How To Get Blood Stains Out Of Underwear

There's a lot of awkwardness around menstruation and reproductive health. We often hide the fact that we're suffering because of our monthly flow, simply telling people we don't know well that we aren't feeling well.

For some of us, seeing those stains from the start or end of our period can be embarrassing, especially if we don't live alone. Fortunately, our underwear is comfortable enough that you can simply start wearing them as early as you need to before your period starts – and long after – without feeling the discomfort of a pad, tampon, or cup.

However, if you do get a stain – don't worry! With a little elbow grease, they'll come out. Below, we'll guide you through how.

How to Get Period Blood Out of Underwear

Get to It Fast.

The best thing to do when you've had a leak is to wash your undies as quickly as you can. Your instinct may be to pop them straight into the laundry basket and wait until it's time to wash everything, but it's much less likely to stain if you deal with it now.

Ignore your instincts

If you're running the hot water (or worse, boiling the kettle) as we speak, STOP! We all know that hot water "lifts" stains, right? Sure, if that's a pan with dried food on it, but not for fabric. Fabric gets "loose" when we heat it up, and it's more likely to trap the particles causing the stain. So, use the coldest water you can stand instead.

Massage the stain

Massage the stain gently with your fingers, pausing to rinse every so often. You should see the stain lift away with relative ease.

Use gentle stain removers

If that's not getting the stain out alone, try a gentle stain remover. If you've not got a good product to hand, there are a few things you can find around your home to help:

Use bleach on white underwear (only!), and be sure to wash thoroughly before wearing
Rub half a lemon over the stain and massage out under cold water until the stain disappears

Mix baking soda with just a little water to form a paste and apply it to the stain. Leave it for 5 minutes and massage out. Repeat until the stain is gone and then rinse well before wearing

Hot or cold water for bloodstains?

Again, you'll have to go against your instincts on this one. We're used to using hot water to wash our clothes, dishes, and cars, as that's what kills the bacteria.

However, cold water is best when removing period stains, or any type of blood stain, for that matter. Hot water can often cause a bloodstain to set into the fabric, which will make it even harder to remove in the long term.

Get the tap running until it's as cold as possible and hold your undies underneath. You'll likely see the tap run clear after under a minute! Gently rub the material against itself to get rid of any remaining blood, using a little hand soap or laundry detergent.

How to Get Rid of Period Stains on White Underwear

Discovering a period stain on white underwear is certainly irritating, but it's not the end of the world! You can remedy a stain on even your whitest undies without having to run to the store and buy expensive stain remover. The home removal techniques will work well that we discussed above. Particularly bleach, AKA hydrogen peroxide.

How to Get Blood Out of Underwear with Hydrogen Peroxide

Hydrogen peroxide is, of course, incredibly effective, and you may even have some in your bathroom cupboard.

Pour some hydrogen peroxide into a bowl and dip the stained fabric into the liquid. You can use an old toothbrush to scrub the liquid into the stain gently, or use rubber gloves and your fingers. (Don't use bare skin as it can burn you.)

(use rubber gloves as you may find it irritating) and leave it for a few minutes. Rinse and repeat, as necessary. Just don't use this method on colored underwear! This is bleach, after all. If it's strong enough to lift your dark hair, it's strong enough to lift the dye from your underwear.

How to Remove Period Blood Stain from Jeans & How to Clean Menstrual Blood from Clothes

These same methods can be used if you leak onto your jeans or other clothes.

Just avoid using hydrogen peroxide on your jeans – head to the store for something stronger and denim-friendly if the home remedies don't lift it well enough. Denim other fabrics are easily effected by these methods, so be gentle. Often, just putting your jeans through the wash a few times will get the stain to fade.

If you discover stains that have been left for a while and have set into the material, soak the item of clothing in cold water overnight. This will help to loosen and break down the bond between the blood and the fabric.

Then, choose any of the methods above and let whichever paste you make sit overnight. With older stains, you may have to repeat or try more than one remedy to lift the stain, which is why we recommend getting to a stain early on.

Sick of Stains? Try Proof

If you're getting stains in your underwear and your clothes even though you're wearing pads and other forms of period protection, it's time to try Proof. Our period underwear uses our patented Leak-Loc™ technology so you never get a spill.

Best of all, they're comfortable and you won't even notice you're wearing them, so you can wear them in the days leading up to and after your period, to avoid those unexpected stains.

To see our range and put together your bundle, click here.