See the contemporary P&G tampon Trust.
See the other tampons Procter &
Gamble sold around the time of Rely.
Read also the important following
articles (issues listed) in the Rochester
(New York) Patriot newspaper, which
investigated Rely in 1975 and 1976, years before the toxic shock crisis:
23 July-5 August 1975 (front cover)
- 6-26 August 1975 - 11
December 1975-13 January 1976 - 1-14 September
1976) - a letter to a customer assuring her that
Rely was safe (April 1980) - and a letter from
Procter & Gamble (22 September 1980) announcing that it was stopping
distribution of Rely because of health concerns
 
|
 
Rely menstrual tampon: It Even Absorbed the Worry!
The Rely tampon, apparently promoting the illness toxic
shock in a few users, killed and maimed scores of women in the U.S.A.
around 1980. Its maker, the Procter & Gamble Company, then took it off the market. (Read
[fourth item down under Letters to Your MUM]
what a test participant - she thinks it was for Rely tampons - says about
the procedure she underwent.)
Listen to
Procter & Gamble tell radio listeners to stop using Rely because of
the risk of toxic shock syndrome (TSS), probably in 1980 (and read the letter P&G sent to dealers).
And listen to three radio ads promoting Rely. |
It became the most famous tampon in history, after Tampax (see a very early Tampax.)
Many articles have been written exploring the way Rely and other tampons
promoted the rapid growth of the pathogen Staphylococcus
aureus, which caused toxic shock in certain women when in sufficient
numbers. (See the Canadian TV film Under Wraps
to see a woman maimed by toxic shock, and to meet Dr.
Philip Tierno, Jr., whose work helped get Rely off the market; he is
a board member of MUM.)
Toxic shock from tampons today is almost unheard of, but there are sometimes
problems with
contaminants; women are advised to use unbleached all-cotton tampons
instead of artificial fibers, or use tampons bleached by a method not producing
dioxin. (Men can also get toxic shock - not, of course, from tampons.)
See the valuable information about toxic shock,
dioxin, asbestos and other concerns on the page of the Food and Drug Administration, as well as on this MUM
site, with questions answered by Dr. Tierno.
Rely's ironic motto, and its very name, haunted Procter and Gamble for
years, and reminds us that the buyer must beware!
P&G now owns Tampax.
See the super Rely tampon, two sections of its instructions , and an ad for Rely from 1980.
See the contemporary P&G tampon Trust.
Read a letter from Procter & Gamble (22
September 1980) announcing that it was stopping distribution of Rely because
of health concerns. And see early
newspaper articles about the danger of Rely -
from cancer! Read early
newspaper articles about the danger of Rely -
from cancer!
|
 |
NEXT: the super Rely tampon, two sections of its
instructions , and an ad for Rely from 1980.
Read a letter from Procter & Gamble (22
September 1980) announcing that it was stopping distribution
of Rely because of health concerns. See the other tampons
Procter & Gamble sold around the time of Rely.
And see early newspaper
articles about the danger of Rely - from CANCER!
© 1999, 2007 Harry Finley. It is illegal to reproduce
or distribute work on this Web site in any manner or
medium without written permission of the author.
Please report suspected violations to hfinley@mum.org
|