Chitika

Chitika

söndag 13 december 2009

Do You Know What's In Your Tampon?

By Julia Bond

Vaginal inserts that absorb menstrual flow is known as tampons. Tampons are sanitary products that are made of cotton or rayon or a mixture of the two. These are disposable pads that can be used only once.

The first disposable tampons were invented by the ancient Egyptians. The tampon was made of papyrus that was softened to become absorbent. The Greeks made tampons from lint wrapped around a small piece of wood. This has been mentioned in the works of Hippocrates in the 5th century B.C. There is evidence to show that tampons were also made of wool, paper, vegetable fibers, sponges, grass and later cotton.

The word tampon is to "stop" or plug in French. Salicyclates were used by the French people to stop the flow of blood from wounds during wars.

The modern version of the tampon with the applicator cord was invented in 1929 by Dr.Earle Haas. The mass production was taken up by Tampax Company in 1931. The menstrual tampon was originally designed by Dr.Judith Esser-Mittag, a gynecologist and was later mass produced by Dr.Carl Hahn and Heinz Mittag. The company was sold to Johnson and Johnson in 1974. The first organic and fully natural tampons were designed in 1990's by Natracare.

Modern tampons are 100% cotton and are sold in packets of varying sizes and rate of absorbency. The tampons are sometimes sold individually also. Tampons can expand axially or radically while in use.

Many tampons come with an outer plastic covering to ease the process of insertion. While the outer tube may be made of plastic the inner tube is invariably of absorbent cotton. There is often a locking mechanism that is activated when the tampon is inserted into the vagina. The insertion can be done using an applicator or with the fingers. A few tampons come without the outer plastic covering and must be unwrapped and inserted into the vagina with the fingers only.

Health practitioners warn that prolonged use of tampons can lead to the onset of Toxic shock syndrome (TSS). They advise that women should alternate between tampons and sanitary pads during menstruation to avoid becoming a victim of the condition. TSS can be fatal. Tampons should not be used at night when in bed.

Tampons are made of cotton and hence they can contain pesticides that are sprayed on cotton. Chlorine-a bleaching agent-that used on cotton could also cause problems, for some women during tampon use. Chlorine causes the formation of dioxin which is a health risk.

About the Author:

Inga kommentarer:

Skicka en kommentar