New Menstrual Cup Could Detect Infections and Improve Diagnostics

Menstrual health is a critical issue for millions of girls and women, particularly in low- and middle-income countries where access to safe and dignified products remains a barrier to education, employment, and social participation. Uptake of menstrual cups has been limited by usability challenges such as spills during removal and stigma, and there has been little innovation in menstrual care until recently. Now, researchers have developed a new flushable, highly absorbent seaweed-based tablet designed to hold menstrual blood and minimize spills during removal, addressing a key barrier to wider cup adoption. This smarter menstrual product also has potential for wearable health monitoring.

The latest work, led by researchers at McMaster University (Hamilton, Ontario, Canada), builds upon the existing Bfree Cup platform. The new component is a flushable tablet made from highly absorbent seaweed-based material that complements the Bfree Cup’s lubricant-infused silicone, which repels viruses and bacteria and removes the need for boiling between uses. The project was developed in collaboration with Women’s Global Health Innovations and involved graduate students and postdoctoral researchers who helped design and test the tablet in support of a broader initiative to create wearable menstrual technologies.

The tablet and platform have been described in peer-reviewed outlets, with the design study published in ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces and a broader perspective on wearable diagnostics in Nature Communications. The authors report that the new tablet improves handling and hygiene, while the underlying cup technology offers reusable, long-lasting protection that could reduce environmental waste from disposable products. The team has positioned the device as a safer, easier, and more sustainable alternative to current options.

In addition to convenience and sustainability, the researchers envision future menstrual products equipped with sensors to detect early signs of infection and blood-borne illnesses using menstrual blood as a diagnostic fluid. Each cup is designed to last for several years, offering a cost-effective solution for users without reliable access to tampons or pads, and the technology could support earlier detection of conditions such as endometriosis and UTIs. The group plans to explore adding simple monitoring systems, integrating biosensors and AI, and expanding testing to realize menstrual cups as proactive wearable health monitors.

“This could be a new form of wearable technology that could be even more valuable than a smartwatch,” said associate professor of mechanical and bioengineering Tohid Didar, who co-led the research. “We have mainly been reactive in terms of women’s health. This can give us an opportunity to start being proactive. If we can add simple systems to menstrual products to monitor for infections and conditions, such as endometriosis and UTIs, we could find these problems much sooner. There is a lot to explore in this area.”

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