Tara Olivo, Associate Editor11.08.24
Shifts in consumer preferences and new product formats continue to redefine the period care category, while at the same time, competition continues to be high as new brands emerge and established brands continue to expand their product offerings.
According to Liying Qian, head of Tissue and Hygiene at Euromonitor International, as the market increasingly recognizes menstruation and its impact on women across life occasions and life stages, so is the understanding that there is no one-size-fits-all. “Hence in 2024, we have seen a diversifying crop of menstrual care products targeting under-served occasions and female demographics.”
The teen-focused segment is one area that has gained the spotlight, she says, partially supported by findings that young people are getting their first periods earlier on average than decades ago.
One of the newest period care brands targeting the teen demographic is Pinkie. Founded in 2022, Pinkie pads—named for the smallest finger on the hand—offer mini and small sizes measuring smaller than other organic competitors to offer better fit and comfort for tweens and teens. Pinkie also appeals to Generation Alpha with fun branding and packaging like a striped drawstring disposal pad and bright colors.
U.K.-based period care brand Daye recently launched a new HPV Diagnostic Tampon.
In July, the brand expanded its retail distribution by launching in over 3300 CVS stores across the U.S. and online. This follows the brand’s first retail partnership with Target, and expansion into Walmart earlier this year.
“This unique segment has bred a host of product features, packaging designs and marketing vocabulary, such as smaller sizing that adapts to various underwear size and flow, discreet storage pouch that doubles as disposal bag and TikTok-based community building,” Qian explains. “As the menstrual care industry evolves, there is likely to be more specific product segmentation by age, culture and lifestyle that deliver more targeted care for menstruators.”
Moreover, adjacency expansion alongside the holistic lifecycle care narrative has seen growing investment interest and innovation efforts, according to Qian. “We already have seen menstrual care brands seeking adjacency pivots into skin care, gut health, intimate care and sexual wellness. And up until recently, femtech has also become a vibrant area that allows brands to tap into monitoring and home-based health diagnostic/testing and transcend symptom management towards more sophisticated, holistic lifecycle support.”
U.K.-based period care brand Daye recently expanded access to cervical cancer prevention with the launch of its new HPV Diagnostic Tampon. The convenient at-home test allows users to easily and discreetly screen for 14 high-risk HPV strains. Currently available in the U.K., Daye has plans to bring the kit into the European Union.
The tampon must be inserted into the vagina for 20 minutes to become a sample. After the sample is collected, Daye tests the specimen using cutting edge molecular PCR testing (the most accurate way to detect vaginal infections). Results will be available via a detailed report, including results and summaries of the latest medical research, within five to 10 days.
Daye uses tampons for at-home screening because they provide a non-invasive, familiar and comfortable method for patients to collect comprehensive samples from their entire vaginal canals.
The Sequel Spiral Tampon is now available nationwide in the U.S.
Meanwhile, Kimberly-Clark, one of the largest makers of period care products in the world, recently introduced a brand-new product line in the U.S. that offers dual protection. Liv by Kotex, which is available exclusively at Target stores, offers period protection with the additional benefit of protecting women from bladder leaks, allowing them to stay dry and feel fresh. These new pads and liners instantly trap urine to help keep users 10 times drier than period-only pads with up to 24 milliliters of absorbency and offer up to 100% leak-free period protection.
The line offers products in five levels of absorbency—very light (thong liner), light (extra coverage liner), regular (ultra thin pad), heavy (ultra thin pad) and overnight (ultra thin pad). The pads feature a multi-layer core and leak-block sides to start trapping urine and menstrual fluid instantly.
As the period care industry continues to evolve, Sequel is carving out its niche with a distinctive new product.
The Sequel Spiral Tampon features a proprietary spiral design that is engineered to be more fluid mechanically efficient, meaning it is designed to absorb more evenly and not leak before it’s full.
In February, Sequel launched at barre workout studio Physique 57 in New York and later rolled out at additional New York and California locations. The initial limited launch in these states went so well that the brand was able to broaden its availability much sooner than anticipated, according to Sequel’s CEO and co-founder Greta Meyer. Sequel Tampons are now available for purchase nationwide at www.trysequel.com.
As Sequel seeks to grow, it’s emphasizing intentional community-focused growth among its active and athlete audience members. “Sampling is a key part of our marketing strategy, which has provided the opportunity to hear feedback directly from consumers, who are indeed very open – and often eager – to try a new kind of tampon,” Meyer says.
