Periods is one single health-related subject that is the least talked about in India. Periods are considered to be the sign of impurity for many people. But, it actually is just women’s menstrual cycle that prepares her body for pregnancy each month, and it is nothing to be ashamed of. In spite the fact that periods are just similar to other health-related subjects or issues, people make it a fuzz to hide it from males and kids. One of the main reason for taking wrong precautions is lack of knowledge. Periods are just never discussed properly and this lack of knowledge leads to several harmful issues. Well, you will be shocked to know what girls in rural India used instead of a sanitary napkin. To know the answer have a look at the article!
According to a report published in 2011, only 12% of women have access to sanitary pads. The reports say that the remaining 88% use shocking and weird alternatives like ashes, un-sanitised cloth and husk sand. Therefore, vaginal infections are 70 percent more frequent for all these women. And for the majority of, 70%, the main obstacle to us sanitary napkins is their prohibitive cost and lack of knowledge.
Women actually put sand, ashes and soil in their underwear during their menstrual cycle. According to the women’s who live in rural areas the cost of sanitary napkins, that they may use in their 5 days of the months will cost the same as much her family eats food in 1 week.
When asked by expert doctors,
“What are the advantages of using sanitary napkin?”
The doctors said,
“They are going to prevent vaginal infections and infections of the uterus.”
Many women have lost their lives just because of vaginal infections and vaginal infections are surely caused because of the irrelevant things used by women. For people in rural area sanitary napkins were placed in the category of “luxury goods”, which actually comes with a 12 percent tax. These women don’t have the money to buy themselves sanitary napkins or even clean cloth to soak up their periods. Instead, they resort to padding their underwear with soil or even ash. Which is a very dangerous practice to carry out every month.
The government should make sanitary pads tax free to let the women of India grow.
