Mensturation and Health : Staying Active in Period

Sagar Thorat

31 January 2024

Menstrual Health is firmly on the global agenda today.Menstrual Health was not on the agenda of the International Conference on the Population and Development or the Millennium Declaration. 
Nor it is explicitly stated in the Sustainable Development Goals targets for goals 3 (health), 5 (gender equality) or 6 (water and sanitation). 

However, it has been placed on the global health, education, human rights, and gender equality/equity agendas by grass-roots workers and activists from the global South, drawing attention to reports of women’s and girls’ experiences of shame and embarrassment, and the barriers they face in managing their period because they do not have the means to do so, with consequences for their life opportunities including their rights to education, work, water and sanitation, non-discrimination and gender equality – and ultimately to health. 
WHO salutes the grass-roots workers and activists, notably those from the global South, who have doggedly championed menstrual health, and welcomes the inclusion of Menstrual Health in the Human Rights Council agenda. 

WHO calls for menstrual Health to be recognized, framed and addressed as a health and human rights issue, not a hygiene issue:
WHO calls for three actions.
Firstly, to recognize and frame menstruation as a health issue, not a hygiene issue – a health issue with physical, psychological, and social dimensions, and one that needs to be addressed in the perspective of a life course – from before menarche to after menopause.

Secondly, to recognize that menstrual health means that women and girls and other people who menstruate, have access to information and education about it; to the menstrual products they need;  water, sanitation, and disposal facilities; to competent and empathic care when needed; to live, study and work in an environment in which menstruation is seen as positive and healthy not something to be ashamed of; and to fully participate in work and social activities.

Thirdly, to ensure that these activities are included in the relevant sectoral work plans and budgets, and their performance is measured.