Your Tampons Do NOT Need To Be Organic (So Save Your Money!)

I respect every human being's desire to live their best and most healthy life.

Eat organic produce! Practice meatless Mondays! Have safe tantric sex! 

DO ALL OF THE YOGA! 

But for the love of all that is good and holy, please stop thinking that you need expensive organic tampons to keep your vagina healthy.

So, are organic tampons safer? Or healthier? 

Here's the deal, based on science. 

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Tampons? Those little cotton pellets you stick up your vagina to collect menstrual blood and save your favorite jeans from stains and your heart from embarrassment? 

They are Class II medical devices. 

What does that mean?

That means they are regulated by the FDA, much like contact lenses, condoms, and pregnancy tests. 

This means that there is someone out there who is paid to make sure that the tampons you're using are safe to go into your body.

Fair enough, there are some things that no amount of FDA safe measures can save you from. 

Like, say, Toxic Shock Syndrome. 

The FDA has done a LOT to try to reduce the rates of TSS, and it's helped.

But if you leave that tampon inside of your vagina for days on end, even after they've warned you, that, my friend is on you. 

Otherwise, standard tampons are really safe. 

"But what about pthalates?!" I can hear you yelling.

Cool, I'm so glad you brought them up. 

Pthalates, if you didn't know, are the thing that makes plastic flexible. 

They can leach out of plastic when heated and have been linked to causing hormone disruption.

Scary ... but it would only happen if you are microwaving your tampons before inserting them — and then also leaving the applicator up inside of you. 

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"Fine, but what about bleach!" you proclaim.

You're right! Bleach was once used in the process of making the stuffing of your tampon.

But now the cotton or rayon (or the blend of the two) in your tampons aren't treated that way. 

Because, you know, bleach and vaginas DO NOT MIX. 

It's awesome that some folks out there are so passionate about women's health and wellness that they would be willing to start marketing and selling organic tampons, but the truth is, they 100% aren't necessary.

And some women feel a lot of pressure to spend a ton of money only buying organic tampons or menstrual products, and they need to know the truth. 

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There are women out there with sensitive vulvas and vaginas. 

But even those women probably don't need to buy organic tampons

They most likely just need to buy unscented products, keeping away anything that could upset the natural PH of their vaginas, which could cause pain and discomfort. 

If those people find that even unscented tampons aren't helping relieve the discomfort, they might like the all-cotton options offered by some of the "natural" product lines. And that's totally cool. 

Do what's right for your vagina. You know what's best.

But your vagina is a warrior. 

Obviously, you should keep it healthy and happy.

But that doesn't mean you have to pay what's really just another variation on the pink tax to do it. 

The science supporting the idea that we NEED organic tampons just isn't there. 

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If you want to treat your vagina well, and you care about other women, why not take the extra cash you've been spending on those high-end organic tampons for your vagina and donating it to an organization like Planned Parenthood? Or another women's healthcare organization that is meaningful to you?

You should be applauded for making the effort to take care of your body. 

But you should also know when you AND your body are being taken advantage of, and this is one of those times.