Sociodemographic factors and their association with menstrual hygiene practices among adolescent girls in Urban slums of Dibrugarh town, Assam

Abstract

Introduction: For good physical and mental health in adolescent girls, menstrual hygiene practices play an important role. Adolescent girls are incredibly susceptible to various physical and mental issues during this period, and sociodemographic factors play a crucial function in menstrual hygiene practices; thus, it is very critical to preserve good menstrual hygiene practices. Aim and Objectives: 1) to assess the knowledge and menstrual hygiene practices among adolescent girls and 2) to assess the sociodemographic factors influencing knowledge and menstrual hygiene practices. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in July–September 2019 among 150 adolescent girls. A predesigned, pretested questionnaire was used in the study. Descriptive statistics were applied in data analysis, and multivariate analysis was applied to find out the association. Results: Out of 150 adolescent girls, 78% belong to the Hindu religion and 76.7% are of nuclear family. In total, 28.7% mothers of adolescent girls are illiterate, and most of the adolescent girls (50%) belong to the 14–16-years age group; 38.7% adolescent girls belong to class V socioeconomic status. Multivariate analysis shows that Muslim religion has a significant association with knowledge regarding menstrual hygiene practices (OR: 2.846, P < 0.05) and sanitary disposal of absorbent by adolescent girls (OR: 2.528, P < 0.05). There is a significant association between joint family (type of family) and absorbent used by adolescent girls (OR: 0.253, P < 0.05). Conclusion: It is usually essential to enhance information and practices of good menstrual hygiene among adolescent girls so that they can lead a healthy productive life. Improvement of mothers’ knowledge is also a major area to be focused on.

Assessment of knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding menstruation and menstrual hygiene among early-reproductive aged women in Bangladesh: a cross-sectional survey

“…According to our study living with a large family is a positive predictor of appropriate practices is in line with an Indian study ( 38 ). Because in Bangladeshi culture grandparents have a funny and interesting relationship with their grandchildren.…”

“…This could be attributed to the possibility that women in smaller families have increased opportunities for discussing menstruation and menstrual hygiene with family members, resulting in higher levels of knowledge and comprehension (37). Opposite result was found in a study conducted among adolescent girls of a urban slum in Assam, India (38). Overall, these findings suggest that there are certain demographic and behavioral factors that may influence attitudes toward menstruation and MH, and that interventions targeting these factors may be effective in improving attitudes and promoting menstrual health.…”

Knowledge and Practice of Menstrual Hygiene among Female Students of Government Day Senior Secondary School (GDSSS) Tal, Billiri Local Government Area, Gombe State, Nigeria

“…The next Table 3 demonstrates that majority of the female school children had mothers (76.5%) and fathers (59.2%) that were educated up to secondary school level, while good proportions of the mothers were either housewives (36.6%) or farmers (44.3%). This description of the respondents according to their sociodemographic characteristics is very important because some similar studies from developing countries and Nigeria have associated these with menstrual hygiene knowledge and practices [12,17,18,19].…”

Menstrual Hygiene Problems and Challenges Faced by Adolescent Females in Rural Areas: A Narrative Review

“…Menarche can begin as early as age 10 or as late as age 16, although it commonly begins between the ages of 12 and 13. In India, the menstrual age spans from 10 to 16 years (the average age is 13.5 years) [ 4 ]. In society, menstruation is typically viewed as impure.…”