Menstrual Products at Schools -- Neeraja Nair

    A problem that many face is being on their periods during school and not having pads or tampons. Many schools don’t provide free pads or tampons but here at Uni, we’re lucky enough to get them for free. So should schools provide free pads and tampons?

    What exactly is a menstrual cycle and what are menstrual products? “The monthly cycle of changes in the ovaries and the lining of the uterus (endometrium), starting with the preparation of an egg for fertilization” (https://www.rxlist.com/menstrual_cycle/definition.htm). Basically, each month, a person with a vulva experiences something called a menstrual cycle or a period. Each month, a person with a vulva makes ovaries which are eggs for fertilization. Blood lines the uterus to support the egg. If the individual is not pregnant, then their body lets go of the blood which is what period blood is. Menstrual products are used to absorb or collect the blood and tissue. Some examples of menstrual products would be pads, tampons, and menstrual cups.

    Menstrual products are similar to toilet paper, band-aids, and soap. We use toilet paper and band-aids in our everyday lives to keep us safe and healthy. Similar to these products, menstrual products are also used to catch menstrual flow. If there wasn’t something to stop the flow, then your clothes would be stained and you wouldn’t be very hygienic.

    There are many in this world that are not financially stable enough to buy something as small as menstrual products each month. “Recent studies have shown that about a quarter of menstruating students struggle with access to period products, and that many teens still feel a stigma around menstruation” (https://www.npr.org/2021/12/02/1056830306/free-tampons-public-schools). This problem is not just happening in the United States. “Globally, an estimated 500 million people who menstruate lack access to menstrual products and hygiene facilities” (https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/period-poverty#:~:text=Globally%2C%20an%20estimated%20500%20million,poverty%20in%20the%20United%20States.). Menstrual products are important for an individual to stay healthy and comfortable during their cycle. Not only that, in schools there have been reports of students missing class time because of the lack of menstrual products. “The study found that 4 in 5 menstruating teens said they have either missed class time, or know someone who missed class time, because they did not have access to period products.” (https://www.npr.org/2021/12/02/1056830306/free-tampons-public-schools).

    So what can we do to solve this problem? We can start off small. Getting menstrual products available to a few people at first and then making it accessible to more and more people throughout the years.

    Slowly, we are starting to make a change in this country. In January, 2021, 20 bills were introduced across the nation to “advance period health policies across the United States. There are now more than 140 bills in 37 states — including 8 bills introduced on the federal level — to advance menstrual equity through addressing the safety, access and/or affordability of period care products” (https://www.womensvoices.org/2021/01/11/period-health-policies-is-your-state-working-to-make-menstrual-equity-a-priority/). We are not the only ones that are making changes. In China, a campaign called Stand by Her have been increasing the awareness of menstrual cycles and the lack of menstrual products at school. “It started when a single box of free sanitary pads appeared in a middle school classroom in October. Then a plastic container with pads was attached to the walls of four bathrooms in a university in Shanghai. By Monday, boxes and bags of individually wrapped pads had popped up outside bathrooms in at least 338 schools and colleges across China. Each carried a version of the same instructions: “Take one, then put one back later. Stop period shaming.”” (https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/09/world/asia/china-period-shame-universities.html).

   

    Even a small change can make a huge difference. The more aware people are of certain situations, the more understanding and supportive they are. I believe that it should be mandatory for schools to provide menstrual products to students for free. But not only provide these products, but also make people aware of what periods are and the struggle that individuals are going through.