Another important part of Sequel’s go-to-market strategy in reaching “bodies that move” is by partnering with both collegiate and professional women’s sports organizations, says Meyer, who, along with Sequel’s co-founder Amanda Calabrese, was a former high-performance athlete. Recently, the brand announced partnerships with Stanford Athletics, USL Super League and Athletes Unlimited.
“If there has ever been a year to capitalize on the momentum of women, it was this one!” Meyers exclaims. “The pivotal convergence of women’s sports and women’s health has provided a perfect backdrop for the launch of our tampons and subsequent growth. We’ll continue to prioritize partnering with women’s sports organizations and supporting female athletes as we continue to scale in 2025.”
Next for Sequel are plans to add a Super SKU to its product lineup.
Meanwhile, the broader market trend toward plant-based and natural products in period care continues to gain momentum.
“The period care category has gone through decades of improvements, and plant-based has been the initiative over the last several years,” says Jim Ebel, executive vice president - Global Marketing, Corman. “Social media has spread the word about the benefits of natural products. Consumers just know more and expect more; in particular from brands that place products on and in their body. Demographics suggest growth in personal care will come from populations of women who are post-menopausal and who want the same plant-based solutions they had in period care, but now in incontinence care.”
Corman’s Organyc brand, which features 100% certified organic cotton, now has a full line of period care, infant care, post-partum care and incontinence (adult) care products. “Women told us they wanted us to move our clinically proven efficacy and cotton protection to other parts of their lives,” Ebel says.
Aunt Flow, the creator of a free-vend tampon and pad dispenser, launched direct-to-consumer period products for sale in the U.S.
Meanwhile, Aunt Flow, the creator of a proprietary, free-vend tampon and pad dispenser, has launched direct-to-consumer period products for sale in the U.S. Aunt Flow’s pads and tampons have already been in bathrooms across grade schools and universities, which motivated the brand to develop familiar products for menstruators to use at home. As of June, the brand began offering 36-count boxes of tampons and pads that are sold online at goauntflow.com and on Amazon. The pads and tampons are made with Organic Content Standard (OCS)-certified organic cotton.
“Menstruators in 750 schools and 150 universities across the U.S. have come to trust Aunt Flow and rely on our period products during their school day,” shares Claire Coder, founder and CEO of Aunt Flow. “After receiving requests from parents that their daughters were curious if these products were available for ‘normal people sales,’ we decided to give the girls what they’ve been asking for!”
Coder was inspired to start Aunt Flow at 18 years old after getting her period unexpectedly in public and not having access to the supplies she needed. “From that moment on, it became my mission to ensure free period products were available in public restrooms,” she says. “Many bathrooms still have clunky, coin-operated pad and tampon dispensers. They rarely work, and most people don’t carry around change any more. Since 2016, Aunt Flow has placed our free-vend tampon and pad dispensers in 60k+ bathrooms, raised $17 million+ in venture capital, and donated over 6 million organic cotton tampons and pads to menstruators in need.”
Building on the growing demand for comfortable and effective period care products, Ontex has recently introduced two innovative offerings.
Its tampon innovation, SatinSense, is said to offer an unprecedented level of comfort with its silky coating, ensuring a smoother insertion and removal. Meanwhile, in Europe, Ontex developed the Confidaily daily liner. Through rigorous testing in use, Confidaily offers protection, comfort and quality, and the innovation is available to retailers across Europe.
“We aim to make our femcare innovations fast to market, affordable, sustainable and smart, to ultimately create value,” says an Ontex spokesperson. “At Ontex we believe that everyone should have access to personal care products that not only instill confidence but also offer great value. We are unique in making innovative features accessible for everyone, so people can live their everyday lives and not worry about their periods or breaking the bank.”
Ontex will continue to focus on bringing affordable equivalents to A-brands to market fast, to make everyday life easier for many people, the spokesperson adds.
In period care, Ontex is committed to smart product design, by focusing on cost-effective components and construction during product design without jeopardizing consumer and customer value. “We are unifying our efforts through product platforms, with the emphasis on simplification as this enables us to create speed in industrialization,” the spokesperson says. “As part of our simplification agenda, we are using a customer segmentation strategy, tailoring offerings and innovations to specific customer groups. This implies that we involve customers in innovation development at an early stage. SatinSense tampons were created using this approach.”
Ontex is also pursuing a more sustainable product design for all product categories, prioritizing the reduction of plastics and greenhouse gas emissions.
