Menstrual poverty among young women: a cross-sectional study in the urban context of Barcelona, Spain

Authors:
Pedro GalloUniversity of Barcelona, Spain

Search for other papers by Pedro Gallo in
Current site
Google Scholar
Close
,
Albert JuliàUniversity of Barcelona, Spain

Search for other papers by Albert Julià in
Current site
Google Scholar
Close
,
Marga Marí-KloseUniversity of Barcelona, Spain

Search for other papers by Marga Marí-Klose in
Current site
Google Scholar
Close
,
Julia SerraUniversity of Barcelona, Spain

Search for other papers by Julia Serra in
Current site
Google Scholar
Close
,
Joan BellavistaUniversity of Barcelona, Spain

Search for other papers by Joan Bellavista in
Current site
Google Scholar
Close
, and
Sandra EscapaUniversity of Barcelona, Spain

Search for other papers by Sandra Escapa in
Current site
Google Scholar
Close
Restricted access
Get eTOC alerts
Rights and permissions Cite this article

Menstrual poverty has become a global issue, affecting women who do not have access to the menstrual products they need. Most of the related literature is based on low- and middle-income countries’ facts and experiences. Using the 2020 Youth Survey in Barcelona, this cross-sectional study provides novel data on the prevalence and the factors associated with menstrual poverty in an urban context (Barcelona) in a high-income country (Spain) with a randomly selected representative sample of 700 young women aged 15 to 34. Descriptive statistics and logistic regression models were used in the analysis. Results show that 15.3 per cent of young women in Barcelona reported facing financial barriers to accessing menstrual products. Further, those young women with a high level of material deprivation (OR=4.42; CI=2.14–9.16) have a greater probability of suffering from menstrual poverty, whereas those living independently from their parents (OR=0.50; CI=0.28–0.90) and women with a non-EU origin (Latin-Americans: OR=0.54; CI=0.31–0.93; Others: OR=0.06; CI=0.01–0.46) have a lower probability of reporting menstrual poverty. Our findings advocate that the measurement of poverty should consider individual aspects and needs, and not only the household income level as the reference. Further, we would encourage rethinking poverty measurement with a gender perspective, as well as identifying how deprivations overlap to aggravate the experience of poverty.

  • Aassve, A., Davia, M.A., Iacovou, M. and Mazzuco, S. (2007) Does leaving home make you poor? Evidence from 13 European countries, European Journal of Population, 23: 31538. doi: 10.1007/s10680-007-9135-5

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • ACLU and Period Equity (2019) The unequal price of periods: menstrual equity in the United States. American Civil Liberties Union, https://www.aclu.org/report/unequal-price-periods.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Ajuntament de Barcelona (2021) La joventut de Barcelona l’any de la pandèmia. 10 anàlisis de l’Enquesta a la Joventut de Barcelona 2020, Barcelona: Ajuntament de Barcelona.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Angulo-Olaiz, F., Goldfarb, E.S. and Constantine, N.A. (2014) Sexuality information needs of Latino and African American ninth graders: a content analysis of anonymous questions, American Journal of Sexuality Education, 9(1): 2140. doi: 10.1080/15546128.2014.883266

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Antón-Alonso, F., Porcel, P. and Pruna, M. (2018) Condicions de Vida de la Població Jove a Barcelona: Aspectes Socioeconòmics i la Qüestió de l’habitatge, 2016–17. Barcelona: Ajuntament de Barcelona.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Anyaegbu, G. (2010) Using the OECD equivalence scale in taxes and benefits analysis, Economic & Labour Market Review, 4(1): 4954.

  • Ayllón, S. (2009) Poverty and living arrangements among youth in Spain, 1980–2005, Demographic Research, 20: 40334.

  • Ayllón, S. (2013) Understanding poverty persistence in Spain, SERIEs, 4(2): 20133.

