The average American woman uses more than 16,000
tampons in her lifetime and one thing they continue to be wary of is
the amount of dioxins in tampons. Dioxins are thought to be caused by
the bleaching processes involved in creating the fabric of tampons,
usually cotton, rayon or blends of the two. According to the FDA,
at one time bleaching wood pulp was a potential source of very small
amounts of dioxin in tampons, but that bleaching method is no longer
used. The kind of bleaching that is used now, known as elemental
chlorine-free bleaching, is thought to eliminate the dioxin problem. The
FDA says if it does release any, it’s at extremely low levels—levels it
says do not present a health risk.
But another potential health problem, Toxic Shock Syndrome, might be
caused by the use of synthetic materials in tampons. TSS surfaced in
1978, and it is a complication of a bacterial infection that can happen
from wearing a tampon for too long, especially a large size tampon. It
was thought to have been largely eliminated but in 2012 the model Lauren Wasser nearly died from it, and had to have a leg amputated. Her family is suing Kimberly-Clark Corporation, which manufactures the tampons that allowed bacteria to
flourish and Wasser to become sick with TSS. The family believes the use
of synthetic materials in the tampon put Lauren at risk and puts other
women at risk too
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