Systematic Review on Sanitary Pads and Female Health

Woo, Jingang; Kim, Soyeon; Kim, Haesoon; Jeong, Kyoung Sook; Kim, EunMee; Ha, Eun–Hee

doi:10.12771/emj.2019.42.3.25

Cited by 9 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 61 publications

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“…The Government has made significant strides in increasing women's access to MHM resources [22] through distribution of subsidized disposable sanitary products [18] leading to their increased adoption [8,23]. Although this was intended to foster proper MHM practices, women are unaware of the resultant environmental pollution [18,24,25]. Every year, discarded sanitary napkins alone generate 113,000 tonnes of menstrual waste in India [26].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A novel banana fiber pad for menstrual hygiene in India: a feasibility and acceptability study

et al. 2021

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Background Menstrual hygiene products used by women have evolved in the past several decades with comfort, ease of use and cost driving women’s choices. In a country like India, where women form nearly 50% of the population, the sheer volume of periodic menstrual non-biodegradable waste generated has significant environmental implications. With majority of the country hailing from low-middle class backgrounds, observing healthy menstrual hygiene practices with environmentally friendly products necessitates the consideration of affordable and highly sustainable alternatives. Further, during the COVID-19 pandemic, period poverty is higher than ever, causing women to turn to the reusable product market for affordable and long lasting alternatives. Hence, we studied the Feasibility and Acceptability (FA) of a novel banana fiber based menstrual pad (BFP) amongst women living in rural and urban environments. Methods The quantitative study of FA of the BFP was conducted amongst 155 rural and 216 urban participants in India. For greater authenticity of the FA study, we considered participants who used BFP for more than 4 months (Rural = 111 and Urban = 186) in the study. The survey data included responses from participants from Bihar, Delhi, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal. A 22-item survey instrument was developed and validated using Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) and reliability test (Cronback’s $$\alpha$$ α ). Binomial logistic regression analysis was used to analyse the factors that affect the FA of BFP based on the survey responses. In addition to survey analysis, environmental sustainability through $$\hbox {CO}_2$$ CO 2 footprint analysis, microbial load, pH and the ability of the BFP to withstand pressure after absorption were also studied. Results The results indicated high levels of feasibility (rural $$= 82.2\%$$ = 82.2 % , urban $$= 80.3\%$$ = 80.3 % and acceptability (rural $$= 80.2\%$$ = 80.2 % , urban $$= 77.5\%$$ = 77.5 % ) of BFPs across both participant groups. Comparing key BFP characteristics such as leakage and comfort to participants’ prior practices revealed general satisfaction on the performance of BFP, leading to them recommending BFPs to others. User perception on the reasons for their preference of BFP highlighted their concern for environment, health and cost as decisive factors. The microbial load on a 3 year reused BFP was found to be similar to an unused BFP. Regression analysis showed cost as an important indicator for feasibility ($$\hbox {OR} =1.233$$ OR = 1.233 ; 95% CI = 1.083–3.248) and acceptability ($$\hbox {OR}= 1.422$$ OR = 1.422 ; 95% CI = 1.203–3.748) amongst rural participants. Conclusion Based on feasibility and acceptability results, BFP is a promising consideration as an environmentally sound, non-invasive; yet reusable alternative to fulfil MHM needs in populous countries such as India. Longer term studies in larger samples are necessary to validate these findings.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A novel banana fiber pad for menstrual hygiene in India: a feasibility and acceptability study

et al. 2021

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“…Menstruation and menstrual practices still faces restrictions from social, cultural, and religion in regard to proper management of menstrual hygiene and disposal [22]. Sanitary napkins can be defined as a disposable absorbent pad used to absorb the uterine flow during menstruation [5].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Knowledge on Sanitary Practices and Waste Management Among Sherubtse College Girls

Nepal¹,

Wangmo²,

Gurung³

et al. 2021

Preprint

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Sherubtse College under Royal University of Bhutan has a total of 1582 students, where 787 0f them are female. They suffer from menstrual and menstrual cramps every month and they use napkins to stay clean and healthy. As all the college girls are educated on the norms and use of sanitary napkins, the proper management of the waste generated is lacking. The disposal of used sanitary napkins and management is a challenge to the college management. This small research aims to investigate on how girls in college campus manage the menstural waste and the amount of sanitary napkins used. The lack of proper dumping areas leads to the improper sanitary waste management and sometimes the waste generated from the sanitary napkins are toxic and unhealthy. It is very important to initate some ways to dump the pads and its related problem should be seriously addressed by the college management. It is also important to come up with different soultion and management of these wastes for sustainable environment. Therefore, this research will be mainly mentioning about the suggestions and how the sanitary waste is being managed in Sherubtse College campus and the amount of sanitary pads used in a month or an year.

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