To be annoyed that Sainsbury's will no longer sell plastic applicator tampons?

[caddywally]

It's not a massive issue at the moment because I can buy them elsewhere, but if other shops follow suit I'm going to be condemned to a life of using pads because I don't get on with non-applicator or cardboard applicator tampons. I can't use menstrual cups, either.

I understand the problem with plastic but don't see why women who rely on plastic applicator tampons should suffer when there is excess plastic everywhere. I already live a fairly eco-friendly life - no car, 1 holiday in the past 10 years, rarely eat meat, most of the stuff I own is second hand (mainly for financial reasons than anything else, admittedly) - and I don't see why I should have miserable periods when there are people whose lifestyles are much worse for the environment than mine. I also don't flush sanitary products down the toilet, which I assumed was common sense. I probably am being unreasonable and should just suck it up for the sake of environment!

A bit of practise with non applicator tampons wouldn't go amiss. It is after all your own body you are dealing with. Plastic applicators haven't been around for ever what did folk do then.

At the end of the day fossil fuels are a finite resource and at some point there won’t be a choice about plastic tampon applicators or not .... but don’t worry, that’s a problem we can leave to our children / grandchildren to solve.

I presume @WombOfOnesOwn that the plastic wrapping is considered necessary by some manufacturers for hygiene reasons. Tampons already carry a risk of TSS and I guess you want them as sterile as possible.

However it's possible (or at least it used to be) to get them wrapped in paper. Honestly I'd prefer the paper but it seems to have gone out of fashion. Maybe there's new hygiene standards, or maybe I'm just looking in the wrong places, I'm not sure.

I suppose the plastic might be less likely to get ripped and disintegrate whilst languishing in a handbag pocket. I recall that being a problem with paper wrappers. I'd still choose that over plastic though.

OK Who had emotional blackmail on their bingo card

Anyone?

OP have you considered writing to Tampax and asking them to come up with a non-plastic alternative to Pearl? One that isn’t cardboard? If enough women start asking for this, is the companies will listen.

I find it very frustrating how difficult it is to buy anything in the supermarket that doesn’t have plastic in it. My worry is that we have used all this plastic on non-essentials, when we should be finding alternatives and keeping plastic for where it is really needed (e.g. hospitals, medical use)

I think most of us have our heads in the sand over the state of the environment.

@Ohnononono "medical use" exactly why I will continue to use plastic applicators until I find a better solution for my medical problem.

It is true though @HelenaDove that hydrocarbons are a finite resource. And I presume tampon applicators don't usually get recycled; I imagine most will go into sanitary bins or into regular landfill?

So at some point our demand for plastic is going to outstrip supply. It's worth considering what we will do when there cannot be any more plastic straws or applicators because there simply isn't anything to make them from. Maybe there will be sufficient advances in technology and we can make our own hydrocarbons but who knows?

Just looked into it. I hadn't realised just how bad the plastic applicators were!! Plus it's a one woman band who has pushed for sainsburys to do this. As much as I dislike her for this. She had a point. I'll be interested to see what else they do though!

Caddy wally have you ever tried slightly 'wetting' the cardboard ones! I used to find they didn't glide in easily but when I put a bit of spit on the outside just before inserting, was fine.

I think instead of being annoyed with Sainsbury’s we should be getting annoyed with Tampax etc for not coming up with a solution. Obviously from what I have read here lots of women have an issue with cardboard applicators, so there is a need for an alternative to cardboard which doesn’t have to be plastic. It’s not like periods are new, they’ve had years to research this! Very little seems to have changed with tampon design over the years.

I was pleased to find Yoni brand biodegradable pads and tampons in Sainsbury’s which I initially thought looked good, but on closer reading the wrapping on the tampons is still plastic unfortunately, although the wrapping on the pads is biodegradable so at least I can put that in with the food waste.

I also saw Sainsbury’s are selling menstrual cups, that seems new. So at least they are trying to offer other things.

My problem isn’t getting the tampons inside, it’s that after 3 births my pelvic floor is so crap the bloody things won’t stay up there and I hate that feeling of a half in half out tampon.....

It's only their own brand they're stopping selling. Pads are also mainly plastic.

@BelleSausage I didn’t realise that about plastic packaging. I no longer hate it as much - thank you for informing me!

