Menstrual hygiene access and practices in Latin America: scoping review

Objective:

to synthesize available evidence related to menstrual hygiene access and practices in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Method:

literature scoping review with research protocol registered in the Open Science Framework, carried out in the bibliographic databases: PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science and Portal Regional da Biblioteca Virtual em Saúde. Data were analyzed using simple descriptive statistics and thematic analysis.

Results:

15 publications were included, the majority of which addressed adolescents in Brazil: 12 articles, two technical reports and a course conclusion monograph. As recurring themes in the publications, the following stand out: Access to dignified conditions for managing menstrual hygiene; Need for access to information on menstrual hygiene management; and Practices for managing menstrual hygiene.

Conclusion:

adolescents report difficulties in accessing toilets, water and absorbent materials, and lack of information about menstrual health, including in schools, leading to school absenteeism. Thus, gaps in the Latin American scientific literature reveal inequalities and diversity in menstrual experiences intersected by categories such as gender, social class and ethnicity

Descriptors:
Health Knowledge; Attitudes; Menstrual Hygiene Products; Menstruation; Public Health Nursing; Reproductive Health; Review

Highlights:

(1) Lack of access to hygiene products, toilets and water for personal hygiene.

(2) Invisibility of the problem of period poverty in Latin America.

(3) Lack of physical structure in schools aggravates and leads to school absenteeism.

(4) Menstrual health literacy was insufficient for the demands of adolescents.

(5) Primary studies on menstrual hygiene in Latin America are scarce.