The seminar to be conducted at Tumaini University

Makumira

TOPIC: menstruation hygiene

Venue: Assembly hall (AH)

DATE: 17th February,2021

THE SCHEDULE FOR THE MENSTRUATION HYGIENE
SEMINAR

EVENTS PARTICIPATS
Arrival All participants
Introduction & opening Coordinator
Presentation First presenter
Presentation Second presenter
Questions Participants
Conclusion Guest of honour
 THE COMMITTEE MEMBERS OF THE SEMINAR

DIANA KILIANI PRESIDENT

REHEMA KAONEKA SECRETARY

DORCUS ISRAEL CHAIRPERSON

DAVID M. WIMBI FIRST PRESENTER

LUCIANA W. TEMBA SECOND PRESENTER

AYUBU PAUL PARTICIPANT

CECILIA Z. MWANAWAYI PARTICIPANT

ALKANDE O. NJAU PARTICIPANT

MSIRARI WEGESA OBSERVERS

DIASTER O. SAMWEL OBSERVER

 TUMAINI UNIVERSITY MAKUMIRA

FACULTY OF HUMANITIES, EDUCATION AND SCIENCE

COURSE NAME: EDUCATIONAL SEMINAR

COURSE CODE: EDU 353
COURSE INSTRUCTOR: Goldman Felix
NATURE OF WORK: GROUP ASSIGNMENT (10)
S/N NAME REG NO SIGNATURE
01 DAVID M. WIMBI TUMA/BAED/18/074740
02 LUCIANA W. TEMBA TUMA/BAED/18/071316
03 REHEMA KAONEKA TUMA/BAED/18/072025
04 DIANA KILIANI TUMA/BAED/18/075241
05 CECILIA Z. MWANAWAYI TUMA/BAED/18/078295
06 DORCUS ISRAEL TUMA/BAED/18/072917
07 AYUBU PAUL TUMA/BAED/18/072314
08 MSIRARI WEGESA TUMA/BAED/18/075911
09 ALKANDE O. NJAU TUMA/BAED/18/076349
10 DIASTER O. SAMWEL TUMA/BAED/18/077312

QUESTION: Discuss the concept of menstruation hygiene.

SUBMISSION DATE: 16th February, 2021

 Menstruation; is a natural or normal vaginal bleeding that occurs as part of a woman’s

monthly cycle. It results in bleeding from the womb (uterus) being lost through the vagina.

Menstruation usually occurs monthly for three to five days. The average amount of blood lost

during a menstrual period is 30-40ml. Women and girls generally experience some heavier flow

and some lighter flow days during their menstrual period, (Cothran, 2020).

Girls typically start to menstruate during puberty, usually between the ages of 10 and 19. At this

time, they experience physical changes (example, growing breasts, wider hips and body hair) and

emotional changes due to hormones. Menstruation continues until they reach menopause, (the

end of menstruation), usually between their late 40s and 50s. Menstruation is also sometimes

known as ‘menses’ or described as a ‘menstrual period’, (Cothran, 2020). The following is a

female reproductive system and menstrual cycle.

The female reproductive system and the menstrual cycle

 The menstrual cycle

The menstrual cycle is usually around 28 days, the days of the cycle start with menstruation,

tissue and blood start to line the walls of the uterus to prepare the uterus for receiving a fertilised

egg. Around day 14 of each cycle an egg is released from one of the ovaries (ovulation) and

moves into the uterus through the fallopian tubes. If the egg is not fertilised, the lining of the

uterus then detaches and is shed through the vagina along with blood, (Amore, 2004). The

bleeding generally lasts between three to five days, with some heavier flow and some lighter

flow days.

The menstrual cycle or calendar

Days Process

 1-5: menstruation

 6-10: tissue and blood line the walls of the uterus

  11-18: ovulation (danger days)

 19-25: lining of uterus breaks down (if the egg is not fertilised)

 26-28: the lining detaches, leading to menstruation

A calendar is a useful tool to track how long your period lasts, the duration between one period

and the next and days when you are vulnerable to cramps, light flow, heavy flow, (Amore,

2004).

