tag:theconversation.com,2011:/us/topics/sanitary-products-22144/articlesSanitary products – The Conversation2023-06-27T02:14:36Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2018712023-06-27T02:14:36Z2023-06-27T02:14:36ZHow do I insert a tampon?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/532313/original/file-20230616-19-ay9uyd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=10%2C0%2C3320%2C1705&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">pexels sora shimazaki</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>If you’ve just decided to start using tampons and you’re finding it tricky, you’re not alone! Lots of young teens and first-time tampon users have told me they experience “tampon trauma” – meaning it hurts, won’t go in or gets stuck coming out. But with a little bit of practice, it’s super easy.</p>
<p>Tampons are safe and convenient, especially if you’re going to the beach, swimming or doing something physically active. You can’t feel a tampon once it’s inserted properly, which is why some people prefer tampons to pads or period undies. Tampons are used by <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/article/how-tampons-pads-became-unsustainable-story-of-plastic#:%7E:text=Did%20You%20Know%3F,-Usage&text=Recycling-,5.8%20billion%20tampons%20were%20sold%20in%20the%20U.S.%20in%202018,ocean%20when%20sewer%20systems%20fail.">millions of people</a> around the world. They’re made from natural cotton, rayon fibre or both, and absorb fluid, including menstrual blood. </p>
<p>In Australia, tampons are classified as “medical devices” which means they have to meet certain safety standards. So even though there’s a confusing array of brands available in Australia it’s good to know they all pass the safety test.</p>
<p>Just like pads and period undies, tampons come with different absorbencies, such as “mini” or “light”, “regular” and “super”. As you get to know your own periods and cycle, you’ll also get to know which tampons suit you best over the course of your period. It’s common for the first couple of days of a period to be heavier, meaning you might need a tampon with higher absorbency.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/menstrual-cups-vs-tampons-heres-how-they-compare-120499">Menstrual cups vs tampons – here's how they compare</a>
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<h2>How to insert</h2>
<p>A tampon is designed to sit inside the vagina, right up high against the cervix. The vagina is a stretchy muscular tube and has plenty of room to accommodate a tampon. </p>
<p>The vagina slopes upward and backward, towards the spine. A common difficulty first-time tampon users encounter is pushing the tampon straight up rather than slightly backwards, so it hits the front wall of the vagina and feels like it can’t go up any further. The same can happen in reverse when pulling a tampon out – it needs to be pulled slightly forward, not straight down, or it could hit the back wall of the vagina and feel stuck.</p>
<p>If you want to, you can practise using a tampon between your periods, or when your flow is light. Wash your hands first, then get a mini-sized tampon and make it slippery by putting some water-based lubricant on it. Some people might dab a tiny bit of Vaseline on the tip of the tampon instead. Vaseline shouldn’t be put on tampons during a period, as it reduces absorbency. </p>
<p>Pull the string so it reaches its full length before you insert it. Stand in front of a mirror and have a look at where the opening of your vagina is by pulling the vaginal lips apart. Then either squat, or put one leg up on a stool, shelf, or side of the bath, which gets you in a comfortable position to practise. </p>
<p>Gently put the tip of the tampon into the opening and then push it up and back with your finger. You can put your fingers inside your vagina first, to get a feel of the way your vagina slopes. (If you have long nails, take care not to scratch yourself!)</p>
<p><iframe id="tc-infographic-879" class="tc-infographic" height="400px" src="https://cdn.theconversation.com/infographics/879/daa47e958c4391e8fa586f1fc90bb0554872c2d7/site/index.html" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<p>Some tampons come with an “applicator”. This is made of two cardboard or plastic tubes, one inside the other. The larger tube has the tampon inside it, and the smaller one sits just below the tampon. When inserting, you hold the smaller part and push the applicator inside your vagina rather than putting your fingers inside. When the applicator has gone all the way in, you push the tampon out by “plunging” the smaller tube up, pushing the tampon out. </p>
<p>It’s virtually impossible to put a tampon into the wrong hole! There are three holes in that part of the body – the vagina, the urethra (where wee comes out) and the anus, or bum hole, where poo comes out. Most people are familiar with where the bum hole is, because (hopefully) they wipe their bums a lot! </p>
<p>The urethra is very small, and you wouldn’t be able to fit a tampon into it. It sits high up towards the top of the vulva – where your inner vaginal lips meet in the middle, and just below the tip of the clitoris.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/533054/original/file-20230621-20-ocbi2q.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Diagram showing a vulva" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/533054/original/file-20230621-20-ocbi2q.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/533054/original/file-20230621-20-ocbi2q.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=561&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/533054/original/file-20230621-20-ocbi2q.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=561&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/533054/original/file-20230621-20-ocbi2q.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=561&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/533054/original/file-20230621-20-ocbi2q.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=704&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/533054/original/file-20230621-20-ocbi2q.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=704&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/533054/original/file-20230621-20-ocbi2q.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=704&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Vulva diagram.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">The Conversation</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
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<p>Tampons can be left in for up to six hours. If your period is heavier than anticipated and the tampon has become “soaked”, you might have to change it earlier. You’ll know when that happens because some menstrual fluid will leak onto your undies. </p>
<p>Don’t panic though – it’s something you’ll be able to feel and deal with before anyone else notices! If you know you have heavy flow days and want to take extra precautions, you can wear a light pad on your undies (or period undies) as well as using a tampon. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/heavy-periods-are-common-what-can-you-do-and-when-should-you-seek-help-191511">Heavy periods are common. What can you do, and when should you seek help?</a>
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<h2>Toxic shock syndrome</h2>
<p>You might have heard about something called Toxic Shock Syndrome. This is caused by a bacterial infection that releases toxins into the blood and is a serious condition. </p>
<p>It can happen anywhere in the body but is known to be associated with the use of ultra super absorbency tampons. There are now guidelines and regulations worldwide for tampon manufacturing to reduce the risk of infections. </p>
<p>These days toxic shock syndrome is extremely rare (about <a href="https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/15437-toxic-shock-syndrome#:%7E:text=Toxic%20shock%20syndrome%20affects%201,absorbent%20tampons%20during%20their%20period.">0.001%</a> of people), and still only occurs if tampons are left in for several hours, allowing the bacteria to multiply. </p>
<p>Symptoms are high fever, vomiting, diarrhoea, muscle aches, headaches and a rash.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/from-sharp-butt-pains-to-period-poos-5-lesser-known-menstrual-cycle-symptoms-191352">From sharp butt pains to period poos: 5 lesser-known menstrual cycle symptoms</a>
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<h2>Environmentally friendly options</h2>
<p>It’s important to NEVER flush a tampon down the toilet. If you’re in a public toilet, there should be bins inside toilet cubicles for all disposable period products. At home, you could wrap it in tissue and put it in a rubbish bin. You might also be aware people are now looking at environmentally friendly alternatives to disposable pads and tampons. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/532314/original/file-20230616-21-1p38kv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Woman throwing a used tampon into a bin" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/532314/original/file-20230616-21-1p38kv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/532314/original/file-20230616-21-1p38kv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532314/original/file-20230616-21-1p38kv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532314/original/file-20230616-21-1p38kv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532314/original/file-20230616-21-1p38kv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532314/original/file-20230616-21-1p38kv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532314/original/file-20230616-21-1p38kv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Never flush a tampon down the toilet, put it in a bin.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Pexels/Karolina Grabowska</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
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<p>Reusable pads and period undies were designed to help reduce waste from disposable pads. There’s now also an alternative to tampons, which is the modern “menstrual cup”. These are made of medical grade silicone that you fold over, push up inside your vagina using two fingers, and then pop! It springs open inside the vagina and catches any menstrual fluid. </p>
<p>Unlike a tampon, they sit a little lower down in the vagina, and just like tampons, they can take practice getting used to. These can be used for up to 12 hours which makes them super convenient. You can try a menstrual cup anytime – and some people might switch between tampons and a cup or pads or period undies, depending on what feels right on the day.</p>
<p>Managing periods is something almost half the population deals with. It can feel scary, but it might help to know that just about everyone who has periods goes through the same process of figuring it out! The more you arm yourself with information and know how much choice is out there, the more confident you’ll feel. And don’t forget there are always adults out there who are willing and able to give you advice and help. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/why-queues-for-womens-toilets-are-longer-than-mens-99763">Why queues for women's toilets are longer than men's</a>
