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I hate how the push (even lobbying I'd say) for pads and tampons is never questionned. It's expensive, it produces tons of waste, but most of all it creates dep
by hycaria 8y ago
I hate how the push (even lobbying I'd say) for pads and tampons is never questionned. It's expensive, it produces tons of waste, but most of all it creates dependent customers. Yet it's acclaimed as selfless ?
Give these women cups and they're settled for life.
- stochastic_monk 8y agoI don’t understand why tampons and pads are the primary recommended methods for dealing with period blood (at least in the US). Cups are more sanitary, better-suited for extended internal use, and are often reusable. Some cups can even be worn during sex. I think it’s largely a matter of being uninformed, in turn likely because of the stigma associated with a perfectly natural bodily function.
- hycaria 8y agoThere's little profit to be made for a $30 lifelong purchase.
- SketchySeaBeast 8y ago> I think it’s largely a matter of being uninformed, in turn likely because of the stigma associated with a perfectly natural bodily function. There's a lot of stigma there. Some women can't find comfortable cups, some have flows too heavy to use a cup, and some don't like the idea of washing out a bloody, clot covered menstrual cup in a public washroom's sink.
- webninja 8y agoShare a product link?
- mschuster91 8y ago> Give these women cups and they're settled for life. Comparing to sterile-packaged pads/tampons, cups need access for the wearer to a sterilization source - be it a microwave, clean (!) hot water, or chemical agents. Cups are something for Western populations where reliable access is given, but not for unsanitary conditions in developing countries.
- hycaria 8y agoBoiling water is enough. And while I've never been there I guess they drink water and cook like most humans so combining both might be manageable. Also, you don't need everything to be sterile anyways, and pads and tampons certainly are not. Clean is enough, with sterilization from time to time.
- lawlessone 8y agopeople with limited means might not want to cook with the same (only one they have)pot they use for that.
- pegasus 8y agoit probably still would be cheaper to buy an additional pot too, instead of a lifetime of pads
- mschuster91 8y agoFor this you need to first have the cash up-front to pay for a second pot only needed for one week a month. The general economic problem behind this is common for people living from paycheck to paycheck. For example, a good pair of shoes will last over a decade but cost 100€ (=> less than 10€/year), while cheap shoes for 10€ last a year. Now the cost over 10 years is equal, and for any year the shoe lasts longer, the person saves money. But without access to non-predatory loans (such as payday lending, pawn shops, mafia loans or CCs >5% APR) the person can never realize the saving.
- SketchySeaBeast 8y ago> But without access to non-predatory loans (such as payday lending, pawn shops, mafia loans or CCs >5% APR) the person can never realize the saving. And that predator lending has now made the next purchase decision even more difficult than the last.
- theriddlr 8y ago
- adrianN 8y agoNot all women can wear cups comfortably.
- dijit 8y agoNot sure I like this argument, pushing cups does not remove the existence of tampons or pads. Some people can't comfortably fit on an airplane seat; this doesn't mean we should subsidy car travel for the whole country.
- hycaria 8y agoActually many shapes, sizes, materials and brands exist. If you can use tampons or have sex without pain it's just a product fitting / usage / educational problem imo.
- adrianN 8y agoThe availability of different sizes, materials, and brands is probably more limited in rural India.
- denzil_correa 8y agoThe answer may lie here. > Nielsen, a research firm, estimates that around 70% of women in the country cannot afford sanitary products: 300m use unhygienic alternatives like newspapers, dry leaves and cotton rags. There's a push for pads - not tampons due to conservative reasons.
- flyingpenguin 8y agoHow is this a reason to push anything but cups?
- RankingMember 8y agoThe issue is that it goes up inside the vagina, whereas a pad doesn't. The taboo is related to a perceived loss of virginity. It's hard for me to hold my tongue and not outright assail such thinking, but for me to do so would be fruitless.
- hycaria 8y agoI agree but still, many women are probably not virgins so...