“Heavy metals occur naturally in the Earth’s crust and can be found in various elements of nature, including water, soil, and the air. Similarly, they are present – at higher levels than those detected in the study—in our drinking water and daily foods, such as vegetables, fruits, meat, fish, and seafood.”
The associations added that components used in menstrual products undergo thorough safety assessments based on evaluations of the risk they pose. “The levels of these trace metals detected by the study are significantly below the safe intake levels recommended for food and drinking water in the European Union, U.K., and the U.S.,” the associations stated.
In response to the study, Lola, a brand of period care products made with organic cotton, conducted its own third-party testing of its tampons, pads and liners. The testing, through SGS, a well-known testing, inspection and certification company, found that lead, cadmium, arsenic, mercury, antimony and additional metals were not detected in any of Lola’s tampons, pads or liners.
Meanwhile, Ebel of Corman says quality testing and quality control have allowed the company to meet or exceed U.S. FDA and the regulatory standards in the more than 50 countries where it has sold tampons for nearly two decades. “The Organyc brand always welcomes information that can help with on-going efforts to improve and innovate period care products,” he says.
Organyc tampons use only certified organic cotton, meaning cotton is grown using no manmade pesticides or chemicals. The cotton is purified and never chlorine treated. Additionally, in 2023, Organyc had its tampons independently tested for the presence of PFAS chemicals, substances that occur in nature and are present in the environment. “This was done at laboratories in Europe that help set standards for the industry,” Ebel says.
gpointstudio/Shutterstock.com
Susie Hewson, who founded and developed the world’s first brand of organic and natural period products, Natracare, in 1989, welcomed the publication of the tampon study, as it highlighted “the presence of materials manufacturers and raw material suppliers may claim as being unintentional, even as a consequence of the types of processes, materials and/or additives used to make certain types of tampons,” she comments.
Additionally, Hewson adds, not all organic tampons are created equally. “Unless tampons are certified to the Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS), current version 7.0 as 100% certified organic, chances are those prohibited synthetics, dyes, fragrances, and chemical additives are going to show up at, and above, detection levels raising concerns amongst consumers,” she says. “The same is the case for PFAS, microplastics, etc., all revealed in studies conducted over the past five years. Without toxicological analysis, any claims that the levels detected are harmless are vacuous as evidenced by consumer reaction to the study.”
Hewson says a historic lack of transparency in the category has led to concerned consumers. Natracare, as a GOTS certified 100% organic cotton tampon, applies precautionary principle to testing. Annually, the brand submits to independent testing for detection of heavy metals according to GOTS. This includes Total Digest Heavy Metals Screening and Extractable Heavy Metals Screening. Natracare publishes the reports on its website. Likewise, Natracare commissions tests for PFAS, VOCs, and every quarter, for pesticides, glyphosate and Ampa. “We expect absence of all, but we validate out of full transparency and our commitment to do no harm,” she says.
In the meantime, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced it would conduct its own study examining the impact heavy metals such as lead and arsenic found in tampons pose to women’s health, following the publication of the pilot study in Environmental International. Although the levels of both metals were low, there is no safe level of exposure to lead, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
While the pilot study found evidence of metals in tampons, it did not test whether or not the metals are released from the tampon during use. It also did not test for metals being absorbed into the vaginal lining or entering the bloodstream during use. FDA has commissioned an independent literature review and initiated an internal bench laboratory study to evaluate metals in tampons.
The FDA’s laboratory study will measure the amount of metals that come out of tampons under conditions that more closely mimic normal use. These initiatives will enable the FDA to complete a risk assessment of metals contained in tampons, based on a worst-case scenario of metal exposure. The FDA will communicate findings from the literature review and lab testing publicly when they are available and have been peer reviewed. The FDA will also continue monitoring these devices as part of its total product lifecycle approach to medical devices.
The agency also emphasized that all tampons cleared by the FDA have already been evaluated as described in the guidance document Menstrual Tampons and Pads: Information for Premarket Notification Submissions (510(k)s) and was determined to meet FDA premarket requirements.
In September, sustainable period care brand Flex announced that independent third-party lab testing confirmed all of the brand’s menstrual discs and cups are free from harmful PFAS (forever chemicals), lead, arsenic, cadmium and mercury.
“There’s no research into whether toxins in tampons are absorbed through vaginal walls,” says Lauren Wang, founder and CEO of Flex. “It raises the question: should period product manufacturers prove safety, or is it up to consumers to prove harm?”
