I have questions regarding the reception and coverage of the recent study "Tampons as a source of exposure to metal(loid)s" (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envint.2024.108849)

Some take it as evidence that people who menstruate are receiving outsized heavy metal exposure compared to those who do not as a result of sexism. Obviously sexism is a real systemic phenomenon, and that would still be true even if this particular instance was shown to be bogus.

The study does not put the levels of exposure into perspective compared to other sources of heavy metal exposure that exist, such as food. That's not its job. I think a rigorous accounting of all sources of exposure for both traditional sexes would be necessary before reaching a conclusion. Am I correct?

I am going to trust this r/Feminism comment for the sake of napkin math. Say men consume more red meat than women because it is perceived as macho. Let's say at least 1 serving a month more. That's ~70 tampons worth of lead, which is more than most periods I think. Ceteris paribus, we would have to conclude that it is men who are actually poisoning themselves with lead, which contradicts the original conclusion. Does this show ad absurdum that the original conclusion was hasty? https://www.reddit.com/r/Feminism/comments/1dxvvnw/comment/lc6ndh4

Please debunk me! I am not an expert in environmental pollutants (and for the record I cannot menstruate)