Menstrual Hygiene, Management, and Waste Disposal: Practices and Challenges Faced by Girls/Women of Developing Countries

Abstract

Menstruation and menstrual practices still face many social, cultural, and religious restrictions which are a big barrier in the path of menstrual hygiene management. In many parts of the country especially in rural areas girls are not prepared and aware about menstruation so they face many difficulties and challenges at home, schools, and work places. While reviewing literature, we found that little, inaccurate, or incomplete knowledge about menstruation is a great hindrance in the path of personal and menstrual hygiene management. Girls and women have very less or no knowledge about reproductive tract infections caused due to ignorance of personal hygiene during menstruation time. In rural areas, women do not have access to sanitary products or they know very little about the types and method of using them or are unable to afford such products due to high cost. So, they mostly rely on reusable cloth pads which they wash and use again. Needs and requirements of the adolescent girls and women are ignored despite the fact that there are major developments in the area of water and sanitation. Women manage menstruation differently when they are at home or outside; at homes, they dispose of menstrual products in domestic wastes and in public toilets and they flush them in the toilets without knowing the consequences of choking. So, there should be a need to educate and make them aware about the environmental pollution and health hazards associated with them. Implementation of modern techniques like incineration can help to reduce the waste. Also, awareness should be created to emphasize the use of reusable sanitary products or the natural sanitary products made from materials like banana fibre, bamboo fibre, sea sponges, water hyacinth, and so on.

Figure 1

Types of sanitary products used by women during menstruation are (a) reusable cloth pads (https://www.etsy.com/market/cloth_menstrual_pads); (b) commercial sanitary pads (http://topyaps.com/things-girl-must-know-about-sanitary-pads); (c) tampons (http://www.womensvoices.org/tag/tampons/); (d) pads made from banana fibre (https://saathipads.com/); (e) sea sponges used as sanitary material (https://www.pinterest.com/pin/194640015120225878/); (f) pads made up of water hyacinth (https://www.ecouterre.com/jani-a-biodegradable-sanitary-napkin-made-from-water-hyacinth/); (g) menstrual cup (http://rubycup.com/blog/how-to-clean-the-suction-holes-of-your-menstrual-cup/); (h) pads made from wool (https://www.pinterest.com/pin/198088083583361670/); (i) reusable tampons (http://naturalparentsnetwork.com/reusable-menstrual-products/).

Figure 2

Sanitary napkin vending machine. Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/pune/sanitary-napkin-vending-machines/articleshow/57824878.cms.

Figure 3

Incinerator installed in the toilet for easy sanitary products disposal. Source: http://www.vendingbiz.in/sanitary-napkin-incinerators-napkinci-maxi-1902444.html.

Figure 4

Incinerators used to dispose of menstrual waste in rural areas of India: (a) clay incinerator (http://www.ecoideaz.com/innovative-green-ideas/ashudhinashak-clay-incinerators-for-sanitary-napkins); (b) mud incinerator (https://www.thebetterindia.com/87876/master-art-deal-with-menstrual-waste/); (c) cement incinerator (http://www.ecoideaz.com/innovative-green-ideas/ashudhinashak-clay-incinerators-for-sanitary-napkins).