Qian of Euromonitor says it’s still hard to gauge whether the study will have a meaningful impact on tampon sales. “With ongoing FDA-initiated investigations, we have seen some tampon brands issue assurance to consumers to emphasize ingredient transparency and certification information,” she says. “We will keep a close watch on any tangible implications. This, however, draws new attention to the regulation, or lack thereof, of menstrual care products and is likely to tighten public scrutiny over ingredient safety and drive more stringent ingredient and labeling regulations moving forward.”
Consumers are increasingly considering reusable period care options like menstrual cups and discs. Photo: Flex
Cherie Hoeger, co-founder and CEO of Saalt, a reusable period care brand that offers sustainable menstrual cups, discs and period underwear, believes the tampon study has already had an impact on the period care industry. Saalt’s sales dollars were up 95% and total orders were up 109% the week after the study was published, she says.
“Because trying reusable options takes behavior change, we’ve found that it takes customers several points of exposure before they make the jump to make the switch,” Hoeger explains. “The final catalyst most often comes from a friend, trusted influencer, voice of authority, or unique event to convince a new user to finally make a purchase. We saw an instant rise in sales during the Covid pandemic when disposable products had limited supplies, and then again during the tampon shortage of 2022, and we believe we’ll continue to see a rise in demand as outside events and health research on disposables causes people to reconsider what they are currently using.”
The brand noted that in the public’s reaction to the study, no one was really surprised to find trace amounts of these metals. “We’ve come to expect that there are now so many environmental contaminants in our consumer products that they’re almost impossible to get away from. So, the best we can really do is limit our exposure to them,” Hoeger says.
Reusable products have grown in popularity in recent years, with some consumers using them as stand-alone products or in combination with disposable products like tampons and liners.
“The reusable segment has for some years transformed women’s period care routines and product mix,” Qian notes. “As the reusable segment evolves in terms of age targeting, price accessibility and quality, it will likely remain a disruptor for disposable counterparts, though unlikely to meaningfully substitute the latter.”
Based on Euromonitor’s Voice of the Consumers: Health and Nutrition survey, consumers using any reusable product as a part of menstrual care remain just under 10%. The share of consumers using exclusively reusables for menstrual care is in the low single digits.
Ontex, which also manufactures absorbent hygiene products in the baby care and adult care categories, notes that the period care category is the one that is most affected by reusable products, partly because the purchaser is also the consumer. “This would especially be true for younger consumers. It is one of the explanations why we overall see a flattish demand for period care in Europe and the U.S., compared to declining in baby care (demographic trend) and growing in adult,” the spokesperson says.
Data show that, in Western Europe, one in five period care consumers have used reusable products in the last six months, with some countries showing higher adoption like France and U.K., according to Ontex. “However, about 60% of users of reusable period care products are not using washable underwear as a stand-alone, but in combination with a pad, liner or tampon. They use it as an add-on, not as a replacement. It’s only in France we see that consumers started to be more confident and use reusable period care products as a standalone,” Ontex’s spokesperson says.
Ontex also believes adoption will be driven by a combination of both young and old ‘new to the category’ wearers seeking to retain familiar underwear habits. “Increased consumer sensitivity and regional restrictions on single-use plastics, cultural differences and increased product awareness could impact in demand. We see that in France, as one of the first countries in Europe to introduce, the range is better established for example,” the spokesperson says.
Hoeger, of Saalt, believes that reusable period products are the way of the future and will eventually entirely replace disposables as the gold standard in period and leak care. “I believe that in the next five to 10 years, we’ll start to see adoption of menstrual cups, menstrual discs, and period underwear hit critical mass and start to eclipse the growth of disposable products in the United States (with widespread adoption taking more realistically 20-50 years). Why? Because they are not only healthier and more sustainable for our bodies and planet, but they’re also a triple threat to the disposable industry,” she says.
Additional Reading:
Aunt Flow Launches Sanitary Disposal System
Saalt Adds Teen Line
FDA to Conduct Tampon Study
According to Liying Qian, head of Tissue and Hygiene at Euromonitor International, as the market increasingly recognizes menstruation and its impact on women across life occasions and life stages, so is the understanding that there is no one-size-fits-all. “Hence in 2024, we have seen a diversifying crop of menstrual care products targeting under-served occasions and female demographics.”
The teen-focused segment is one area that has gained the spotlight, she says, partially supported by findings that young people are getting their first periods earlier on average than decades ago.
