Danielle Parr opened a box of Kotex tampons, which she bought at a neighborhood store, and found dark black spots. The tampon appeared to have mold on it. Parr, a mom and blogger from Texas, wrote the company and got a response she calls “disturbing.” The hygiene horror has caught a lot of attention. Network news stations have picked up the story and Parr’s blog has got 300,000 hits since she made the discovery two days ago.
Kotex responds
According to ABC News, the response sent to Parr from the maker’s of Kotex said the problem has happened before. The company, Kimberly Clark, even said the mold was similar to mold found on vegetables and poses no health risks.
“I think that’s why this is getting such a huge response,” Parr told ABC News. “People are grossed out by what I found, but even more freaked out by the company’s response.”
After media attention, Kimbery Clark sent Parr another response, asking her to send the tampon in so it could be tested. The second response said, “Nothing is more important to us than consumer safety. Any discoloration or abnormality with our tampons is extremely rare, and we want to do a full investigation to determine the source and follow-up with our manufacturing facility. So if you still have the tampon, can you please return it to us by using the prepaid mailing envelope we’re sending you?”
Media attention
Aside from Parr’s blog, the topic has made headlines. The Doctors, a talk show that deals with health issues, talked about the tampon terror on the show. At this point no one knows how or when the tampon wound up with mold on it. Was it in the production phase? Was it stored wrong? Answers are still unknown. Some doctors are advising women to use tampons without applicators to avoid the problem.
