Thinx "organic period underwear" shown to have high levels of toxic chemicals.

[pnwmom]

https://www.sierraclub.org/sierra/ask-ms-green/my-menstrual-underwear-has-toxic-chemicals-it

I mailed unused (I swear!) Lunapads and Thinx menstrual underwear to Dr. Graham Peaslee, a nuclear scientist at the University of Notre Dame who discovered PFAS chemicals in fast-food wrappers in 2017, and his undergraduate student assistant Robert Bartsch. No one had asked them to test menstrual underwear before. But I needed to quiet the voice in my head, since I started wearing Thinx in 2016, that said, “Surely life can’t be so easy that you can bleed seven days a month and feel comfortable.”

The results are in, and I’m afraid it’s bad news.

My Thinx “organic” brief and “organic” BTWN Shorty underwear for teens had high levels of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), especially on the inside layers of the crotch. Some PFAS are associated with cancer, decreased immune response to vaccines, decreased fertility, and more. Exposure to PFAS at even the lowest concentrations has been shown to harm human health. The crotch in my underwear had 3,264 parts per million (ppm), and the one for teens had 2,053 ppm, according to Peaslee’s particle induced gamma ray emission (PIGE) spectroscopy test. That’s high enough to suggest they were intentionally manufactured with PFAS.

In addition, Peaslee found that my Thinx underwear, one for teens, and a non-organic Super Hiphugger had tens to hundreds of ppm of copper on the inside of the crotch, and zinc on both sides. Thinx did not respond to repeated requests for comment.

[snpsmom]

1. Plus

they don’t work very well if you’re peri menopausal. And after a few washings they’re less absorbent. Expensive, but ineffective.

[pnwmom]

2. It just didn't seem that healthy to be wearing those things for 12 hours a day,

with all the germs growing in there.

I was looking for information about higher rates of UTI's or fungal infections, but then ran into this instead.

[Hekate]

3. Damn. It's not even personal for me -- I just care about the health of girls and women.

[Tree-Hugger]

4. Women's products are exceedingly toxic

Period undies, pads, tampons.....many are loaded with toxic chemicals that don't belong anywhere near a body. I use a medical grade silicone cup myself, but that is not an option for many women and younger girls are often not comfortable with products meant to be inserted. Period panties would be a great option if they were actually safe. The word "organic" means absolutely nothing with these products when it comes to plastics, PFAS, etc. "Organic" would only apply to any cotton used.

It's almost as if they don't care about us.

[Tree-Hugger]

5. Women's products are exceedingly toxic

Period undies, pads, tampons.....many are loaded with toxic chemicals that don't belong anywhere near a body. I use a medical grade silicone cup myself, but that is not an option for many women and younger girls are often not comfortable with products meant to be inserted. Period panties would be a great option if they were actually safe. The word "organic" means absolutely nothing with these products when it comes to plastics, PFAS, etc. "Organic" would only apply to any cotton used.

It's almost as if they don't care about us.