Recently, a controversy has been brewing over whether Tampax has shrunk its menstrual products. Initially, Melissa Simonson's (@realmelissasimo) original video amassed 3.6 million views where she blasted Tampax for allegedly downsizing their products. And she’s not backing down, insisting the company has shrunk its tampons by showing photo evidence of old tampons.
“Do you have any old tampons?” she starts her recent video with over 5,300 views while applying her makeup.
Because of the uproar her original TikTok stirred, People Magazine and Tampax’s spokesperson publically denied it.
“They quickly got People Magazine to put out an article,” Simonson says. “The actual spokesperson said that the FDA hasn't changed their regulations for the requirements for absorbancy but did not say anything about whether they had changed [anything].”
When the content creator unveiled two photos of different tampons, the old one on the left was larger than the new one on the right.
Thus, Simonson urges viewers to search for old tampons and see for themselves.
“We all have our stash that we keep somewhere,” she says. “I need you to go look there, please.” However, for those who don’t have a menstrual cycle, she asks them to share the video to spread awareness.
“Can you please just share this so we can find the people who do have those and we can show them this,” she says, gesturing to the photo. “Yes, they have.”
@realmelissasimo Shame ???? on ???? you ???? @Tampax US! #corporategreed #shrinkflation #shrinktok #groceryshopping #marketing ♬ original sound - Melissa Simonson
Simonson reiterates this in the caption, “PLEASE push this so that those people who might have forgotten that one box in the garage from 10 years ago can see this and we can get them to stop gaslighting us en masse!”
According to Very Well Health, there are five different absorbency levels. Light tampons absorb 6 grams of menstrual blood or less, Regular (6 to 9 grams), Super (9 to 12 grams), Super plus (12 to 15 grams), and Ultra (15 to 18 grams.)
@realmelissasimo PLEASE push this so that those people who might have forgotten that one box in the garage from 10 years ago can see this and we can get them to stop gaslighting us en masse! ????????♥️ #groceryshopping #shrinkflation #shrinktok #corporategreed #gaslighting ♬ original sound - Melissa Simonson
The Daily Dot reached out to Simonson via Instagram direct message and TikTok comment as well as Tampax via contact form.
“I just had a baby, obv didn’t need tampons for a while. I noticed!” one viewer wrote.
“They (100%) have. I straight stopped using them because they stopped being adequately functional,” a second shared.
“They have gotten smaller! I definitely have had to change more often because of this! like every hour or 2 instead of 4+ hours. been using for 20+ years,” a third agreed.
In addition, others have noted more menstrual products and brand shrinkage.
“I swear pads are getting smaller too. I have noticed specifically always infinity overnight that the back are is smaller! Also their wings are smaller and have less adhesive,” one user commented.
“I used the same brand for dozens of years and had to change to Cora because my old brand was clearly shrinking [their] sizes as well," a second stated.
A spokesperson from Tampax told People Magazine, “Tampons are regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and adhere to industry absorbency or size ranges as listed on the side of each package. The FDA absorbency ranges have not changed since its introduction more than 30 years ago." On the other hand, Tampax revamped its tampon design for the first time in decades in 2023 to absorb fluids better.
Despite Tampax’s statement, even Redditors disagreed with it. User BomberGirl_576 posted in a subreddit titled “shrinkflation.” Throughout the 15 years of having a period, they've never had a tampon fall out until now. However, they weren’t alone.
“Thank you for posting this. I thought it was just me that noticed something was off. I bled through a regular tampon for the first time in my life and I thought something was wrong with me. These companies are so scummy,” one Redditor said.
“Ok I had to start buying Ultras and was worried about why I was so heavy. This explains it,” a second concurred.
“They are. I used to use 3 super Tampons during the heaviest part of my period, now I have to use at least 3 super PLUS, sometimes 4 or 5,” a third remarked.
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The post ‘Yes, they have shrunk’: Woman calls out Tampax for insisting its tampons have not shrunk in size. She has photo evidence appeared first on The Daily Dot.
