful to the environment. A mixed method approach was taken, using online surveys and focus groups. The results of the study show that most participants were not aware at the amount of plastic in disposable menstrual products, and that there are other issues linked to their environmental impact that people are generally not aware of. Some participants were more aware of the issues than others and the research suggests that those with a higher awareness are more likely to choose products that are less harmful to the environment. Based on these findings, future actions and areas of further research are suggested.

“Unflushables”: Establishing a global agenda for action on everyday practices associated with sewer blockages, water quality, and plastic pollution

“…The problem of solids discharge was initially characterized as an aesthetic dimension (Ashley et al, 2005; Friedler et al, 1996; Spence et al, 2016), but has now been linked to deepening realization that the hygiene and other products discarded through toilets also contribute to several forms of pollution in aquatic ecosystems (Peberdy, Jones, & Green, 2019). Often hygiene products are not retained by sewage retention systems and consequently end up in water courses and marine environments.…”

“…The visibility of these products, and the tracing of them back to insufficient protocols for retaining hygiene products, has resulted in water and sewerage companies receiving complaints and in some cases fines due to environmental pollution (Blanksby, 2002; Spence et al, 2016; WWF UK, 2017). More recent pollution concerns relate to microplastics found in aquatic environments (Pantoja Munoz, Gonzalez Baez, McKinney, & Garelick, 2018; Peberdy et al, 2019). Products such as nonwoven wipes, menstrual absorbents, or condoms are made of plastic and synthetic materials such as Polyester, Polyethylene and Polypropylene (Drinkwater & Moy, 2017; Pachauri, Shah, Almroth, Sevilla, & Narasimhan, 2019; Pantoja Munoz et al, 2018).…”

Asymmetric Information in Menstrual Health and Implications for Sustainability: Insights from India

“…Their efforts received a considerable boost in early 1990s when global concerns around the menstrual health of poor girls and women in LMICs started to take hold and public health initiatives began to endorse the idea that disposable pads are the only hygienic means to manage menstruation. However, the ubiquity of sanitary pads coupled with the lack of recourse for handling increasing volumes of menstrual waste in these countries has led to a growing recognition of their negative impact on the environmental eco-system (Peberdy, et al, 2019).…”

“…Over the last few years, there has been a marked shift towards the study of more sustainable materials like reusable cloth-pads and menstrual cups (Peberdy et al, 2019). For instance, a study from Uganda reports that schoolgirls using reusable pads report less difficulty and disgust with cleaning and changing absorbents and increased absorbent reliability (Hennegan et al, 2016).…”

Women’s Cognition and Attitude with Eco-Friendly Menstrual Products by Consumer Lifestyle

“…With the growing awareness of sustainability, eco-friendly menstrual products, such as cloth menstrual pads, menstrual cups, and menstrual underpants, have been launched on the market. According to the statistics of the Taiwan Environmental Information Center, a woman uses at least 10,000 menstrual pads in her lifetime, which has a negative impact on earth’s environments [ 1 ]. Menstrual products on the market are divided into disposable and eco-friendly products.…”