Menstrual health needs to be discussed in Nizamabad

Nizamabad: District Collector M Rammohan Rao assured of extending full coordination in spreading campaigns about menstrual health in Nizamabad district. He participated in the distribution of hygiene kits supplied by the government at a programme at SSR Discovery School here on Tuesday.

DLSA (District Legal Services Authority) has been organising campaign on menstrual hygiene in coordination with 'Bleed With Pride' lead by Dr PJ Vishnu Bharadwaj. Students of Nizamabad Government Medical College participated in the campaign.

Speaking on the occasion, the Collector said menstrual health need to be discussed openly.

District Judge Sri Sudha spoke about the taboo and myths about menstruation like girls should not go to school as they have to pass through temples, women were kept out of the village etc. She also discussed about lack of sanitation facilities in schools and how education can make a difference.

District Legal Service Authority senior Civil Judge Kiranmai asked the girls to break the silence on menstrual health and hygiene.

SSR Discovery School Chairman Dr Mariah Goud promised to support the campaign. SSR became the first school in Nizamabad to install a sanitary pad vending machine in the school premises.

Dr PJ Vishnu Bharadwaj briefed about training 10,000 members on menstrual hygiene in Nepal and also they are the first people to install sanitary pad vending machines in Nepal and installed more then 25 machines all over Nepal. He also informed that they have trained 150 medical students as Ambassadors of menstrual health and four different student clubs from different medical colleges in Nepal use their module for their activities on menstrual health.

Explaining the girl students about the importance of menstrual hygiene, Dr Bharadwaj said that one can prevent several infectious conditions by training them with safe methods; can reduce teenage anxiety by explaining them about the changes in adolescents;

and must help them in coping with

puberty changes.

He asked the parents and relatives to break the silence and discuss with their daughters about menstrual health and the care to be taken during periods. Girls should talk about this with at least one member of the family. Likewise, there is a great need to sensitise boys also to make them more empathetic and support their mothers, sisters or cousins during menstruation.

Dr Dinesh Kumar explained about hysterectomy and nutritional deficiency like the girls will lose around 1 mg of iron for every day of bleeding.