There is little evidence that pads alone will keep girls in school – stigma, lack of appropriate infrastructure, and embarrassment need to be dealt with too.
Women might find themselves reaching for sweets and potato chips in the two weeks before their period, even if they don’t have a diagnosis of PMS. An OBGYN explains these cyclical food cravings.
Period pain is common, and the evidence shows it can hinder a woman’s performance at school, university and work. To tackle this problem, we need to start talking about it.
Sara Parker, Liverpool John Moores University et Kay Standing, Liverpool John Moores University
Chhaupadi, the practice of exiling menstruating women and girls from their home, often to a cow shed, is still practised in some areas of Western Nepal.
Studies show oestrogen protects against depression and psychotic symptoms. So falls in the hormone, as happens before menstruation, can lead to depressive and other symptoms of mental illness.
Endometriosis can cause a number of severe symptoms, including period pain. But painful periods alone aren’t a surefire indicator of endometriosis. Here’s what else to look out for.
Men spend, on average, around 60 seconds in a toilet, while women spend 90. This is for many reasons, including biology. This leads to a bottleneck that keeps women waiting around to use the loo.
There are more than 30 different types of contraceptive pills. But brand names such as Microgynon, Levlen, Yaz and Brenda give little indication of the ingredients, dose or who should use them.
Women on the pill are able to manipulate or suppress their menstrual cycles to have fewer “periods”, or to avoid bleeding at important or inconvenient times.