nblik (1)-part-5

1. 5. Menstruation and the problems associated with it! Do you know how many women in India menstruate? There are 40 crore menstruating women in India. Do you know how many of them use Sanitary napkins or pads? The number is less than 20%. So, what does this mean? This only indicates that most females do not have consistent access to good-quality menstrual hygiene products and that too every month. Then what do women all over India use when they are on their periods? Data shows that around 88% of women and girls in India use unhygienic homemade alternatives, such as old cloth, rags, hay, sand, or ash. Can you guess how harmful all these are for women? Can you imagine how many fatal diseases spread by using these materials? And this horror does not stop hereAbout 71% of adolescent girls in India remain unaware of menstruation until they get their first period. Women are afraid to talk about it, even with their own daughters. Most men do not know, others do not care. This adversely affects the confidence and self-esteem of females all over our country. This lack of awareness means that they do not prioritise menstrual health as an essential need. Sanitary napkins are not that cheap and thus, underprivileged women are unable to afford them for themselves or their daughters. They suffer and so do their daughters.Even today, menstrual cups are unaffordable for a lot of urban women.The ones that can afford them feel that they would be uncomfortable. Others are afraid of inserting something inside them.