Menstruation as a natural healthy process

Menstruation is a natural process linked to the reproductive cycle of women and girls. It is a sign

of good health and growing up. It is not a sickness, but if not properly managed it may result in

health problems which can be compounded by social, cultural and religious practices. It is

normal for most women and girls to suffer from period pains such as abdominal cramps, nausea,

fatigue, feeling faint, headaches, back ache and general discomfort. They can also experience

emotional and psychological changes (example, heightened feelings of sadness, irritability or

anger) due to changing hormones. This varies from person to person and can change

significantly over time, (Amore, 2004).

Menstrual hygiene

Women and adolescent girls are using a clean menstrual management material to absorb or

collect menstrual blood, that can be changed in privacy as often as necessary for the duration of a

menstrual period, using soap and water for washing the body as required, and having access to

safe and convenient facilities to dispose of used menstrual management materials. They

understand the basic facts linked to the menstrual cycle and how to manage it with dignity and

without discomfort or fear, (Roush, 2018).

This definition encompasses the knowledge, facilities, services and behaviours required for good

menstrual hygiene to be practised at a personal level (safe use and disposal of menstrual

materials, changing and washing) and public level (end disposal of menstrual materials).

To manage menstruation hygienically, it is essential that women and girls have access to safe

water and sanitation. They need somewhere private to change sanitary cloths or pads, clean water

and soap for washing their hands and used cloths, and facilities for safely disposing of used

materials or a place to dry them if reusable. They also need information, advice and support,

(Roush, 2018).

Menstrual hygiene materials

The preference of sanitary protection material is based on personal choice, cultural acceptability,

economic status, and availability in local market. Along with basic sanitation facilities, one

should be also provided with soap and menstrual absorbents to manage menstruation hygiene.

The choice of absorbents varies among rural and urban women and girls. In rural areas, the most

preferred absorbents are reusable cloth pads and in urban areas women prefer to use commercial

sanitary pads. Chlorine-bleached Kraft or sulphate pulp is used by manufacturers to produce fluff

pulp as absorbent used to make disposable sanitary products. Nowadays, many deodorised and

non-deodorised sanitary products are available in the market made of synthetic fibre rayon.

These deodorised products contain chemicals like organ chlorines which have antibacterial

activity. Due to their chemical composition, these products when buried in the soil they kill the

soils microflora and delay the process of decomposition. Different menstrual products used by

women or girls are discussed below, (Adolphe, 1981).

3.1. Reusable and Washable Cloth Pads. They may be sustainable sanitary option but must be

hygienically washed and dried in the sunlight. The sun’s heat is a natural sterilizer and drying the
cloths or cloth pads under it sterilizes them for future use. These cloth pads are reusable so they

are cost-effective, easily available, and ecofriendly. They also need to be stored in a clean dry

place for reuse to avoid contamination, (Adolphe, 1981).

3.2. Commercial Sanitary Pads. They are easily available at many stores, chemist shops, or

online. They are expensive, compared to cloth pads, non-reusable, and not very environment

friendly. The cotton used in their making is not 100% natural and may contain pesticides,

(Adolphe, 1981).

3.3. Tampons; normally they provides internal protection. They are kind of plug of soft material

(cotton) which is inserted into the vagina to absorb the menstrual Journal of Environmental and

Public Health, (Adolphe, 1981).

 How to use menstrual material

According to Adolphe (1981), the following are the steps of how to use menstrual material.

 Wash your hand so as to put them clean.

 Stick the pad in your underwear using the sticky strip on the back.

 Change your pad every few hours or when it is soaked with blood.

 Wrap used pads in the wrapper or toilet paper and throw them in the trash.

Facilities for changing, washing and disposal

Basic material health management facilities for public or institutional settings (example,

sanitation facilities in a community, school or health centre) are defined as: basic separated

sanitation facilities for females that provide privacy; soap, water and space for washing hands,

private parts and clothes; and places for changing and disposing of materials used for managing

menstruation. At household level, gender-separated facilities are not usually required but

considerations need to be given for safety, privacy, washing and changing, (Amore, 2004).
 Material health management challenges faced by women and girls

The practical challenges of menstrual hygiene management (MHM) are made even more difficult

by various socio-cultural factors.

Inadequate water and sanitation facilities at school; water, sanitation and hygiene

interventions often fail to address the needs of women and girls. Many schools do not support

adolescent girls or female teachers in managing menstrual hygiene with dignity. Inadequate

water and sanitation facilities at school make it very difficult to change materials and keep clean,

and poor sanitary protection materials can result in bloodstained clothes, causing stress and

embarrassment, (Amore, 2004).