  • Barrington, D.J., Robinson, H., Wilson, E. and Hennegan, J. (2021) Experiences of menstruation in high-income countries: a systematic review, qualitative Meta-synthesis and comparison to Low- and middle-income countries, PLoS ONE, 16(7): e0255001. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0255001

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • BBC News (2017) Period poverty campaign for free sanitary products on Teeside, November, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-tees-42114027.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Bessell, S. (2015) The individual deprivation measure: measuring poverty as if gender and inequality matter, Gender & Development, 23(2): 22340.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Briggs, A. (2021) Period poverty in Stoke-on-Trent, UK: new insights into gendered poverty and the lived experiences of austerity, Journal of Poverty and Social Justice, 29(1): 85102 (18). doi: 10.1332/175982720X16050132762411

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Bruquetas, M. and Moreno Fuentes, F.J. (2015) Precarización y vulnerabilidad de la población inmigrante en la España en crisis. El papel del Estado de bienestar, Panorma Social, 22: 13951.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Browning, M., Chiappori, P.A. and Weiss, Y. (2014) Economics of the Family, New York: Cambridge University Press.

  • Cantó-Sánchez, O. and Mercader-Prats, M. (2000) Poverty Among Children and Youth in Spain: the Role Of Parents and Youth Employment Status, Estudios Sobre La Economía Española, EEE-14, Madrid: FEDEA.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Cardoso, L.F., Scolese, A.M., Hamidaddin, A. and Gupta, J. (2021) Period poverty and mental health implications among College-aged women in the United States, BMC Womens Health, 21: 14. doi: 10.1186/s12905-020-01149-5

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Chandra-Mouli, V. and Patel, S.V. (2017) Mapping the knowledge and understanding of menarche, menstrual hygiene and menstrual health among adolescent girls in Low- and Middle-income countries, Reproductive Health, 14(1): 30. doi: 10.1186/s12978-017-0293-6

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Cotropia, C.A. (2019) Menstruation management in united states schools and implications for attendance, academic performance, and health, Women’s Reproductive Health, 6(4): 289305.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Crawford, B.J. and Waldman, E. (2021) Period poverty in a pandemic: harnessing law to achieve menstrual equity, 98 Washington University Law Review, 1569.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Crockett, L.J., Deardorff, J., Johnson, M., Irwin, C. and Petersen, A.C. (2019) Puberty education in a global context: knowledge gaps, opportunities, and implications for policy, Journal of Research on Adolescence, 29(1): 17795 doi: 10.1111/jora.12452

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Department for Education (2022) Period product scheme for schools and colleges in England, https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/period-products-in-schools-and-colleges/period-product-scheme-for-schools-and-colleges-in-england, Updated 8 September 2022.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Ennis, A., Donovan-Hall, L., Standing, K.E. and Mistry, V. (2021) Lifting the lid on period poverty in higher education: a student engagement perspective, Innovations in Practice, 14(1): 2331.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Eurostat (2018) Living conditions in Europe, Eurostat: Statistical books.

  • Farage, M.A., Farage, M.A., Miller, K.W. and Davis, A. (2011) Cultural aspects of menstruation and menstrual hygiene in adolescents, Expert Review of Obstetrics and Gynecology, 6(2): 12739. doi: 10.1586/eog.11.1

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Findlay, J. and Wright, R.E. (1996) Gender, poverty, and the intrahousehold distribution of resources, Review of Income & Wealth, 42(3): 33551. doi: 10.1111/j.1475-4991.1996.tb00186.x

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Generalitat de Catalunya (2021) Comissió interdepartamental per a l’impuls i el seguiment de l’estratègia nacional de drets sexuals i reproductius. Acord Gov/162/2021, pel qual es crea la comissió interdepartamental per a l’Impuls i el seguiment de l’Estratègia nacional de drets sexuals i reproductius, http://sac.gencat.cat/sacgencat/AppJava/organisme_fitxa.jsp?codi=21906.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Gentile, A. (2005) Trayectorias de Vulnerabilidad Social. Barcelona, Mayday 2005: Encuesta Sobre Jóvenes Precarios. Documento de trabajo 05-09, Madrid: Unidad de Políticas Comparadas (UPC). Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC).