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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/201871/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Melissa Kang has received funding from the National Health and Medical Research Councill, Australian Research Council and Medical Research Futures Fund. She is affiliated with the Australian Association for Adolescent Health and the International Association for Adolescent Health. She has co-authored Welcome to Your Period, Welcome to Consent, Welcome to Your Boobs and Welcome to Sex.</span></em></p>Lots of young teens and first-time tampon users are intimidated by tampons. But they’re easy once you get the hang of it.Melissa Kang, Associate Professor, University of SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1565702021-03-07T19:07:23Z2021-03-07T19:07:23ZImagine having your period and no money for pads or tampons. Would you still go to school?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/387954/original/file-20210305-23-1gcfgby.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/close-young-woman-menstrual-compress-tampon-1062948881">Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><a href="https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/nsw-to-trial-free-tampons-and-sanitary-pads-in-public-schools-20210303-p577d7.html#:%7E:text=Last%20year%2C%20Victoria%20became%20the,will%20continue%20until%20June%202023.">The New South Wales Education Department said</a> last week said it would trial a program to hand out free pads and tampons in schools. Department secretary Mark Scott said:</p>
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<p>We are developing work on a pilot program around this and details will be emerging on that shortly.</p>
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<p>In a <a href="https://theconversation.com/3-out-of-10-girls-skip-class-because-of-painful-periods-and-most-wont-talk-to-their-teacher-about-it-150286">recent Australian study</a>, more than one-third of young women said they missed at least one class, either at school or university, in the past three months due to menstrual symptoms, including pain and fatigue.</p>
<p>Despite the fact menstruation can have a significant effect on around 50% of a school’s population, access to period products (such as pads and tampons) <a href="https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/feature/2018/05/25/menstrual-hygiene-management">is not yet universal</a>. Not even in Australia.</p>
<p>Young women are missing school because of this. This affects their mental health as well as their ability to participate fully in life.</p>
<h2>Missing out on education</h2>
<p>Period poverty is the lack of access to sanitary products, menstrual hygiene education, toilets, hand-washing facilities and waste management.</p>
<p>It’s a a problem that has a greater impact on women who are already marginalised. Many young women in remote <a href="https://theconversation.com/indigenous-girls-missing-school-during-their-periods-the-state-of-hygiene-in-remote-australia-79348">Indigenous Australian communities</a> are not attending school for several days each month during menstruation. </p>
<p><a href="http://healthbulletin.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/HealthBulletin-Women-and-girls-in-remote-Indigenous-Australian-communities.pdf">Research</a> suggests this is due to the high costs of feminine hygiene products, embarrassment and overcrowded bathroom facilities.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/indigenous-girls-missing-school-during-their-periods-the-state-of-hygiene-in-remote-australia-79348">Indigenous girls missing school during their periods: the state of hygiene in remote Australia</a>
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<p>While typically thought of as only physiological, periods and menstrual cycles are tied to psychological health. A lack of sanitary products can bring about feelings of profound shame and embarrassment. </p>
<p>Period poverty in developed countries is <a href="https://bmcwomenshealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12905-020-01149-5">associated with</a> a lower quality of life, poor self-esteem and mental-health issues. </p>
<p>While there is no Australia data on how many women are affected, a sample of college women in the United States found 14.2% experienced period poverty in the past year. An additional <a href="https://bmcwomenshealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12905-020-01149-5">10% experienced it every month</a>. </p>
<p>Worryingly, nearly half of the respondents experiencing period poverty reported symptoms consistent with moderate to severe depression. </p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/387950/original/file-20210305-13-179hor8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Girl holding bloody tampon" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/387950/original/file-20210305-13-179hor8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/387950/original/file-20210305-13-179hor8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/387950/original/file-20210305-13-179hor8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/387950/original/file-20210305-13-179hor8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/387950/original/file-20210305-13-179hor8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/387950/original/file-20210305-13-179hor8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/387950/original/file-20210305-13-179hor8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Having poor access to sanitary products can affect your mental health too.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-vector/hand-holding-used-tampon-disposal-1113664676">Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p>And having poor access to sanitation products during adolescence has long-term <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/health/period-poverty-anxiety-depression-study-women-mental-health-sanitary-products-a8452581.html">mental health</a> effects throughout a woman’s life.</p>
<h2>Seeing red: outrage about periods</h2>
<p><a href="https://eprints.qut.edu.au/201306/">Research</a> has found stigma and taboo about menstruation continue to be a problem. Many girls feel embarrassed to talk about it or ask for help. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/3-out-of-10-girls-skip-class-because-of-painful-periods-and-most-wont-talk-to-their-teacher-about-it-150286">3 out of 10 girls skip class because of painful periods. And most won't talk to their teacher about it</a>
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<p>Menstruation is frequently framed as troublesome, compared to the “exciting and powerful” bodily changes male teenagers go through when students are <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/713668302">taught</a> about them in sex education. </p>
<p>Society’s repulsion towards menstruation can be seen in ads for menstrual products that, until only recently, did not show blood. And when they did, it was met with <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-09-18/as-standards-rule-on-period-blood-after-complaints-over-libra-ad/11521530">considerable social outrage</a>. </p>
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<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/108gaP2rTas?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Blood Normal - Love Libra.</span></figcaption>
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<p>However, attitudes are starting to shift. </p>
<p>Since 2015, Australian charity <a href="https://www.sharethedignity.org.au/">Share the Dignity</a> has been working to reduce the impact of period poverty by installing vending machines that dispense free period products in schools, homeless shelters and other locations. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/period-poverty-why-one-in-ten-young-women-struggle-to-afford-pads-and-tampons-85715">Period poverty: why one in ten young women struggle to afford pads and tampons</a>
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<p>In 2019, Australia <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-45727980">removed</a> the GST on period products. And this year <a href="https://www.australianoftheyear.org.au/recipients/isobel-marshall/2276/">Isobel Marshall</a> was named the 2021 Young Australian of the Year in recognition of her work to fight menstrual stigma and period poverty. </p>
<p>But there’s more we can do.</p>
<h2>Free period products in schools</h2>
<p>Scotland was the <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-51629880">first</a> country in the world to make period products free to everyone who needed them in 2020. </p>
<p>New Zealand has <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2021/02/18/new-zealand-period-products-schools/">announced</a> the rollout of free period products in schools nationwide from June this year. </p>
<p>Victoria has <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/nsw-to-trial-free-tampons-and-sanitary-pads-in-public-schools-20210303-p577d7.html#:%7E:text=Last%20year%2C%20Victoria%20became%20the,will%20continue%20until%20June%202023.">installed dispensing machines</a> for period products in every government school. And South Australia recently announced it would provide free sanitary products to all female students in year 5 and above.</p>
<p>South Australian Education Minister John Gardner has <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-02-11/sa-school-sanitary-items/13146612">said</a>: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>We want to ensure that no girl or young woman in South Australia is missing school because they don’t have access to sanitary products.</p>
