Over the past two decades, numerous issues related to women’s health has created controversies. Several people confronted it straight face, some didn’t. Yet when it comes to menstruation, accessibility, and affordability of menstrual care products, THINGS GO THE OTHER WAY.
The controversial pad or tampons top have created issues as it is not known that these products expose women to a whole new spectrum of toxic chemicals like absorbent gels, bleaches or polymers. Women accept rash, irritation even allergies and treat them as ‘Normal’ signals. Few of them ‘ neglects’ this topic. However, the issue for the disposal of used pads or dumping the waste becomes tough due to the conservative society. Due to poor infrastructure to manage sanitary waste, it is common to see pads disposed of in an unhygienic manner. To avert these problems, Delhi based entrepreneur Tanvi Johri and Rikshav Borah launched Carmesi- a line of sanitary napkins and panty which is eco-friendly and safe for the environment.
The pads which they make is entirely natural ingredients such as corn starch and bamboo fibre and they are making it biodegradable, it is an eco-friendly alternative to these pads which take 500-800 years to biodegrade. About 336 million girls and woman experience menstruation in India, which means that approximately 121 million of them are using a sanitary napkin. According to Clean India Journal, there are 432 million pads being generated annually and the result is 9000 tones waste is disposed of. That means the amount of sanitary pad we dispose of will be there after you and I are long gone. Brace yourself for lots of number coming your way. 48% rural woman use a sanitary napkin while the percentage in the Urban area is quite worst. It exceeds up to 77 percentage (Based on the National Family Health Survey report of 2015-16. There are several other alternatives to pads, fret not. These include menstrual cups which can be worn for up to 12 hours and can last years. Making it one of one of the most sustainable and trustworthy products.
On the other hand, Carmesi pads decompose in 6-12 months. The best part is these pads are also free of the harmful chemicals which are present these pads. They are soft, leaf-proof and non-toxic. Carmesi pads are available in two sizes. Each pad comes individually wrapped so it can be discarded hygienically. This may be the beginning of our way to save the environment.
