EMPOWERING ADOLESCENTS: EXPLORING MENSTRUAL HYGIENE AWARENESS AND PRACTICES AMONG SCHOOLGIRLS IN PESHAWAR- A CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY

Objectives: To assess the awareness and practices relating to menstrual hygiene among school-going adolescent girls of Peshawar, Pakistan Materials and methods: A cross-sectional institution-based research was employed in Hayatabad, Peshawar, from February 2022 to July 2022. The selection of the four schools was done through a multi-stage sampling technique. Data was collected from 200 adolescent girls through self-administered questionnaires and statistical analysis was done using SPSS. Descriptive data was expressed in the form of mean ±SD, frequencies, and percentages. A chi-square test was applied to find the association between sociodemographic factors and menstrual hygiene practices. A p-value of <0.05 was considered significant. Results: Out of 200 girls who took part in the study, 120 (60%) exhibited inadequate awareness of menstrual hygiene, while 86 (43%) demonstrated poor hygiene practices during menstruation. 115 (57.5%) knew that hormones were the cause of menstruation. The most frequently used menstrual product was a disposable sanitary pad followed by cloth. The menstrual hygiene practices were significantly associated with the education status of the mother (p= 0.022) and the occupation of the father (p= 0.047). Conclusion: The results of our study revealed a concerning trend: approximately two-thirds of the respondents exhibited inadequate awareness, while one-third demonstrated suboptimal hygiene practices related to menstruation. This demonstrates the need to make efforts to educate adolescent girls about more hygienic and safer methods of managing menstruation and such products are made more affordable and accessible to them. Keywords: Awareness, practices, menstrual hygiene, adolescent girls, menstruation