1973 was a dark year. It was the year that periods began to be taxed. A whopping 17.5% percent tax was placed on sanitary products because the government viewed them as “non-essential” items. They were not only “non-essential” in the government’s eyes, but “luxury” items. “Luxury items”, that half of the UK population have a necessity to buy. There is certainly nothing luxurious about my experience of monthly menstruation. I doubt many of you would call the action of bunging a multipack of sanitary towels in your trolley as a luxurious move. For me, it is often because I have a wad of tissue roll stuffed down my knickers and need to buy something more substantial to stop a red blob burgeoning on the back of my trousers. Thankfully, in 2001, the government reduced the “period tax” to 5%. A victory? Perhaps. But today, a woman will spend over £18,000 on sanitary products in her lifetime. Time for an alternative? I think so.
Reusable sanitary pads could offer a solution to this costly dilemma. Cloth sanitary pads (CSPs) have recently experienced an increased popularity among women in the UK. Made from natural fabrics such as cotton and bamboo, they are washable and therefore reusable. Instructions from the retailers Cheeky Wipes and Plush Pants instruct the consumer to simply wash in cold water before placing in the wash with the rest of the laundry. Seemingly simple, in my eyes, and more money to spend on the really luxurious items of life, like bars of Lindt chocolate and those pair of shoes which just keep looking at you every time you are studying/ procrastinating/ online shopping.
It’s not just our purses that feel the benefits; the companies selling the products online often support charitable causes, and the majority of companies are small sister companies run by women so a feel good factor is involved when we purchase them: one girl helping another out, you could say. It also offers a solution to individuals who are allergic to the scents which are often placed on pads to eliminate that dreaded menstrual odour which women are conditioned to mask. Rather than irritation and itchiness, these products seemingly offer comfort during your period which is really what we need, along with a hot water bottle and that bar of Lindt chocolate which we can now afford to buy.
I can hear critics objecting to the seemingly “gross” or less cleanly aspects of cloth sanitary pads. “‘But then, don’t you like, have to wash (and touch) your own menstrual blood?’”. I think this issue is important, but instead of this being seen as a negative aspect of reusable sanitary pads, I think it should be seen positively. It provides a way that menstruation can be owned and to an extent celebrated by every female who goes through it each month. In 1970, in The Female Eunuch, Germaine Greer memorably wrote that “if you think you are emancipated, you might consider the idea of tasting your own menstrual blood – if it makes you sick, you’ve a long way to go, baby”. While I won’t be tasting my vaginal excretions anytime soon, I think that if women are more connected with the process of dealing with their own menstrual blood, it could help to eliminate the thoughts of repulsion around it, to de-sensationalize it, if you will.
The pads themselves are brightly coloured and patterned; retailers such as Honour Your Flow have a range of psychedelic patterns; spots, stripes and even tiny owls appear on their pads. While this might be an attempt to make menstruation more fun, it also promotes a sense of pride and individuality in owning or wearing the product, opposed to the bland white colour of disposable sanitary towels, where discretion and concealment is seen as the utmost priority.
I think my opinion on cloth sanitary towels is clear; but don’t take my word for it. Try them out for yourself.