People have been using cloth during periods since ages because it’s affordable, easily available and easy to use. Cloths are reusable pieces of fabric worn externally on the body, inside the underwear or tied to the waist to absorb menstrual flow. The preferred material is cotton and should be changed once every year.
Today, however, we are backed up with a lot of options such as cloth pads, sanitary pads, menstrual cups, tampons etc., which are readily available in the market, but preferred by a few due to less awareness about them. Brands such as Freedays, Whisper, Stayfree etc. have flourished in the market but only from a money-making perspective.
The role played by advertising agencies in showing a happy individual dancing in white pants during their periods and the use of blue liquid on pads has kept the majority of the audience away from the fact that periods are not happy days for all or it’s not just about how comfortable a pad can make you feel. Every menstruator experiences a different level of pain and health problems during menses due to several other biological factors. To call out such advertisements should be the first step in order to break this myth.
Often times, our privilege doesn’t allow us to see the conditions of menstruators who, till date, have to use a piece of cloth, hide the dirty one in dark corners of the house, wash it secretly so that nobody sees it, and then dry it by again hiding it under other garments.
According to the National Family Health Survey IV, it was discovered that 82% of young menstruators in Bihar still depend on a piece of cloth for protection during their periods. The numbers are similar for Chhattisgarh and Uttar Pradesh, where 81% of young menstruators using cloth during their periods. The discussion on periods in these states is a topic that girls feel shy and uncomfortable talking about. Social constructions around periods built by an oppressed, patriarchal society play a huge role in determining how much awareness is present among menstruators.
First and foremost, relating menstruation with women has blurred the fact that menstruators are not just women but anybody who menstruates and honourably includes trans and nonbinary pals, who don’t identify as ‘women’ but can get periods too.
Often, menstruators who reside outside the cities or have lack of resources to go in town and purchase sanitary napkins, medicines, disposable bags etc. find it difficult to travel alone. The reasons for this are dependency on others, lack of financial stability and social construction built by society to keep certain sects under its control. As a result, what comes in handy is a piece of cloth available in every household.
There is a huge difference between using just another piece of cloth and cloth pads during periods. With the advancement in technology, a piece of cloth has got a new identity wherein, with the use of organic cotton, ultra-absorbent cotton flannel forms layers in a cloth pad and PUL ( Polyurethane Laminate) used at the bottom of the pad acts as a leak proof layer. PUL is an international standard used in reusable cloth diapers and other reusable cloth diapers.
According to Rajasi Kulkarni Diwakar, a menstrual health educator, cloth pads are a safe option during periods because they can be used for 4-5 years, are environment-friendly due to less amount of plastic and are skin-friendly as well. A cloth pad is safe to use if it’s washed well, dried in direct sunlight and stored properly. Having proper knowledge with regard to using any product plays an important role and lowers the chances of infections.
Choosing the right cloth pad is crucial for understanding the use of it. There are two kinds of cloth — one is ready-to-use cloth pad with absorbent layers (PUL) inside the pad, and the other one is styled with extra inserts that are separate and comes with a holder that is placed on the underwear, while the insert goes in the holder. It’s easy to wash and dry as well. When we talk about menstrual flow, choosing the right size of cloth pad is important — longer pads for heavy flows, medium for lighter days and smaller ones for the last few days.
A private place and a comfortable space for changing and reusing of pads is important for proper menstrual hygiene. Unhygienic Menstrual Hygiene Management exposes people on periods to urogenital infections such as bacterial vaginosis (BV) and urinary tract infection (UTI). UTI is the most common type of infectious disease after respiratory tract infection. Hence, maintaining proper hygiene is necessary, be it any product that is being used during periods.
Another important notion before the discussion on pads is making these products available for all. Affordability and availability are very important. Awareness of following hygienic management during periods keeps the individual as well as our surroundings safe.
Apart from using sanitary napkins, the discussion on the use of other products such as menstrual cups, tampons and cloth pads can only make sense once, people other than menstruators help eliminate periods as a taboo and create a healthy environment where there’s no fear of judgment and discrimination against people who bleed.
Note: The author is a part of the current batch of the #PeriodParGyan Writer’s Training Program