Menstruation is good for your health

This article was exclusively written for The European Sting by Mr. Gérard NDAYIKENGURUKIYE, a Burundian student in his fifth year of medicine, currently studying at the University of Burundi. He is affiliated to the International Federation of Medical Students Associations (IFMSA), cordial partner of The Sting. The opinions expressed in this piece belong strictly to the writers and do not necessarily reflect IFMSA’s view on the topic, nor The European Sting’s one.

For a long time, here and there, all over the world, menstruation has been considered as a taboo subject. It has harmful consequences on the health and human rights of our mothers, our husbands, our wives, our sisters, our mothers, our cousins, our nieces, our husbands, our aunts, our friends, our darlings, our girlfriends, sisters in law… etc.About 3 years ago, I was at home, far from urban areas, the young women of the locality have a shared problem of having sanitary towels when they menstruate. Apart from the menstrual pain that some of them experience, hygiene at these times becomes a remarkable problem. They resort to worn-out clothing. Sometimes these fabrics are not clean because of the surprise of menstruation. If they manage to wash them, they can’t dry them in the sun or iron them. All this exposes them to urogenital infections of all kinds.On the occasion of Menstrual Hygiene Day 2022, celebrated on May 28, WHO/Europe is calling on countries to redouble their efforts to reinforce menstrual hygiene measures in schools and thus avoid adverse health consequences. During the 50th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (OHCHR), the World Health Organization (WHO) called for women’s menstruation to be recognized, framed and treated as a health and human rights issue, and not simply a matter of hygiene.Yes, menstruation should not be considered a taboo, because it’s part of women’s daily lives, and it must be supported, because women should not feel ashamed of menstruating. Many girls have no idea about this natural phenomenon, because their mothers and teachers don’t dare talk about it. But don’t young people have a role to play in ensuring the dignity and health of girls and women, by combating the taboos, false beliefs and myths surrounding menstruation, which deprive women of their right to guarantee their own health and hygiene? There are a number of actions possible:-Talking openly about menstruation and puberty and making boys and girls aware of the issue would be a promising way of reducing feelings of shame and embarrassment about menstruation.-Menstrual health and hygiene education should be a cornerstone in meeting the needs of our girls at school and in the community to break the taboo around menstruation.-Make hygiene products affordable for all, and advocate for lower prices for sanitary pads.- Avoid stigmatization during menstruation. It is unacceptable for girls to be stigmatized because they menstruate.  -raise public awareness to understand and enable access to menstrual hygiene products  and avoid using words that make it difficult to understand that you describe menstruation and periods..etc

About the author

 Gérard NDAYIKENGURUKIYE is a Burundian student in his fifth year of medicine, currently studying at the University of Burundi. As well as being a brilliant student, he is actively involved in student initiatives as a member of the Burundian Medical Students Association (ABEM), in voluntary activities as a first-aid volunteer and a volunteer with the Association of Volunteers to Fight Tuberculosis (AVLT), and is a Yali alumnus. He is also a scout, active, curious, punctual and a team player.

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