</blockquote>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/387959/original/file-20210305-19-snz43o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="People hold signs reading 'end period poverty'." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/387959/original/file-20210305-19-snz43o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/387959/original/file-20210305-19-snz43o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/387959/original/file-20210305-19-snz43o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/387959/original/file-20210305-19-snz43o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/387959/original/file-20210305-19-snz43o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/387959/original/file-20210305-19-snz43o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/387959/original/file-20210305-19-snz43o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Things are changing: a protest in London, March 2020.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/londonengland-march-8th-2020-protesters-4-1667875636">Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p>This International Women’s Day it’s time to rethink menstrual education in schools to <a href="https://theconversation.com/it-will-take-lot-more-than-free-period-products-to-end-stigma-around-menstruation-151711">destigmatise periods</a>, encourage young women to seek help, and put access to period products for all Australians on the agenda.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/156570/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A trial program will provide free period products in schools in New South Wales, like South Australia and Victoria already do. The rest of Australia must follow suit.Sarah Duffy, Lecturer, School of Business, Western Sydney UniversityMichelle O'Shea, Senior Lecturer, School of Business, Western Sydney UniversityPatrick van Esch, Senior Lecturer in Marketing, AUT Business School, Auckland University of TechnologyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1394802020-05-28T08:58:35Z2020-05-28T08:58:35ZPeriods in a pandemic: women and girls in low-income settlements need more support<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/337978/original/file-20200527-20219-1wrks7d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Tatyana Ratova/Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>We conducted research <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/07399332.2012.740112">eight years ago</a> on menstrual health and hygiene in an informal settlement in Nairobi, Kenya’s capital. We found that women and girls grappled with many challenges, predominantly because they lacked resources, and this meant that they couldn’t manage their periods safely or with dignity. </p>
<p>They had limited access to sanitary products, clean water, and safe and private toilet facilities. Many of them suffered from stigma and embarrassment as a result.</p>
<p>Today, nearly a decade later, little has changed. Many women and girls living in low-income areas in <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6521998/pdf/pmed.1002803.pdf">sub-Saharan Africa</a> continue to face practical and psychological challenges to managing menstruation. When it comes to Kenya, a <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/23293691.2018.1490534">recent study</a> done in Nairobi’s low-income areas suggests that things are still the same. </p>
<p>What is becoming apparent, through studies and conversations with other academics in the menstrual health and hygiene field, is that the measures taken to slow the spread of COVID-19 may have made things worse for women and girls in low-income areas. </p>
<p>In Kenya, these measures have included restricted movements and closures of some businesses. They have had devastating economic effects and people have <a href="https://theconversation.com/we-wanted-to-know-how-coronavirus-affects-nairobis-slum-residents-what-we-found-137621">started to struggle financially</a>. Many are missing meals, have lost work and say that the cost of living is going up. </p>
<p>The financial difficulties make it even harder for women and girls to access sanitary products. A <a href="https://dataverse.harvard.edu/dataset.xhtml?persistentId=doi:10.7910/DVN/VO7SUO&version=11.0">recent study</a> by the Population Council in five informal slum settlements in Nairobi, Kenya, for example, found that the pandemic has already affected the ability of women and girls to buy sanitary products. One third of the women in their study said that they weren’t able to buy sanitary pads. </p>
<p>Access to water has always been an issue in <a href="https://www.alnap.org/system/files/content/resource/files/main/G04308.pdf">low-income settlements</a> where majority of households lack safe and piped water. The requirement that people wash their hands to stop the spread of the virus is adding to pressures on this limited resource.</p>
<p>An additional challenge that schoolgirls face is that schools are now closed. Approximately <a href="https://gender.go.ke/sanitary-towels-program/">four million</a> girls in public schools in Kenya receive sanitary products through the government’s Sanitary Towels Programme, which was launched in 2011. School closures mean that these girls are unable to access the free sanitary pads, making it difficult for them to manage their periods. In situations like this, they will usually resort to the use of cloths and other materials which are <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/07399332.2012.740112">less hygienic and associated with greater risk of discomfort, and leakage</a>. </p>
<h2>What needs to happen?</h2>
<p>In a <a href="https://www.unicef.org/media/68371/file/Mitigating-the-impacts-of-COVID-19-on-menstrual-health-and-hygiene-Brief.pdf">recent brief</a>, the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) outlines several “essential considerations to ensure continued [menstrual health and hygiene] during the pandemic”. Among the considerations are ensuring</p>
<ul>
<li><p>the provision of menstrual management products by including sanitary pads among the list of essential commodities and by removing barriers to their manufacture and supply; and </p></li>
<li><p>that communities have basic water and sanitation facilities. </p></li>
</ul>
<p>For the Kenyan government, the COVID-19 pandemic highlights the need to fast-track the implementation of the recently signed <a href="https://www.wsscc.org/2019/11/26/kenya-paves-the-way-for-menstruators/">National Menstrual Hygiene Management Policy</a>. The policy prioritises the needs of the vulnerable and disadvantaged in the community. </p>
<p>The idea is that as the Kenyan government implements initiatives to support vulnerable groups during the pandemic, it should also take into account the menstrual health needs of women and girls. </p>
<p>In particular, the government must ensure that women and girls have access to affordable, hygienic sanitary products and clean water and sanitation facilities during and beyond the pandemic. For example, the government can work with development partners and non-governmental organisations to provide <a href="https://www.friendsofunfpa.org/whats-in-a-unfpa-dignity-kit/">dignity kits</a> to vulnerable women and girls.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/139480/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Caroline Kabiru receives funding from the African Population and Health Research Center.</span></em></p>Challenges that women and girls in low-income areas face have been worsened by measures taken to slow the spread of COVID-19.Caroline W. Kabiru, Senior Research Scientist, African Population and Health Research CenterLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/967482018-05-18T14:03:30Z2018-05-18T14:03:30ZCeltic FC leads way in tackling period poverty, now other clubs need to follow<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/219584/original/file-20180518-42230-b6ishb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Celtic's goal should be shared by others.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0EKBfirYnaU">Celtic Women v Aberdeen</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Scotland’s top football club, Celtic FC, <a href="https://www.bigissue.com/latest/health/celtic-fc-is-now-the-first-club-in-the-uk-to-provide-free-sanitary-products/">will become</a> the first in the UK to provide free menstrual products in its stadium this autumn. The move raises awareness of the global issue of period poverty and should prompt other clubs to follow Celtic’s lead. </p>
<p><a href="https://theconversation.com/period-poverty-why-one-in-ten-young-women-struggle-to-afford-pads-and-tampons-85715">Period poverty</a> – being unable to afford menstrual products – is a worldwide problem and has become a major focus of <a href="http://www.womenforindependence.org/_freeperiodscotland">campaigns</a> in numerous countries. It <a href="https://plan-uk.org/media-centre/1-in-10-girls-have-been-unable-to-afford-sanitary-wear-survey-finds">affects</a> one in ten women aged 14 to 21 in Britain and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/society/2018/feb/05/period-poverty-scotland-poll-shows-women-go-to-desperate-lengths">nearly</a> one in five in Scotland. </p>
<p>Many women and girls are prevented from <a href="https://bettyforschools.co.uk/news/period-taboo-research">participating in sport</a> both because of period poverty and lack of access to sanitary products – plus the shame and stigma associated with menstruation. A recent study <a href="https://plan-uk.org/blogs/our-menstrual-manifesto">found</a> 48% of girls aged 14-21 feel embarrassed by their periods, while 71% have felt embarrassed buying products. For this reason campaigns like <a href="https://www.freeperiods.org">#freeperiod</a>, which pushes for free menstrual products in schools, focus on stigma as well as access. </p>
<p>Celtic got involved after three supporters <a href="https://www.change.org/p/celtic-fc-free-sanitary-products-at-celtic-park">started</a> a petition requesting that the Glasgow club provide menstrual products in its toilets, which went on to attract 2,700 signatures. It is fitting that Scotland should be leading the way in this regard, since the movement to end period poverty has been particularly active in this country. To quote the Labour MSP Monica Lennon, who <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-43331599">has been</a> one of the lead campaigners:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Menstruation should never be a barrier for women participating in football or supporting their team.</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>Sport and social justice</h2>
<p>Sport has long served as a platform for social and political activism. Famous examples include the <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/october/17/newsid_3535000/3535348.stm">Black Panther protest</a> at the 1968 Olympics and Nelson Mandela’s <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/dec/08/nelson-mandela-francois-pienaar-rugby-world-cup">use of</a> the 1995 Rugby World Cup to help unify post-apartheid South Africa. More recently, <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2017/09/why-the-nfl-is-protesting/540927/">player protests</a> in the National Football League in the US have brought racial injustice into the limelight. </p>
<p>But if sport can help attract global attention to social justice issues such as racism, the broader feminist movement is conspicuously absent in popular sport. One exception has been female athletes breaking into sporting boys’ clubs – like Katherine Switzer <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/apr/18/first-woman-officially-run-boston-marathon-kathrine-switzer-50">gatecrashing</a> the all-male Boston marathon in 1967, for instance; or tennis star Billie Jean King’s famous <a href="http://www.newsweek.com/battle-sexes-guide-billie-jean-king-bobby-riggs-669300">Battle of the Sexes game</a> against Bobby Riggs in 1973, where King came out on top. Her battle continues today over <a href="http://time.com/money/4265912/equal-pay-tennis-djokovic-williams/">equal pay</a> in professional tennis. </p>
