{"id":10700,"date":"2020-10-20T09:05:33","date_gmt":"2020-10-20T08:05:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/?p=10700"},"modified":"2020-10-23T14:20:58","modified_gmt":"2020-10-23T13:20:58","slug":"environmenstrual-week-19-25-october-2020","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/healthylivinglondon.com\/wellbeing\/environmenstrual-week-19-25-october-2020\/","title":{"rendered":"Environmenstrual Week, 19-25 October, 2020"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

This week, to shine a light on the environmental impact of menstruation, we are excited to feature an article by Environmenstrual Ambassador, Cecilia Allon and Yoga Therapist, Uma Dinsmore-Tuli.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Environmenstrual campaign is driven by the Women\u2019s Environmental Network (Wen). Wen fights global problems around gender, health and the environment. On this issue, their vision is: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

to build communities in which people who menstruate can manage their periods without harming their health or the planet<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

as well as removing any taboo around menstruation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Environmenstrual Week<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Environmenstrual Ambassadors, like Cecilia, are working to provide unbiased period education so that people can make properly informed decisions about menstrual products. We are happy to include the below article from Uma and Cecilia, and would like to thank Wen for the research data<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Every month, many women will find that they have to bin or flush disposable menstrual products.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Blocking pipes and killing sea life<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

According to research undertaken on behalf of the Environmenstrual Campaign, there are currently 18 million people who menstruate in Britain. The average menstruator uses 11,000 disposable menstrual products in a lifetime. The disposal of these generates 200,000 tonnes of waste per year in Britain alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2 billion menstrual products are flushed down Britain\u2019s toilets each year. 41% of women admit to flushing these products down the loo, contributing to the sewer blockages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Disposal menstrual pads contain up to 90% plastic. In fact, an average pack contains the same amount of plastic as five plastic bags. This plastic takes between 500 and 800 years to degrade. But the thing about plastic is that it never goes away, it just breaks down into smaller and smaller pieces. These microplastics (defined as pieces smaller than 5mm) remain in our ecosystem harming thousands of sea creatures every day. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plastic waste kills up to one million sea birds, 100,000 sea mammals and countless fish each year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Figures from the Marine Conservation Society show that for every 100 metres of beach that is cleaned in Britain, 4.8 pieces of menstrual waste are found. In the UK the annual cost for the removal of single-use menstrual products, wet wipes and other related debris from beaches is estimated at \u20ac1.1 million.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The chemical element<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Some menstrual products also contain fragrances, which can interfere with the balance between good and bad bacteria in your vagina. Synthetic fragrances can be made from a cocktail of up to 3,900 chemicals (styrene, chloromethane, chloroethane, chloroform, acetone, among others).  Some of them are identified as potential carcinogens, irritants, hormone disruptors and reproductive toxicants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Many of the conventional single-use menstrual products (pads and tampons) and their packaging contain plastic and other synthetic materials like rayon, adhesives, artificial fragrances and toxic chemicals, which are recognized environmental pollutants. Even traces of dioxin, created when these products are bleached white, can be found in menstrual products.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Join the Environmenstrual Campaign: What can you do?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n