No More Guesswork: Easy Ways to Select the Best Sanitary Pads

Particle size and mixing uniformity of water absorbing beads: When mixed with "cotton core", it is commonly referred to as water absorbing beads. In fact, it has a special name: Super Absorbent Polymer (SAP), which is mainly composed of polypropylene cross-linked resin and can absorb 500 to 1000 times more water than the body (its absorption capacity is affected by the osmotic pressure of the liquid, and blood is a high osmotic pressure liquid, so the amount absorbed by SAP will be greatly reduced. Therefore, when testing the actual water absorption, artificial blood or physiological saline will be used instead). Water absorbing beads should be evenly mixed with fibers, and the particle diameter should not be too small, otherwise they will quickly absorb water locally, rapidly expand, and block water from penetrating deeper channels. Testing method: Pour a glass of water, and there will be large bumps on the surface of the menstrual pad, mostly due to uneven mixing.

3、 Water absorption capacity: the larger the better
The water absorption capacity of menstrual pads depends on the water absorbing beads and fibers. There is a lot of knowledge involved here.
The source of water absorbing beads: Water absorbing beads are mainly produced in the United States, South Korea, Japan, and Singapore. The main manufacturers in Japan and Singapore are Sumitomo Seika, which is the SAP with the strongest absorption capacity, followed by the United States and the weakest in South Korea. As I saw before, Sumitomo's SAP takes on a spherical shape after absorbing water, while those from the United States and South Korea are irregular polyhedra. I don't know what the situation is now. Japanese brands usually use Sumitomo. If the absorbent beads have strong absorption capacity, the product can be made thinner.

4、 Repellency: The lower the better
Can water absorbing beads firmly lock in moisture after absorbing it? Under a certain squeezing force, backflow may occur, and high backflow is naturally uncomfortable. A reasonable ratio of water absorbing beads to pulp is also required to reduce the backflow.
Testing method: After pouring a certain amount of physiological saline, place the filter paper on the surface of the menstrual pad and apply pressure to see how much liquid will be sucked onto the filter paper. The lower the reflux, the better.

5、 Whether fluorescent agents affect health is another question, but menstrual pads with fluorescent agents are definitely not good things. Because the fluff pulp itself has undergone quite fine processing, it only needs to be crushed into fluff, which is as white and soft as cotton, with low dust. Only products that use inferior pulp or even recycled pulp will have a need to increase whiteness and add fluorescent whitening agents. This product usually has weak water absorption and a large amount of dust. Some factories also use domestically produced coniferous pulp for papermaking, such as Yunjinglin Paper produced in Yunnan, which mainly produces coniferous pulp made from Simao pine as raw material. The fibers of this pulp are also particularly long, which can be considered a strange thing. The quality of the pulp is also acceptable, and the price is low. Some small and medium-sized factories use it, so there is no problem. Previously, its annual output was less than 100000 tons, and when used in the hygiene product industry, it only had a few tens of thousands of tons, with a low market share.
For fluorescent agents, what is really scary are some small brands sold through rural channels in towns and villages, some of which are very shocking. Some napkins are also in this situation, especially those made from recycled pulp. In order to whiten them, fluorescent agents are added.

Test method: Tear open the inner core and use a 365nm ultraviolet flashlight to determine if there is fluorescence.

6、 Adhesion: The stronger the better.
Adhesive strip: As you may have already seen, there is an adhesive strip covering the bottom film, which can flip the two wings of the bottom film over and fix it to NK. If it is not tightly fixed... it's really deadly. Don't look at the small rubber strip, it can have a big effect. The main product comes from National Starch, which is basically not a big problem.

7、 Leak proof performance: The stricter, the better.
Length: Length is directly related to leak resistance. When there is a large quantity, of course, a long one, such as a 41cm one, like a baby diaper, should be used for worry free protection. However, being large also naturally means being more stuffy, and there are various inconveniences for petite girls. However, the amount of liquid is related to the cycle. Use the maximum amount at the most, use the smaller and thinner amount at the least, and use a cushion at the end. So I remember a brand launched a combination designed according to daily size requirements, which was quite user-friendly.
Enclosure: As you can see in the picture, the three-dimensional enclosure functions like the Yangtze River embankment, preventing overflow from the surrounding areas in case of sudden large quantities (this is really a clever invention). There must be a protective barrier, and it cannot be too low.
Usage time: No matter how powerful the menstrual pad is, it must have a saturation absorption limit. Don't wait until it exceeds its limit before replacing it. There is no fixed rule on how long each person must change, it varies from person to person, but it cannot be changed only when feeling damp or uncomfortable. I once saw data saying that the time interval for Chinese women to change is too long (of course, this is also more environmentally friendly, pulp is still a biodegradable and renewable resource, those plastic films are not good, and now they have become a big source of white pollution. There will be biodegradable menstrual pads in the future, but it seems that popularization will take time).

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