Seven Period and Sanitary Pad Myths I Correct Every Week

I work on the manufacturing side of the sanitary pad industry, so take my bias as given. Every week I hear the same handful of myths — from customers, from shop owners, sometimes from our own new hires. Most are harmless folklore. A few cost women money, comfort, or health. Here are the seven I correct most often.

Myth 1: "Thick pads absorb more than thin pads"

The most expensive myth in the category. Modern ultra-thin pads use SAP — super absorbent polymer — that locks fluid into a gel. Thick pads without SAP rely on fluffy pulp, which holds less per gram and lets fluid sit near the surface. Thickness is what your hand feels; the core is what your body experiences. Bulk buyers pay for that confusion constantly.

Myth 2: "Scented pads are more hygienic"

Backwards. Fragrance is one of the most common skin irritants in this category, and it masks odor rather than removing it. Odor comes from fluid sitting exposed for hours. A fragrance-free pad changed every four to six hours will out-perform any perfumed pad. If your skin is sensitive, unscented is the only sane choice.

Myth 3: "Leaks mean the pad is low quality"

Sometimes. But in my experience, most leaks are a length problem wearing a quality disguise — a 240 mm day pad on a heavy day, or a day pad worn at night when flow shifts backward as you lie down. An ordinary 320 mm overnight pad will beat a premium 240 mm pad on a heavy night, every time. Check the length against your flow before blaming the brand.

Myth 4: "Imported pads are better than domestic ones"

Ten years ago, that was largely true in many markets. Today it mostly isn't. Chinese manufacturers import the same Japanese and Korean SAP and raw material streams that premium global brands use. What's left in the import price is brand premium, tariffs, and freight. Read the core materials on the pack, not just the country of origin. As someone inside a sanitary pad factory, this myth benefits my industry — so verify it yourself: compare specs, not flags.

Myth 5: "You shouldn't shower, wash your hair, or exercise during your period"

Widely believed in parts of South Asia and still whispered elsewhere. It's wrong. Warm water can ease cramps for many women, exercise genuinely helps some, and menstrual hygiene matters more during your period, not less. These taboos all descend from the same old idea that menstruation is impure. Every generation that hears the correction passes on a weaker version of the myth.

Myth 6: "Pads belong in the bathroom"

From a manufacturing standpoint: a pad is engineered to absorb moisture, and it cannot tell the difference between menstrual fluid and bathroom steam. An opened pack in a humid bathroom slowly loses absorbivity before you ever use it. A bedroom drawer beats a bathroom shelf. The rule of thumb we use: if the spot keeps a cookie crisp, it will keep a pad good.

Myth 7: "Heavy periods are just how some women are"

This one is dangerous. Small fluctuations in flow are normal. But routinely soaking through a large pad within two hours, bleeding past seven days, or passing large clots are medical signals, not personality traits. No pad — including ours — solves heavy menstrual bleeding. That question belongs to a gynecologist. Any manufacturer who answers it by just selling you a bigger pad is failing you.

The pattern behind all seven

Almost everything women are told about periods travels informally, mother to daughter, usually explained only once. That's why corrections take a generation to spread. Writing them down clearly — and in public — speeds it up.

If you're choosing products rather than debunking myths, the practical takeaway is the same one we give B2B buyers sizing a wholesale sanitary pads order: match the product to the real usage — length to flow, day pad to day, overnight products like period pants to heavy nights. The right product for the wrong moment is still the wrong product.

Li Genyuan is the founder of Hunan Nafei Biotechnology, an OEM/ODM manufacturer of sanitary pads and menstrual pants. More from Founder's Notes.