#BUGS. THEY ARE BUGS HERE

[curi0uscreature]

* The way the animatics were making me cackle last night AND THEN THIS SHIT I WAS HOLLERING

[emjaydoubleyou]

this post is fearmongering. the results of this study are concerning and should definitely be a matter of public discussion, but this is certainly not the conclusion the researchers came to.

the point of the study was to assess the risks of exposure to toxic metals- something one of the co-authors notes are “ubiquitous” fwiw- via menstrual products. Their research confirmed that these metals are indeed present in tampons, but no further conclusions are drawn. it is possible the metal entered into the cotton from the soil, which is a well-known phenomenon; cotton is so good at lifting heavy metals that it has actually been suggested as a part of the solution for revitalizing polluted ground.

the authors conclude with an acknowledgement that the study should be repeated- their sample size was 60 tampons- and a suggestion that further testing ought to be done to indicate whether or not these metals can even leech out of the tampon in the first place, let alone whether or not such leeching could occur at levels deleterious to human health.

there is, in fact, a body of research- too small, for sure, but much larger than this single study- indicating that long-term proper tampon use has no observable negative impact on health. i am grateful and thrilled that more research is being done and i hope that this study is the first of many on this line of questioning, but i am really frustrated at this post and the response it got.

obviously, if this study alters your approach to menstrual health, more power to you. consumers should be informed-risk-takers, and menstrual health is double-obviously a very personal choice. but it definitely wasn't the researchers concluding that you ought to “avoid using tampons at all cost," only this tumblr user did. the lead author of the paper, in fact, specifically says that she hopes people do NOT panic about the results.

(the notes of the post were disappointing. people affirming that they knew they were right to be suspicious of tampons all along, or even recommending alternatives that actually have very little to no research regarding the safety of long-term use, etc. it’s a different conversation, but categorical distrust of tampons is old-school misogyny. you certainly shouldn't wear them if you don’t want to, but there is nothing inherently scary or wrong about them, and people who prefer them are not being reckless or crass.)

((if you're really worried about exposure to heavy metals, you may want to turn a critical eye to fast fashion, as an aside))

[reblogforsamplesize]

🐛 caterpillar - the returning champion of the 2023 race at 41.6% of the votes

🐌 snail - runner up of the 2023 race at 38.3%, only 3.3% behind the caterpillar.

🪱 worm - placed last in 2023, with only 20.1% of votes

🪲 beetle, 🐞 ladybug, and 🐝 bee are new competitors!

[bugthingsdaily]

today's bug thing is the bug carousel at the Bronx Zoo!

[ra3kiv]

[krmljam]

more bugs more drinking

[gloriouslyscentedwizard]

Thought some bug nerds might appreciate this:

Aren't they beautiful? Is this not one of the prettiest cicadas you've ever seen. Specifically it is a swamp cicada (Neotibicen tibicen).

The blue-ish teal green is just absolutely enchanting. And lookit how cute those beady little eyes are💕✨

[egophiliac]

buckle up lads we're going BACK INTO THE BOOK

[raticalshoez]

They're like a packet of fruit snack gummies

[ernestelm]

Thinking abt the mole cricket

freaky ass mf

bitch ass face, tf u looking at

[dazzelmethat]

Some crickets and grasshoppers and my thoughts about them.

I've always been interested in bugs since I was real small.. I should draw them more often.

[iizuumi]

whoever decided to give astarion a gun ily

[gremnda]

completely self indulgent sky siblings doodle. i'm sick and i deserve to draw all the fluff ever

inspo

[aquamarinebling]

isafrin measurements comic based off this post of mine; bc someone asked, and I am a lady of my word (sometimes) <3

[phleb0tomist]

i keep seeing this idea that Real wheelchair users all have custom active chairs, and that transport/standard chairs are just an embarrassing stereotype. “no one really uses those!” “stop drawing disabled characters in standard chairs!!”

well, plenty of us are a stereotype. sorry. custom chairs require MONEY and good medical support. meanwhile active chairs are unusable for some people. i used an uncomfy transport chair (the kind with tiny wheels and no way to self propel) for a year, and a standard chair for 7yrs. until i got my powerchair i was only ever pushed by a carer. a lot of disabled people will never use an active or custom chair. don’t pretend we don’t exist just because we don’t fit some cool independent ideal.

shoutout to people who use transport chairs and adaptive strollers and other chairs that need to be pushed by a carer

shoutout to people who use standard chairs that don’t fit their body

shoutout to people who use secondhand or makeshift wheelchairs

in my teens i literally felt invalid as a disabled person because i didnt have the ‘real actual’ type of wheelchair everyone talks about online. just my garbage transport chair that my mom had to push. ​but people with shitty wheelchairs exist and are extremely common actually

[l3irdl3rain]

btw guys I drove up to Madison yesterday