"Companies that fail to adapt … will lose market share," Emily Carey Perez de Alejo, executive director of the Maine-based watchdog group Defend Our Health, told CG.
As of January 1, Maine's state ban on items containing intentionally-added per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances was expanded to include 10 additional product categories. Among the consumer goods that may no longer be shipped to or sold in Maine stores are PFAS-containing cookware, cleaning products, cosmetics, and menstrual products — each category potentially bringing some gendered impacts to bear.
Similar bans went into effect in Colorado and Vermont at the turn of the year.
Also known as "forever chemicals" for their persistence in natural habitats and human bodies, exposure to certain types of this class of synthetic chemicals has been linked to serious health conditions, including cancers and reproductive health concerns.
In addition to the staying power of PFAS, exposure risks may be amplified by the chemicals' prevalence in a wide variety of household items. The expansion of Maine's PFAS ban now covers "thousands of everyday products containing these toxic chemicals," according to local news station WGME, including some period care items.
A watchdog group has called for volunteers to help ensure the success of the expanded ban — they may even be able to join the effort from home.
PFAS have been found in a range of menstrual products — including pads, tampons, menstrual cups, and period underwear — dating back to at least 2020. More recently, a study published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology Letters indicated that reusable pads and period underwear showed "the greatest rates of 'intentional fluorination,'" according to a University of Notre Dame news release.
The personal health risks of PFAS exposure from using these products are not yet known. "That is a huge gap in our understanding, especially given how many people rely on these products monthly for years," Kathrin Schilling, an assistant professor of environmental science at Columbia University Irving Medical Center, told CNN in July 2025 for the outlet's coverage of the ES&TL publication.
More research on the health risks is needed to be sure, and experts, like Jen Gunter back in 2023, have suggested that period product users not panic while staying informed and taking action. Further research could also uncover new solutions. Meanwhile, there is concern that discarding these products in landfills and elsewhere could contaminate soil and water systems.
Emily Carey Perez de Alejo, executive director of the Maine-based watchdog group Defend Our Health, told Climate, Gendered about the recently expanded ban that "companies that fail to adapt to the growing regulatory and consumer demand for PFAS-free products will lose market share over the coming years."
State-level bans on such products have the potential to influence manufacturing practices over time, especially should more and more states enact similar policies. A growing number of state-level bans could affect product quality virtually everywhere.
Currently, similar regulations appear to be in place or planned in 16 other U.S. states. Minnesota's ban on PFAS-containing period care, which took effect in 2025, likely helped inspire similar legislation across the country. New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed a new state ban into law in December, which, when it goes into effect later this year, will prohibit menstrual products that intentionally contain PFAS, lead, and mercury.
Globally, researchers studying countries such as Nigeria have called for enhanced data, stronger regulations, and improved public awareness of PFAS exposure.
Meanwhile, Defend Our Health told CG that, while the expanded ban has gone into effect in Maine, some PFAS-containing products covered by the new rules have remained on store shelves.
"We're seeing lots of PFAS-coated cookware and other banned products still available for delivery to Maine, and we're both reporting those violators to the State for enforcement and urging companies to not just comply with the law but to stop selling PFAS-laced products everywhere," Carey Perez de Alejo told CG. "We'll also be testing products to make sure that undisclosed PFAS isn't being included in essential products like period care items."
Defend Our Health has also been calling on volunteers to help ensure the rules are fully followed.
"Maine is poised to improve the safety and health of consumer goods in Maine and around the world — regardless of where you live, if you'd like to volunteer to help us find PFAS products being sold in violation of Maine law this year, you can email us at info@defendourhealth.org," Carey Perez de Alejo said.
The executive director explained that volunteers could be located in Maine or could help check online products from anywhere. According to Maine Public Radio, a spokesperson for the state's Department of Environmental Protection "said the department will contact the companies and require they comply with the law."
Maine's expanded ban comes as its struggle against PFAS continues. Farmlands and forests across the state — as in others — were covered for years with sewage sludge, intended as fertilizer but containing PFAS. The practice of spreading biosolids was banned there in 2022, but contamination issues persist, including higher levels of PFAS in public school drinking water.
At the same time, the Natural Resources Defense Council and environmental law nonprofit Earthjustice said in September that the United States Environmental Protection Agency in 2025 had moved to "roll back" some PFAS limits established in 2024. A boom in data center construction may also increase the risk of PFAS contamination, especially in rural areas.
But pushback from activists, environmental groups, and lawmakers across the political spectrum may continue to shape research priorities and policies aimed at protecting human health and the environment.
In the meantime, while mitigating exposure can be very challenging given the number of common products that contain PFAS, avoiding certain items when possible, using water filters certified to reduce the chemicals, and calling for equitable access to PFAS-free products and related resources could help.
Equitable access is especially vital when considering the state of period poverty across the U.S. and around the world. As research, awareness, policies, and products improve, gender justice advocates are likely to underscore the importance of not stigmatizing user preferences or options, as people will continue to need access to safe and affordable period care.
According to the U.S. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, most people in the country "have been exposed to PFAS and have it in their blood," however, "certain PFAS blood levels are declining with reduced production and use." In states like Maine, avoiding potentially harmful products may be getting easier, as further expansions of the ban on PFAS-containing products are set to take effect over the next several years.
"We are effectively trading the health of our planet and communities for misogyny," Brionté McCorkle, executive director of Georgia Conservation Voters, told CG.
The Guttmacher Institute's Candace Gibson spoke with CG about how water policy — not based on evidence of environmental harm & proposed across the US — could impact abortion. That's not to say all enviro policy is bad for repro rights. In France, Belgium, even the US, it may still help protect them.
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