Past progressive update on Menstrual Health

 It is generally considered that the use of sanitary napkins is equivalent to hygiene. This view is critically evaluated in light of evidence. In a highly competitive market, materials used in sanitary napkin products have evolved significantly. Policymakers and regulators need to be informed about the nature of products entering the Indian market and their implications on women’s health and cost to the environment. The menstrual hygiene market now offers some less-known innovations such as menstrual cups, reusable cloth pads and compostable sanitary napkins that could offer a more sustainable direction to the industry. However, they also have their own barriers to access and use. Given the increasing choice available in the market and potential for accessing information, it has become pertinent that relevant stakeholders—such as women, government officials and the media—are made aware of the basket of options for menstrual hygiene management. Field experiments done to this end indicate that informed choice will automatically ensure that cost to women’s health and the environment is minimised.

 

 In order to understand the real problems that are associated with menstrual health, it is essential to understand the difference between comfort and hygiene. Only then can we start to explore which need a sanitary napkin product really serves and whether it is, under all circumstances, the most hygienic option available. The problem statement also needs to explore how commoditisation of menstrual health in the form of a single product category has influenced the behaviours and practices of menstruating women. With limited availability and affordability, how do women weave in the use of traditional means like cloth with the use of sanitary napkins? What are the other factors in a woman’s life and environment that impact her menstruation-related behaviours and practices and make them hygienic or unhygienic? There is also increasing knowledge of the negative environmental impact of disposable sanitary napkins and the lack of recourse for handling increasing volumes of menstrual waste. But are consumers, policymakers and other stakeholders aware of this impact? Also, if the sanitary napkin market has evolved within an information vacuum, are there options for menstrual hygiene management that people are unaware of? If information about menstrual health were available to everyone freely and in its entirety, would choices of consumers and policymakers differ? Can such information, if available to policymakers and regulators, steer the industry in a more sustainable direction?

 

 The National Family Health Survey (NFHS-4, International Institute for Population Sciences [IIPS], 2015–2016) data suggests that 57.6 per cent of women in the age group of 15–24 years are now using sanitary pads, with some use of cloth as well. This number is at 77.5 per cent for urban populations and at 48.2 per cent for rural populations. While urban usage of sanitary pads is expected to be high given greater levels of awareness and accessibility, the rural usage amongst young girls also suggests rapidly increasing access. This could be because of free or subsidised distribution of sanitary pads through government schools as part of the erstwhile Menstrual Hygiene Scheme under Rashtriya Kishor Swasthya Karyakram (RKSK) of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and now through state-sponsored schemes