Re the other items they aren’t necessities in the way that toilet paper isn’t a necessity. Straws make it possible for people with disabilities to drink, Male it possible for people with sensitive teeth to drink cold things and protect teeth from damage. They are very beneficial as far as single use plastics go. I don’t mind the paper ones but not everywhere provides them and I know that a lot of people struggle to use them. Likewise not everyone can use or tolerate reusable san pro. Effective san pro is definitely an essential unless you think women should artificially stop their periods? Cotton buds are an important hygiene product for some people with mobility issues also. These are all products that can have a significant impact on quality of life for some people, as such they shouldn’t be branded a luxury.

@UnderHisEyeBall they aren’t anywhere near as absorbent as high quality disposables. This can lead to nappy rash, infections and thrush in more sensitive babies. Obviously they then need to be sterilised every time they are used - not all parents bother with this/can do it properly, not to mention sterilisation procedures are never 100% anyway. And the. There is the storage issue. Hence the hygiene comment.

I get why you are annoyed. I'm surprised people are so happy about this change when there are literally thousands of other products/changes that need to be made in order for this have any real environmental impact.

This tiny change really isn't enough. I'd be less annoyed if they made a real effort to change this AND addressed other areas too as then it wouldn't feel like such a waste of time. It feels like another token gesture and it annoys the crap out of me.

@BogglesGoggles

There are paper versions of all things you mentioned. And for most people they are luxuries. There is no reason why people cannot carry re-usable straws if they need one.

And loo role is not a luxury but a sanitary necessity. You can get, and always used to, cotton buds made of paper too.

There are ways and means- often involving going back to what we always used to do before the world was made super convenient for the luckiest 5% of humanity who are now responsible for the pollution and destruction of the world wide environment. This is everyone who lives in a western country.

I see the point you are making about those with disabilities. But out plastic rubbish washes up in third world countries, damaging their fishing and environment. Hardly fair.

natracare tampons have a paper wrapper. As a side answer to an earlier question

In the US it’s really hard to get non-applicator ones. I struggled as I can’t use applicator tampons. I hope that Tampax itself cuts the production of applicators.
I wish I could use a mooncup but I can’t.

I see the point you are making about those with disabilities. But out plastic rubbish washes up in third world countries, damaging their fishing and environment. Hardly fair.

So the solution is making life more difficult for people with disabilities, rather than putting pressure on our governments to prevent this?

Nobody is saying that looking after the environment isn't apriority. But go after the things that don't matter, first, rather than the things that do.

The plastic applicators are nothing in the scheme of things.

All the plastic wrapping around fruit/veg/ (and meringue bases also spring to mind) can be dealt with easily without inconvenience.

Loo roll is a luxury, they don't use it in other countries and as I mentioned above, if you were really eco-friendly you wouldn't just go after parents of babies and tell them to use reusable nappies, you'd use a flannel to wipe your bottom and wash it (and/or a bidet).

As I said above, I don't like women and mothers being targeted.

And I don't like consumers being targeted when the supply chain is the issue.

But out plastic rubbish washes up in third world countries, damaging their fishing and environment. Hardly fair

A very large proportion of rubbish in the sea comes from fishing itself.

@BelleSausage and plastic from third world countries washed up on our shores. What’s your point? I 100% agree that where there is a reasonable reusable or alternative then it should be replaced but the problem is that replacements often aren’t made. Straws are a good example. A lot of places simply don’t have straws now (even they could have paper ones even if some people think they aren’t as good) and reusable ones are too inconvenient - they don’t fit into pockets/wallets etc so you are obliged to carry a bag, and they need to be wrapped in something, difficult to clean, get gross pretty quickly etc.

Re toilet paper - you can get reusable you know.

We in the west are by far the biggest consumers of single use plastics.

It is ridiculous to suggest that banning plastic applicator tampons and plastic straws (for the benefit of the environment and all who live in it) will be massively detrimental to the disabled. There are non-plastic alternative which might not be quite as convenient but we can all survive on.

We in the west have taken up 90% of the world’s resources to live comfortable lives. This sum would obviously not work if we are going to offer everyone the same quality of life.

Are you single use plastic addicts actually suggesting we live of the cheap labour and poor living standards of others?

It’s not just the used plastic that ends up in our oceans but the mircro plastics used in the production of larger plastic products. Every piece of plastic you buy has already polluted the planet a little.

YABU.

THERE IS NO PLANET B.

Sorry for the caps but I can't stress this enough. Plastic applicators have a HUGE impact on the planet. Please stop being so selfish.
I know you said you 'don't get on' with cardboard applicators, but try again. For the planet, for your kids/grandkids futures.

Also, every single fish in the ocean has consumed plastic.
Every time you eat fish, you're eating plastic.