Menstrual hygiene practices of adolescent girls from slum areas of a city from North East India: A Knowledge Attitude and Practice (KAP) study

Pages: 145-149
4 Manisha Choudhury1, Pompy Konwar2, Ajoy Mitra3, and Kumar Kuldeep Medhi4 (Department of Food Science and Nutrition, College of Community Science, Assam Agricultural University, Jorhat, Assam1, The George Institute for Global Health, Elegance Tower, Jasola District Centre, New Delhi2, Department of Finance, Dispur College, Guwahati, Assam3, IGNOU, Dispur College, Guwahati, Assam4)

Guwahati is known as the gateway of North East India and an emerging economic hub of the region. It is the biggest and quickest developing business, industrial and instructive focus in the northeastern area of India. The increasing strain of the demographic pressure is further increasing the wants of urban infrastructures and services. This very trouble is in addition compounded by means of the growing concentration of poverty, especially in slum areas. Here, lack of proper awareness and insufficient resources has become a public health burden, especially among adolescent girls. This study was conducted with the objectives to assess reproductive health problems among adolescent girls living in slum areas and to assess menstrual hygiene practices among them. Anthropometric measurements of adolescent girls were taken to know the nutritional status and the knowledge, attitude, and practices regarding menstrual hygiene were studied. Statistical analysis was done using Statistical Package for Social Services (SPSS) version 21. Majority (66.8%) of the adolescent girls were undernourished. Friends were the first informant in 62.5%. Sanitary pads were used by 61% of girls. All the participants (100%) were having some restrictions during menstruation in the form of traditional belief. Dysmenorrhoea was common complaint among 60% of respondents. Only 17.9% of the respondents knew about the possible linkage of menstruation with anemia. 30.5% of the respondents thought of menstruation as bad blood, dirty matter. 10.5% of the participants were found to have the thinking that it’s a curse of God. Inadequate hygiene maintenance, menstruation-related traditional practices, and restrictions were prevalent among the adolescent girls belonging to urban slums.