• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
To Make a Mommy
  • Home
  • About
    • About Me & The Blog
    • All Authors
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • My Miracle Story
    • Contact Me!
    • Start Here
      • My Fertility Plan
      • My Guide to Eliminating Toxins
      • My Fertility Diet
      • My Fertility Mind-Body Practice
  • Free Fertility Resources
    • Discount Links for Fertility-Safe Products
    • 79 Diet and Lifestyle Changes I Made to get Happy, Healthy, & Pregnant!
    • Fertility Saints Novena Calendar
    • Your Perfect Fertility Diet: Tailoring the Diet to YOUR Diagnosis
    • How We Keep Baby-Making Hot!
  • Topics
    • Anna’s Story
    • Faith
    • Non-Toxic
    • Fertility Diet
    • Fertility Recipes
    • Fertility Tips
    • Male Fertility
    • Mind-Body
    • Miscarriage
    • Pregnancy
  • Shop My Favorites
    • Supplements
    • Non-Toxic Products
    • Skincare & Make-Up
    • The Best Prenatal Vitamins of 2024
    • Books, DVDs, & Fertility Programs
    • Non-Toxic Mattresses
    • Water Filter
    • Best Air Purifiers for Your Home
  • Non-Toxic Living
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
menu icon
go to homepage
search icon
Homepage link
  • Home
  • About
    • About Me & The Blog
    • All Authors
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • My Miracle Story
    • Contact Me!
    • Start Here
      • My Fertility Plan
      • My Guide to Eliminating Toxins
      • My Fertility Diet
      • My Fertility Mind-Body Practice
  • Free Fertility Resources
    • Discount Links for Fertility-Safe Products
    • 79 Diet and Lifestyle Changes I Made to get Happy, Healthy, & Pregnant!
    • Fertility Saints Novena Calendar
    • Your Perfect Fertility Diet: Tailoring the Diet to YOUR Diagnosis
    • How We Keep Baby-Making Hot!
  • Topics
    • Anna’s Story
    • Faith
    • Non-Toxic
    • Fertility Diet
    • Fertility Recipes
    • Fertility Tips
    • Male Fertility
    • Mind-Body
    • Miscarriage
    • Pregnancy
  • Shop My Favorites
    • Supplements
    • Non-Toxic Products
    • Skincare & Make-Up
    • The Best Prenatal Vitamins of 2024
    • Books, DVDs, & Fertility Programs
    • Non-Toxic Mattresses
    • Water Filter
    • Best Air Purifiers for Your Home
  • Non-Toxic Living
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
    • Amazon
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • LinkedIn
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • ×

    Non-Toxic Feminine Products Safe for Fertility & Trying to Conceive

    Reading time: 8 minutes · Updated: Aug 26, 2018 by Anna Rapp

    Share the love! :-)

    • Share83
    • Tweet

    *This post contains affiliate links which at no cost to you provide me with some small change to help keep this blog running! If you decide to buy something I recommend, please consider clicking through one of my links to help support this blog and my family!  Thank you!

    Non-Toxic, Chemical Free, All Natural and Organic Period Products and Feminine Items safe for trying to conceive and fertility! #period #tampons #menstruation #fertility #nontoxic

    When I was first trying to reduce fertility-harming toxins from our house and lives, I started with the obvious- perfumes, scented body care products (deodorant, shampoos), and plastic containers that we ate or drank out of. But each week I would realize something else we used had toxic ingredients or chemicals that could be harming our fertility!

    One item I realized I needed to stop using was conventional feminine pads and tampons. By “conventional” I mean the kind of brands you can buy at most stores. Unfortunately they have so many harmful ingredients- plastics, fragrance, dioxins, pesticides on the cotton, etc.! I switched completely over to organic cotton tampons and pads.

    After a while I stopped using tampons altogether – not even the organic kinds. The reason was that I wanted the blood to flow easily out of my body. It was part of the way I visualized a healthy menstruation, and I didn’t like the idea of blood “stuck” in my body, even if it was just for a few hours. I’m not saying everyone has to do this- this was just my choice.

    Since then (2014) I have learned about all sorts of different kinds of non-toxic feminine items, some of which are much more environmentally friendly than disposables!

    In the post I’m going to talk about what the toxins in traditional feminine items are that you need to worry about, and what the non-toxic options are for you!

     

    Potential Toxins in Traditional Pads and Tampons

    Unfortunately there’s a high risk that conventional pads and tampons will have a great deal of fertility harming toxins. And, the skin down by your hoo-ha is some of the thinnest and most sensitive- thus some of the most at risk for toxins leaking into your body. Not to mention if you’re using a tampon, you’re actually putting those toxins up near where you would be growing a baby. You can see why I freaked out when I realized this and switched products!

