TAMPAX History

In 1986, the editors of Consumer Reports magazine surveyed more than 100,000 products and services introduced in the previous half-century in order to select those that had exerted the greatest impact on everyday living. With such other familiar products as air conditioners and running shoes, the editors chose the tampon as one of "50 small wonders and big deals that revolutionized the lives of consumers."
The origins of this small wonder, the tampon, reach far back into recorded history. The ancient Egyptians fashioned disposable tampons from softened papyrus. The Greek physician Hippocrates, writing in the fifth century B.C., described another type of tampon, which was made of lint wrapped around lightweight wood. Elsewhere, women improvised from the materials at hand: in Rome, it was wool; in Japan, paper; in Indonesia, vegetable fibers; in Equatorial Africa, rolls of grass.

Meanwhile, the custom of wearing diaperlike external pads made of cloth also took hold. These pads typically were laundered for reuse, an inconvenience that may account for the fact that disposable external pads became commercially available nearly four decades before tampons.

While other manufacturers marketed commercial pads during the 1920s, the idea of the tampon persisted in other realms. For more than a century, physicians had been using improvised plugs of cotton to absorb secretions in surgery and to apply antiseptics in the vagina or to staunch hemorrhaging there. It was, in fact, a physician who thought of taking the tampon beyond improvisation; beginning in 1929, he attempted to invent a product that could be manufactured and marketed expressly for absorbing the menstrual flow. Dr. Earle Cleveland Haas was a general practitioner, a courtly man who wore a white shirt every day and restlessly sparked off ideas for inventions and new business enterprises. He dabbled in Depression-era real estate, served as president of a company that manufactured antiseptics and invented a flexible ring for the contraceptive diaphragm device that earned him $50,000 when he sold the patent.

But Haas spent much of his spare time developing the tampon. His inspiration came not from knowledge of the homemade tampons used by women since antiquity but instead from observations of the discomfort of his wife and of his female patients who wore bulky external pads. A visit to California pointed the way to a solution. A friend there mentioned to Haas that she used a piece of sponge internally to absorb the menstrual flow. He immediately thought of a material that could perform in a similar manner -- compressed cotton. Back in Denver in his basement shop, Haas worked out the details step by step. He started with an elongated strip of cotton fibers about 2 inches wide and 5 or 6 inches in length. Along the length of the pad, he sewed a cord to bind together the fibers and then left extra cord extending beyond for removing the tampon after use. To compress this pad into a small, highly absorbent cylinder, he invented a hand-operated pliers-like device that could shape and squeeze the pad in its moveable jaws. The removal cord enabled the consumer to withdraw the tampon without the necessity of touching the tampon itself. Similarly, in order to keep the unused tampon clean, Haas wanted the woman to be able to insert it without touching it. He thought first of a metal applicator, but then settled upon the idea of a telescoping arrangement of a pair of paper-wound tubes he happened to have on the shelf. He made one tube slightly larger than the other to hold the tampon. Pushing on the smaller tube then would push the tampon into place. This apparatus had the additional advantage of being easily disposable; after use, it could simply be flushed down the toilet.

Most of us will try to use a tampon at sometime, so it's important to know how to insert a tampon in the right way. It might seem tricky at first, but after trying several times, insertion becomes as easy as putting on a glove. The key is to RELAX! Worrying about it may make you tense, making insertion even harder. Read the package instruction leaflet carefully, and practice inserting a tampon during your period when your flow is moderate to heavy. Then the tampon should glide in easily.

Tell your daughter that getting her period is a natural step toward becoming a woman-something to feel positive about. Further, explain that menstruation is actually just one part, or phase, in a monthly cycle. Each month, a woman's reproductive system repeats a regular pattern of events:

Phase One. The first phase of the menstrual cycle is the three to seven days of menstruation. The first day of menstruation is the first day of the cycle.

Phase Two. Toward the end of menstruation, one of the ovaries begins to prepare an egg (or ovum) for release into one of the fallopian tubes. The endometrium, or lining of the uterus, begins to thicken at the same time, preparing to nourish the egg if it is fertilized.

Phase Three. Around day 14 of a 28-day cycle, ovulation occurs: a ripened egg leaves the ovary and enters the fallopian tube.

Phase Four. The endometrium continues to thicken as the egg moves down the fallopian tube toward the uterus. If the egg isn't fertilized by a sperm cell, it disintegrates; the endometrium is not needed and is shed from the uterus. Menstruation and a new cycle begin again.

The average menstrual cycle is 28 days long, for older girls and women, but a cycle from 19 to 35 days is normal. In most cases, a young girl's cycle is not regular at first. Your daughter's first periods may last one day or 10 days; her flow may be very heavy one cycle and light the next. Cycles may be very short, or two to three months long. Young girls may skip one or more periods, followed by a relatively heavy flow the next cycle.

You can help your daughter get to know her own cycle by encouraging her to record each period on the personal calendar included in her booklet, A Time for Answers. As her cycle becomes predictable, which can take two years or more, she'll begin to see a pattern.

Except during pregnancy, the menstrual cycle normally repeats from menarche, the onset of menstruation, to menopause, when menstruation stops permanently - typically between the ages of 45 and 55. The menstrual cycle may be temporarily altered in times of stress, illness, or by a sudden change in lifestyle.

Girls and women may experience menstrual cramps, mild or severe abdominal or back pains that accompany menstruation. Cramps are more common in the first years after menarche. If your daughter is prone to painful cramping, over-the-counter medications are available those containing ibuprofin are commonly recommended). A heating pad and warm bath may also be soothing. If such treatments don't offer relief, consult your family physician.

Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS) is another problem some women experience. During the two weeks before menstruation, they suffer from symptoms such as mood swings, breast tenderness, a feeling of bloatedness and increased emotional sensitivity. Many women learn to recognize and cope with these physical and emotional changes. Ways to cope include exercising to lessen the tension, eating a well balanced diet, and being sure to get sufficient rest. But for some women, PMS symptoms occur every month and are severe enough to really affect their lives. If your daughter suffers from PMS and is bothered by the symptoms, talk to your doctor.

This understanding of menstrual discomfort is quite different from what many of today's women heard as young girls - that "it's all in your head." Other ideas about menstruation have also changed through the years. You may remember being told that it's dangerous to bathe or shampoo, or to drink cold beverages during menstruation. Very few people still believe these myths today. At one time, girls weren't expected to swim or participate in gym class or any athletic activity when they had their periods. Today, with the right menstrual protection, there's no reason for a girl to give up these everyday activities. In fact, exercise may sometimes be a helpful way to deal with menstrual discomfort.