# Eco-Friendly Menstruation Device!! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 10, 2009, 5:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eco-friendly-menstruation-device/499307 "2009-06-10T05:49:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![FalconFinder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/51bf81/32.png) [@FalconFinder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FalconFinder)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2009, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eco-friendly-menstruation-device/499307/21 "2009-06-11T21:32:42Z")
I really thought this was a very bizarre joke…until I clicked on the last link and found it wasn’t! :eek: Those women must be insane… Modern day feminine hygiene products were created because no woman wanted to deal with the old ways – burlap? old rags? No thanks! ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2009, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eco-friendly-menstruation-device/499307/22 "2009-06-11T21:44:12Z")
If our cats got their paws on them, those _would_ be cat toys. No question. I like the idea of filling them with catnip and letting them go where our Beasts can find them. The idea of using them for personal hygiene gives me the creeps. ---
**Author:** ![wunderkammer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ed8c4c/32.png) [@wunderkammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wunderkammer)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2009, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eco-friendly-menstruation-device/499307/23 "2009-06-11T23:44:07Z")
This, ladies and gentlemen, is why chemical-phobia is a bad thing. (Seriously, do not read that thread if you’re exasperated by the sort of person who only lets organic cotton and pixie dust near her bits. And do not, repeat, do not, go in there and mention that condoms have chemicals, too…) ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2009, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eco-friendly-menstruation-device/499307/24 "2009-06-12T00:02:41Z")
> [@TroubleAgain](#): > > No, you’d make them out of cotton yarn, which is very soft, and non-fuzzy. (I just finished crocheting a wrap in cotton yarn.) > > And you wouldn’t get TSS if you changed them like you’re supposed to, and cleaned them carefully between uses. I wouldn’t be so sure of that. TSS doesn’t happen because of dirty tampons, but because of bacteria that’s already (safely) living on the wall of the vagina getting in past the outer layers of mucus membrane. TSS (Staph or Strep infection in the vagina) seems to happen when dry material makes little microscopic scratches on the wall of the vagina, and opportunistic bacteria take up residence inside the wall and move into the bloodstream. That’s why you’re supposed to use the least absorbent tampon that will work for you - once the outside is wet and slick, it’s pretty safe. If it wicks away too much moisture too quickly, you end up with an increased TSS risk. I’m simply not going to believe that these are smooth enough and not-absorbent enough for medical safety without significant and repeated testing. I’ll keep my DivaCup, thanks. Takes far less water to clean, needs no chemical disinfecting, and the TSS cases linked with it number zero. ---
**Author:** ![Green\_Bean](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/green_bean/32/1760_2.png) [@Green\_Bean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Green_Bean)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2009, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eco-friendly-menstruation-device/499307/25 "2009-06-12T02:01:17Z")
> [@superwombat](#): > > SHAMPON! _clap clap_ SHAMPOFF! _clap clap clap_ Oh great. Now I’m imagining Mr. Miyagi making Ralph Macchio repeatedly insert and remove tampons. ---
**Author:** ![Small\_Hen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ad7895/32.png) [@Small\_Hen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Small_Hen)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2009, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eco-friendly-menstruation-device/499307/26 "2009-06-12T02:14:29Z")
> [@superwombat](#): > > Shamwow? > > SHAMPON! _clap clap_ SHAMPOFF! _clap clap clap_ This is the best thing I’ve seen on the Dope in a long time. ---
**Author:** ![Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/bc8723/32.png) [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unauthorized_Cinnamon)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2009, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eco-friendly-menstruation-device/499307/27 "2009-06-12T16:51:07Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > . . . I’m simply not going to believe that these are smooth enough and not-absorbent enough for medical safety without significant and repeated testing. Yeah, I recently knitted a dishrag from all cotton yarn, and it is _great for scrubbing off burned-on food_. Nooooooo way those would be soft or comfortable - look how nubbly they are! _fidgets in seat_ I’ve used sea sponge tampons ([really](http://www.jadeandpearl.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=18)), but since my second baby the old tissues are so sensitive I can’t even use those (you moisten them before using so they’re pretty soft). I can’t imagine using something crocheted! ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2009, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eco-friendly-menstruation-device/499307/28 "2009-06-13T04:15:20Z")
I also thought that bacteria grew on porous surfaces (which is why loofah sponges can sometimes be dangerous) ---
**Author:** ![Kneepants\_Erasmus\_the\_Humanist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/54ee81/32.png) [@Kneepants\_Erasmus\_the\_Humanist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kneepants_Erasmus_the_Humanist)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2009, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eco-friendly-menstruation-device/499307/29 "2009-06-14T04:53:29Z")
Awww! Aren’t those precious! They are way too cute to bleed all over, but I would totally get some to use as … I dunno … key chains or something. SQQUEEE. !! ---
