Tainted tampons?
Dioxin fears prompt frank talk on feminine hygiene products
By Francesca Lyman
MSNBC
Feb. 10 The Curse. That time of the month. Although American women
dont retreat to menstrual huts, as they once did in some societies, many are
squeamish talking about their periods. But since reports of tampons tainted by
chemicals started surfacing, many have begun insisting on some frank talk
about the health and safety of feminine hygiene products and seeking out
alternative brands.
How healthy is Mother Earth?
Study flags new formaldehyde risks
Concerns raised on breast milk
Post your views on MSNBC's Health Bulletin Board
Return to Health front page
RUTH B.S periods had always been a nightmarish ordeal. The rural
Wisconsin woman suffered from severe cramps and pelvic pain, eventually being
diagnosed with endometriosis, a disabling menstrual-related condition that is
a leading cause of infertility.
It feels like theres a hot poker inside you, jabbing you in the gut,
Ruth says of the disease in which the uterine lining somehow escapes the
uterus and becomes implanted on other pelvic organs. Sometimes I end up in a
fetal position, writhing in pain.
Although rarely discussed in her day, endometriosis was the devilish
disease that put Marilyn Monroe in the hospital and caused her pain throughout
her life. In Goddess, biographer Anthony Summers quoted Marilyns first
husband saying, Norma Jean had so much trouble during her menstrual periods,
the pain would just about knock her out.
Instead of suffering in silence, though, Ruth who asked that her full
name be withheld for fear of reprisal by the chemical industry became an
activist, seeking to help herself and her fellow sufferers. She learned that
the causes of endometriosis, which afflicts anywhere from 6 million to 9
million American women, remain puzzling to researchers.
But new studies have begun to link the disease as well as a variety
of other reproductive ailments to environmental toxins, specifically dioxin.
Dioxin is a byproduct of many chemical, manufacturing and incineration
processes.
The lowdown on dioxin
Dioxin, which has been called one of the most toxic substances ever created
by humans, was recently classed as a human carcinogen.
One of the contaminants present in Agent Orange, the chemical is still being
studied for its health effects, particularly in disrupting the hormone and
endocrine systems. One study showed that 79 percent of rhesus monkeys
contracted endometriosis when exposed to dioxin.
Researching endometriosis on the Internet, the Wisconsin woman read
that one route of exposure to dioxin, in addition to widespread sources in
food, air and water, could be tampons and sanitary napkins products shed
used for 15 years. The chlorine used to bleach the wood pulp and rayon fibers
can leave behind traces of the chemical.
Ruth says she then launched her own Web page to try to get the word
out to women that dioxin is a problem and that there is dioxin in tampons and
that more testing is required to make them safe.
NOT ALONE
During this time, Ruth also found that she is not alone: A growing
number of women were beginning to fear that they may have been putting
themselves at risk if they used major brands of tampons. However, many more
werent and still arent aware of the issue, activists say, and neither
are many physicians.
There is very little regulation of sanitary products manufacturers are not
even required to inform consumers of the ingredients used in the products, for
example.
MARY LOU BALLWEGG AND KAREN GOULD
authors, The Endometriosis Sourcebook Not satisfied with the
manufacturers claims that their products contained negligible amounts of
dioxin, Ruth had her own Playtex tampons tested independently. The tests
showed they did indeed contain measurable levels of the chemical at a
personal cost of about $1,000. But few women are willing to go to the trouble
and expense of testing the products they buy, Ruth says.
Others agree. Most women assume these products are sterile (they are
not) and that government regulations protect them, write Mary Lou Ballwegg
and Karen Gould in an anthology of articles that comprise The Endometriosis
Sourcebook (Contemporary Books, 1995). Unfortunately, the authors state,
there is very little regulation of sanitary products manufacturers are not
even required to inform consumers of the ingredients used in the products, for
example.
During the last few years, several activist groups have taken on the
issue, and a number of articles, including one in New Yorks The Village
Voice, Pulling the Plug on the Sanitary Protection Industry, charged some
companies of deliberately ignoring the health risks. In 1997, Rep. Carolyn
Maloney took up the cudgel for the cause, introducing The Tampax Safety and
Research Act. The bill, which called on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration
to fund independent studies looking into the health effects of tampon usage
over time, never made it to committee that session, but is expected to be re-
introduced.
In response to these charges, the major manufacturers (Tambrands,
Playtex and Johnson & Johnson) counter that their products are perfectly safe.
The FDA, which regulates these products as medical devices, agrees.
There used to be negligible amounts of dioxin in tampons and other products,
says Sharon Snyder of the FDAs Public Affairs office. But now there is none
at all.
In response to consumer questions (and a rampant e-mail claiming
tampons contain asbestos which appears to all parties to be a hoax), the FDA
issued a December 21, 1998 memo, stating Chlorine is no longer used in
bleaching the pulp used in making tampons. This is universal across the tampon
industry.
ONLY TRACE AMOUNTS
John McKeegan, a public relations officer at Johnson & Johnson, which
makes o.b. tampons, says the company has reduced the dioxin in its tampons
to non-detectable levels. There are trace amounts of dioxins in many, many
things, he says. Theyre formed when theres fire. Its found in paper. But
it is always in minute, trace amounts.
However, questions about pulp bleaching continue to surface. On Jan.
26, Congresswoman Maloney wrote the FDA, charging that there is no evidence
upon which to base their statements that tampons are dioxin-free. The new
bleaching processes, known as elemental chlorine free and elemental free
(chlorine dioxide), still create and release dioxin, she wrote.
Maloney also sent around a Dear Colleague letter, saying that FDAs
statements were misleading. Exposure to this chemical has been linked to
cancer, immune system suppression, pelvic inflammatory disease and
infertility, and has also been linked with increased risks for endometriosis,
she wrote. Men, women and children are exposed to dioxin through the air and
the water. It makes no sense for women to have an additional exposure through
tampon use.
The dioxin exposure from tampons and feminine hygiene products are
thought to be relatively small compared to other sources, mos