A Cup of Green

Even better are Diva cups, they are a little messier but it’s our own bodies! No more running out of tampons, no more having to get to a shop that doesn’t sell organic tampons! They are easy to use, do a great job, hold lots, you can do sports in them and sleep in them. No waste, no toxins,less money, what are you waiting for???

from there website:

Tampons are “Passé,”
Menstrual Cups are “In”
The environment and the economy drive women to consider the powerful impact of their feminine hygiene choices.

Ontario, Canada, March 17, 2010 – Uncertain economic times coupled with continued concern for the environment is driving consumers to reevaluate every aspect of their purchasing power. In particular, an overlooked culprit of landfill waste and pollution has the attention of women, worldwide. Disposable feminine hygiene tampon and pad products are coming under scrutiny as alarming statistics point to how they significantly contribute to landfill volume, as well as pollution. Diva International Inc., makers of The DivaCup® (www.divacup.com), a silicone menstrual cup, see the momentum for the revolutionary concept growing.

All types of women from students, to moms, to athletes are registering their voice by shifting their loyalty from the $2.53 billion (USD) disposable feminine hygiene market to the reusable menstrual cup. The 41 year menstruation span (11-52 years) creates billions of pounds of disposable feminine hygiene products being “dumped” into the environment. In 2007, over 80 million women in the U.S. alone were potential, monthly users of disposable feminine hygiene products. In 1998 alone, U.S. women disposed an estimated 13.5 billion sanitary pads and 6.5 billion tampons.

Billi Bierling, a German journalist and user of The DivaCup® who is currently climbing her way to the top of Mt. Everest, speaks out about how disposable feminine hygiene waste unfortunately affects even the most remote corners of the world. “Mountaineering is still a very male dominated sport; however, more women are conquering the highest summits in the world. Often, female climbers have to cope with the inconvenience of having their period during a climb. In this situation, women only have two choices when using pads or tampons: either bury them (which is not ideal as they do not biodegrade due to the altitude and the extremely cold temperatures); or carry them out (which is a hassle to say the least)! The DivaCup® solves this serious waste controversy on pristine mountain tops, and notably, in one’s own environment!” explains Bierling.

There are over 100,000 blog mentions and thousands of unique visits a day to The DivaCup® website. The company fields inquiries from companies as far off as Nigeria and Russia who want a piece of the revived, menstrual cup category.

“Most women want to positively change their eco-footprint, but not all can convert to solar or can afford a hybrid car, yet they can switch from disposable tampons and pads. Our menstrual cup is a good environmental choice, because it is reusable. This is as significant as switching from paper to plastic bags. Also, women save approximately $150 to $200 U.S. a year, and a menstrual cup eliminates their personal contribution to the billions of tampons and pads dumped into landfills and sewer systems, annually. Women continually tell us how empowered our product has made them,” explains Francine Chambers, who started the company six years ago with her daughter, Carinne.

The menstrual cup concept was first introduced almost 80 years ago and millions were sold in the 50s and 60s, only to disappear from the market for quite a while. Reengineered, redesigned silicone cups are very popular with women of all ages once again, because they are considered less messy, more reliable, convenient, less expensive and more environmentally responsible than tampons or pads.

The DivaCup® retails for $39.50 U.S. and is available at natural stores, independent pharmacies, select grocers and from online vendors, such as http://www.drugstore.com.