One of the newest period care brands targeting the teen demographic is Pinkie. Founded in 2022, Pinkie pads—named for the smallest finger on the hand—offer mini and small sizes measuring smaller than other organic competitors to offer better fit and comfort for tweens and teens. Pinkie also appeals to Generation Alpha with fun branding and packaging like a striped drawstring disposal pad and bright colors.
U.K.-based period care brand Daye recently launched a new HPV Diagnostic Tampon.
In July, the brand expanded its retail distribution by launching in over 3300 CVS stores across the U.S. and online. This follows the brand’s first retail partnership with Target, and expansion into Walmart earlier this year.
“This unique segment has bred a host of product features, packaging designs and marketing vocabulary, such as smaller sizing that adapts to various underwear size and flow, discreet storage pouch that doubles as disposal bag and TikTok-based community building,” Qian explains. “As the menstrual care industry evolves, there is likely to be more specific product segmentation by age, culture and lifestyle that deliver more targeted care for menstruators.”
Moreover, adjacency expansion alongside the holistic lifecycle care narrative has seen growing investment interest and innovation efforts, according to Qian. “We already have seen menstrual care brands seeking adjacency pivots into skin care, gut health, intimate care and sexual wellness. And up until recently, femtech has also become a vibrant area that allows brands to tap into monitoring and home-based health diagnostic/testing and transcend symptom management towards more sophisticated, holistic lifecycle support.”
U.K.-based period care brand Daye recently expanded access to cervical cancer prevention with the launch of its new HPV Diagnostic Tampon. The convenient at-home test allows users to easily and discreetly screen for 14 high-risk HPV strains. Currently available in the U.K., Daye has plans to bring the kit into the European Union.
The tampon must be inserted into the vagina for 20 minutes to become a sample. After the sample is collected, Daye tests the specimen using cutting edge molecular PCR testing (the most accurate way to detect vaginal infections). Results will be available via a detailed report, including results and summaries of the latest medical research, within five to 10 days.
Daye uses tampons for at-home screening because they provide a non-invasive, familiar and comfortable method for patients to collect comprehensive samples from their entire vaginal canals.
The Sequel Spiral Tampon is now available nationwide in the U.S.
Meanwhile, Kimberly-Clark, one of the largest makers of period care products in the world, recently introduced a brand-new product line in the U.S. that offers dual protection. Liv by Kotex, which is available exclusively at Target stores, offers period protection with the additional benefit of protecting women from bladder leaks, allowing them to stay dry and feel fresh. These new pads and liners instantly trap urine to help keep users 10 times drier than period-only pads with up to 24 milliliters of absorbency and offer up to 100% leak-free period protection.
The line offers products in five levels of absorbency—very light (thong liner), light (extra coverage liner), regular (ultra thin pad), heavy (ultra thin pad) and overnight (ultra thin pad). The pads feature a multi-layer core and leak-block sides to start trapping urine and menstrual fluid instantly.
As the period care industry continues to evolve, Sequel is carving out its niche with a distinctive new product.
The Sequel Spiral Tampon features a proprietary spiral design that is engineered to be more fluid mechanically efficient, meaning it is designed to absorb more evenly and not leak before it’s full.
In February, Sequel launched at barre workout studio Physique 57 in New York and later rolled out at additional New York and California locations. The initial limited launch in these states went so well that the brand was able to broaden its availability much sooner than anticipated, according to Sequel’s CEO and co-founder Greta Meyer. Sequel Tampons are now available for purchase nationwide at www.trysequel.com.
As Sequel seeks to grow, it’s emphasizing intentional community-focused growth among its active and athlete audience members. “Sampling is a key part of our marketing strategy, which has provided the opportunity to hear feedback directly from consumers, who are indeed very open – and often eager – to try a new kind of tampon,” Meyer says.
Another important part of Sequel’s go-to-market strategy in reaching “bodies that move” is by partnering with both collegiate and professional women’s sports organizations, says Meyer, who, along with Sequel’s co-founder Amanda Calabrese, was a former high-performance athlete. Recently, the brand announced partnerships with Stanford Athletics, USL Super League and Athletes Unlimited.
“If there has ever been a year to capitalize on the momentum of women, it was this one!” Meyers exclaims. “The pivotal convergence of women’s sports and women’s health has provided a perfect backdrop for the launch of our tampons and subsequent growth. We’ll continue to prioritize partnering with women’s sports organizations and supporting female athletes as we continue to scale in 2025.”