Shortage of care from male teachers; teachers (male members of staff in particular) can

be unaware of girls’ needs, in some cases refusing to let them visit the latrine during class. As a

result, girls have been reported to miss school during their menstrual periods, or even drop out

completely. There is also a need for both men and women to have a greater awareness of

menstrual hygiene, (Amore, 2004).

 Cultural practices; cultural practices and taboos around menstruation have a negative

impact on the lives of women and girls, and reinforce gender inequities and exclusion. Myths

and social norms make their daily lives difficult and limit their freedom and participation in

society. For example, in some cultures in India, women and girls are told that during their

menstrual cycle they should not bathe (they will become infertile), touch a cow (it will become

infertile), look in a mirror (it will lose its brightness), or touch a plant (it will die), (Amore,

2004).

Inadequate education about menstruation; a girl’s first experience of menstruation can

be a frightening time, if she does not know about menstruation she can be shocked to see blood

coming out of her vagina. She may think she is sick or dying, or believe she has done something

wrong and will be punished. Adult women and teachers often feel shy talking about

menstruation, so girls are not properly informed about what is happening to their bodies or how

to stay healthy and maintain self-esteem, (Adolphe, 1981).

Shortage of supportive environment; women and girls face particular challenges in

emergency situations, where they may be forced to live in close proximity to male relatives or

strangers. Their usual coping mechanisms for obtaining sanitary protection materials, bathing

with privacy, and washing or disposing of menstrual materials are disturbed. Women and girls in

other marginalised circumstances. Examples, those who are homeless or living with illnesses like

HIV, face multiple layers of exclusion that affect their daily lives. Homeless women and girls are

often unable to obtain hygienic sanitary materials or access water and somewhere to bathe.

Those with disabilities face additional accessibility barriers to accessing WASH facilities due to

limited menstrual hygiene matters training guide for practitioners’ consideration of their needs in
the design process. Careers of people with disabilities or HIV/AIDS do not always have the

appropriate knowledge to provide menstrual hygiene support, (Adolphe, 1981).

Women and girls are often excluded from decision-making and management in

development and emergency; menstrual hygiene matters training guide for practitioners’ relief

programmes. At the household level, they have less control over whether they have access to a

private latrine or money to spend on sanitary materials. Most people, men in particular, find

menstrual hygiene a difficult subject to talk about, so these needs are not discussed, (Adolphe,

1981).

Solutions on menstrual health challenges

Menstrual education should be provided; when the education of how to control and

manage menstruation is provided, it will increase awareness among girls and women in general

also it will give them confidence on how to handle the situation. In schools, teachers can make

the school environment girl or women friendly to manage menstruation with dignity. Sex

education in schools helps adolescents to discover their sexual identity, to protect themselves

from sexual abuse, unwanted pregnancies, and sexually transmitted diseases, and to know

physiological changes occurring in the body and how to take care of personal hygiene, (Roush,

2018).

Eradication of poor cultural practice; cultural practices and taboos around

menstruation should be eradicated as they have a negative impact on the lives of women and

girls, and reinforce gender inequities and exclusion. All these can be eradicated through making

bylaws that will help to shape peoples behaviours, (Roush, 2018).

Awareness should be given to people on how to manage menstrual wastes;

government and non-government organizations should come forward for making the people
aware of management of menstrual wastes. Government should give the funds to the Municipal

Corporation or Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) for the construction of women

friendly toilets, (Roush, 2018).

Generally; this study reveals that lack of privacy is a major concern both in household

and in schools. Also, ignorance, misconceptions, unsafe practices, and illiteracy of the mother

and child regarding menstruation are the root causes of many problems. So, there is a big need to

encourage adolescents at school levels to practice safe and hygienic behaviors.

 REFERENCES

Adolphe .(1981). Proceedings of the U.S.A Strategy Conference on Biological Diversity. The

USA: Department of State Publication.

Amore D .(2004). Applied Bayesian Statistical Studies in Biology and Medicene. Boston: Kluwer

Accademic Publishers.

Cothran R .(2020). Reproductive Biology. United States of America: Oxford University Press.

Roush R .(2018). Concepts of Biology. New Delh: Samurai Media LTD.