Menstrual Cups & Cloth Sanitary Pads: Best 7 Eco Options

If you are a person that menstruates then having an efficient way of collecting the blood each month is essential! Tampons and sanitary pads are so wasteful. It is said that the average person will use 11,000 sanitary products in their lifetime. Cloth Sanitary Pads and Menstrual Cups are a great eco-friendly & sustainable alternative.

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The Environmental Issue With Pads & Tampons

In the USA 12 billion sanitary pads and 7 billion tampons are thrown away each year. That alone is catastrophic for our environment as both contain Polyester a form of plastic. When the sanitary items get flushed down the toilet they can clog up the sewers and potentially end up in the ocean! Even if they’re disposed of sensibly they end up at landfill sites and due to being plastic will take many years to break down.

Not only are they bad for the environment but because of the potentially hazardous materials in them, they’ve been linked to infertility, cancer and endocrine disruption. This article by Small Footprint Home has a lot of information about what is in the disposable Tampons and Pads and how it effects us if you wanted to learn more.

Which Is Better Menstrual Cup Or Reusable Pads

Which one is better is completely subjective. Menstrual cups hold a lot more liquid than pads and you can leave them in for up to 12 hours if you need to. Meaning menstrual cups will probably be more useful for people with a heavier flow or for those who normally wear a tampon. If you have a lighter flow or if you prefer the feel of a pad in general then cloth reusable pads might be a good option for you.

I think when you’re trying to decide which is better for you between a menstrual cup or a reusable pad, it’s useful to think about what your circumstances are first of all. If you would rather put something in and not worry about it for the rest of the day than a menstrual cup will probably be your preferred choice.

However some people don’t mind having to change a reusable cloth pad every 3-4 hours and they prefer the comfort of wearing a pad and therefore a cloth pad would be a good choice.

You can try a mixture of both depending on where you are in your cycle or what your plans are during your period. For example I have reusable pads which I will use if I’m at home during my period, however if I’m going out for the day then I will use a menstrual cup so that I don’t have to think about it.

Menstrual Cups

Mooncup

Mooncup (And Keep Affiliate) was the first menstrual cup that I tried. I think my mum bought it for me as I’d wanted to try one for a while but the reviews were very mixed so I was considering it.

It comes in two sizes, A & B. A is for anyone over 30 years old or if they’ve had a vaginal birth. B is just 3mm smaller but it’s for under 30 year old’s and those that haven’t had a vaginal birth.

This cup comes with a stem on the bottom which can be trimmed depending on if you need it. The stem is not there for removing like with a tampon but it can help once you’ve broke the seal, when you’re trying to remove it. It’s made from medical grade silicone as a safe eco friendly alternative to tampons.

I will mention that menstrual cups in general do have a learning curve. When I first tried to use it I struggled with it as it sits a lot lower than a tampon. It was difficult finding the right fold as well, however I found so much information and tips on their website so very helpful.

Pros

• I liked this menstrual cup for heavy period days, it didn’t leak on me unless I hadn’t quite put it in correctly.
• The silicone is very flexible and any of the folds they recommend for insertion work perfectly due to this.

Cons

• I did sometimes find this one a little bit uncomfortable. It made me feel like I needed to urinate, not really sure why.
• It’s also only available in a natural shade which does stain after a few uses. I soaked it in boiling water and bicarbonate of soda after every period but it still has a slight tinge to it. Not the end of the world of course but just something to be aware of.
• This menstrual cup only comes in two sizes, so you are restricted in that way as well.

Me-Luna Cup

I bought the Me-luna menstrual cup in the purple shade after this. I read a review which stated that they had got on much better with this one so I decided to give it a try.

The Me-luna cup comes in 8 different sizes which is brilliant if you’re trying to find an exact fit for your body. This cup is made in Germany and it’s made out of medical grade thermoplastic elastomers.

