To flush tampons down the toilet?

[CluedoCat]

Until very recently, I thought most women did this, and I didn't see it as much different to throwing a wad of loo roll down there. I know the box says you shouldn't, but I thought this way something said but never adhered to. However, I have recently learned it's really bad for the sweage system to do this, and the advice is to put used tampons in the bin?

The thought of putting bloodied tampons in the bin and keeping them in the house is gross to me - I'd rather just thrush it away and that's that. One of the many reasons I don't use towels is because the thought of them festering is disgusting to me.

AIBU to continue doing this, and am I apparently the only woman who does? I've never blocked the toilet or experienced any issues.

www.fablittlebag.com

Nearly 30 years of using tampons and I only learnt on MN that they weren’t flushable. Shameful. I remember my mother showing me the way to rip sanitary towels in half to flush them down the loo when I first started my periods

YABU
How lazy! Just put them in the outside bin! If you can't do that get a mooncup and you just empty it in to the toilet

YABU 100%, my husband is a plumber and he has lots of grim stories about tampons and sanitary products.
So bad for the environment, I just wrap them in tissue and bin them. Really not difficult.

for the hard of hearing/difficulty reading ...

BACAUSE THEY BLOCK THE DRAINS ... AND WITH THE ADDITION OF THE OIL THAT REGULARLY HETS THROWN DOWN DRAINS, IT CREATES HUGE CONGEALED MASSES OF WASTE THAT BLOCKS THE DRAINS ...

and breathe ....

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Buy paper disposal bags and chuck em in your bin. They do not smell, you can't see them.
Tampons are NOT for flushing. I'd flush tampons no more than I'd flush empty handwash bottles or old flannels for example. They're garbage and will not break up in the sewage system.

Back when I was a teen, we were advised to flush them. So I did. I was horrified to learn you shouldn’t!

Mooncups are the best.

Because the sewerage system finds ways to end up in the sea and rivers. They dont break down. Havent you ever found tampons and babywipes and nappies on beaches? Its disgusting and selfish and costs the taxpayer as the council has to maintain these systems. You can also be forcing hard up people to pay money they dont have by blocking their drains that they have to pay to clear.

I don't like the idea of them in my bin either but I put them in nappy bags and then put them in the bin

As someone who works in the sewage industry and has had to deal with the after affects of your actions you are being very very unreasonable.
Also think about the pollution that is caused when, as PPs have said, your sanitary products create blockages and cause sewage to overspill in the environment and potentially flooding people’s homes

I put them in a small bin with a lid in the bathroom. It doesn't seem to smell so no problem.
No need for people to call the OP a selfish idiot. She was only asking.
NB a moon cup doesn't suit everyone. I just had constant thrush when I used one.

So it's a case of 'not in my back yard's isn't it? By the logic that they end up in the sea if flushed then putting them in the bin is just putting the issues elsewhere. Really we should all be using mooncups or the like to be doing the right thing?

Wait...aren't mooncups made of silicone? Maybe we should all free bleed....!!!?!!

I buy the bags from Tesco and wrap them and put in bin.

My SIL was end of the drain line and ended up paying for it to be unblocked and it was full of tampons, wipes and all sorts of other stuff which weren't from her house as the only unnatural thing she puts down the toilet is loo roll. Wasn't cheap to sort and of course the neighbours didn't contribute for her to clear up their mess.

No! Wrap them in a bit of loo roll and put them in the bin! And empty the bin regularly!

I speak as a woman who has been armpit deep in soil pipes unclogging them 🤢🤢🤢🤢🤢

chatcatcat yes but mooncups last for many many years of use so it’s not comparable to a single use product like a tampon or disposable pad.

I'm sure I was taught to flush as a teen and then it became chaged later on. I understand the reasons though. Ended up switching to a mooncup. No amount of toilet paper makes it less bloody and it was easier to flush.

.

So when you’ve been to, like, every single public loo in the UK and seen signs saying please dispose of sanitary products in the bins provided, you’ve thought this was “not adhered to”? This is all a huge shock to you.

i try and use washable towels because i hate all the putting bloodied stuff in the bins. If i use tampons i wrap them and put them in the bin though, its a pain, but otherwise the toilets do eventually get blocked

YABU. Put them in a plastic bag and throw them in bin.

I've visited sewage treatment works as part of my training in the water industry. Even if they get to the point of entry to the works they have to be raked out and sent to landfill.

As my wise old plumber told me before he retired, "If you didn't eat it or drink it, don't flush it."

Loo paper is an exception as it's made to have no strength when wet.

Bins are grim
Cos they’re bins!
Def do not flush sanpro down the loo!

YABVU

Wrap and throw them in the bin. They absolutely should not be flushed.

Love all these posters giving the OP a hard time for destroying the environment then telling her to put the tampons in a plastic bag instead

Never ever done this. Why do you think they put it on the box? For fun?!

Also they don't always flush and coming to a toilet with someone bloody tampon is disgusting 🤢