Next for Sequel are plans to add a Super SKU to its product lineup.
Meanwhile, the broader market trend toward plant-based and natural products in period care continues to gain momentum.
“The period care category has gone through decades of improvements, and plant-based has been the initiative over the last several years,” says Jim Ebel, executive vice president - Global Marketing, Corman. “Social media has spread the word about the benefits of natural products. Consumers just know more and expect more; in particular from brands that place products on and in their body. Demographics suggest growth in personal care will come from populations of women who are post-menopausal and who want the same plant-based solutions they had in period care, but now in incontinence care.”
Corman’s Organyc brand, which features 100% certified organic cotton, now has a full line of period care, infant care, post-partum care and incontinence (adult) care products. “Women told us they wanted us to move our clinically proven efficacy and cotton protection to other parts of their lives,” Ebel says.
Aunt Flow, the creator of a free-vend tampon and pad dispenser, launched direct-to-consumer period products for sale in the U.S.
Meanwhile, Aunt Flow, the creator of a proprietary, free-vend tampon and pad dispenser, has launched direct-to-consumer period products for sale in the U.S. Aunt Flow’s pads and tampons have already been in bathrooms across grade schools and universities, which motivated the brand to develop familiar products for menstruators to use at home. As of June, the brand began offering 36-count boxes of tampons and pads that are sold online at goauntflow.com and on Amazon. The pads and tampons are made with Organic Content Standard (OCS)-certified organic cotton.
“Menstruators in 750 schools and 150 universities across the U.S. have come to trust Aunt Flow and rely on our period products during their school day,” shares Claire Coder, founder and CEO of Aunt Flow. “After receiving requests from parents that their daughters were curious if these products were available for ‘normal people sales,’ we decided to give the girls what they’ve been asking for!”
Coder was inspired to start Aunt Flow at 18 years old after getting her period unexpectedly in public and not having access to the supplies she needed. “From that moment on, it became my mission to ensure free period products were available in public restrooms,” she says. “Many bathrooms still have clunky, coin-operated pad and tampon dispensers. They rarely work, and most people don’t carry around change any more. Since 2016, Aunt Flow has placed our free-vend tampon and pad dispensers in 60k+ bathrooms, raised $17 million+ in venture capital, and donated over 6 million organic cotton tampons and pads to menstruators in need.”
Building on the growing demand for comfortable and effective period care products, Ontex has recently introduced two innovative offerings.
Its tampon innovation, SatinSense, is said to offer an unprecedented level of comfort with its silky coating, ensuring a smoother insertion and removal. Meanwhile, in Europe, Ontex developed the Confidaily daily liner. Through rigorous testing in use, Confidaily offers protection, comfort and quality, and the innovation is available to retailers across Europe.
“We aim to make our femcare innovations fast to market, affordable, sustainable and smart, to ultimately create value,” says an Ontex spokesperson. “At Ontex we believe that everyone should have access to personal care products that not only instill confidence but also offer great value. We are unique in making innovative features accessible for everyone, so people can live their everyday lives and not worry about their periods or breaking the bank.”
Ontex will continue to focus on bringing affordable equivalents to A-brands to market fast, to make everyday life easier for many people, the spokesperson adds.
In period care, Ontex is committed to smart product design, by focusing on cost-effective components and construction during product design without jeopardizing consumer and customer value. “We are unifying our efforts through product platforms, with the emphasis on simplification as this enables us to create speed in industrialization,” the spokesperson says. “As part of our simplification agenda, we are using a customer segmentation strategy, tailoring offerings and innovations to specific customer groups. This implies that we involve customers in innovation development at an early stage. SatinSense tampons were created using this approach.”
Ontex is also pursuing a more sustainable product design for all product categories, prioritizing the reduction of plastics and greenhouse gas emissions.
Contaminant Concerns
In July, a study titled, “Tampons as a source of exposure to metal(loid)s,” published in the scientific journal Environment International sparked widespread concern among tampon users by revealing the presence of toxic metals in various brands. Researchers, who examined over a dozen tampon brands, evaluated 16 metal(loid)s in different kinds of tampons, and several toxic metals, including lead, were detected. According to the researchers, metals were present in all types of tampons. In non-organic tampons, lead concentrations were higher but in organic tampons, arsenic was higher.
