It's certainly no secret that most women are not thrilled when they are visited by "Aunt Flo" each month. When we surf the crimson wave, reach "that time of the month", enter into Shark Week, whatever you want to call it, we generally do not have a very good time. Mother Nature has blessed us ladies with a monthly gift that keeps on coming decade after decade. Many women experience incredible physical pain during their periods, travel on a rollercoaster of emotions, face problems with their hair, nails, or skin, and these are only a few of the many problems that periods can cause.

menstruation crustacean station

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So, naturally, the products that help women get through their periods each month, are considered luxury items! Wait... what? Yes, you read that right! Tampons, pads, and other more innovative products that are designed to protect our clothing from the red wave are not only relatively pricey, but they are taxed as "luxury items." Many countries around the world enforce the so-called "tampon tax", stating that the products in question are not essential. On the flipside, those who believe that the tax should be lifted argue that products including pads and tampons are a definite necessity for women each month and that menstruating ladies have no choice but to purchase these products when the red sea flows.

Australia recently made a huge step in favor of the latter, as their Senate passed a bill which states that the 10% GST that is currently attached to the products will be lifted. Janet Rice, Greens senator in Australia, moved to push the bill forward, stating that the tax was really an issue of gender. Despite this move, the battle is not quite over. The governments of the states and territories in the country must now also agree to get rid of the tax. Apparently, this move is dependent on the type of government that is in power in each of the respective areas. As Mashable notes, those states and territories with a Labor government are all in favor, while those with a Liberal government are still in need of a little more convincing.

Nevertheless, this is a huge step forward in Australia, and we can only hope that other countries (as well as the Australian states and territories) follow suit!

NEXT: ASOS IS WORKING TO MAKE THEIR PRODUCTS MORE ANIMAL-FRIENDLY

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