    Now, let’s take a look at each potential toxin. I’ll start with the worst offenders:

    Fragrance/Phthalates– I remember growing up my mom taught me how to read the packages at the store to make sure the pads I was buying didn’t have fragrance. She was just worried about vaginal irritation. Now, of course we know a lot more about how the phthalates in fragrance get into our bloodstreams and reduce male and female fertility, increase the risk of miscarriage and pregnancy complications, and can lead to other health issues like cancer. Click here to read my full article on Phthalates & Fertility. Now, it is pretty much impossible to completely eliminate our exposure to phthalates, but I believe that is why it’s so important to reduce it as much as we possibly can.

    Plastics– You know how those traditional pads have those fancy weave layers that kind of stick to your skin sometimes? They might be leaving trace amounts of tiny plastic materials on your skin. Icky! Unfortunately soft, pliable plastics are the most likely to include phthalates and/or BPA.  So, we want all-organic cotton pads and tampons. Which, leads us to our next big problem toxin . . .

    Pesticides– What? Pesticides in my tampon? Here’s the deal- cotton is one of the most heavily pesticide-d crops on the planet. Pesticides are related to delays in conceiving, harm to embryos, and spontaneous miscarriage. Now, while not all tampons or pads would have ALL pesticides, this was enough to convince me to go organic! Want more info? Here is a disturbing assessment done on the pesticides present in OB products.

    Dioxin/Chlorine– So there’s a lot of fuss on the internet about tampons and pads laden with chlorine and dioxin. It turns out that a few decades ago the process they used to bleach them was pretty darn toxic- it used chlorine and resulted with a whole ton of harmful cancer-causing dioxin on the pads and tampons. Nowadays manufacturers no longer use that process, and dioxin levels have plummeted. It seems that there may still be some dioxin residue, but it is below concerning limits. Nonetheless, as endometriosis (an infertility condition which I have) is linked to dioxin exposure, I’d like to limit mine as much as possible, thank you very much!

    Are you convinced it’s time to switch?

    If you aren’t, how about this- many women swear that when they switch from conventional tampons and pads to a non-toxic alternative their period pain drops way down and their flow goes to a more regular level! Sounds great doesn’t it? So if you haven’t made the switch, do it today! Not only could it help you lower your exposure to toxins it could also help you have a better period!

     

    Now, let’s talk about the alternatives!

     

    Safe, Non-Toxic Feminine Items for your Period when Trying to Conceive!

    Tampons, Pads, Menstrual Cups, and Period Panties

     

    Organic Cotton Tampons

    I used Seventh Generation & Natracare before I stopped using tampons.  Please remember that skipping an applicator is a zillion times better for the environment! Please choose applicator free to lessen the impact on landfills. Just wash your hands before and after, ladies. 

    Seventh Generation Organic Cotton Tampons

    Natracare Organic Cotton Tampons

    Organyc Tampons

    Lola Organic Tampons/Pads/Liners/etc (they are a monthly delivery service)

    Maxim Organic Cotton Tampons

    Honest Company Organic Tampons

    L. Organic Tampons

    Cora Organic Tampons

     

    Organic Cotton Disposable Sanitary Pads

    This is generally what I use even though they aren’t very eco-friendly. If you are determined to be more earth-friendly and reduce your waste footprint, scroll down for other options!  I generally use Natracare pads!

    Maxim Pads

    Natratouch Pads

    Honest Company

    Organyc Pads

    Rael Pads

    Natracare Pads

     

    Organic Cotton Reusable Cloth Sanitary Pads

    A great, cost-effective, earth-friendly, and non-toxic option! You just have to be willing to wash them and make a one-time bigger investment. These are all organic options available on Amazon (there are plenty of non-organic options as well).

    Gladrags

    Hesta

    Lohanstore (these are pretty!)

    Lunapads Organic

    Imse Vimse  

     

    Silicone Menstrual Cups

    Many women swear by these and say that their periods have never been better after switching. They are extremely cost effective and great for the environment. Although I’m not worried about the medical grade silicone, I do sometimes worry about trace heavy metals from manufacturing. Tamara Rubin does a great job of testing all sorts of products for heavy metals and has found trace residue of cadmium on a few cups. She is always updating the information so check her latest posts before you purchase! 

    Also- many of these have multiple sizes, so if you have given birth and might need a larger cup, be sure to find that size before buying! Otherwise I have linked for pre-childbirth cup sizes!

    I have a *** for the most popular on Amazon!

    ***Diva Cup (the most famous!)

    ***Blossom

    GladRags Menstrual Cup

    ***Lena

    ***Sckoon

    ***Athena

    FemmyCycle

    Intimina Lily Cup

    InvisiCup

     

    Period Panties

    In general these are used as a back up to a cup, tampon, or pad, but sometimes if you just have spotting or a light flow you can use them as your only coverage! I’m only recommending organic ones, but there are a TON more on amazon that aren’t organic. Just search for “menstrual panties.”

    Hesta/Rael

    Quicksilk *Not organic, but made with Bamboo instead of cotton

    Thinx (not on amazon)

    Ekouaer

    Zofirao

     

    Oh!! And I don’t talk about them here, but for goodness sake never douche or use feminine wipes, wash or deodorant!!!! Those things are loaded with toxic fragrance/phthalates, and often have parabens and other harmful ingredients!!

