Today in scary: These tampons are allegedly made with tons of toxic chemicals

Last week, we were left rather unnerved by the news that Aldi tampons can fall apart inside you. Now, there’s another tampon brand that’s totally freaking us out for a different reason: It’s made with chemicals that could be deadly.

A study by 60 Millions de Consommateurs has found traces of “potentially toxic residues” like dioxins (which can cause cancer, reproductive problems, and immune system damage), insecticides, and glysophate (the active ingredient in Roundup weed killer) in five feminine sanitary products in France.

“Could these dioxins have this kind of effect on vaginal mucosa? There is currently no study to say for sure,” Victoria N’Sondé from 60 Millions Consumers told BFM TV.

The researchers claimed to have also found traces of halogenated waste in Tampax Compak Active Regular Fresh tampons. However, Proctor & Gamble, which owns Tampax, is denying the claims, calling them a “mistake” in a statement:

“The safety assessments have been reviewed by a committee of independent experts: physicians, scientists and health authorities. The. . . mentioning of dioxin in Tampax is a mistake. The cotton and rayon purification used for our tampons involves an elemental chlorine-free process which does not cause the production of dioxin.  This has been confirmed by their analysis.”

The spokesperson attributes the findings to an organic solvent used during testing which “does not reflect the physiological conditions of use of our products.” “Analyses conducted by us during the past three years on comparable products and evaluating over 200 pesticides substances confirms the total absence of pesticides, insecticides, and herbicides,” the spokesperson added.

Another famous brand cited in the study is Always — also owned by Proctor & Gamble — which allegedly was found to have residues of organochlorine pesticides and pyrethroid insecticides in some of its sanitary towels.

A petition has since been launched in France that calls for more information provided involving the chemical composition of feminine hygiene products. It has garnered over 180,000 signatures. “When we buy cosmetic products we can get information on what they contain and how they are made, but when it comes to something we use every day that is in contact with our intimate parts, we have no knowledge of what is in it,” Mélanie Doerflinger, the student who launched the petition, told BFM TV.