Period Poverty - Causes

 

Period Poverty – Why and How

 

Period poverty by definition is the want of adequate access to menstrual hygiene products- of all types. It is essential to understand that period poverty is not limited to the inaccessibility of sanitary napkins but it is definitely a constituent. Lack of sanitary napkins puts women in a position where they seek for alternatives like rags, straw, sand among others – all potentially dangerous substances other than being very obviously not enough protection. This is also where the notion of embarrassment comes in – an unconscious attempt to hide a natural bodily function from the rest of the world, the world of men, the belief that it is an impurity to be hidden away.

• ·       The lack of knowledge surrounding menstrual hygiene is the origin of a problem that puts a question  mark on numerous women’s lives. A lot of times girls are not informed enough about the menstrual cycle and their body and thus, are scared with the onset of menarche, choosing to hide it as a bodily defect thus, hampering their access to menstrual products. Even the meagre knowledge about menstruation that most girls come to know themselves or through the elderly female figures around them is lacking because each person’s body is different. Someone who has never suffered from period cramps will not understand the one who spends her period days writhing in pain without knowledge of how much and what menstruation can really affect. Proper classes for educating not just women but everyone about the human body in all genders, menstruation and all its effects should be a necessity in human society today.
  
• ·       When procurement of the basic necessities of life itself is unsure, menstrual hygiene becomes a secondary issue, pushed far back from the minds of those affected. This also is a consequence of the tendency of women to put their families before themselves, thus, endangering their own health. Less income also affects diet and the general living space. Periods are not the same for everyone. Food affects its severity in the form of cramps, inflammation to a very large extent. Proper, nutritious food is an important requirement on period days. Hot water bags to ease pain is also a common practice which is unavailable to the women of the lower sections. Thus, low income is a reason why a lot of women do not get their needs sufficiently satisfied during their menstruation cycles. 
• ·       An ingrained patriarchy also is a contributor in this regard where women’s needs are neglected. The stigma around menstruation has its roots in the scriptures, the Manusmriti states that a Kandala, a village pig, a cock, a dog, a menstruating woman and a eunuch must not look at Brahmans while they were praying or eating. This categorization and menstrual exclusion is an instance of the way fragile masculinity seemed to need to be protected. A large number of cultures have somehow assumed and accepted the fact that menstruating women are impure, that the menstrual blood is something to be disgusted at – the reason why however, are nowhere to be found. It is very rare to have a conversation with men about periods without feeling ashamed at oneself because that is what the world has taught people. The great lengths that the menstruating sex goes through to keep their periods secret is a fallout of this archived notion. They are seen as weaker, a hindrance – mood swings are a common occurrence during periods and this is seen as an opportunity to highlight it as a weakness instead of a valid emotional and inherently biological response. All of these combine to collate the conclusory prevalent belief that periods are something to be hidden which becomes a hindrance to the access of proper menstrual products at the correct time.
• ·       Menstrual exiles are prevalent in some areas, especially in rural ones, where menstruating women are considered impure. Having to stay without even the convenience of a comfortable home or bed, often without a shelter, the health hazards increase. A survey report published by the National Library of Medicine in 2018, reports that the exiled girls often lacked a toilet facility, depriving them of a safe space to change. The survey was conducted in the Accham district of Nepal with 107 adolescent girls where 3 of the girls suffered from physical abuse and 9 were bitten by a snake. Similar incidents still occur in the rural, usually backward regions of the world and sometimes even affluent sections are not free from the mentality of the period taboo.  
  

The inability of women to get access to proper menstrual products, hygiene and safe spaces is a violation of the basic human rights. The taxation on menstrual products which is still in force in some countries makes them further inaccessible – whereas it is an item of basic necessity, a fundamental right. It has to be noted further that not all who menstruate are women. Those identifying as the third gender or the individuals who prefer not to conform to the binary gender norms, often struggle with regard to washrooms which are still vastly segregated into ‘for men’ and ‘for women’. Getting access to the necessary products becomes even more difficult for them for fear of being judged and ostracized. Thus, period poverty is a problem that is still being kept under the wraps. It not only has adverse effects on physical health but also on mental health and hence, needs to be talked and discussed, arriving at solutions and subsequently implementing them.

 

Madhurita Mahato,

Content Head.