Menstrual cups: 2 products tested

A menstrual cup is an alternative form of menstrual protection, which unlike towels or tampons can be used over and over again. This means that menstrual cups are kinder both on the environment and, over the longer term, on your purse. A menstrual cup can be made from plastic or silicon. It’s bell-shaped or, as the name indicates, cup-shaped, and has a protruding stem at the bottom. The stem makes it easier to get hold of the cup to remove it. If you feel the stem is in the way or too long, you can trim it to the right length. You use a menstrual cup by folding it up and inserting it into the vagina. Once in place, the menstrual cup unfolds and captures the menstrual flow. A menstrual cup can remain in the vagina for up to 12 hours and can be used while you're sleeping, swimming or exercising.

Most menstrual cups are available in two different sizes. The size intended for a particular target group varies slightly between the different manufacturers, but in general the smaller size is intended for women under the age of 30 and who haven’t given birth and/or for those who have a lighter flow. The larger size is intended for women over 30 or who have had children, and for those with a heavier flow. The fact that the size you should choose is partially related to age is because the musculature inside your vagina can be affected by your age. You can start using a menstrual cup right from your first period, provided you're comfortable inserting it into the vagina and are able to get it into the right position.

Before you first use a menstrual cup and before each new menstrual cycle, you must disinfect the menstrual cup by placing it in boiling water for a certain length of time. During your period, you can simply rinse it out with water each time you empty it. Some people also choose to wash their menstrual cup out with soap. If you do this, it’s very important to make sure that no soap residues remain as this can irritate the mucous membranes inside the vagina.

Apart from the major advantages that a menstrual cup means a reduction in waste impacting the environment and that it quickly pays for itself compared to traditional menstrual protection, our testers have also discovered several other advantages of menstrual cups. A menstrual cup can be used for a longer time, which means you don’t have to change your menstrual protection every time you go to the loo. This is particularly practical when you're out on the town or in public spaces, or you're using a toilet where there’s no washbasin or soap. Those of our testers who were on the road or trying out the menstrual cup during their summer holidays found it to be ideal for use on the beach or in less hygienic airports. Several testers also felt that a tampon seemed to “plug” the menstrual flow, while a menstrual cup allowed the body to release the menstrual blood as intended. This felt fresher and more healthy. Our testers also found that menstrual cups stayed in place very well during tough exercise – in fact even better than a tampon, which tend to slide downwards as they fill up with blood and become heavier.

Our testers’ primary objection to a menstrual cup was that it can be difficult to get it into the right position in the vagina so it seals completely. Nor did they all agree that practice makes perfect and that the problem reduced over time. On some occasions a few drops of blood found their way past the menstrual cup and our testers felt it necessary to use a panty liner for extra protection. The process of disinfecting the menstrual cup between uses also requires a certain amount of preparation. However, all of our testers felt it was worth spending this time given the many advantages of using a menstrual cup. Half of the testers said they would never go back to normal menstrual protection, while the other half said they will continue using menstrual cups and supplementing them with occasional towels or tampons.

• Our testers found it difficult to get the menstrual cup to unfold completely, particularly the first few times they used one. One tip is to run a finger around the upper edge of the cup to make sure it isn’t folded in. Another is to gently rotate the cup after inserting it. Several testers found this to be the most effective method.

• A menstrual cup shouldn’t be inserted as far as a tampon. There’s a risk that it will end up beside or behind the cervix, which means it can’t capture the menstrual blood as it flows out. The trick is to insert it low down so it covers the entire vaginal opening, but not so low that you can feel it.

• Menstrual cups work by making a seal. When you remove the menstrual cup, don’t just pull on the stem, as this can be painful. To release the seal first, you can either insert a finger and press the upper edge of the cup to create an air pocket. Or you can pinch the bottom of the cup with two fingers so the opening of the menstrual cup changes shape and releases its hold on the vaginal walls.

• And if you think it's difficult to choose the right size, relax. It turns out that our testers didn’t feel there was much of a difference between the sizes. We asked a younger woman who hadn’t given birth to try out both sizes of a single menstrual cup, and she couldn’t tell the difference between them. But nor did she feel that the larger one was more effective at dealing with leakage than the smaller cup.