To think more women want unscented sanitary towels than scented ones?

[SinkGirl]

It comes up here often. And maybe there are some women who want scented towels (no judgement if you do!).

But I had to buy some pads in an emergency today and they were all scented. In the supermarket I have to hunt out the only ones that aren’t scented. It’s bad enough I can’t get Always Infinity anywhere any more but this is inexcusable - the scented ones literally burn my skin, I can’t be alone.

Who are these companies using for their focus groups? Surely women aren’t saying “yes, make all your towels scented please!”... are they?

So time for vote. If you had a choice and if all else was equal would you...
YANBU - prefer unscented pads
YABU - prefer scented pads

I don't need sanitary products anymore but I was using them when the scented thing happened.
The scented ones gave me thrush or some sort of reaction and I'm not a person who reacts to products normally. I can't imagine how unpleasant scented tampons would be.

It can’t be any good for us either. I had similar problems looking for some unscented ones and ended up buying massive winged ones as they were the only unscented ones left on the shelves... which goes to prove surely that no-one wants scented ones!

Reusable washable ones here, or sometimes Sainsburys own brand liners which were bought in bulk in case they changed them to stinking ones. Am reducing plastic use so once they are gone it will be fabric ones only.

I refuse to use anything that is contaminated with a stench, including toilet paper, facial tissues or household poisons. There is just no need for it, any of it.

I hate scented loo roll too.

YANBU - I genuinely don't think having perfumed items near genitalia can be healthy.

Always smell horrible. I'll only ever use Bodyform.

This answers why so many girls at work smell of a minicab. I wondered when a heavy, talc like floral scent became fashionable in sprays.

No wonder they're changing pads every other lesson - some must be burning to get the things away from their bodies. And why our supplies are rinsed every time I top up the Help Yourself Shelf, as we ordered a job lot of what have turned out to be unscented.

YANBU - I genuinely don't think having perfumed items near genitalia can be healthy.

Always smell horrible. I'll only ever use Bodyform.

@doodlejump1980 if you want an unscented pad that can hold a heavy flow, try the boots own maternity pads. (Tesco's own are basically the same as well)

They're amazing!

The chemist near me stocks always infinity and I always empty their stock when it comes in as they sell boxes of 10 for 1.50. Unscented and you don't even know you're wearing a pad 👍

I complained to Always, they basically told me that most women preferred them but I could buy Infinity if it was a problem. You can hardly find Infinity now anyway. I really appreciate Always as a company for now adding the enjoyment of picking up pad packages in the supermarket to smell them and check as basically now unless they say ‘unscented’ they’re basically not.

That was a lot of basically!

The only people who think YABU are the manufacturers of sanitary products.

Sadly!

YANBU I’ve never read a positive thing said about scented sanitary towels.

I used tampons for years until a couple of years ago. Unknowingly picked up some always pads and couldn’t stand the smell. Now I still use always but use the pink sensitive option which are unscented.

In my opinion unscented should be standard, with the option for scented ones if desired.

Seriously, with how unpopular they are who made the decision to make them all scented? Probably someone who doesn’t have a vagina 😡

Scented pads are what pushed me over the edge to reusables. I go out my way to avoid that aisle now. Smell of scented pads gives me the boke!

I’ve never been able to smell anything that would suggest another woman had her period but I have been able to smell that Always cheap scent, who wants to smell like the inside of their car after a cheap valet.

OP tena lady are unscented and similar to night time pads and much more absorbent. I switched to them when all the STs became air freshner scented.

Please can Mumsnet work with a brand in some way to get this heard where it needs to be?

I'm fine with any pad but one of my dds gets terrible thrush from the scented pads, so I buy always sensitive or bodyform as I read (on here) that they were unscented. I hope these are actually unscented.

I cannot use the femfresh type of wipes, if i put them anywhere near me id get thrush immediately.

Tampax has scented tampons now. They're disgusting.

I hate scented pads and tampons and that it doesn't always say on the box if they are scented or not so if your regular unscented option isn't there you have to be the weirdo sniffing boxes of sanpro in the supermarket

I see a few women have posted to say they like them - which is great, at least someone is getting something good out of all this.

But given the proportion of dislike to like, it seems bizarre that in some places everything available is scented.

I'm allergic to scented pads. Have started wearing reusables because I can't always obtain unscented pads.

@sinkgirl
Amazon do 'always infinity', all absorbancies, I don't need such products anymore, but checked if they still do them and they do.

I’m irritated when it doesn’t say scented or unscented on the pack.
Aldi have feckn jumped on the bandwagon now. The itch and discomfort is awful. 85c for 12 pads was great but now they’re scented 😡

I hate the scented pads with a passion! And the smell is so distinctive, if you wear them you’re essentially advertising that fact, which would surely exacerbate whatever feelings of self-consciousness about period smell led you to wear them in the first place. It’s an age-old form of insidious misogyny, the whole smelly vagina thing. It’s depressing that Always are capitalising on making women feel insecure about their vagina smells. I bought some pads the other day in the supermarket called Yoni: the super size were v absorbent and so luxurious and soft on the skin and very natural, breathable and no scenting! (So pricey though! Using them for special occasions - harr!)