Pros

• This one feels a lot more comfortable for me, it doesn’t have a stem like the mooncup just a tab so I find that doesn’t irritate me as much.
• The fit is much better for me as well as there’s a lot more size options.
• As you can get this one in various colours it does not stain like the mooncup which is a bonus.

Cons

• The material they use for this one isn’t quite as flexible as silicone so I found that the C fold was the only one that would work well for me. This might be an individual issue but thought I would mention it.

Others

I don’t know much about these but there seems to be a lot of other brands of menstrual cups available at the moment so plenty to look into.

• TOTM (And Keep Affiliate)
• Nudie (And Keep Affiliate)

Folds For Insertion

Before you start, it might sound obvious but always wash your hands before you insert the cup. Also run the cup under some warm water if you can as it makes it easier to insert. As you can leave them in for about 12 hours I haven’t had to empty in a public toilet but I would just take a bottle of water in with you if you have to reinsert in a public toilet.

V Fold (Punchdown Fold)

This fold I found works really well with the Mooncup but not so well with the Me-luna cup (for me anyway). Perhaps this is because my Me-luna cup isn’t quite as flexible so I found it wouldn’t always pop open properly.

Probably quite a good choice if you’re starting out with a cup because it just makes it slightly easier to guide into place.

C Fold

This one is called the C fold, very well named as this is the shape it makes.

This is my favourite for my Me-luna cup because it springs back once inserted and I find it works better with this more rigid cup. (Please bear in mind this is just my opinion and this might not work for everyone)

Triangle Fold

I didn’t get on with this fold but if you wanted to see it in action, check out this post with videos.

Cloth Sanitary Pads

I’ve used cloth sanitary pads for many years and I use a combination of some that my mum made for my younger sister. Plus a few extra absorbent ones for the heavier stage of my period or overnight for a break from the menstrual cup.

When my period came back after having my baby I didn’t want to wear a menstrual cup for a little while in case it was uncomfortable so I just used cloth pads for a few months.

Bamboo

Now as mentioned in my cloth nappy post, bamboo is supposed to be a lot more absorbent and due to this I can imagine it making very good sanitary pads. However, I don’t have any bamboo pads myself so don’t have first hand experience with this.

This Cheeky Wipe starter kit with Bamboo and Minky pads looks great value at £27.50 UK.

Cotton

Organic cotton reusable pads are another really popular choice for cloth sanitary pads.

Over the years I have seen a lot of different reusable pads with fun patterns and handmade by various brands. Bear that in mind when you’re searching and if you can’t find any you like within my suggestions feel free to look for your own.

I personally love supporting UK companies so if I need to top up my collection in the future, I’ll use And Keep for their extensive collection of sanitary pads.

Charcoal

The charcoal pads (Affiliate) are usually microfibre or cotton with a layer of bamboo charcoal on the top.

The beauty of charcoal pads is that they are really soft and comfortable against your skin. The absorbent night-time cloth pads I have are microfibre with charcoal on top and I also love that they are grey and black so don’t show stains.

Period Pants

Period pants are designed to be like ordinary pants they just absorb the period to keep you comfortable and dry. I was a bit intimidated by period pants for a while but I’ve recently bought some and written a Wuka Period Pants Review, if you want to learn more.

These would be a great option if you like pads but don’t like the feeling of padding that you get with cloth sanitary pads. They’re such a revolutionary eco-friendly solution to dealing with menstruation.

Wuka is a very popular brand with lots of great reviews, you can buy Wuka on their website or from And Keep.

Disposable Organic Cotton Pads & Tampons

If you’re not ready to deal with the eco-friendly reusable period alternatives, that’s ok! There are some terrific options for disposable pads & tampons without plastic and bleach.

A brand that I have been aware of for a long time is Natracare, they launched in 1989 and created the first chorine free, organic cotton tampons and pads. They are fully compostable.

A few other brands that are available in the UK are TOTM (Affiliate) and &Sisters (Affiliate) who are also fully biodegradable and irritant free like Natracare.

I hope you found some interesting options in my post. Let me know your favourites in the comments.

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