Menstrual Hygiene Management for adolescent children

menstrual hygiene

1. Menstrual Hygiene Management
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Menstrual Hygiene
Menstruation, is normal
vaginal bleeding that
occurs as part of a
woman’s monthly cycle.
Menstrual hygiene is key
in promoting Good Health
Each person's experience of
menstrual cycle is different
Poor MH can pose serious
health risks.
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2. Menstrual Hygiene Management
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3. Menstrual Hygiene Management
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4. Menstrual Hygiene Management
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5. Menstrual Hygiene Management
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Changes during menstrual period
Physiological Behavioural
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6. Menstrual Hygiene Management
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Harmful restrictions
In some cultures, women and girls are told that
During their menstrual cycle they should not bathe (or
they will become infertile)
•Touch a cow (or it will become infertile)
•Look in a mirror (or it will lose its brightness)
•Touch a plant (or it will die)
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2. Beliefs, Myths and Taboos
Young women chatting
about menstrual issues.
Source: UNICEF (2008)

7. Menstrual Hygiene Management
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Other restrictions
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2. Beliefs, Myths and Taboos
Restrictions on girls during their menstrual
period in Afghanistan, India, Iran and
Nepal. Source: (HOUSE et al. 2012).

8. Menstrual Hygiene Management
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Relieving restrictions
Women may appreciate the ‘banishment’ to menstrual huts as
they are given a rest period from the normal intensity of daily
chores.
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2. Beliefs, Myths and Taboos
Zulu menstruation hut.
Source: RINDSTAD (2013)

9. Menstrual Hygiene Management
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Health Risks of Poor
Menstrual Hygiene
Management

10. Menstrual Hygiene Management
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Inappropriate hygiene practices (2/3)
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4. Health Risks of Poor Menstrual Hygiene Management
Source: HOUSE ET AL. (2012)
•Unclean sanitary pad materials (local
infections/bacteria can travel up the vagina
and enter uterine cavity)
•Changing pads infrequently (skin irritation by
wet pads)
•Insertion of unclean material into vagina
(easier infection , also of uterine cavity)
•Using highly absorbent tampons during light
blood loss or no menstruation (toxic shock
syndrome, vaginal irritation)

11. Menstrual Hygiene Management
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Inappropriate hygiene practices (2/2)
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4. Health Risks of Poor Menstrual Hygiene Management
Source: HOUSE ET AL. (2012)
•Wiping from back to front following urination
or defecation (bacteria can travel easier into
vagina)
•safe disposal of used sanitary materials or
blood (risk of infecting others with diseases)
•Frequent douching (forcing liquid into vagina
can introduce bacteria into uterine cavity)
•Lack of hand-washing after changing a
sanitary towel (can spread infections)

12. Menstrual Hygiene Management
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Sanitary protection materials (2/4)
Disposable
sanitary towels
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5. Menstrual Hygiene Management: Hardware
Source: HOUSE ET AL. (2012)

13. Menstrual Hygiene Management
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Sanitary protection materials (3/4)
Cloth or cloth pads
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5. Menstrual Hygiene Management: Hardware

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Sanitary protection materials (4/4)
Menstrual cup
•New technology appropriate for poor women and girls
•Cup made of medical silicone rubber that is inserted into the
vagina to collect menstrual blood
•Removed and emptied less frequently than sanitary pads
•Needs to maintain a high standard of hygiene especially
during insertion, removal and general cleaning
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5. Menstrual Hygiene Management: Hardware
Menstrual Cup by The
Moon Cup (UK).
Source:
http://www.mooncup.com/photographs.
html
[Accessed: 07.08.2013]
Instructions for menstrual cups.
Source: RUBYCUP (2013)

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Sanitary protection materials – advantages/disadvantages (1/2)
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5. Menstrual Hygiene Management: Hardware
Sanitary protection
option
Advantages Disadvantages
Natural materials (e.g.
mud, cow dung, leaves)
Free
Locally available
High risk of contamination
Difficult and uncomfortable to use
Strips of clothes Easily available in the
local market
Re-usable
If old cloths are not cleaned well they
can become unhygienic.
Users need somewhere private, with a
water supply and soap, to wash and
dry the cloths.
Toilet paper or tissuesEasily available in the
local market
Loses strength when wet and can fall
apart.
• Difficult to hold in place.
• May be too expensive for the
poorest users
Re-usable pads Available locally or on the
internet
Income generation
opportunity, if locally
made
Cost effective as are re-
usable
More environmentally-
friendly than disposable
pads
Users need somewhere private, with a
water
supply and soap, to wash and dry the
pads.
Cost is prohibitive to many potential
users, if commercially produced
Source: HOUSE ET AL. (2012)

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Sanitary protection materials – advantages/disadvantages (2/2)
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5. Menstrual Hygiene Management: Hardware
Sanitary protection
option
Advantages Disadvantages
Tampons Convenient and comfortable
to use
Not available in many contexts.
Cost is prohibitive to any potential users.
Generates a lot of waste to dispose, not
environmentally-friendly.
May not be culturally appropriate,
particularly for adolescent girls, as need to
be inserted into the vagina.
Hygiene and availability of water and soap
for hand-washing are particularly important,
as need to be inserted into the vagina.
Menstrual cups Re-usable
Only need emptying, washing
and drying
May not be culturally appropriate for use,
particularly for adolescent girls, as need to
be inserted into the vagina.
Hygiene and availability of water and soap
are particularly important, for washing
hands and menstrual cup, as need to be
inserted into the vagina.
Expensive first investment outlay.
Panties/ Underwear Useful for keeping a sanitary
product in place.
• Good for keeping the vaginal
area hygienic.
Cost may be prohibitive to potential users.
Cheap elastic can wear out relatively
quickly.
Source: HOUSE ET AL. (2012)

17. Menstrual Hygiene Management
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Disposal
•If lack of opportunities, dispose secretly and easily: thus on
defecation field, river or garbage dump
•Blocking toilets/filling up pits
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5. Menstrual Hygiene Management: Hardware
Disposing of non-biodegradable sanitary pads in
pit latrines leads to quick filling and thus
shortened service of the pit. Source: HOUSE ET AL. (2012)

18. Menstrual Hygiene Management
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DISPOSAL OF SANITARY PADS
sanitary pads
should never be
flushed down the
toilet because it
may clog the
drainage system
and lead to flooding
of the toilet.
After use, a
disposable sanitary
pad or a tampon
should be wrapped
in a newspaper or
toilet paper and
put in a garbage
bin.
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19. Menstrual Hygiene Management
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20. Menstrual Hygiene Management
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