**Author:** ![Shirley\_Ujest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2009, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eco-friendly-menstruation-device/499307/30 "2009-06-15T00:01:00Z")
> [@Miss\_Woodhouse](#): > > I thought the reusable menstrual pads were bad enough. Yikes. Reusable Menstrual pads are, when you can find a good brand, the BOMB! HOwever, I don’t think I will be sticking anything I crochet up my hoo-ha. ---
**Author:** ![Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/malleus_incus_stapes/32/3293_2.png) [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malleus_Incus_Stapes)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2009, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eco-friendly-menstruation-device/499307/31 "2009-06-15T00:20:05Z")
How excatly do reusable menstrual pads work? It sounds a bit… squicky to me. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2009, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eco-friendly-menstruation-device/499307/32 "2009-06-15T00:54:54Z")
deva cup for the most win … silicone, sterilizable and will last 10+ years. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2009, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eco-friendly-menstruation-device/499307/33 "2009-06-15T01:21:01Z")
> [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](#): > > How excatly do reusable menstrual pads work? It sounds a bit… squicky to me. Apply, bleed, rinse, wash, dry, reuse. **Miss Woodhouse** , you’re adorable. What exactly do you expect your namesake used to catch her monthly flow? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Harriet\_the\_Spry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e56c9b/32.png) [@Harriet\_the\_Spry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harriet_the_Spry)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2009, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eco-friendly-menstruation-device/499307/34 "2009-06-15T02:22:06Z")
I’m not sure what cracked me up more–the fact that the poster who started the thread was named javastain or the ads at the top of the page on their board for _steel wool_! ---
**Author:** ![whiterabbit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/cab0a1/32.png) [@whiterabbit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/whiterabbit)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2009, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eco-friendly-menstruation-device/499307/35 "2009-06-15T02:57:44Z")
Sometimes Adblock is a disadvantage, isn’t it. _Steel wool??? __giggles like a madwoman__ faints at the thought of steel wool and girly bits_ If I could knit, I’d make a few up as cat toys. There’s no way I’d actually use a knitted tampon, though. Or any reusable one. Reusable pads? If I had my own laundry facilities, possibly. But I’m not hauling those things to the laundromat. ---
**Author:** ![Septemberday](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/898d66/32.png) [@Septemberday](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Septemberday)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2009, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eco-friendly-menstruation-device/499307/36 "2009-06-15T02:59:52Z")
I just…wow…no words… I am curious about the colors though. Wouldn’t they all end up red any way? ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2009, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eco-friendly-menstruation-device/499307/37 "2009-06-15T03:13:38Z")
> [@wunderkammer](#): > > This, ladies and gentlemen, is why chemical-phobia is a bad thing. > > (Seriously, do not read that thread if you’re exasperated by the sort of person who only lets organic cotton and pixie dust near her bits. And do not, repeat, do not, go in there and mention that condoms have chemicals, too…) Okay, now I need to know what happens if you mention condoms… ---
**Author:** ![wunderkammer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ed8c4c/32.png) [@wunderkammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wunderkammer)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2009, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eco-friendly-menstruation-device/499307/38 "2009-06-15T05:33:58Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > Okay, now I need to know what happens if you mention condoms… Well, sheep intestine isn’t vegan, so that’s right out. There’s [this](http://www.theanticraft.com/archive/lugh06/familyplanning.htm), but it’s contraindicated for “people who want to enjoy sex”. I’m sure they’ll think of something, but do I want to know? ---
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2009, 7:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eco-friendly-menstruation-device/499307/39 "2009-06-15T07:49:46Z")
> [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](#): > > How excatly do reusable menstrual pads work? It sounds a bit… squicky to me. I keep a few reusable pads for those days when I’m just not feeling my beloved DivaCup (AKA the best thing ever.) I keep one as emergency back-up in my purse, and sometimes wear them during then night and around the house on light days when I might expect some spotting but don’t want to mess with the Cup. Basically they are just soft cotton flannel pads. They snap under your underwear. When it’s time to change it, you can give it a rinse- I usually rinse mine in the shower while I am showering. Then you can toss it in the washer and dryer just like anything else. It’s just like when you mess up your undies because it came by surprise- you rinse them, wash them, and call it good. I never use mine when I have a heavy flow, so it’s not like it’s a huge sopping mess. Maybe it’s a little squicky, but I don’t think it’s any worse than a pair of dirty undies and certainly a lot less gross than having a lot of period waste hanging around my house until I take out the trash. It’s been three years since I’ve bought a single thing related to my period. Awesome. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2009, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eco-friendly-menstruation-device/499307/40 "2009-06-15T23:06:30Z")
> [@wunderkammer](#): > > Well, sheep intestine isn’t vegan, so that’s right out. > There’s [this](http://www.theanticraft.com/archive/lugh06/familyplanning.htm), but it’s contraindicated for “people who want to enjoy sex”. > > I’m sure they’ll think of something, but do I want to know? Ah, I figured you had posted there before, and someone brought it up. And then some big meltdown. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eco-friendly-menstruation-device/499307.md?page=1)