We are exposed to contaminants every day, whether its greenhouse gases, heavy metals, microplastics, etc. These indirectly enter our bodies through the use of everyday items, eating, or even just breathing. While these sources of contamination are hard to control due to their abundance, and sometimes naturally occurring nature, there are some contaminants whose production, and therefore presence, can be controlled. However, these contaminants may exhibit desirable chemical properties, and are cheap to produce, thus increasing their presence within our everyday items. In these instances, companies that use these contaminants should be fully transparent with the user by providing them with an easily accessible certificate of analysis indicating which contaminants, and at which concentration they are present.
One class of controllable contaminants are perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). PFAS are a chain of carbons with fluorine atoms attached and they are usually used as fluoropolymers. As fluoropolymers, they are used to make all sorts of coatings, from food wrapper coatings to nonstick pan coatings (Teflon), to even coatings for feminine hygiene product wrappers. PFAS have high thermal stability, are really good at repelling water and grease. However, a big issue is that they are considered forever chemicals because of their limited degradation. They affect the neural, immune, and reproductive systems, and have the possibility of producing metabolic, reproductive, and developmental toxicity, along with immunotoxicity, and neurotoxicity.1,2 As a chemical with reproductive toxicity, it affects women’s hormone secretion, menstrual cyclicity, and fertility.3
A study earlier this year found a non-negligible amount of a PFAS, in “sanitary pads, panty liners, tampons, paper diapers, menstrual cups, and bactericidal liquids.”4 This study is one of the only few that have looked into PFAS in hygiene products, and provided the data backing up the results. While this study was conducted in China, using Chinese products, its results could also be applicable to U.S. markets because some of the products sold here are made there. An issue with the results was that the brands of the tested products were not provided. This lack of transparency only benefits the companies using these contaminants because the consumer has no idea whether the pads or tampons they buy are slowly messing up their hormones and ability to reproduce.
The U.S. based page mamavation.com states that even organic U.S. based feminine hygiene products contain PFAs.5 While this page has a bunch of useful information on the background of PFAs, their methods of research for this claim are a bit questionable as they test for free fluoride ions rather than PFAs themselves. This method of analysis does not provide accurate results as the free fluoride ions may not all correspond to PFAS, invalidating their quantitative results. Regardless of the validity of the data, the information highlighting the effects PFAs cause, is more than enough to inform their readers, and provide awareness to the substances they are exposed to.
This essay highlights the lack of transparency from both the producers and researchers when it comes to the analytical results of the presence of PFAs within the feminine hygiene products being produced. The people using these products are unknowingly being hurt over time, while the companies benefit from using the cheaper contaminants because no repercussions are placed upon them due to them not needing to provide numerical values of the chemicals they expose consumers to.
References
1) Xing, Y.; Li, Q.; Chen, X.; Huang, B.; Ji, L.; Zhang, Q.; Fu, X.; Li, T.; Wang, J. PFASs in Soil: How They Threaten Human Health through Multiple Pathways and Whether They Are Receiving Adequate Concern. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry 2023, 71 (3), 1259–1275. DOI:10.1021/acs.jafc.2c06283.
2) Xiang, J.; Zheng, W.; Yan, J.; Liang, X.; Zhang, H.; Liu, B.; Zou, W. Thermally Driven Separation of Perfluoroalkyl Substances with High Efficiency. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces 2020, 12 (36), 40759–40767. DOI:10.1021/acsami.0c09599.
3) Zhou, Y.; Lin, X.; Xing, Y.; Zhang, X.; Lee, H. K.; Huang, Z. Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances in Personal Hygiene Products: The Implications for Human Exposure and Emission to the Environment. Environmental Science & Technology 2023, 57 (23), 8484–8495. DOI:10.1021/acs.est.2c08912.
4) Rickard, B. P.; Rizvi, I.; Fenton, S. E. Per- and Poly-Fluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) and Female Reproductive Outcomes: Pfas Elimination, Endocrine-Mediated Effects, and Disease. Toxicology 2022, 465, 153031. DOI:10.1016/j.tox.2021.153031.
5) Segedie, L. Pfas “Forever Chemicals” Inside Sanitary Pads & Incontinence Pads — Report 2022. https://www.mamavation.com/beauty/pfas-forever-chemicals-sanitary-pads-incontinence-pads.html
