If we can have free toilet paper in every bathroom, why can’t there also be free pads and tampons? If 50% of the population has periods, these products should be more accessible. “The stress of being caught without [a pad or tampon] is overwhelming! There is nothing quite like that feeling of panic.” - Katie O., Toronto.

Putting free pads and tampons in restrooms at work/school could reduce the number of absences of employees/students due to their periods. Many women have to be absent to important things because of fear of bleeding all over themselves or other things. If they had access to pads and tampons, this wouldn’t be an issue.

Menstrual products are also very expensive and it can be a struggle for some women to access it. Some women in poverty have to choose whether they want to spend their money on food or period products. These kinds of situations can lead to health issues. “Period poverty is a real thing in which everyone who has a period—women, trans, and intersex individuals—all suffer stigma of menstruation. The inability to afford sanitary products is more common than we realize and affects people’s health.” -Dr. Sheila Wijayasinghe, a “health expert on CTV’s The Social”.  

Women end up throwing many pairs of underwear away due to it being ruined because of not having pads or tampons. Giving women access to free pads and tampons will help lower the amount of underwear thrown away. “20% of industrial water pollution is estimated to come from garment manufacturing, while the global apparel and footwear industries account for 8% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions.” 

Overall, putting period products in bathrooms would help with many issues and would be beneficial for women across the globe. Let’s make this change.