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Gentile, A. and Valls, F. (2015) La intesificación de la inestabilidad laboral entre los jóvenes en España. ¿Una cuestión crítica para el relevo intergeneracional?, Panorama Social, 22: 111125.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Hall, N. (2018) Women and girls in remote Indigenous Australian communities: cultural, financial and knowledge barriers to menstrual hygiene management, Australian Indigenous Health Bulletin, 18(2), http://healthbulletin.org.au/articles/women-and-girls-in-remote-indigenous-australian-communities/.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Hennegan, J. and Montgomery, P. (2016) Do menstrual hygiene management interventions improve education and psychosocial outcomes for women and girls in low and middle income countries? A systematic review, PLoS ONE, 11(2): 121. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0146985

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Hennegan, J., Dolan, C., Wu, M., Scott, L. and Montgomery, P. (2016) Measuring the prevalence and impact of poor menstrual hygiene management: a quantitative survey of schoolgirls in rural Uganda, BMJ Open, 6: e012596. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2016-012596

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Hennegan, J., Torondel, B., Phillips-Howard, P., Sommer, M. and Montgomery, P. (2017) Time to talk about menstruation: a response, The Lancet, 390(10097): 84546. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(17)31950-5

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Herbert, A.C., Ramirez, A.M., Lee, G., North, S.J., Askari, M.S., West, R.L. and Sommer, M. (2017) Puberty experiences of Low-income girls in the United States: a systematic review of qualitative literature from 2000 to 2014, Journal of Adolescent Health, 60(4): 36379. doi: 10.1016/j.jadohealth.2016.10.008

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Holmes, K., Curry, C., Ferfolija, T., Pary, K., Smith, C., Hyman, M., Armiur, M. and Sherry (2021) Adolescent menstrual health literacy in low, middle and High-income countries: a narrative review, International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(5): 2260. doi: 10.3390/ijerph18052260

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Holst, A.S., Jacques-Aviñó, C., Berenguera, A. et al. (2022) Experiences of menstrual inequity and menstrual health among women and people who menstruate in the Barcelona area (Spain): a qualitative study, Reproductive Health, 19: 45. doi: 10.1186/s12978-022-01354-5

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Houston, A.M., Abraham, A., Huang, Z. and D’Angelo, L.J. (2006) Knowledge, attitudes, and consequences of menstrual health in urban adolescent females, Journal of Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology, 19(4): 27175. doi: 10.1016/j.jpag.2006.05.002

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • IdiapGol (2021) 2 de cada 10 mujeres ha tenido dificultades económicas para comprar productos para la menstruación, https://www.idiapjgol.org/index.php/es/actualidad/noticias/1396-estudio-equidad-y-salud-menstrual.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • INE (2020) Encuesta de condiciones de Vida 2020, https://www.ine.es/jaxiT3/Tabla.htm?t =9985&L=0.

  • Jahan, N. (2020) Bleeding during the pandemic: the politics of menstruation, Sexual and Reproductive Health Matters, 28(1): 1801001. doi: 10.1080/26410397.2020.1801001

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Khan, Z. and Oveisi, N. (2021) Let’s Talk About Periods: A Critical Analysis of Menstrual Inequities in Canada, Vancouver: University of British Columbia.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Knight, R. (2020) Period poverty in Australia, https://eprints.qut.edu.au/201306/.

  • Kuhlmann, A.S., Bergquist, E.P., Danjoint, D. and Wall, L.L. (2019) Unmet menstrual hygiene needs among Low-income women, Obstetrics and Gynecology, 133: 23844. doi: 10.1097/AOG.0000000000003060

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Martínez-García, J.S. (2015) Educación, mercado de trabajo, juventud y ciclo económico, Panorma Social, 22: 93109.

  • Marí-Klose, P. and Marí-Klose, M. (2012) Edad, vulnerabilidad económica y Estado de benestar. La protección social contra la pobreza de niños y personas mayores, Panorama Social, 15: 1071026.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Marí-Klose, P., Marí-Klose, M., Flaquer, L.L., Sánchez, C. and Morató, L. (2008) Informe de la Inclusión Social en España, Barcelona: Fundación Caixa Catalunya.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Marí-Klose, P., Escapa, S. and Marí-Klose, M. (2016) Crisis y pobreza infantil en España, Revista Española del Tercer Sector, 32: 14169.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Mayor of London-YouGov (2018) Tens of thousands of girls in London have experienced period poverty, https://www.london.gov.uk/press-releases/mayoral/tens-of-thousands-experienced-period-poverty.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Medina-Perucha, L., Jacques-Aviñó, C., Valls-Llobet, C., Turbau-Valls, R., Pinzón, D., Hernández, L., Briales Canseco, P., López-Jiménez, T., Solana Lizarza, E., Munrós Feliu, J. et al. (2020) Menstrual health and period poverty among young people who menstruate in the Barcelona metropolitan area (Spain): protocol of a mixed-methods study, BMJ Open, 10(7). doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2019-035914