In a statement in response to the findings, nonwovens industry associations EDANA and INDA, as well as AHPMA, the U.K. Trade Association for manufacturers of disposable absorbent hygiene products, emphasized that “heavy metals and trace chemicals are not intentionally added to tampons and are not a part of modern absorbent hygiene products. Still, they can sometimes be found in products as residuals of the manufacturing process and/or because they are present in the environment. These naturally occurring traces do not pose a risk to human health.“Heavy metals occur naturally in the Earth’s crust and can be found in various elements of nature, including water, soil, and the air. Similarly, they are present – at higher levels than those detected in the study—in our drinking water and daily foods, such as vegetables, fruits, meat, fish, and seafood.”
The associations added that components used in menstrual products undergo thorough safety assessments based on evaluations of the risk they pose. “The levels of these trace metals detected by the study are significantly below the safe intake levels recommended for food and drinking water in the European Union, U.K., and the U.S.,” the associations stated.
In response to the study, Lola, a brand of period care products made with organic cotton, conducted its own third-party testing of its tampons, pads and liners. The testing, through SGS, a well-known testing, inspection and certification company, found that lead, cadmium, arsenic, mercury, antimony and additional metals were not detected in any of Lola’s tampons, pads or liners.
Meanwhile, Ebel of Corman says quality testing and quality control have allowed the company to meet or exceed U.S. FDA and the regulatory standards in the more than 50 countries where it has sold tampons for nearly two decades. “The Organyc brand always welcomes information that can help with on-going efforts to improve and innovate period care products,” he says.
Organyc tampons use only certified organic cotton, meaning cotton is grown using no manmade pesticides or chemicals. The cotton is purified and never chlorine treated. Additionally, in 2023, Organyc had its tampons independently tested for the presence of PFAS chemicals, substances that occur in nature and are present in the environment. “This was done at laboratories in Europe that help set standards for the industry,” Ebel says.
gpointstudio/Shutterstock.com
Susie Hewson, who founded and developed the world’s first brand of organic and natural period products, Natracare, in 1989, welcomed the publication of the tampon study, as it highlighted “the presence of materials manufacturers and raw material suppliers may claim as being unintentional, even as a consequence of the types of processes, materials and/or additives used to make certain types of tampons,” she comments.
Additionally, Hewson adds, not all organic tampons are created equally. “Unless tampons are certified to the Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS), current version 7.0 as 100% certified organic, chances are those prohibited synthetics, dyes, fragrances, and chemical additives are going to show up at, and above, detection levels raising concerns amongst consumers,” she says. “The same is the case for PFAS, microplastics, etc., all revealed in studies conducted over the past five years. Without toxicological analysis, any claims that the levels detected are harmless are vacuous as evidenced by consumer reaction to the study.”
Hewson says a historic lack of transparency in the category has led to concerned consumers. Natracare, as a GOTS certified 100% organic cotton tampon, applies precautionary principle to testing. Annually, the brand submits to independent testing for detection of heavy metals according to GOTS. This includes Total Digest Heavy Metals Screening and Extractable Heavy Metals Screening. Natracare publishes the reports on its website. Likewise, Natracare commissions tests for PFAS, VOCs, and every quarter, for pesticides, glyphosate and Ampa. “We expect absence of all, but we validate out of full transparency and our commitment to do no harm,” she says.
In the meantime, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced it would conduct its own study examining the impact heavy metals such as lead and arsenic found in tampons pose to women’s health, following the publication of the pilot study in Environmental International. Although the levels of both metals were low, there is no safe level of exposure to lead, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
While the pilot study found evidence of metals in tampons, it did not test whether or not the metals are released from the tampon during use. It also did not test for metals being absorbed into the vaginal lining or entering the bloodstream during use. FDA has commissioned an independent literature review and initiated an internal bench laboratory study to evaluate metals in tampons.
The FDA’s laboratory study will measure the amount of metals that come out of tampons under conditions that more closely mimic normal use. These initiatives will enable the FDA to complete a risk assessment of metals contained in tampons, based on a worst-case scenario of metal exposure. The FDA will communicate findings from the literature review and lab testing publicly when they are available and have been peer reviewed. The FDA will also continue monitoring these devices as part of its total product lifecycle approach to medical devices.
The agency also emphasized that all tampons cleared by the FDA have already been evaluated as described in the guidance document Menstrual Tampons and Pads: Information for Premarket Notification Submissions (510(k)s) and was determined to meet FDA premarket requirements.
