Cultural Beliefs and Menstrual Health Advocacy

As we celebrate International Women’s Day, 2025, it is important to reflect on how cultural beliefs influence menstrual health awareness. Menstruation is a natural process, yet in many societies, its surrounded by myths, misconceptions and restrictions. These beliefs affect how girls and women understand and manage their periods, most times, leading to shame, misinformation and lack of access to proper hygiene.

Many people avoid the discussions around menstrual hygiene because in a lot of cultures, menstruation is seen as a taboo. Lack of awareness prevents girls from learning about proper menstrual health and hygiene. As a result, many grow up believing dangerous myths, which can result to poor menstrual practices and health risks.

We have cultures which restrict girls against performing any duties like cooking, attending any religious gatherings or even going to schools or the market place, simply because they are menstruating. Such beliefs make girls feel isolated, ashamed and unworthy. This encourages the idea that menstruation is a burden rather than a normal part of life.

Cultural beliefs create huge barriers to access menstrual products and education. Some communities discourage girls from using tampons and menstrual pads due to misconceptions about virginity and child birth. This makes girls to fully rely on old clothes, papers and leaves during their periods, which increases high risks of infections. The societal beliefs make it very hard for girls and women to have their periods safely and with dignity.

Societal beliefs have shrunk the idea of menstrual education. Many schools do not teach about menstrual health and hygiene, leaving a lot of girls to rely on information shared among their peers or elders. Some cultures strongly believe that period blood is dirty and a girl or woman should not go to the garden during this period because the plants will die. These myths and taboos create unwanted fear and shame around menstruation.

To change this My Flow Foundation-Ke, has been. breaking these challenges through menstrual health advocacy and empowerment. We encourage schools, community leaders, religious leaders to include menstrual health and hygiene education in their programs and communities to embrace open conversations about the same. The foundation also provides a dignity pack for girls from underprivileged households and this helps keep the girls in school for a whole year.

It is also important to involve men and boys in these conversations because when they understand about menstruation, they can help stop the stigma and create an environment that supports women and girls.
This International Women’s Day, 2025, My Flow Foundation seeks to continue to accelerate action through committing to break cultural taboos about menstrual health matters. No woman or girl should feel restricted because of a natural biological reason. We urge everybody to work towards a society that views menstruation as normal, and that every girl should access menstrual information and products.
Happy International Women’s Day, 2025.