Am I the only one who thought tampons were flushable?!

[sunseaandme]

I'm 32, and only recently have I discovered tampons aren't flushable. I always thought they were, I can't remember where this thought came from, I assume my mum told me they were when I started my period, but that pads were obviously not flushable. I feel so guilty for flushing them all this time (obviously I won't do it anymore!). Am I the only one?? I realise I probably sound like an idiot as it probably says on the packet not to flush them but I never thought to check 🙈

My parents new neighbours, somewhere in their estate aren't aware that the wipes they flush are causing near fortnightly sewer blockages downstream. My poor parents are putting up with shit, tampon and wipe overflows in the garden.

Please don't flush, it's so grim to deal with.

Yes I remember being told that you couldn’t flush pads, only tampons. This was mid 90s

I remember in my secondary school period talk complete with samples, we were told you can flush them down the toilet.

'FancyCurtains
I would be interested to know how others dispose of them. I remember using single use plastic sanitary bags for disposing this stuff when I was younger but it seems awful to wrap this stuff in plastic every time it needs to go in the bin. Also, doesn’t it make the bin smell?'

Bins generally do smell, not sure a tampon is going to make things much worse.

This is so damn grim. I'm honestly shocked that so many people were taught and told this. I'm also now starting to wonder (worry) whether it's still a common misconception even now.

Yep, my mum also told me they were flushable when I first started using them. I discovered a couple of years ago that they weren’t and was shocked!

Well this thread goes a long way to explaining why fatbergs are such a massive issue!

The only things that should go down the loo are paper, puke, poo, pee!

If you ever see trees and bushes by a river's edge draped in plastic it's likely to be the backing from sanitary products and condoms that have been discharged into the river from a storm overflow upstream.

I haven’t read the whole thread but do they not just fall out for anyone else? My periods are so heavy I don’t get much of a choice to bin it once I’ve sat down!

Why can't you flush pet poos?

I'll just put it out there and say that I suspect many women don't take any notice of those features on the news about sewers blocked with tampons because they see the start of the story involving men in high vis and hard hats going down a sewer and automatically assume this isn't relevant to me.. and switch off/zone out.

You must have heard about the fatbergs. Well there's also tamponberg.

There are some campaigns (I know cos I work for a company that's involved) but obvs they aren't getting the message out enough.

I must admit my mom taught me if you rip the pad in half you can flush! I'm horrified now. You must wrap and bin them!

They are "flushable", in the sense that you can flush them down the toilet without blocking it.
What they are not degradable, like toilet paper is. Toilet paper breaks up in water. Tissues and tampons don't.
So whilst you can flush them, it's really not good for the sewage system, nor for the environment.

That's because all the news etc usually state fat/oil, nappies and wet wipes are the main culprits of fatbergs with other things caught up in it. It's not about women taking no notice it's about various companies/departments not being clear. Go look at any wet/facial wipe packaging and most say flushable and have done for years, they have only just started saying biodegradable but what does that mean in reality? Even plastic bags are biodegradable eventually, it just takes 500 years. You are blaming the wrong people.

@Loub55 the campaigns need to be a lot clearer. When companies get away with fudging the meaning of flushable and biodegradable then you have to be very precise in your wording if you want the public to understand. And how do companies get away with this word fudging anyway?

Yes, I can. The incinerators were wall mounted.

I think what a lot of younger people dont realise is what sanitary pads were like before they actually became absorbent. There was little plastic if any.

Just had a cynical thought. Look at the word spa ring.
Flushable applicator Tampons
I think the cardboard applicator was flushable but they marketed it in a way that made us believe the tampon was

I think they used to be marketed as flushable maybe years ago? I def haven’t flushed mine for years though but I def used to as well.
We know where they end up now - in the sea and rivers! 😞

Well, learn something new every day!

tbh I did try using a mooncup after coming off the pill (I didn’t have periods on the pill) but I found it really difficult to take out… it took me a good 45min and I was seriously panicking that I’d need to go to A&E!!

If anyone has any tips on easy comfy tampon alternatives that would be useful!

I use period proof knickers on a night and really like them but I don’t really like wearing them through the day (feels less hygienic…. Especially on heavier days)

I honestly think most people will take the packaging at face value. So if it says "flushable", they will assume that it means it's OK to flush, ie they assume that the fibres will break down in a way that doesn't contribute to the fatbergs etc. It isn't an unreasonable assumption.

What we really need is legislation to stop companies from marketing goods as "flushable" when we know how damaging they are to the environment. The apparently flushable nature of some of these products is a major part of their appeal to consumers, so it's unlikely that companies will voluntarily remove that word from the packaging and the public will continue to flush while the packaging indicates that it's OK to do so.

No, they used to explicitly state that the tampon was flushable as well. I've already posted an image further up the thread.

When I was a teen they were definitely flushable, as were the applicators. Times have changed.

We were specifically told by school they were flushable when taught about periods. It was very much pitched as "start with pads, then move to tampons ASAP as sooo much easier with less fuss and mess". I'm 35. First lesson was year 5 and it was said then, and again multiple instances from teachers when I was in secondary.

Meant to add I remember as my DM was really dramatically grossed out by periods pads were not allowed to be disposed of in any bin in the house. Every single time I had to go to the outside bin. It was bliss to move to tampons and flush them instead!

I'm still annoyed about the time I threw out some mouldy bread that was wrapped in a plastic bag. She threw a huge irrational fit as she assumed I'd thrown an old pad in the kitchen bin wrapped up

My mother was like that, Psycho. It seems so strange by today's standards. I knew I would be quite different with a daughter. In the event, I did not have a daughter but had a far more easy going relationship with son (still do). I am not judging my mother but she was uptight about so much and it was very stressful for me at times. She improved as she got older.