Men: Ever Read About Tampons?

This really isn't much of a discussion. It is a spontaneous thought/thing that I thought just might prove helpful to my species, i.e. the lesser-informed men. My default browser is set to Firefox and every time I open it, the organic feed provides me some interesting articles. These are content pieces without the usual spicy, Instagram-trending refuse that is fed to our smartphones every day. These are slightly better, more likely to be researched type of content pieces that pour in via the Pocket application that Firefox offers. Today, the same thing happened, and among the first set of recommendations was this article: The quest for a better tampon comes as women’s sports surge and it just got me thinking - do most men even know what the difference is between sanitary pads/sanitary napkins and a Tampon? Do guys have a basic understanding of how these menstrual products actually work and at the same time, function differently? 

This is a summary if you are curious about what the editorial above is about: [remember this is the article that got me thinking and is not about the Tampon vs Sanitary Pad idea that it induced]

Sequel, a startup tampon brand, has introduced a patented spiral design to reduce leaks and discomfort. This marks the first tampon engineering redesign in 80 years. WNBA players have praised the product, and the company plans to distribute free tampons to athletes. Efforts are also underway to eliminate the “period tax” on menstrual products, which can cost an average of $20 per cycle and add up to $18,000 over a woman’s lifetime. Additionally, organizations, like I Support the Girls (ISTG) use a pink van, called the “Vangina” to distribute bras and menstrual hygiene products to those in need...

I did some online searching and found out that there are plenty of resources that can easily explain the differences and the similarities. This includes:

Tampons vs Pads at Healthline.com | The Basic Differences Everyone Should Know: you shouldn't visit just any online resource to get the basics clear. I truly believe that Healthline has informative and credible content and this resource will help you understand the difference between the two menstrual products in an easy way without applying too much science - five minutes of reading time I believe and you will be up to date to have more than a fair idea about the subject.

Tampons vs. Pads: Which Suits You Better? at Cambiowoman.com: I was genuinely surprised that this bit of information is a lot more useful as compared to the minuscule amount of data shared by highly-rated resources like WebMD. Not just the comparison bit, this resource also does a good job of busting myths about toxic shock syndrome that you will realize is mentioned in every Googled article about this comparison. Absolutely worthy of your 5-7 minutes. 

Now, I could not help myself search online a bit further about the subject, assuming most men have a very basic idea about Tampons and would never try reading up about it unless their next job was at Tampax. The following resources are good:

Planet Puberty | Using Tampons: this could be a bit of awakening for men who keep reading about and also acknowledge that God has been biologically unkind to women. This resource, intended at girls attaining puberty, could be an eye-opener that once the hormones kick in, women have a lot more to manage every day as compared to us. 

Auntflow | Tampon History: does a good job of summarizing the history of the tampon. I believe this could be enlightening for many men. Yes, everything that stands commercialized today and is a part of contemporary cultures was either invented yesterday, or it has evolved over the years and therefore, comes with a history. So, for catching up on the history of Tampons, you can visit this link.

Vox.com | Tampon Testing Stupidity: I did some digging and found that just like most consumer products today that come tainted with either the blood from animal farming or practices that impact our environment most hideously, Tampons have also evolved with a bit of menace and malice is across the big brands that are producing it, realizing that just like snacks without which we cannot survive, this is a product that will be bought even if the hard truth of Tampon Testing was ever brought to mainstream channels. 

The National Geographic | Unwanted Tampon Commercialization: if you genuinely visit the above two links, you are most likely to visit this article by NGC too as it beautifully explains the invasive commercialization and the resultant unsustainability of the tampon industry. 

Another thing that caught my attention: FDA on Tampons, FDA about Tampons: the FDA really did not make much of an effort to share much. They could have done this resource page a lot better by giving more insight about such menstrual products and how every Tampon is not the same. Sadly, the FDA website is a disappointment for this subject...