It’s important that you do your research when buying reusable menstrual products. You want to find a brand that makes quality products. As the popularity of menstrual cups, menstrual discs and period underwear increases, more and more inferior products are hitting the market.
- Check the certifications the brand has - brands that have B Corp status, for example, have been through rigorous checks to ensure they are ethical
- Have they won awards for their products? Awards are a good indication the brand is proud of what they make and will stand by it.
- Do they use medical-grade materials?
- Have they designed the products themselves or are they private-labelling a generic product?
- Does the brand offer one on one customer service to answer questions? Again, you’ll be surprised how many brands are popping up that are essentially marketing companies that don’t care what they are selling.
Menstrual Cups and Discs
The quality of menstrual cups and menstrual discs available varies hugely. Often cheaper cups and discs are flimsy making them harder to insert and less able to stand up to the weight of the flow they are supposed to be containing.
Most menstrual cups and menstrual discs are made from either thermoplastic elastomer or silicone. As long as they are medical-grade, both these materials are good and safe to use. If you can’t find the appropriate information on the website of the brand you are looking at, email them and ask what they use to make their products and where they are manufactured. If they can’t easily answer these questions, then alarm bells should start ringing. Also make sure you read reviews from their customers.
Period Underwear and PFAS
You may have read about a lawsuit against an American period underwear brand that was found to contain PFAS chemicals - which may have harmful effects in humans.
Again, the best thing you can do is research the company you are looking to buy from. If they don’t have enough information on their website, then email them. One of the the main questions you want answered is whether or not the underwear (or reusable pads) have been independently lab tested.
However, don’t assume that all chemicals are evil - after all, water is a chemical but there are definitely some you wouldn’t want to be putting in or near your body. So again, with this in mind, you want to feel confident in the company you are buying from.
We started Hello Period to produce products that were safe for not only us, but for our daughters. We have designed our products from scratch and have great relationships with all our suppliers and manufacturers. If you ever have any questions - just send us an email, we’d love to hear from you. You’ll find us here: hello@helloperiod.com