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<p>The global <a href="http://womenwin.org/">sport-for-development movement</a> includes many initiatives for gender equality and empowerment. Yet many harmful gender norms still leave the <a href="https://jsfd.org/2018/04/30/levelling-the-playing-field-human-capability-approach-and-lived-realities-for-sport-and-gender-in-the-west-indies/">playing field uneven</a>, such as a lack of female role models and few opportunities for girls in “masculine” sports.</p>
<p>Menstruation in sport had <a href="https://theconversation.com/menstruation-is-not-a-taboo-in-womens-sport-period-92378">long been considered</a> the last taboo for girls and women. It has attracted a surprisingly limited amount of research. We do know that menstruation is a <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/17430437.2013.785757">barrier</a> for females in sport, and a significant reason why many teenage girls drop out of it altogether. Many <a href="https://plan-uk.org/file/plan-uk-break-the-barriers-report-032018pdf/download?token=Fs-HYP3v">worry about</a> leaking, and end up feeling marginalised – <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/girls-physical-activity-lack-mental-health-aspirations-levels-boys-women-comparison-gender-a8185271.html">sometimes with</a> long-term physical and psychological consequences. </p>
<p>By taking on the issue directly, Celtic are making a bold statement that girls and women are welcome and supported in football. It is part of what looks like a “moment” in sport for menstruation. Chinese swimmer Fu Yuanhui, for example, who is much loved for her expressive interviews, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/17/world/asia/china-fu-yuanhui-period-olympics.html">openly discussed</a> struggling to perform during her period at the 2016 Olympics. </p>
<p>The musician/activist Kiran Gandhi <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/comment/heres-why-i-ran-the-london-marathon-on-the-first-day-of-my-period-and-chose-not-to-wear-a-tampon-10455176.html">brought the</a> concept of free bleeding to the forefront in 2015 when she ran the London marathon on the first day of her period. Last year saw an <a href="https://bettyforschools.co.uk/news/sam-quek-top-tips">#ActivePeriod</a> campaign, fronted by GB Olympic hockey champion Samantha Quek, to encourage girls to continue playing sports and doing physical activity during their periods. </p>
<p>More recently, menstrual products giant Always launched its <a href="https://always.com/en-us/about-us/our-epic-battle-like-a-girl">#likeagirl campaign</a>, featuring girls sharing their testimonials of overcoming fear and barriers in sport. Finally, a <a href="http://www.firstperiod.org">menstrual health education website</a> for girls in sub-Saharan Africa has been launched by Scottish entrepreneur and health expert Dr Liita Cairney, teaching them how to use yoga to support their physical and emotional health during their menstrual cycles. </p>
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<p>Celtic FC is a less obvious advocate for menstrual activism than an Olympic athlete or tampon company, yet professional football is exactly the kind of high-profile sport that has served social justice movements so well in the past. </p>
<p>Other clubs should follow suit, sending a message to girls everywhere that #periodpoverty is no reason to stay on the sidelines. With the FA <a href="http://www.thefa.com/news/2017/mar/13/fa-womens-football-strategy-gameplan-for-growth-double-participation-130317">aiming to</a> double the number of women and girls taking part in football by 2020, it would certainly send out the right message.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/96748/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The Scottish club’s move to support women’s struggles with menstruation and sport is the first of its kind.Sarah Zipp, Lecturer in Sport Management, University of StirlingKay Standing, Reader in Gender Studies, Liverpool John Moores UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/943222018-04-06T08:43:12Z2018-04-06T08:43:12ZWhy private companies shouldn’t be involved in ‘menstrual education’<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/213225/original/file-20180404-189795-u0q1ox.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/menstruation-sanitary-soft-cotton-white-tampon-793514416?src=ykk7ZPQwKOOCYsgVwNc59g-1-7">Shutterstock/Lacornejaartesana</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The UK government has pledged some of the £15m from the “<a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/news/women-and-girls-set-to-benefit-from-15-million-tampon-tax-fund">tampon tax</a>” to the fight against <a href="https://www.standard.co.uk/lifestyle/health/government-uk-tampon-tax-end-period-poverty-amika-george-a3799796.html">period poverty</a> (the lack of access to sanitary products due to financial hardship). Projects that tackle sexual violence, address social exclusion among BAME women and improve mental health and wellbeing will receive funding over the next two years. Although the money will be a welcome boost to these projects, the underlying problem of taxation on menstrual products remains. </p>
<p>The multinational companies which make these products have slowly started to accept that they have a responsibility to their consumers and are getting involved with awareness raising charity campaigns and providing free products to schools. But this is where the alarm bells should start ringing.</p>
<p><a href="https://plan-uk.org/act-for-girls/girls-rights-in-the-uk/break-the-barriers-our-menstrual-manifesto">A report</a> by the charity Plan International UK has highlighted the issue of period poverty and the lack of effective education on menstruation aimed at both girls and boys. It also provided broader recommendations in what it called its “<a href="https://plan-uk.org/blogs/our-menstrual-manifesto">menstrual manifesto</a>” – one of the first documents tracing young peoples’ experiences of menstruation in the UK.</p>
<p>The report highlights the need to listen to girls and to include marginalised groups – such as menstruators with disabilities, <a href="http://thehomelessperiod.com/">those who are homeless</a>, refugees and the <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/transgender-cass-clemmer-periods-women-photo-poem-menstruation-gender-non-binary-a7855521.html">transgender community</a> – in the discussion. Another one of its key recommendations is to look at the role of multinational corporations in both period poverty and “<a href="https://www.buzzfeed.com/susiearmitage/this-is-what-period-shaming-looks-like-around-the-world?utm_term=.queAwoQZv9#.ocXMWGoRxA">period shaming</a>”.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"978557053085061121"}"></div></p>
<p>While the focus, rightly, is on governments to address period poverty, multinational corporations play a huge role in how we perceive menstruation and the cost, health and environmental impacts of menstrual products. </p>
<h2>Ending the stigma</h2>
<p>Multinationals such as <a href="https://www.pg.co.uk/">Proctor and Gamble</a> (which owns brands such as Always and Tampax) make <a href="http://www.pginvestor.com/PG-at-a-Glance/Index?KeyGenPage=1073748355">28% of their net sales</a> from “baby, feminine and family care”. They therefore have a responsibility to provide clear information on their products about the ingredients and opt for responsible advertising that doesn’t promote stigma around menstruation. <a href="https://theconversation.com/adventures-in-menstruation-how-period-product-ads-have-changed-to-reflect-a-more-realistic-experience-for-women-91417">Advertising</a> plays a big role in young people’s understanding of menstruation and of the products available. </p>
<p>The first advert to <a href="https://theconversation.com/adventures-in-menstruation-how-period-product-ads-have-changed-to-reflect-a-more-realistic-experience-for-women-91417">depict menstrual blood</a> in 2017 was seen as a big marketing risk, rather than a more accurate representation of a healthy bodily function. </p>
<p>Martina Poulopoti, the global brand communication manager for feminine care at Bodyform and Libresse parent Essity, said the reception of the advert by media and consumers was <a href="https://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/blood-new-normal-why-bodyform-libresse-took-marketing-risk-campaign-periods/1447989">positive overall</a> and the advert’s directors reported receiving personal emails from people thanking them for the ad. Good advertising could help educate young people at key times in their lives. </p>
<p>US academic <a href="https://www.ourbodiesourselves.org/2009/02/a-discussion-of-menstrual-activism-with-chris-bobel/">Chris Bobel</a> argues that multinational and pharmaceutical companies develop and market products which “exploit women’s body shame”. Products such as <a href="http://femfresh.co.uk/">femfresh</a> – and the marketing of items as “sanitary” and for the purpose of “feminine hygiene” – reinforces the idea that periods are unhygienic. Meanwhile, using the term “feminine products” excludes transgender menstruators. </p>
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<p>There have also been concerns raised over the chemicals used in menstrual products and the <a href="https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/122-a70/">lack of research</a> in this area reinforces the low priority previously given to menstrual health by pharmaceutical and multinational companies. </p>
<h2>Education not advertising</h2>
<p>Education is clearly an issue. For example, the Plan International UK report included stories about how some young people interviewed for their report believed that periods were blue. It is also another area where corporations have an unexpected role. The provision of free products or samples to schools by the major companies – while a useful step in enabling access to products – <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/mar/16/free-tampons-schoolgirls-menstruation-period-education">comes with several concerns</a>. </p>
<p>Activist <a href="https://chellaquint.wordpress.com/">Chella Quint</a> has pointed out the way in which product placement and branding limits young people’s access to impartial advice and information. If education is provided by organisations which market products using language which reinforces the idea of keeping periods “hidden” and “discreet”, is it any surprise that <a href="https://plan-uk.org/act-for-girls/girls-rights-in-the-uk/break-the-barriers-our-menstrual-manifesto">48% of young menstruators</a> (and 56% of 14-year-olds) are embarrassed by their periods?</p>
