Period Poverty (Part 1): What Is Period Poverty?
Let’s talk about a health and justice issue (that isn’t a virus). Let’s talk about period poverty.
This will be a three-part blog, with this first post explaining the issue. The second part is an interview with a local teen organizer who helped put on a tampon drive and presented it at the United Nations, and the third part is about nationwide advocacy. Let’s get into it!
I didn’t know about period poverty until middle school. One day, the Gender Equity Organization (GEO) club put up signs all over campus with statistics about period poverty. Since we rarely see infographics centered on a clip-art uterus, they grabbed attention.
Period poverty is the inability to afford menstrual hygiene products. Over 1.2 billion women around the world lack access to basic sanitation and hygiene, so this is on a massive global scale. This is an issue of gender equality because most menstruators are women, and also trans rights because not all menstruators are women and not all women menstruate.
A person on a menstrual cycle will be on their period for an average of 2,535 days in their lifetime. We can’t control it, we have to pay for it, and that’s a lot of time! For what this means in the United States, consider that a lifetime supply of menstrual hygiene products costs thousands of dollars, and they aren’t eligible for coverage under SNAP benefits.
In Missouri, the sales tax applied to tampons is about ten percent while the sales tax on food is about 6.6%. This cost adds up. Outside the United States, pads and tampons aren’t even available in some countries and regions.
Because of the stigma surrounding menstruation, period poverty is an issue of health and dignity for all menstruators. But how is this especially dangerous as a health issue? The alternatives to a safe hygiene product (toilet paper, newspaper, even reusing cloth) put menstruators at higher risk for infection, and this is daily (monthly, I suppose) reality for millions of people.
Over 131 million school aged-girls around the world are missing out on an education. Period poverty is a contributing factor, and the stigma alone is harmful to mental health. In the current pandemic, period poverty has been worsening as a heavier financial and emotional burden on isolated menstruators. On top of all that, it’s considered taboo to talk about?! How can we even start to address the consequences for health, education, and economic opportunity?
Learn more
If you are a menstruator or live with someone on a menstrual cycle, look around your home… how many pads, tampons, or other menstruation-related products can you find? Are they enough in quantity and quality, and what has that cost you or your family?
We can all learn about the various forms period poverty takes around the world. For example, I highly recommend the Oscar-winning Netflix documentary Period. End of Sentence. It’s 25 minutes long and takes place in rural India, where many of the women featured have never used period products.
Most of all, we need to be talking about periods. Start a conversation about period poverty (or just periods, if that topic doesn’t come up often in your home) between the menstruators and non-menstruators in your family and friend group. Even among menstruators, there’s a variety of perspectives. We all know Netflix makes for a great quarantine activity, so why not sit down with someone you’re self-isolating with and watch Period. End of Sentence together?
Thanks for reading; keep an eye out for part 2 sometime next week!
This will be a three-part blog, with this first post explaining the issue. The second part is an interview with a local teen organizer who helped put on a tampon drive and presented it at the United Nations, and the third part is about nationwide advocacy. Let’s get into it!
 |
| Credit @jbs.geo on Instagram |
I didn’t know about period poverty until middle school. One day, the Gender Equity Organization (GEO) club put up signs all over campus with statistics about period poverty. Since we rarely see infographics centered on a clip-art uterus, they grabbed attention.
Period poverty is the inability to afford menstrual hygiene products. Over 1.2 billion women around the world lack access to basic sanitation and hygiene, so this is on a massive global scale. This is an issue of gender equality because most menstruators are women, and also trans rights because not all menstruators are women and not all women menstruate.
A person on a menstrual cycle will be on their period for an average of 2,535 days in their lifetime. We can’t control it, we have to pay for it, and that’s a lot of time! For what this means in the United States, consider that a lifetime supply of menstrual hygiene products costs thousands of dollars, and they aren’t eligible for coverage under SNAP benefits.
 |
| A variety of pads and tampons in my house |
In Missouri, the sales tax applied to tampons is about ten percent while the sales tax on food is about 6.6%. This cost adds up. Outside the United States, pads and tampons aren’t even available in some countries and regions.
Because of the stigma surrounding menstruation, period poverty is an issue of health and dignity for all menstruators. But how is this especially dangerous as a health issue? The alternatives to a safe hygiene product (toilet paper, newspaper, even reusing cloth) put menstruators at higher risk for infection, and this is daily (monthly, I suppose) reality for millions of people.
Over 131 million school aged-girls around the world are missing out on an education. Period poverty is a contributing factor, and the stigma alone is harmful to mental health. In the current pandemic, period poverty has been worsening as a heavier financial and emotional burden on isolated menstruators. On top of all that, it’s considered taboo to talk about?! How can we even start to address the consequences for health, education, and economic opportunity?
Learn more
If you are a menstruator or live with someone on a menstrual cycle, look around your home… how many pads, tampons, or other menstruation-related products can you find? Are they enough in quantity and quality, and what has that cost you or your family?
We can all learn about the various forms period poverty takes around the world. For example, I highly recommend the Oscar-winning Netflix documentary Period. End of Sentence. It’s 25 minutes long and takes place in rural India, where many of the women featured have never used period products.
Most of all, we need to be talking about periods. Start a conversation about period poverty (or just periods, if that topic doesn’t come up often in your home) between the menstruators and non-menstruators in your family and friend group. Even among menstruators, there’s a variety of perspectives. We all know Netflix makes for a great quarantine activity, so why not sit down with someone you’re self-isolating with and watch Period. End of Sentence together?
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