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Metusela, C., Ussher, J.M., Perez, J., Hawkey, A.J., Morrow, M., Narchal, R., Estoesta, J. and Monteiro, M. (2017) In my culture, we don’t know anything about that: sexual and reproductive health of migrant and refugee women, International Journal of Behavioural Medicine, 24(6): 83645. doi: 10.1007/s12529-017-9662-3

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Nolan, B. and Whelan, C.T. (2010) Using Non‐monetary deprivation indicators to analyze poverty and social exclusion: lessons from Europe?, Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, 29(2): 30525. doi: 10.1002/pam.20493

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • OECD (2008) Growing Unequal? Income Distribution and Poverty in OECD, Paris: OECD.

  • Period Poverty Taskforce (2019) Minister Announces Next Steps on Menstrual Hygiene Day [Internet], London: UK Government, https://www.gov.uk/government/news/period-poverty-taskforce-minister-announces-next-steps-on-menstrual-hygiene-day.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Plan International Canada (2019) Plan Canada. 2019, https://plancanada.ca/media-centre/plan-intl-canada-releases-new-menstrual-hygiene-research.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Plan International UK (2018) Break the Barriers: Girls’ Experiences of Menstruation in the UK, London: Plan International UK.

  • Plan International UK (2021) Over one million girls in the UK struggled to aford or access perio products during the pandemic, https://plan-uk.org/media-centre/over-one-million-girls-in-the-uk-struggled-to-afford-or-access-period-products-during-the-pandemic.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Rubinsky, V., Gunning, J.N. and Cooke-Jackson, A. (2020) I thought I was dying: (un)supportive communication surrounding early menstruation experiences, Health Communication, 35(2): 24252. doi: 10.1080/10410236.2018.1548337

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Schmitt, M.L., Hagstrom, C., Nowara, A., Gruer, C., Adenu-Mensah, N.E., Keeley, K. and Sommer, M. (2021) The intersection of menstruation, school and family: experiences of girls growing up in urban areas in the U.S.A., International Journal of Adolescence and Youth, 26(1): 94109. doi: 10.1080/02673843.2020.1867207

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Schoep, M.E., Adang, E.M.M., Maas, J.W.M., De Bie, B., Aarts, J.W.M. and Nieboer, T.E. (2019) Productivity loss due to Menstruation-related symptoms: a nationwide Cross-sectional survey among 32,748 women, BMJ Open, 9: e026186. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2018-026186

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Sebert Kuhlmann, A., Key, R., Billingsley, C. et al. (2020) Students’ menstrual hygiene needs and school attendance in an urban St. Louis, Missouri, district, Journal of Adolescent, 67: 444e6. doi: 10.1016/j.jadohealth.2020.05.040

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Sebert Kuhlmann, A., Peters Bergquist, E., Danjoint, D. and Wall, L.L. (2019) Unmet menstrual hygiene needs among Low-income women, Obstetrics and Gynecology, 133(2): 23844.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Simón, P., Clavería, S., García-Albacete, G., López Ortega, A. and Torre, M. (2020) Informe de la Juventud en España, Madrid: Injuve.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Sivakami, M., Maria van Eijk, A., Thakur, H. et al. (2019) Effect of menstruation on girls and their schooling, and facilitators of menstrual hygiene management in schools: surveys in government schools in three states in India, 2015, J Glob Health, 9(1): 010408. doi: 10.7189/jogh.09.010408

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • So-Kum Tang, C., Yuen-Lan Yeung, D. and Lee, A.M. (2003) Psychosocial correlates of emotional responses to menarche among Chinese adolescent girls, Journal of Adolescent Health, 33(3): 193201. doi: 10.1016/S1054-139X(03)00049-1