<p>And if the companies are only promoting their own brands, then information may not be provided about more long-term, cost-effective options. Menstrual cups and reusable pads are <a href="https://www.wen.org.uk/environmenstrual/">more environmentally friendly</a> and sustainable products. These are gaining popularity in the UK <a href="https://www.britac.ac.uk/blog/tackling-taboo-around-menstruation-nepal">and globally</a>. </p>
<p>Initiatives by <a href="http://www.marieclaire.co.uk/news/tampon-tax-tesco-526398">major supermarkets</a> to pay the tax on menstrual products – and so reduce the cost to consumers by 5% – demonstrate some sense of corporate responsibility. So do campaigns such as Always’ <a href="https://www.always.co.uk/en-gb/about-us/girl-empowerment-throughout-the-world-with-always">#endperiodpoverty</a> (which donates one pack to schools in Africa for every pack of Always Ultra sold in the UK) and Bodyform’s pledge <a href="http://www.inkinddirect.org/bodyform-to-donate-200000-packs-by-2020-to-help-tackle-uks-period-poverty/">to donate 200,000 packs</a> to those in poverty by 2020. However, they do do little to address the underlying issues and some argue they are simply examples of advertising opportunism from the companies in question. </p>
<p>As US academic <a href="https://www.bitchmedia.org/post/reproductive-writes-i-choose-my-choice-an-interview-with-elizabeth-kissling">Elizabeth Kissling argues</a>, corporations are still selling the same products, but are packaging them differently – in a way that co-opts and capitalises on the current menstrual activist movement. </p>
<p><a href="https://plan-uk.org/blogs/our-menstrual-manifesto">The menstrual manifesto</a> says companies should abide by a set of principles in their engagement in schools. They should also provide packaging which states the material used and its environmental impact and work with the <a href="https://www.asa.org.uk/">Advertising Standards Authority</a> to provide accurate and positive portrayals of menstruation. But this is where they should stop. It should be up to the government and schools, not private companies, to provide the right information to young people about menstrual products.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/94322/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kay Standing was an advisor on the Plan International UK Report . She has received funding from the British Academy. </span></em></p>Companies should abide by a set of principles in their engagement in schools to ensure they provide accurate and positive portrayals of menstruation.Kay Standing, Reader in Gender Studies, Liverpool John Moores UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/902782018-01-25T13:47:46Z2018-01-25T13:47:46ZPadman: how Bollywood is challenging the stigma around periods in India<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/203184/original/file-20180124-72627-goowib.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Padman starring Akshay Kumar</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.picselect.com/preview.jsp?application=3&id=17466750&section=">Picselect</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The new Bollywood film <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt7218518/">Padman</a>, starring Akshay Kumar, is the story of how India’s “menstrual man” <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-26260978">Arunachalam Muruganantham</a> came up with a revolutionary new method of producing cost effective sanitary pads. This helped to improve menstrual health and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2012/jan/22/sanitary-towels-india-cheap-manufacture">provide an income</a> for rural women in India and beyond. </p>
<p>India is the leading film market in the world, with <a href="https://www.statista.com/topics/2140/film-industry-in-india/">2.2 billion tickets</a> sold in 2016. One of the aims of this new comedy-drama is to reach a wide audience, create awareness and challenge the taboos and stigma surrounding menstruation in India. </p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/203391/original/file-20180125-107956-s3qbur.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/203391/original/file-20180125-107956-s3qbur.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=632&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/203391/original/file-20180125-107956-s3qbur.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=632&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/203391/original/file-20180125-107956-s3qbur.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=632&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/203391/original/file-20180125-107956-s3qbur.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=794&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/203391/original/file-20180125-107956-s3qbur.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=794&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/203391/original/file-20180125-107956-s3qbur.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=794&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Arunachalam Muruganantham.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.facebook.com/amurugaofficial/photos/a.915980068509137.1073741829.915371268570017/1545804272193377/?type=3&theater">Facebook</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>It’s been more than ten years since Arunachalam invented a machine to create low cost sanitary pads and began distributing them to rural women across India. Traditionally, rural women use old cloth, saris or bed sheets as sanitary towels; sometimes also using sand, dirt or ash for heavy days. The use of pads is increasing and now <a href="http://rchiips.org/nfhs/">six out of ten women</a> in India have access to disposable menstrual products. </p>
<p>This varies greatly across states – from as high as 90% in Tamilnadu, Kerala and Delhi to as low as 30% in rural Bihar. But disposable pads are expensive and the biodegradable pads made by Arunachalam are cheaper and last longer. </p>
<p>Many non-governmental organisations around the globe, such as <a href="https://www.daysforgirls.org/">Days for Girls</a>, focus on the need for hygienic menstrual products and make and distribute reusable pads. The argument is that the provision of pads enables girls to stay in school. <a href="http://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/6/3/e010290">One in four girls</a> in India miss one day or more in school during menstruation. </p>
<h2>Wider issues</h2>
<p>But access to pads is only one issue. Girls might also miss school because of period pain, lack of toilet facilities, the fear of staining clothes or the views of teachers and family – last year, students were allegedly <a href="https://www.ndtv.com/muzaffarnagar-news/warden-strips-girls-in-up-school-to-check-for-menstrual-blood-1675728">forced to</a> strip in a school to see who was menstruating. This is not just an issue for India: <a href="http://blogs.worldbank.org/education/globally-periods-are-causing-girls-be-absent-school">one in ten</a> girls in some parts of sub-Saharan Africa miss school because of their periods and even in the UK <a href="https://theconversation.com/period-poverty-why-one-in-ten-young-women-struggle-to-afford-pads-and-tampons-85715">period poverty</a> causes similar issues. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/RKkyqBj_rQE?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
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<p>The wider issue that Padman highlights is the stigma and taboos that surround menstruation. In India, <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4408698/">restrictions</a> include not being allowed to enter religious shrines, touch people or food in the kitchen, or touch or eat pickles. Taboos around periods exist in <a href="http://menstrupedia.com/blog/menstruation-taboos-are-a-worldwide-issue/">almost every country</a> in the world, meaning many women and girls face discrimination. Global stigmas and practices include:</p>
<p>Nepal: Chaupadi is a social tradition associated with the menstrual taboo in western Nepal which forces women and girls to sleep outside their house, often in a cowshed, while they have their period. Chaupadi was banned in 2005 and made a criminal offence in 2017, but one young woman has already <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2018/jan/12/woman-nepal-dies-exiled-outdoor-hut-period-menstruation">died in January 2018</a> because of it. </p>
<p>Japan: Women cannot be <a href="http://menstrupedia.com/blog/menstruation-taboos-are-a-worldwide-issue/">sushi chefs</a> as menstruation affects their sense of taste. But women are fighting back and opening their own restaurants.</p>
<p>Afghanistan: Women are told <a href="https://medium.com/@UNICEFAfghanistan/busting-myths-and-breaking-taboos-df45ed453d63">washing or showering during</a> their periods can lead to infertility. </p>
<p>Bolivia: Women are told putting <a href="https://www.unicef.org/wash/schools/files/Bolivia_MHM_Booklet_DM_15_Nov_single_0940_Bolivia.pdf">used sanitary pads</a> in the bin with other rubbish can lead to cancer.</p>
<p>US: <a href="https://nypost.com/2018/01/03/nearly-half-of-women-have-experienced-period-shaming/">42% of women</a> have experienced period shaming, 58% felt embarrassed and 73% hide pads and tampons from view.</p>
<p>UK: <a href="https://plan-uk.org/about/our-work/healthcare-and-clean-water/menstruation">26% of girls</a> did not know what to do when they first started their period and 48% are embarrassed by their period. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/203188/original/file-20180124-72618-12ytfyf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/203188/original/file-20180124-72618-12ytfyf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/203188/original/file-20180124-72618-12ytfyf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/203188/original/file-20180124-72618-12ytfyf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/203188/original/file-20180124-72618-12ytfyf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/203188/original/file-20180124-72618-12ytfyf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/203188/original/file-20180124-72618-12ytfyf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Padman.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.picselect.com/preview.jsp?application=3&id=17466765&section=">Picselect</a></span>
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</figure>
<p>It’s interesting to note that the first major film to tackle this issue focuses on a male entrepreneur. Yet there are many other organisations and inspirational individuals, usually women, working to challenge the stigma around periods. For example in India, there is Aditi Gupta, founder of the <a href="https://www.menstrupedia.com/">menstrupedia</a> comic, which aims to educate children about menstruation. Writer and peace campaigner <a href="http://www.rpfoundation.net/The_Radha_Paudel_Foundation/Welcome.html">Radha Paudel</a> is also challenging chaupadi in Nepal.</p>
<p>Education is key to changing attitudes to menstruation and in order to do this we need to engage men and boys. Perhaps male hero Padman is a first step. </p>
