Menstrual hygiene important for prevention of infection, infertility

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2 years ago

Mrs Ezinne Ibe recalls she started seeing her menses when she was 12 years old. She did not really know much about what it was despite having elder sisters, her mummy and staying in the city.

“I did not have much information about menstruation until it started happening to me, even though I had an elder sister. But I remember that I was the person that went to buy my sanitary towel for the first time,” she said.

Ibe, the founder of the Female Professionals’ Book Club, relating her experience at the 2023 Menstrual Hygiene Day at the Oba Akinbiyi Model High School, Oremeji, Ibadan, said like her, many girls in Nigeria do not have the privilege of understanding fully what was happening when they start to menstruate.

She added: “As the invited girls from different public schools in Ibadan filed in and stood to sing the national anthem, I was moved to tears because not many girls were privileged to be able to afford sanitary pads or to have appropriate information on menstrual hygiene practices.”

For instance, 15-year-old Esther only has access to sanitary pads whenever donations are made in her school or neighbourhood.

“I cannot afford sanitary pads. My aunty, whom I live with, taught me to cut my old clothes in pieces; I lay them till they are thick enough to carry me for the day. In most cases, I am soiled. This makes me so uncomfortable and sad,” she said.

Periods, what some commonly refer to as ‘menses’, are different for everyone, but if there is something that must be common, it has to be hygiene practices during menstruation.

Unfortunately, millions of Nigerian schoolgirls, especially in rural, hard-to-reach, conflict-affected, and underserved communities still battle with menstrual hygiene management due to insufficent or non-affordability of sanitary pads, and water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) facilities, gender inequality, discriminatory social norms, and cultural taboos.

UNESCO, in its reports, said that one in 10 girls in sub-Saharan Africa misses school during her menstrual cycle, an average of about 20 percent of a given school year. And in Nigeria, 25 percent of women lack adequate privacy for menstrual hygiene management.

Dr Gbemisola Daramola, a medical doctor, who spoke at the Female Professionals’ Book Club’s menstrual hygiene day in Ibadan, said pad poverty and inadequate sanitary facilities still prevent many girls during their menstruation from going to school.

She stated that the knowledge of menstruation was poor in many communities, with 14 percent of girls admitting they did not know what was happening when they started their period. she added that one in five girls feel comfortable discussing their period with their schoolteachers or staff members.

In addition, she said one in four girls said they did not feel they knew what to do when they started their period while 48 per cent of girls feel embarrassed by their period, with the figure rising to 50 per cent of 16 year-olds.

According to her, menstruation is a normal thing that girls shouldn’t be moody, feel bad or cranky about or be a hindrance to their education if they are knowledgeable about it and how to maintain menstrual hygiene.

“Most girls are not properly educated at home and in school to know what to expect and how to care for themselves. Many times, it is after menses start that the girls start to learn from their friends. And, of course, many don’t have adequate materials to even soak the menses. They are using pieces of cloth, tissue paper and other inappropriate things,” she added.

Dr Daramola, noting that menstruation is a normal vaginal bleeding that occurs as part of a woman’s monthly cycle, said it was preferable that women and girls use and change their sanitary towels and pads frequently to keep fresh and dry. She added that they should dispose the pads properly after use and maintain a calendar of their cycle.

The medical expert said menstruation was nature’s way of preparing the body for having a baby when a girl is older and any girl that has not started menstruating by age 15 needs to see a doctor for proper examination to find out what may be wrong.

Dr Daramola also said girls that experience pain or cramps during their menstruation should ensure they eat a balanced diet, engage in gentle exercise, have hot water bottle massage and take recommended painkillers.

She, however, declared that sex is neither a cure for menstrual cramps nor is too much junk food a cause of menstrual pain.

Dr Olayinka Ogunbode, a consultant obstetrics and gynecologist at the University College Hospital, Ibadan, said there are consequences for not maintaining menstrual hygiene, ranging from discomfort, infections and even infertility.

“Blood is also a good medium of bacterial infections. So if women do not pay particular attention to their menstrual hygiene, it could lead to infections of the reproductive tract and the urinary tract, causing a lot of hazards. In some cases, it may even result in infertility,” he said.

Being unable to manage their period with the appropriate menstrual products can make people feel upset, distressed, and uncomfortable. This experience can have long-term consequences.

According to him, unhygienic practices during menstruation include the use of unhygienic material for the absorption of blood, altered bathing practices, and the use of dirty sanitary napkins.

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