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 🙈

Absolutely agree. There are so many loopholes like this in the way products are promoted. Companies stay just on the right side of the law, not outright lying, but definitely misleading consumers, and I am sure they know it. Free range eggs is another one that makes my blood boil.

@LBFseBrom mine gets twitchy even seeing adverts for pads and tampons. I put her straight mid rant once telling her there's no shame in a bodily function we can't help and don't want in the first place.

Shes not vocal about it now when adverts come on in my presence but I definitely see one eye twitching

Well, I learnt that they're not flushable today :S

I am sorry but I am still flushing out of habit: I started my periods in 1995 and nobody corrected me.

Every day in the UK alone 2.4m tampons and 1.4m pads are flushed down they toilet - Binners are horrified that people flush, Flushers are bemused as to what the issue is as they flush largely because they believe it is the right thing to do and are ignorant of the damage flushing causes...Everyone thinks that everyone does what they do !
No period products are flushable in fact flushing causes both blockages, of either your toilet or your neighbours toilets (plumbing often is set up in blocks of 3 houses together) or worse still they end up polluting our rivers, oceans and beaches... ( see SAS and Marine Conservation Society for stats on this ) -
Binners do the right thing but how often are we put in a position where the experience of binning is HORRIBLE! or worse! Most of us have done the "Handbag Smuggle" on more than one occasion, whether the bin is simply absent, or disgusting , or its your MIL's bin and you just down feel comfortable - binning is not always a breeze.. There are bad plastic thin tie up dog poo bags marketing as disposal bags and then there is a sustainably sourced solution out there that many find extremely useful if not life changing ... they are FABulous !
Most impotent thing is to discuss this topic openly as this helps to educate the flushers and reduce the aquatic pollution caused.

Long Live the Binners!

Tampons were definitely sold as flushable in the early 80s as were sanitary pads - the 'thin' ones which you were told to tear in half lengthways so it didn't block the sewers and dissolved more easily. These were the first stick on pads I think so we were all in awe of having these convenient items rather than the bulky (and definitely non flushable) sanitary pads that pinned to a belt/your knickers!

Then stop!! Right now. You are helping to clog up drains and sewers.

I’m early fifties and have always known that tampons aren’t flushable as do my three daughters. The only thing that goes down the toilet is toilet paper.

And I also started in 1995 and have known since day 1 that they weren't flushable. You wrap it in paper (or a little scented bag, if they still do those) and put it in the sanitary bin.

In fact, I first heard about the little scented bags in teen magazines from the 90s, so I'm honestly quite baffled by the assertion that there was a lack of education about flushing tampons.

Flushed tampons end up in rivers, washed up on beaches and clog drainage systems.

To the two previous posters - be baffled all you want. But I've always flushed tampons and now use a cup anyway.

That means that others don't know they aren't flushable.

There aren't scented bags everywhere for this.

Stop trying to make people feel like an idiot for not knowing this. Like you make perfect ecological choices every day of your life.

Well believe it toots! Sanitary bins for me, were for pads that were not flushable.

Good post thank you 😊

Thankfully it is all behind me but I'm glad I was none the wiser. There were times each month when just pulling the string and dropping into the loo resulted in something that resembled a crime scene. I can't imagine the mess if I had to wrap in loo roll and put in a bin. Sorry for TMI

There are many:

Thames Water
https://www.thameswater.co.uk/about-us/responsibility/bin-it

Scottish Water
https://www.scottishwater.co.uk/Your-Home/Campaigns/Nature-Calls/Bathroom-Checklist

Tampax UK
https://tampax.co.uk/en-gb/tampon-truths/can-you-flush-tampons/

City to Sea
https://www.citytosea.org.uk/campaign/unflushables/

UK Gov
https://environmentagency.blog.gov.uk/2017/12/12/your-toilet-is-not-a-rubbish-bin-think-before-you-flush/

It's ok if you didn't know before but now you do know please pass it on, and only flush the four Ps - pee poo puke and small amounts of toilet paper.

We were told they were flushable back in the 80s. I was solidly an adult when I found out it was poor practice. So many flushed in the interim.

in fairness, before water conservation toilets, they did flush much better so there was no reason for us to question when we were told to flush them.

It's not TMI and I know what you mean. Sometimes it's just out before you know it.

There are some of us who haven't had detailed conversations with mother figures, friends, sisters, school etc. I thought the bins were there for towels and the wrapper. A lot of people don't have bins in the toilet or another means to dispose.

My periods are really heavy - I can’t be the only one that when I remove a tampon a load of blood comes out & often goes all over my hands?? Fine when I’m at home but in a public loo where I can’t wash my hands in the cubicle, I have no option really but to let it go into the loo or it’ll look like I’ve killed someone in there. It’s bad enough trying to get dressed again, without having to hoik bloody soaked tampons up and wrap them up etc.

@boxsetqueen

I get the message and will take it on board. But my periods are particularly traumatic and this is going to add to the complications a little bit (not flushing if and when I have to use a tampon).

Yet when I look at my overall lifestyle, it's pretty sustainable and green especially compared with peers, and then obviously, big corporations who pollute massively. I didn't vote for Brexit which is considered a direct cause of deregulation and increased water pollution.

At what point do you start putting it into perspective. Yes I know... 'we can all do our bit'...

Same here but when I use tampons I take it out with a piece of toilet paper and then wipe my hands, wash in sink when I'm done.

I guess I have been to enough beach litter picks (through my career) where I've seen sewage related debris strewn across what should be a beautiful beach to make the extra bit of effort required to not add to the problem. Believe me, I understand that periods can be difficult to deal with and adding one more thing to think about is annoying and overwhelming but it really is a significant environmental problem and one that we can all do something about individually unlike so many other issues.

Wrap it in loo paper then

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.

Most of them now don't just say flushable. I've seen one that literally says "OK to flush," though I couldn't remember the brand to Google an image. But look at these ones. Safe to flush, tested by plumbers...

I’m in my mid fifties but was always told never to flush anything except pee, poo, paper & puke!

Secondary school in the early 80s definitely had signs telling us to use the bins or incinerator units (only in one of the buildings) to dispose of sanitary products.

Yep I did.
Use period pants now so I don't buy them.