Standards Development

Scope

This document specifies testing methods of absorption capacity of internally worn absorbent menstrual products. This document is applicable to all kinds of internally worn absorbent menstrual products.

Purpose

Absorbent menstrual products are used by millions of people globally, with internally-worn absorbent product, e.g.tampons, being one of the most important product categories. Product performance, especially absorption capacity, is the core guarantee for effective menstrual protection and user comfort. Therefore, standardized testing methods are essential to ensure product safety, support consistent product evaluation, and continuously improve user experience.

This New Work Item Proposal focuses on developing a standardized test method for the absorption capacity of internally-worn absorbent menstrual products, based on the well-established Syngina method. It can directly measure the absorbency at the point of leakage, which is a functionally relevant performance indicator for product design, safety assessment and product classification. This method has been verified to have excellent repeatability and reproducibility, and has been widely applied in industrial practice for decades. It is also referenced in multiple internationally recognized industrial frameworks, including industry code of practice for tampon absorbency classification, proving its high technical maturity and broad industry acceptance.

However, despite its widespread application, there is currently no globally harmonized ISO standard that standardizes this method, leading to potential inconsistencies in implementation, result interpretation and data reporting across different regions and laboratories. Testing the absorption capacity of tampons is fundamentally critical, because it directly affects user safety and product effectiveness. It is the core basis for determining appropriate absorbency ranges, which guides consumer choice and prevents potential health risks. Without strict and standardized testing, manufacturers cannot provide accurate product labeling. This may lead users to choose tampons with insufficient absorbency, causing leakage and discomfort; more seriously, overly absorbent products will increase the risk of Toxic Shock Syndrome (TSS) — a rare but life-threatening bacterial infection associated with long-term use of high-absorbency tampons. In addition, standardized absorption testing ensures consistent product quality across batches, supports manufacturers to innovate materials that balance high liquid retention and user comfort, and provides necessary data compliance for regulatory requirements of institutions such as the FDA. In essence, this testing is not just a conventional quality control step, but a key public health measure that provides users with credible information to support them in making safe and informed decisions about menstrual health. From a global perspective, the lack of a unified internationally recognized testing method has led to fragmentation of testing practices, which limits the comparability of test data and creates potential barriers to international trade and regulatory alignment. The development of this ISO standard will bring the following benefits:

Improve the consistency and comparability of test results across laboratories and regions

Promote the unification of product classification and labeling practices

Simplify and accelerate global market access for manufacturers

This document responds to the clear demand for international harmonization of this mature and widely used testing method, and will contribute to improving the level of product safety assessment, increasing the transparency of product performance information, and promoting the global trade of absorbent menstrual products.