Let’s talk about silver in period underwear. First up, you won’t find silver in Hello Undies but a research study in the UK found notable levels of silver in a number of leading period underwear brands which has some experts concerned.
The study, conducted by UK consumer website Which?, said the lack of openness from brands around whether they used silver-based textile treatments was worrying.
Silver is added to some products because of its antimicrobial properties in a bid to help stop the spread of microorganisms which can contribute to odours.
While Which? says there is limited research into the impact of silver on human health, experts have raised concerns about silver particles potentially migrating into the body and disrupting our skin microbiome by killing beneficial bacteria.
The silver we’re talking about is not the type of silver you find in jewellery which is inert silver, but rather several different types including nanosilver, silver zinc zeolite, silver chloride, silver zeolite and silver copper zeolite.
There are currently no legal limits of the amount of silver allowed in textile materials and textile standard Oekotex doesn’t have any requirements around silver content.
Ask If Your Period Underwear Contains Silver
Unfortunately, the period care space can be a bit of a Wild West. Very few countries have mandatory ingredient requirements on period products meaning tampons people insert or pads they use could be soaked in the most toxic of chemicals and the users would be none the wiser.
The vulva and vaginal tissues are thin and absorbent which is why it’s important to know what you are putting in and around that area.
At Hello Period we do not add silver or nano-silver to achieve antibacterial and odour resistant properties to Hello Undies or Hello Pads and our underwear is independently lab tested.
We do full chemical tests of our raw materials used in our underwear, including for heavy metals such as lead and cadmium.
What About PFAS AND PFOA?
You might recall a class-action was brought against large US brand Thinx over chemical concerns after independent tests alleged the presence of PFAs and nano silver.
Again, Hello Undies and Hello Pads have been independently tested and results showed they were free of fluorine (the common denominator of PFAS compounds), PFOA and PFOS. Our products are not treated with PFAS chemicals.
Thinx settled the case made against them, but made no admission of guilt. As part of the settlement they also agreed not to refer to the silver in their underwear as non-migratory.
It was this case that prompted Which? to look into other popular brands sold mainly in the UK. If you want to read their full article and find out more about the brands they tested, you’ll find it here.
If you are considering buying period underwear or reusable pads we recommend doing your research and if in doubt, ask the company you are looking to buy from whether their underwear contains silver and whether they do independent lab testing on the materials they use.
