Posted on: July 5, 2019 Posted by: Allene Lewis Comments: 0

Menstrual hygiene products have been around for how many decades. Although it did not start as to how it is today, the issues and concern remain up to this day.

The primary issue of menstrual hygiene products like tampons, pads, and menstrual cups aside from convenience, is its safety, especially a woman’s safety from the disease TSS or Toxic Shock Syndrome.

The Toxic Shock Syndrome made it to the headlines when an incident of several young women deaths occurred around late 190s and early 1980s. This unfortunate incident happened due to the usage of a brand that is a super-absorbent tampon, which was removed later on from the market.

In today’s article, further discussion of the link between a menstrual cup and toxic shock syndrome will be answered.

Understanding Toxic Shock Syndrome

Toxic shock syndrome is a condition that is sudden and is potentially fatal. The cause of this disease is due to the overgrowth and build-up of a bacterium called Staphylococcus aureus, which releases the toxins, resulting in an individual’s illness.

This disease mostly affects women, especially those who are menstruating due to factors like super-absorbent tampons. Due to factors like the super-absorbent tampons, the body responds to it with a sharp drop in blood pressure, depriving the body, specifically the organs of oxygen, which might lead to death.

Although the super-absorbent tampons were wiped out from the market due to the incident that happened in the late 1970s and early 1980s, there are still menstrual hygiene products that are linked with the disease up to this day such as cervical caps, diaphragms, and menstrual sponges

Additionally, a woman who has given birth recently is at high risk of getting toxic shock syndrome. Not only women, but both genders who have been exposed to staphylococcus bacteria while recovering from an open wound, surgery, burn, or any use of a prosthetic device.

What to Know More About Toxic Shock Syndrome

There are only more than a third of all cases of this disease, which involves women under the age of 19. On the other hand, there are up to 30 percent of women who is at risk of getting the disease again.

With this said, if you ever had the toxic shock syndrome before, then you might want as well to be on guard and look out for any symptoms of this illness to immediately get the medical care needed.

For those people who have died due to this disease, they were mostly killed due to the body’s response to the released toxins by staphylococcus bacteria. With this in mind, the victims mostly have suffered shock, in which the lungs and heart stopped working altogether.

For its symptoms, if you are having your monthly period accompanied by a high fever and vomiting (especially if you have been using tampons), then you might want to get medical help right away.

Not only for tampons, but menstrual hygiene products such as a cervical cap, diaphragm, and menstrual sponge, if you became ill, then immediately seek for a doctor’s attention.

Do Menstrual Cups Cause Toxic Shock Syndrome?

Menstrual cup manufacturing companies like the daisy cup takes pride in their claim in regards to menstrual cups as being safe, eco-friendly, and cost-effective, which are all true as a matter of fact.

However, there is still on-going discussion as to menstrual cups as 100 percent foolproof in regards to the link of toxic shock syndrome (TSS for short).

With this matter in mind, the general consensus is firm with their statement that the menstrual cups do not directly cause or contribute to the development of the said disease. Instead, the development of TSS while using a menstrual cup is due to the neglect of the user.

A recent study has found that the usage of menstrual cups can lead to TSS. But! Before you start throwing your menstrual cups and panic, the study was conducted with only two menstrual cup users that were reported with the TSS case.

Moreover, it is important to note that any period care product (especially those you insert inside the vagina) is still susceptible to bacteria. Thus, here is where the cleaning and sanitizing of the menstrual cup takes place.

When using menstrual cups, you should know how to not only properly take good care of the product for it to have a long lifespan, but you should also know how to properly sanitize and clean the menstrual cup during and after use and monthly period cycle.

The most important here is that you are maintaining its cleanliness and not neglecting its use by leaving it too long. Also, you should use a trusted brand of a menstrual cup like the daisy cup.

Takeaway

So, what’s the final verdict? The answer to that highly depends on you. Although menstrual cups aren’t a hundred percent TSS foolproof, it all still comes down as to how you use and maintain its cleanliness.

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