Women have to deal with the discomforts of menstruation monthly every 24 to 42 days; this means that every year a woman uses around 120 to 180 sanitary pads annually.
That’s too much trash added to our growing concern in saving mother earth. What if you are given a choice to help decrease that number by using the menstrual cup, will it work for you? Let us make a review.
The menstrual cup is a cup inserted into the vagina and is used to collect the menstrual flow instead of sanitary pads and tampons. Some women find its use acceptable and convenient, but some find it messy to manage.
There are two types of the menstrual cup; one is made of a silicon material that can be used and re-washed for a period of 5 to 10 years and the other one is disposable.
Menstrual cups are generally safe to use and so far have no health risks recorded, although a study is being conducted on the likelihood of the mooncup to increase the possibility of developing endometriosis, adenomyosis and toxic shock syndrome. The University of Columbia is also conducting a study comparing the satisfaction rate between tampons and the menstrual cup.
There are a number of health benefits in the use of the menstrual cup, which includes the following:
1. Economic reasons, the menstrual cup may be a little expensive compared to tampons but will last you for the next 5 to 10 years depending on the brand.
2. It is environmental friendly, it only disposes of blood unlike sanitary pads and tampons that make use of cotton and plastic materials that are very harmful to the environment.
3. It is very portable and lightweight when traveling. Some women however may need to wear extra protection from sanitary pads especially during days of heavy flow.
4. It gives more comfort compared to the bulky and damp feeling from pads and the strings from tampons. It may even be worn before menstruation flow begins especially for women who have irregular cycles.
5. There have been no reported cases of toxic shock syndrome making it low in terms of health risk.
6. It is very convenient and makes visit to the restroom less often than with the use of sanitary napkins and pads.
Having learned the benefits of the mooncup, it is time to try one and see for yourself.
I have been using my DivaCup for 8 months now and absolutely love it! I will never go back to using tampons again.
It was interesting that you said they could potentially cause endometriosis. I was diagnosed 4 months ago and I am interested in learning more about that study that is going on.
You mentioned that the cup can last between 5 to 10 years but I have heard that it is best to replace it after 2 to 3 years. Either way, still a great savings on time, convenience and money!
– Natural Women’s Health