<p>Being able to manage menstruation safely and without stigma is a basic human right which many women and girls are denied. The silence and stigma around menstruation cannot be replaced by a new form of sanitary pad; it can however be challenged by discussion and awareness and Padman can perhaps play an important role in starting the conversation.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/90278/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kay Standing receives funding from British Academy. </span></em></p>A new Bollywood movie based on the story of an Indian entrepreneur who created affordable sanitary pads is helping to counter myths and taboos around menstruation.Kay Standing, Reader in Gender Studies, Liverpool John Moores UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/793482017-07-02T20:09:37Z2017-07-02T20:09:37ZIndigenous girls missing school during their periods: the state of hygiene in remote Australia<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/175945/original/file-20170628-16411-1nnzrvi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A new report paints a disturbing picture about the lack of hygiene in Aboriginal communities, that particularly disadvantages girls.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/bixentro/6711602383/in/photolist-be5Hyt-4xLYfa-d7m9f9-UTEgxq-VZdjZE-fABWSY-W99cvp-fPxGqz-tCDjx-nLNkcR-k5eGaa-4xRbPA-cyszGb-bvyceu-dArxBd-prMgTz-fz2Pbj-ci34jQ-fz2XbA-fUfXdX-dAm7J4-MQvbY-55DmaD-dAm5kt-TNjX-dAm5WT-ppJLMA-A8zQK-fzAmLC-c99Mss-nLPyi8-o2eDhU-nPAaam-VZdi5C-fzAkLh-nLLPpr-oBfkAQ-fAbcEb-fPxNm2-fGDybe-fzm1vk-nMekYM-qKom5A-4qWRX8-rD3GNH-dAm5Lg-qZDEzU-oTt85M-RKp2Y3-bFeoWC">bixentro/Flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Basic sanitary products can be unaffordable, unavailable or too shameful to buy for girls and women in Australia’s remote Indigenous communities. A <a href="http://gci.uq.edu.au/un-sustainable-development-goals-water-sanitation-and-hygiene">report</a> released today, containing interviews with organisations working in multiple remote Australian communities, reveals anecdotal evidence girls are missing school during their periods. </p>
<p>The interviews indicate women and girls may use toilet paper, socks and rags instead of expensive sanitary products, which were reported to cost A$10 a packet. Girls and women might not buy the items if a male relative is serving in the shop. Underwear is expensive, and there are some cultural taboos around washing and drying underwear in a visible place. </p>
<p>A representative from one of the 17 organisations interviewed told us:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>they don’t want to change [pads] at school […] often there’s no soap, […] there are often no rubbish bins or there’s one rubbish bin outside the toilet, which is really embarrassing to use. In terms of the infrastructure that we can put in place to help girls, it’s rubbish bins, it’s soap, it’s running water and toilets that flush, and privacy.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Complicating the picture might be the difficulty of changing or bathing in privacy because the toilet or shower might not work, or bathroom door might not lock. Girls don’t always receive traditional or conventional education about their bodily changes and functions, and how to manage menstruation hygienically. Contraceptive implants, which often cause disruptions in the monthly cycle, can lead to girls being unfamiliar with their cycle, particularly those who had them inserted before they began menstruating.</p>
<p>The report on remote communities in mainland Australia, conducted by the University of Queensland in partnership with <a href="http://www.wateraid.org/au">WaterAid</a>, has been released to coincide with <a href="http://www.naidoc.org.au/">NAIDOC (National Aboriginal and Islander Day Observance Committee)</a> Week. We found local health services had a limited capacity to respond to these challenges due to the focus on higher-priority diseases, such as rheumatic heart disease and diabetes. Perpetuating the situation is non-functioning hardware (toilets and taps) as a result of poor-quality materials, lack of maintenance and <a href="http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/4714.0">overcrowding</a> in homes.</p>
<h2>Addressing basic human rights</h2>
<p>Australia is a signatory to the <a href="https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdg6">United Nations Sustainable Development Goals</a>, which include targets for access to adequate and equitable sanitation and hygiene for all; as well as ending open defecation and paying special attention to the needs of women and girls.</p>
<p>Access to sanitary items, water and washing facilities, as well as education about menstruation are basic human rights. Water and toilets are <a href="http://journals.plos.org/plosmedicine/article?id=10.1371/journal.pmed.1001962">essential for women to manage menstruation</a>. Yet it’s shocking to find not all Australians enjoying the same access to these fundamentals.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/175946/original/file-20170628-12943-5i12n6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/175946/original/file-20170628-12943-5i12n6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/175946/original/file-20170628-12943-5i12n6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/175946/original/file-20170628-12943-5i12n6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/175946/original/file-20170628-12943-5i12n6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/175946/original/file-20170628-12943-5i12n6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/175946/original/file-20170628-12943-5i12n6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/175946/original/file-20170628-12943-5i12n6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Indigenous Australian girls are being denied basic human rights.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/k-girl/10106555/in/photolist-TNjX-dAm5WT-ppJLMA-A8zQK-fzAmLC-c99Mss-nLPyi8-o2eDhU-nPAaam-VZdi5C-fzAkLh-nLLPpr-oBfkAQ-fAbcEb-4qWRX8-fPxNm2-fGDybe-rD3GNH-fzm1vk-nMekYM-dAm5Lg-qKom5A-qZDEzU-oTt85M-RKp2Y3-bFeoWC-p1sJc1-o4atTA-fz34YY-qKvWn6-gVjRa-jZzWi-rmB2rr-r2S6ff-cMUAsJ-qKn9g5-6nD8K-dAm5oz-7acMGB-nKrVD2-dAm5rp-prK4mw-2Hwdw4-nLNAUo-pagvFK-fUeute-fyxZr8-nFkpfY-qKurbK-nLMovj">Kristy/Flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The situation isn’t difficult to address, but the connections between the various aspects are crucial to understand first. The logistical, financial, cultural and educational barriers are similar to those experienced in developing countries around the world. These are covered by UNICEF under its <a href="https://www.unicef.org/wash/schools/files/MHM_vConf_2014.pdf">menstrual hygiene management</a> campaigns.</p>
<p>In Australia, programs are already under way that address pieces of this puzzle. The community group Central Australian Youth Link-Up Service has created a <a href="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/50061cbb84ae216bb5cb9339/t/580d7649ebbd1a2239a1a6ee/1477277277211/MHM_brochure_e-version.pdf">practical toolkit</a> aimed at developing more “girl friendly” spaces. These include girls having access to privacy, toilet paper, running water and informed staff who are conscious of the problems.</p>
<p>The service works with clinics, local youth programs and schools to ensure access to information, pads, underwear and safe disposal bins. One teacher at a school in central Australia’s Barkly region <a href="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/50061cbb84ae216bb5cb9339/t/580d7649ebbd1a2239a1a6ee/1477277277211/MHM_brochure_e-version.pdf">told the service</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>I have tampons and pads, and undies available for the girls in the classroom, and I have a key which some girls get from me so they can get pads or tampons from the cabinet in the toilet.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The NSW government’s <a href="http://www.health.nsw.gov.au/environment/aboriginal/Pages/housing-for-health.aspx">Housing for Health</a> program has repaired taps, toilets and showers in almost 3,500 houses, to support <a href="http://www.healthabitat.com/the-healthy-living-practices">healthy living practices</a>. The NSW Aboriginal Land Council has partnered with the state government to provide <a href="http://www.alc.org.au/nswalc-in-the-community/water-and-sewerage.aspx">water and sewerage infrastructure</a> operation and maintenance to 61 communities. This is funded with A$200 million for 25 years.</p>
<p>The Queensland government is <a href="http://www.hpw.qld.gov.au/Housing/SocialHousing/CommunityHousing/Indigenous%20Housing%20Programs/Pages/default.aspx">building new homes</a> and upgrading others in 34 remote communities. </p>
<p>These and other programs need to work together to address the bigger social and economic picture, including the links between overcrowding, housing infrastructure and health living practices. These operate in the context of cultural, social and political imperatives of Aboriginal people who wish to live on country, which can mean living very remotely. There also remains a traumatic legacy from colonisation that continues to impact these communities.</p>
<p>The interviewees in our report stated it was time to raise our expectations for the standard of services in all Australian locations. One interviewee said:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Non-Indigenous people who go out to communities quickly lower their expectations to what’s the prevailing norm […] You’re in Australia […] the benchmark [should be] an urban clinic in Darwin or Sydney.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>We will celebrate Australian Indigenous culture during this year’s NAIDOC Week and continue to work towards the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals for water and hygiene. When doing so, let’s act to ensure girls have access to affordable sanitary items, girl-friendly toilets and washing facilities. This will enable them to manage their monthly periods hygienically, privately and with dignity.</p>
<hr>
<p><em>This article was co-authored with Chelsea Huggett, WaterAid Australia, and Leyla Iten, Central Australian Youth Link Up Service.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/79348/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nina Lansbury does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Our report shows poor hygiene in remote Indigenous communities is responsible for girls missing school during their periods due to lack of products and knowledge, and feelings of shame. .Nina Lansbury, Lecturer, Environmental Health Unit, School of Public Health, The University of QueenslandLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/601262016-05-31T14:28:21Z2016-05-31T14:28:21ZFree sanitary towels could help keep Tanzanian girls in school<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/124495/original/image-20160530-7722-1kffppe.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Many girls stay away from school when they're menstruating.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Finbarr O'Reilly/Reuters</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>In the world’s poorer countries and rural areas – most particularly in Africa and Asia – girls who are menstruating usually <a href="http://www.newtimes.co.rw/section/article/2015-06-14/189710/">can’t afford sanitary towels</a>. Instead, they’ll use old rags. Worse, some will use <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/global-development-professionals-network/2015/oct/02/menstruation-flo-periods-less-of-a-pain-for-girls-asia-africa">unhygienic substances</a> like sand, sawdust, leaves or ash. And, no matter what they use as sanitary material, they’re very likely to skip school during their periods.</p>