    *A note on sea sponges. My mother the hippy used to use sea sponges as tampons back in the day, and some women still do. But since we can’t guarantee that the ocean was clean where the sponges were harvested from, plus there are ethical issues with harvesting some sponges– I just can’t recommend this as an option.

     

    Have another brand you love? Let me know!!

    Why I switched to Non Toxic Period Products during Infertility

     

    Non-Toxic pads, tampons, menstrual cups, and panties

    Want to get pregnant fast?

    Love lists? Me too. Grab my 79 Things I did to transform my life and get pregnant in less than 3 months after 2 years of infertility and miscarriages! Totally free!

    Success! Now check your email to confirm your subscription!

    There was an error submitting your subscription. Please try again.

    I'll never send you spam! Powered by Kit
    Anna Rapp
    Website |  + postsBio

    Anna Rapp is a fertility journalist and non-toxic living expert. When Anna Rapp was struggling with infertility and recurrent early miscarriage, she was diagnosed with diminished ovarian reserve, High FSH, low AMH, low follicle count, endometriosis, and an MTHFR mutation. Despite being told donor eggs were her only solution, Anna used her graduate training in research methods and analysis to read everything she could find on fertility and egg health. Ultimately, she lowered her FSH and got pregnant naturally (twice). She blogs about how she did it and encourages her readers to take charge of their fertility journey and get happy, healthy, and pregnant!

    • Anna Rapp
      https://www.tomakeamommy.com/author/anna/
      Beautycounter Swaps: My Guide to Clean Alternatives to Beautycounter
    • Anna Rapp
      https://www.tomakeamommy.com/author/anna/
      My Honest Review: Crunchi Makeup & Skincare
    • Anna Rapp
      https://www.tomakeamommy.com/author/anna/
      Clean Anti-Aging Skincare: Proven Strategies for Timeless Skin
    • Anna Rapp
      https://www.tomakeamommy.com/author/anna/
      Work-Life Balance Dysmystified: 20 Ways To Navigate a Fulfilling Life

    Filed Under: Non-Toxic for Fertility Tagged With: eliminate toxins, evidence based, experience based, fertility safe products

    About Anna Rapp

    Anna Rapp is a fertility journalist and non-toxic living expert. When Anna Rapp was struggling with infertility and recurrent early miscarriage, she was diagnosed with diminished ovarian reserve, High FSH, low AMH, low follicle count, endometriosis, and an MTHFR mutation. Despite being told donor eggs were her only solution, Anna used her graduate training in research methods and analysis to read everything she could find on fertility and egg health. Ultimately, she lowered her FSH and got pregnant naturally (twice). She blogs about how she did it and encourages her readers to take charge of their fertility journey and get happy, healthy, and pregnant!

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Jalina

      July 24, 2018 at 12:29 pm

      Thinx FOR THE WIN! I love these so much, especially as backup for my menstrual cup. Softcups have a special place in my heart (I’ve used them for years, and they helped me get pregnant!) so I don’t even want to look at the chemicals that might me in them. It’s good to know the other menstrual cups are made of silicone and not plastic! I might consider a change 🙂

      Reply
      • Anna Rapp

        July 26, 2018 at 9:34 pm

        Awesome!! I totally need to get on my game and try these!!! Think about a change to silicone for sure 🙂

        Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Primary Sidebar

    Welcome! I’m so glad you are here :-). I’m Anna Rapp, obsessive researcher, fertility journalist, and non-toxic living expert. Through prayer, research, effort, and grit, I got pregnant naturally after the doctors said it wasn’t possible. I write about low-tox, green living, self-care, prayer, and trying to conceive. Stay for a while!

    More about me →


    Click here to support To Make a Mommy!


    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube

    Grab my FREE Checklist!

    changes to get happy and pregnant

    Popular

    • Seed Cycling to boost fertility and balance hormones
      My Seed Cycling Pregnancy Success Story: Seed Cycling for Fertility
    • Are you obsessed with fertility supplements? Why you shouldn't go crazy with pills, and how to pick the best ones to cure infertility naturally, boost your fertility, and help you conceive.
      Are You Taking the Right Fertility Supplements?
    • Dairy and Infertility: How dairy might be hurting your attempts to conceive
    • The Fertility Diet That Helped Me Get Pregnant

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    Disclaimer: The information on tomakeamommy.com is for inspirational and educational purposes only. It is not intended to treat, diagnose or prevent any disease and it does not replace evaluation, diagnosis, or treatment by qualified health care professionals. I encourage you to own your baby journey and make your own health care decisions based upon your research and in partnership with wise healers and qualified health care professionals who can provide you with tailored information and treatment opportunities.

    About

    • About
    • Contact
    • Support
    • Privacy Policy

    GRAB MY FREE CHECKLIST!

    changes to get happy and pregnant

    Copyright © 2025 To Make a Mommy, LLC