A TEENAGER is calling for a boycott on Aldi tampons — after she claims one of them ripped in half inside of her.

Lauren Richardson, 19, had been given the tampons by her mum, but was left shocked at how the “dangerous” products soon disintegrated when worn.

Lauren, from Suffolk in the UK, now believes that the tampons could put women at risk of potentially lethal Toxic Shock Syndrome and other infections

After her scary experience, Lauren went on to test the tampons by dunking them in water for five minutes.

She filmed her experiment, which saw the tampon completely fall apart, and then posted the shocking clip on Facebook.

A spokesman for Aldi has confirmed that Lauren’s claims are currently being investigated “as a matter of urgency” but has also insisted that the supermarket’s feminine hygiene products are “tested rigorously” before being stocked on their shelves.

Lauren, an amateur photographer, said: “I can’t believe how bad these tampons are — when I discovered it I was really shocked.

“I could have been at risk of getting Toxic Shock Syndrome and people die of that.

“Imagine if someone bought these thinking they would save a bit of money and could be using them right now not knowing how dangerous they are — it’s terrible.

“I don’t want people to buy them and I don’t think Aldi should be selling them — they should be recalled.”

Lauren’s mum Lesley has purchased the 20 pack of Florette applicator tampons from Aldi in the UK last week, before giving them to her daughter. (This particular type of tampon is not currently for sale in Aldi Australia stores).

Just few days later, Lauren used one of the tampons but it soon began hurting.

Worried something was wrong, Lauren quickly tried to remove the sanitary product after just five minutes.

But as she pulled out the tampon it tore in half — luckily Lauren managed to remove each part of the disintegrated product on her own.

Lauren then inspected the remaining tampons in the packet and was shocked to discover many of them easily broke down.

She then decided to test the tampons in water and was left stunned after each fell apart within minutes.

Lauren said: “As I pulled the tampon out it ripped in half and it scared the hell out of me.

“I freaked out. All I could think was: ‘Oh my God, what if I had left it in any longer, maybe nothing would have come out’.

“The thought I was going to keep using them and I wouldn’t have realised how poorly made they were was terrifying.

“I opened another one to see if they were the same and all the ones I opened literally fell apart in my hands — fibres were coming off them.

“After that we left some of them in a glass of water to see what would happen and they completely disintegrated, turning to cotton wool, without us even touching them.”

Lauren says she has told her friends not to buy the tampons and added she was horrified the product had managed to pass health standards.

Lauren’s mum said: “When Lauren told me what had happened and showed me the tampons I was absolutely disgusted.

“It is awful that a product could be sold when there is a clear risk to health, I couldn’t believe it.

“I have bought cheaper brands before and never had a problem with them; you just assume they will be fine.”

An Aldi spokesman told the Daily Star: “We have apologised to Ms Richardson and have asked her to return the product to store so we can investigate this issue as a matter of urgency.

“We have also offered her a full refund.”

This article originally appeared in The Sun and was reproduced with permission.