<p>Research has estimated that <a href="http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0022/002267/226792e.pdf">one in ten</a> African adolescent girls misses school while menstruating. Many eventually drop out because of <a href="http://allafrica.com/stories/201601051305.html">menstruation-related issues</a>. These include the fact that affordable sanitary protection isn’t easy to access, the <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-to-break-down-the-stigma-and-taboo-around-menstruation-59751">social taboos</a> related to menstruation and the <a href="http://www.ijsr.net/archive/v3i10/MDMwOTE0MDQ%3D.pdf">culture of silence</a> that surrounds it.</p>
<p>Part of the research I’m doing for my PhD in education relates to whether providing free sanitary towels to girls in Tanzania’s poor areas – particularly in informal urban settlements – could improve school attendance. Research elsewhere on the continent has shown that this <a href="https://theconversation.com/kenyan-schoolgirls-dread-their-periods-but-simple-changes-could-help-48528">ought</a> to be the case.</p>
<h2>Growth of urban informal settlements</h2>
<p>Informal urban settlements are increasingly common in Tanzania, as they are in many African countries. There’s often minimal sanitation and low levels of hygiene in such settlements, as they are overcrowded and lack formal infrastructure. Their residents are very vulnerable to outbreaks of water-borne diseases <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2838775/">like cholera</a>.</p>
<p>Women and children tend to be most affected by this lack of hygiene. Researchers have pointed out that many <a href="http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0130777">reproductive infections</a> are potentially triggered by poor menstrual hygiene management. These diseases can, if left unchecked, make women more vulnerable to complications in pregnancy and childbirth.</p>
<p>As these settlements grow, so does the demand for schooling in and around them. In Dar es Salaam’s Manzese informal settlement for instance, there are more than 25 primary and secondary schools. These are surrounded by congested makeshift houses with poor drainage systems. Most of the schools have very few toilets or latrines – certainly not enough for all pupils and teachers. </p>
<p><a href="http://www.right-to-education.org/news/tanzania-implements-free-education-policy-secondary-education">Education is free</a> at both primary and secondary level in Tanzania. That’s what the policy says, at least. In reality, while parents don’t have to pay tuition fees, they do bear the costs of things like textbooks, uniforms and bus fare.</p>
<p>Worse still, the country’s ambitious “free education” programme doesn’t consider the issue of menstrual health. It has not, for instance, made sanitary towels available to school girls – whether for free or at a subsidised rate. Providing these towels is a key way to keep girls in school, as research from neighbouring Kenya <a href="http://www.osisa.org/buwa/regional/menstruation-and-education-how-lack-sanitary-towels-reduces-school-attendance-kenyan-s">has proved</a>. This is a matter of some concern for Tanzanian authorities and education experts: the <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/us-tanzania-girls-education-idUSKCN0YH1FQ">drop-out rate</a> among girls is high, with many never enrolling in secondary school.</p>
<p>There is no focused nationwide campaign to improve this situation. One <a href="http://www.inclusivebusinesshub.org/page/project-profile-banapads">pilot project</a> is providing affordable sanitary towels in seven of Tanzania’s 100 schooling districts. Sometimes private philanthropists will provide a school of their choice with free sanitary towels. Such interventions are fine in the short term. But Tanzania urgently needs proper policies about menstruation and sanitary towels that will help the country’s girls and young women.</p>
<p>Again, neighbouring Kenya provides some guidance in this regard: in one of that country’s major informal settlements, Kiandutu, the state broadcasting corporation introduced and led a campaign that <a href="https://www.worldpulse.com/en/community/users/lifesong/posts/15586">donated sanitary towels</a> to adolescent girls every month for a year.</p>
<h2>Recommendations</h2>
<p>There are a few ways for Tanzania to tackle this important issue proactively. For instance, the country should start looking at low-cost local production methods for sanitary towels. Imports cost money and this might make any programme unsustainable in the long term. If the government works with vocational and training colleges, it could deal with two issues: the need for cheap but hygienic sanitary towels and the need to create jobs. Poor, unemployed women could be taught to make these products.</p>
<p>Tanzania parliamentarians also need to display political will. When the next year’s education budget is prepared, policymakers and education practitioners should push for a special fund that will support nationwide free sanitary towels. Of course it’s not menstrual issues alone that keep girls out of school, and work is needed in other areas to ensure that attendance improves. But a proper, politically backed policy is crucial if the country is really serious about keeping girls in school and not letting a biological fact of life hold them back.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/60126/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Agatha Isingo does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>When girls know that they have access to hygienic, safe sanitary products they are less likely to skip school while menstruating.Agatha Isingo, PhD Candidate, University of Dar es SalaamLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/597512016-05-24T12:12:46Z2016-05-24T12:12:46ZHow to break down the stigma and taboo around menstruation<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/123348/original/image-20160520-4466-kguxnc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">There are very few spaces in which girls can discuss menstruation or ask questions about it.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Reuters/Zohra Bensemra</span></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>Girls around the world, and particularly in developing countries, <a href="https://theconversation.com/kenyan-schoolgirls-dread-their-periods-but-simple-changes-could-help-48528">dread</a> getting their periods. They can’t access proper sanitary wear and often don’t have underwear to hold pads in place. School bathrooms aren’t clean and hygienic, and some schools don’t have running water so that girls can keep their hands and bodies clean while menstruating. Ahead of <a href="http://menstrualhygieneday.org/materials/theme-for_2016/">Menstrual Hygiene Day</a> on May 28, The Conversation Africa’s education editor Natasha Joseph chatted to Dr Lindsay Kelland, from South Africa’s Rhodes University, about the <a href="https://www.ru.ac.za/latestnews/vcsdistinguishedawardlectureforcommunityengagementthesiyahlumaproject.html">Siyahluma Project Group</a>, which is working to change the discussion around menstruation.</em></p>
<p><strong>When was the Siyahluma Project Group launched and what sparked the idea to establish it?</strong></p>
<p>The initial research group was formed in Grahamstown, South Africa, in late 2013. It was a partnership between the <a href="https://www.ru.ac.za/criticalstudies/about/">Critical Studies in Sexualities and Reproduction Research Unit</a>, the <a href="http://www.ru.ac.za/agcle/">Allan Gray Centre for Leadership Ethics</a> and Rhodes University’s Community Engagement office. We conducted a survey of Grade 11 learners in schools in the <a href="http://www.statssa.gov.za/publications/Report-03-01-71/Report-03-01-712011.pdf">Eastern Cape</a> province to identify the menstruation-related challenges faced by girls at school.</p>
<p>In 2014 we formed ongoing research partnerships with 24 schools. Surveys were distributed, collected, coded and captured for approximately 1,100 learners. That year we also formed a partnership with five foster mothers who create reusable sanitary kits. That was when Siyahluma, the social enterprise, was born.</p>
<p>We initially heard about problems with access to sanitary products from a participant in the <a href="https://www.ru.ac.za/youthdevelopment/aboutus/programmes/youngwomenscommunitydialogues/">Young Women’s Dialogues</a> at Rhodes’ Community Engagement office. But we knew that we could only sustainably address the problems in our particular context by conducting a needs assessment in the Eastern Cape. There wasn’t much information about these issues. We could only find one study then about menstruation in South Africa. It <a href="http://www.ewisa.co.za/literature/files/ID85%20Paper291%20Roma%20E.pdf">dealt</a> with a different province, KwaZulu-Natal, and didn’t have anything to do with schools or schoolgirls.</p>
<p><strong>What are the prevailing attitudes towards and ideas about menstruation that you find among young people in the Eastern Cape, where you’re working?</strong></p>
<p>There is so much stigma and a lot of taboo surrounding the topic. This is particularly because of the links between menstruation – and particularly <a href="http://www.webmd.com/children/tc/menarche-topic-overview">menarche</a>, the onset of menstruation – and sexuality. Girls who completed the survey indicated that they don’t often have these conversations with their mothers because it is inappropriate to talk about sexuality. It’s actually often deemed taboo to speak to men: young girls report wanting to talk to their fathers, boyfriends or male friends to help them understand what is happening to them, but they can’t because of this taboo. </p>
<p>What we found when opening up these spaces in the schools with younger children was that both males and females are keen to talk and learn about menstruation, and they have a lot of questions. A Grade 7 boy at one of the schools actually asked, “Is it real?” – which indicates that these spaces haven’t previously been opened up.</p>
