Nobody likes to visit a public toilet unless it is an emergency. We would condition our mind to hold the urge to urinate until we come home. Have you urinated? You cannot once you leave the house. It is advice most of the children get from the grownups in India.
In India, access to clean public toilets is still a challenge. Main challenges are uncleanliness, safety issues and lack of public toilets in small towns. If you are outside during period days, finding a clean public toilet would be almost impossible. The only option would be going to a restaurant, ordering food and using their toilet.
The South Delhi Municipal Corporation and Karnataka state government have directed all eateries to allow the public access to their toilets. Some hoteliers voluntarily decided to provide this service. There have been references saying that The Sarais Act, 1867 allows anyone to use a hotel toilet.
How To Maintain Menstrual Hygiene
As per UNICEF, menstrual hygiene is said to be maintained if the below-mentioned conditions are satisfied:
- Women must use clean material to absorb or collect menstrual blood.
- During the period, they should be able to change this material as often as necessary in private.
- The body must be washed with soap and water as required.
- Finally, they must be able to access safe and convenient facilities to dispose of used menstrual protection products.
Proper menstrual hygiene gives menstruators confidence to live their lives normally. This would not distance them from the wider society during period days. Also, good menstrual hygiene helps to keep your body free from infections.
Sanitary napkin needs to be changed every four to six hours. It is important to use the sanitary napkins properly to lower risks related to periods. Changing sanitary napkins every four to six hours is essential for vaginal hygiene. This reduces the growth of bacteria and prevents infections.
It is important to clean your vagina regularly after removing the sanitary napkin. Soaps or vagina hygiene products must not be used during periods! Dispose of your used sanitary napkins and tampons properly. Wrap them properly before you dispose of them. Do not flush them, as it will block the toilet. Once disposed of, your hands need to be washed properly.
More than one sanitary napkin should not be used simultaneously even during heavy flow. Even though it helps you to prevent stains on clothes, it can lead to infections.
Why Do People Refrain From Using Public Toilets?
There are a lot of public toilets now, but are they usable? The main reason being the lack of toilet essentials to maintain even basic hygiene. Flushes do not work most of the time. Sometimes, there would not be any hand showers. How do you clean yourself with a mug/cup in such a toilet? Soap and hand sanitizers are a rarity in public toilets.
Toilet tissues are usually not stocked. Used sanitary napkins lying around make a disgusting sight. Door handles and latches do not work, making it unsafe to use. Most of the toilets also do not have door hooks to hang our bags or dupatta. Above all, sometimes water taps do not work, or there would be no water if they work.
While using menstrual cups, users can only empty the blood from the cup and cannot clean it. Thus, they prefer an alternative product to use while they are out. Due to all these reasons, people refrain from using public toilets. But one thing everyone is concerned is about the infections we are prone to from its usage.
Some girls use hygiene products to reduce the risk of infections. Sanitizers can also be used on toilet surfaces like flush, door handles and even taps. Also, reusable urination devices help to stand and urinate – when you don’t want to sit on an unfriendly toilet. But public toilets are used mostly by common people. So, they may not be able to afford such hygiene products.
When we look at common toilets in schools, even they are not well maintained. In my school days, I hardly used the school toilet; I would use it twice or thrice in a year. Many of my friends, too, were reluctant to use unclean school toilets. During my period days at school, I would use the same pad for around ten hours. This was because the toilets were unclean and had no proper used pad disposal system.
We went to school early in the morning and would hold the urge to urinate until reaching home. The first thing to do after getting home was to run to the washroom. My mother used to scold me for not using the school toilet. I knew it might be harmful to my body organs. But I had no other option, and I continued with this habit until I finished my graduation.
I usually avoid hanging out with friends during my period days due to unclean public toilets and poor accessibility. In the UK, where I currently live, public toilets are maintained well when compared to India. Toilet papers, separate sanitary bins for pads, hand wash liquids, hand dryer, mirrors and hooks for hanging bags are all available in toilets in the UK.
Most of the public toilets have touch-free soap dispensers, which would be helpful for combating the spread of viruses in the situation.
All the public toilets are disabled friendly also. In some offices and public places, we can find gender-neutral toilets too. In public places, we can find toilets easily by googling ‘public toilets near me’ or by following signboards. Recently Indian government has built household public toilets under the Swachh Bharat mission. They need to be maintained well throughout. To maintain menstrual hygiene, it needs more facilities than just empty bladder or bowel.
Moreover, we need to provide awareness to people on how to keep toilets clean. Unless people who use these toilets to cooperate, cleanliness and hygiene cannot be maintained.