I agree with your main point - it's the inequity that's the point.

In the UK tampons and pads have VAT charged on them (as they count as a luxury); there is a campaign to remove this and it has been reduced to 5%, but it's still there (due to EU regulations I believe).

As a side point, in many parts of the world, toilet paper is not an essential; it's regarded as a dirty and unclean western practice.

What is the tax status of razor blades in your state?

Shaving is both not a necessity and something people of every gender do equally.

Razor blades are also substantially cheaper than feminine hygiene products. One number I saw was that the average woman spends $150 - $300 per year on pads.

In contrast, I can spend an order of magnitude less on razor blades, as a pack of Harry's blades end up being something like $2/each, and that's basically about a dollar or two a month (or less).

None of that is essential.

For menstruation, you can do free bleeding.

For defecation, you can use a bidet, or go old-style with corn cobs. You can use an odd number of stones, as specified by Muhammad.

The same goes for shampoo (don't need it), deodorant (don't need it), and many other things.

What this all boils down to is a fear of having other people think you are weird, defective, dirty, gross, etc.

> Toilet paper is an essential for both genders.

In walked the bidet.

Well, they don't need to. Maybe pads should be taxed more so that more women would use menstrual caps? Pads seem to be quite environmentally harmful as well, they produce a lot of non-recyclable waste (unlike toilet paper).