The Rely Tampon

The Rely Tampon

The Rely Tampon, made by Proctor & Gamble, has been under public scrutiny for years for various reasons. Known mostly for their debated link to the deaths of thirty eight women from Toxic Shock Syndrome (TSS) and for lawyers charges against them of "suppressing important data that may [have] enhance[d] medical understanding of TSS" (Fielding). The Rely Tampon has become a hot topic and one of the most famous tampons in our history, second only to Tampax.

"It Even Absorbed the Worry!" was the slogan for the Rely Tampon produced by Proctor & Gamble. Rely Tampons were made of cellulose which is very highly absorbent and a polyester foam; this blend of ingredients are not used in tampons on the market today. The Rely tampon was first introduced to the public in 1980 by way of mail. Proctor & Gamble mailed out 60 million free samples of their new product around the United States. Five years prior to it's public release the Rely Tampon was sent out as a test to a certain amount of people, again around the United States. Soon after it's public release the Rely Tampon was taking over, occupying 24 per cent of the tampon market. Many of the advertisements for the Rely Tampon featured women in either white clothes or tight clothes and often both. Such ads featured thin attractive women, mostly with their boyfriends, like this ad for Rely Tampons with the caption: "When the motor conked out, we paddled home. Boy, was I glad I was wearing Rely." (Kohen). These ads also relied on visual aids such as displaying direct views of female buttocks.

The entire debate about the Rely Tampon was full of lawsuits, yet somehow at the same time was shrouded in secrecy and deceit. Proctor & Gamble was going to court over the issue of the Rely Tampon because of the fact that it was believed that information was withheld in regards to the