<p>There is a significant amount of secrecy surrounding menstruation in the Eastern Cape, as everywhere, and this expresses itself as a drive to conceal menstruation – again, as is the case everywhere. However, our data shows that the consequences of being “found out” include not only humiliation and shame, but also a very real danger of sexual violation. Girls report not feeling safe using the sanitation facilities at their schools. Sometimes this has to do with the fact that young girls who have begun menstruating, and so have shifted into womanhood, are sexually abused by male peers and teachers.</p>
<p><strong>The project uses theatre to get boys and girls talking openly about menstruation. It’s also introduced modules about menstruation into schools’ curricula, and set up the community sewing group you mentioned. That’s a lot of angles, and perhaps that stems from the multidisciplinary makeup of the group. How important is that multidisciplinary approach to your work?</strong></p>
<p>It’s key. The people who now form the Siyahluma group bring a lot of different skills and resources to the table. We’ve really had to rely on each other’s strengths in bringing everything together, from research skills to community links, theatre skills and curriculum development.</p>
<p>The ability to rely on the members of your team is so central to getting things done and moving forward, especially when this problem is so complex and we need to think up creative ways to tackle it together. Working with this team has been a privilege and people’s enthusiasm at the schools to get involved has been remarkable.</p>
<p><strong>Tell us a bit about the sewing project. How did it come about?</strong></p>
<p>In 2014, a new stakeholder from the community approached the research team. A group of five foster mothers from Grahamstown Child Welfare Services had come together with the idea of starting a social enterprise to produce reusable sanitary products. Our research team decided to partner with this initiative as we’d found that it’s really hard for school-going girls to access modern, reliable, hygienic products affordably.</p>
<p><strong>What comes next for the Siyahluma Project Group? Can its lessons and its successes be extrapolated elsewhere on the continent?</strong></p>
<p>Each “arm” of the project is moving forward. In terms of the research, papers and policy briefs are being written. New masters and honours students are working towards their degrees using and furthering the research that’s already been done.</p>
<p>The initiatives are also moving forward – we’ve formed partnerships with clinics in rural Glenmore and Ndwayana, both in the Eastern Cape. In terms of the social enterprise, a partnership has been formed with <a href="http://www.daysforgirls.org/">Days For Girls International</a> in the US, which goes a long way to ensuring that the enterprise is sustainable in the long term.</p>
<p><em>Author’s note: The Siyahluma Project Group would like to acknowledge its NGO partners: FAMSA, GADRA Advice, Child Welfare, the Assumption Development Centre and Business Training, Rotary, Days for Girls International and the Ubunye Foundation.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/59751/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Siyahluma is funded internally by the various departments at Rhodes University and by Days for Girls International.
</span></em></p>Menstruation is a fact of life – but in many parts of Africa, it’s something that young women dread. A South African research group is working to change this.Lindsay Kelland, Postdoctoral Fellow in the Allan Gray Centre for Leadership Ethics, Rhodes UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/499132015-10-28T17:03:40Z2015-10-28T17:03:40ZWhy it’s so hard to lift the tampon tax<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/99979/original/image-20151028-21112-oxn1i9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">From www.shutterstock.com</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The “tampon tax” is firmly back on the European agenda. In a single month, French MPs have voted against reducing the rate of value-added tax (VAT) on sanitary products <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-34538672">from 20% to 5%</a>, and British MPs have voted against an amendment to chancellor George Osborne’s finance bill to remove VAT on sanitary <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-34645179">products</a>. </p>
<p>Currently in the UK, a rate of 5% <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/vat-notice-70118-womens-sanitary-protection-products/vat-notice-70118-womens-sanitary-protection-products">is charged</a> on sanitary productions which equates to £3 of an average £60 yearly spend. In Hungary <a href="http://thehoneyballbuzz.com/2015/04/10/why-ukips-focus-on-the-tampon-tax-is-misleading/">the rate of tax is 27%</a> but the lowest permissible rate across the EU for sanitary products is 5%.</p>
<h2>What is VAT?</h2>
<p>VAT was first introduced in the UK as a fundamental condition of joining the EU common market. Goods and services in the UK are taxable under four different <a href="https://www.gov.uk/vat-rates">VAT categories</a>: the standard rate (20%), the reduced rate (5%), the zero-rate (0%) and VAT exempt. The UK government in 1975 negotiated everyday essential items that were to be classified at the 0% rate. This included food and children’s clothing. The negotiation was final and, crucially, did not include sanitary products. </p>
<p>Sanitary products were charged at the standard rate in the UK until the <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2001/feb/14/budget2001.budget">2000 budget</a> at which point the VAT rate on sanitary products was reduced to 5%.</p>
<p>The <a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/en/TXT/?uri=CELEX:32006L0112">essential legal instrument</a> regulating VAT application across the EU contains three provisions relevant to the tampon tax. Article 98 states that member states may apply a discretionary reduced rate to goods and services, including sanitary products. Article 99 provides the reduced rates may not be less than 5%. The UK’s zero-rated items status is preserved by Article 110.</p>
<h2>A tax on gender</h2>
<p>Although there is a cost-saving element, there is also the fact that charging VAT on an everyday essential item for women means the tax becomes a tax on gender. It is a form of discrimination based on a natural biological process authorised by a primarily male government from 40 years ago.</p>
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<p>Campaigners highlight that exotic meats (such as kangaroo steaks) and alcoholic dessert jellies are <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/vat-notice-70114-food/vat-notice-70114-food">zero-rated</a>. In terms of VAT classification, these items are deemed to be more essential than sanitary products. Sanitary products as a consequence are classed as non-essential luxury items.</p>
<h2>Can the government lift the tax?</h2>
<p>A long-term solution is difficult, because the current UK government is bound by the negotiations of a previous administration that took place four decades ago. Although unpopular with campaigners, the action of MPs to vote against the amendment is understandable: the UK is required to apply EU law and are legally correct to continue to apply the 5% rate at the moment. </p>
<p>The long-term solution from a UK perspective is to negotiate with the European Commission to produce an amendment to the directive and the other member states to authorise the change in position. </p>
<p>Following the House of Commons vote, the financial chief secretary to the treasury, David Gauke <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-34645179">said he would</a> “raise this issue with the European Commission and other member states setting out our views that it should be possible for member states to apply a zero-rate to sanitary products.” It is surprising that a request has not been made to the European Commission sooner given the campaign to reduce and remove VAT on these items dates back to the late 1990s.</p>
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<h2>What campaigners can do</h2>
<p>There is a way for campaigners to mandate the European Commission to investigate whether it has the ability to draft an amendment irrespective of the outcome of the commission’s review. The <a href="http://ec.europa.eu/citizens-initiative/public/welcome">European Citizens Initiative</a> is a petitioning system whereby at least a million signatories across seven EU member states can participate directly in the development of EU policies. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.change.org/p/george-osborne-stop-taxing-periods-period">UK petition</a> has far in excess of the required number of signatures to fulfil this and the existence of <a href="https://www.change.org/p/michel-sapin-r%C3%A8gles-et-tva-le-tampon-on-l-a-en-travers-de-la-gorge">similar campaign groups</a> across the EU with a significant number of signatures shows this process may be successful. </p>
<h2>Short-term fixes</h2>
<p>There are certain voluntary measures that both retailers and the government can do in spite of the current legal difficulties to make the best of a bad situation. </p>
<p>Retailers could be encouraged <a href="http://www.ueastudent.com/articles/we-re-going-profit-free-on-sanitary-products">to follow the example</a> of the University of East Anglia student’s union and sell sanitary products profit free in order to mitigate the financial impact of VAT to consumers. Committing to this approach may benefit in the long run, attracting new customers who may purchase other products for profit. Still, this would be a voluntary agreement and would fail to address the underlying issue of the symbolic existence of VAT and the tax paid would still be collected by the central treasury.</p>
<p>The government should consider waiving the income generated from VAT on sanitary products if possible. If this is the case the chancellor may be able to allocate funds raised by the tax to good causes. </p>
<p>In the spring and summer budgets of 2015, Osborne <a href="http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/budget-2015-libor-scandal-charities-to-benefit-from-75m-rate-rigging-fines-10117853.html">allocated revenue accrued from Libor fines</a> to specified good causes. The government could negotiate with campaigners to determine a list of appropriate good causes whereby the best is made of a bad situation and the tax, although paid disproportionately by one gender, could be used to support charities that assist women. </p>
<p>This would mean that the tax, although unpopular, could still have a positive social impact.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/49913/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Michael Randall does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The government’s hands are tied on taxing tampons, but there are alternatives.Michael Randall, PhD Candidate in European Law, University of LeedsLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.