Periods are a tricky business. On top of their monthly visits making you feel uncomfortable, moody, hungry, tired or simply in pain, they are also really damn expensive and wasteful. Whether you use tampons or pads (or a combination of both), the amount of waste that is produced every month, resulting not only from the product itself but also its packaging, isn't only potentially icky to dispose off but extremely bad for the environment. Apparently, the average woman uses up to 11 000 tampons during her lifetime, which all take centuries to degrade! With a box of tampons or pads costing between £2 and £5, the use of disposable feminine hygiene products amounts to a lot of money spent on periods during a lifetime, money that would definitely be more enjoyable to spend on a cup of coffee or a magazine.