Reusables Gain Momentum
The findings of the tampon study, coupled with consumer apprehensions about metal contamination, could favor brands that promote reusable options like cups, discs and washable period underwear.In September, sustainable period care brand Flex announced that independent third-party lab testing confirmed all of the brand’s menstrual discs and cups are free from harmful PFAS (forever chemicals), lead, arsenic, cadmium and mercury.
“There’s no research into whether toxins in tampons are absorbed through vaginal walls,” says Lauren Wang, founder and CEO of Flex. “It raises the question: should period product manufacturers prove safety, or is it up to consumers to prove harm?”
Qian of Euromonitor says it’s still hard to gauge whether the study will have a meaningful impact on tampon sales. “With ongoing FDA-initiated investigations, we have seen some tampon brands issue assurance to consumers to emphasize ingredient transparency and certification information,” she says. “We will keep a close watch on any tangible implications. This, however, draws new attention to the regulation, or lack thereof, of menstrual care products and is likely to tighten public scrutiny over ingredient safety and drive more stringent ingredient and labeling regulations moving forward.”
Consumers are increasingly considering reusable period care options like menstrual cups and discs. Photo: Flex
Cherie Hoeger, co-founder and CEO of Saalt, a reusable period care brand that offers sustainable menstrual cups, discs and period underwear, believes the tampon study has already had an impact on the period care industry. Saalt’s sales dollars were up 95% and total orders were up 109% the week after the study was published, she says.
“Because trying reusable options takes behavior change, we’ve found that it takes customers several points of exposure before they make the jump to make the switch,” Hoeger explains. “The final catalyst most often comes from a friend, trusted influencer, voice of authority, or unique event to convince a new user to finally make a purchase. We saw an instant rise in sales during the Covid pandemic when disposable products had limited supplies, and then again during the tampon shortage of 2022, and we believe we’ll continue to see a rise in demand as outside events and health research on disposables causes people to reconsider what they are currently using.”
The brand noted that in the public’s reaction to the study, no one was really surprised to find trace amounts of these metals. “We’ve come to expect that there are now so many environmental contaminants in our consumer products that they’re almost impossible to get away from. So, the best we can really do is limit our exposure to them,” Hoeger says.
Reusable products have grown in popularity in recent years, with some consumers using them as stand-alone products or in combination with disposable products like tampons and liners.
“The reusable segment has for some years transformed women’s period care routines and product mix,” Qian notes. “As the reusable segment evolves in terms of age targeting, price accessibility and quality, it will likely remain a disruptor for disposable counterparts, though unlikely to meaningfully substitute the latter.”
Based on Euromonitor’s Voice of the Consumers: Health and Nutrition survey, consumers using any reusable product as a part of menstrual care remain just under 10%. The share of consumers using exclusively reusables for menstrual care is in the low single digits.
Ontex, which also manufactures absorbent hygiene products in the baby care and adult care categories, notes that the period care category is the one that is most affected by reusable products, partly because the purchaser is also the consumer. “This would especially be true for younger consumers. It is one of the explanations why we overall see a flattish demand for period care in Europe and the U.S., compared to declining in baby care (demographic trend) and growing in adult,” the spokesperson says.
Data show that, in Western Europe, one in five period care consumers have used reusable products in the last six months, with some countries showing higher adoption like France and U.K., according to Ontex. “However, about 60% of users of reusable period care products are not using washable underwear as a stand-alone, but in combination with a pad, liner or tampon. They use it as an add-on, not as a replacement. It’s only in France we see that consumers started to be more confident and use reusable period care products as a standalone,” Ontex’s spokesperson says.
Ontex also believes adoption will be driven by a combination of both young and old ‘new to the category’ wearers seeking to retain familiar underwear habits. “Increased consumer sensitivity and regional restrictions on single-use plastics, cultural differences and increased product awareness could impact in demand. We see that in France, as one of the first countries in Europe to introduce, the range is better established for example,” the spokesperson says.
Hoeger, of Saalt, believes that reusable period products are the way of the future and will eventually entirely replace disposables as the gold standard in period and leak care. “I believe that in the next five to 10 years, we’ll start to see adoption of menstrual cups, menstrual discs, and period underwear hit critical mass and start to eclipse the growth of disposable products in the United States (with widespread adoption taking more realistically 20-50 years). Why? Because they are not only healthier and more sustainable for our bodies and planet, but they’re also a triple threat to the disposable industry,” she says.
Additional Reading:
Aunt Flow Launches Sanitary Disposal System
Saalt Adds Teen Line
FDA to Conduct Tampon Study