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Sommer, M., Caruso, B.A., Sahin, M., Calderon, T., Cavill, S., Mahon, T. and Phillips-Howard, P.A. (2016a) A time for global action: addressing girls’ menstrual hygiene management needs in schools, PLoS Medicine, 13(2): 19.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Sommer, M., Chandraratna, S., Cavill, S., Mahon, T. and Phillips-Howard, P. (2016b) Managing menstruation in the workplace: an overlooked issue in Low- and middle-income countries, International Journal for Equity in Health, 15(1): 15.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Sommer, M., Hirsch, J.S., Nathanson, C. and Parker, R.G. (2015) Comfortably, safely, and without shame: defining menstrual hygiene management as a public health issue, American Journal of Public Health, 105(7): 130211 doi: 10.2105/AJPH.2014.302525

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Sommer, M., Zulaika, G., Schmitt, M. and Gruer, C. (eds) (2019) Monitoring Menstrual Health and Hygiene: Measuring Progress for Girls on Menstruation; Meeting Report, New York and Geneva: Columbia University and WSSCC.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Sumpter, C. and Torondel, B. (2013) A systematic review of the health and social effects of menstrual hygiene management, PLoS ONE, 8(4): e62004. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0062004

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Thornton, J. (2020) Free period products in Scotland, Lancet, Dec.5; 396(10265): 1793.

  • Tingle, C. and Vora, S. (2018) Break the barriers: girls’ experiences of plan international UK, 168, https://plan-uk.org/file/plan-uk-break-the-barriers-report-032018pdf/download?token=Fs-HYP3v.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Tull, K. (2019) Period poverty impact on the economic empowerment of women, K4D Helpdesk Report 536. Brighton, UK: Institute of Development Studies.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • UNICEF (2012) WASH in Schools – Empowers Girls’ Education – Proceedings of Menstrual Hygiene Management in Schools Virtual Conferences, New York: UNICEF and Columbia University.

  • UNICEF (2019) Guidance on Menstrual Health and Hygiene, New York: UNICEF.

  • Ussher, J.M., Perez, J., Metusela, C., Hawkey, A.J., Morrow, M., Narchal, R. and Estoesta, J. (2017) Negotiating discourses of shame, secrecy, and silence: migrant and refugee women’s experiences of sexual embodiment, Archives of Sexual Behavior, 46(7): 190121. doi: 10.1007/s10508-016-0898-9

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Valls, F. (2015) El impacto de la crisis entre los jóvenes en España, Revista de Estudios Sociales, 54: 13449.

  • Verd, J.M., Barranco, O. and Bolíbar, M. (2019) Youth unemployment and employment trajectories in Spain during the Great Recession: what are the determinants?, Journal for Labour Market Research, 53(1): 120. doi: 10.1186/s12651-019-0254-3

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Vora, S. (2017) Tackling Period Poverty Report 2017, Bristol: South West International Development Network.

  • Vora, S. (2020) The realities of period poverty: how homelessness shapes women’s lived experiences of menstruation, in C. Bobel, I.T. Winkler, B. Fahs, K.A. Hasson, E.A. Kissling and T.A. Roberts (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of Critical Menstruation Studies, Singapore: Palgrave Macmillan.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • Wall, L.L. (2020) Period poverty in public schools: a neglected issue in adolescent health, Journal of Adolescent Health, 67(3): 31516. doi: 10.1016/j.jadohealth.2020.06.027

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • WHO-UNICEF (2012) Consultation on Draft Long List of Goal, Target and Indicator Options for Future Global Monitoring of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene, Geneva: World Health Organization, pp 119, https://www.wssinfo.org/fileadmin/user_upload/resources/Consultation_JMP_post2015_August2012.pdf.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • World Bank (2018) Menstrual hygiene management enables women and girls to reach their full potential, https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/feature/2018/05/25/menstrual-hygiene-management.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • World Bank (2022) Globally, periods are causing girls to be absent from school, https://blogs.worldbank.org/education/globally-periods-are-causing-girls-be-absent-school.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
Pedro GalloUniversity of Barcelona, Spain

Search for other papers by Pedro Gallo in
Current site
Google Scholar
Close
,
Albert JuliàUniversity of Barcelona, Spain

Search for other papers by Albert Julià in
Current site
Google Scholar
Close
,
Marga Marí-KloseUniversity of Barcelona, Spain

Search for other papers by Marga Marí-Klose in
Current site
Google Scholar
Close
,
Julia SerraUniversity of Barcelona, Spain

Search for other papers by Julia Serra in
Current site
Google Scholar
Close
,
Joan BellavistaUniversity of Barcelona, Spain

Search for other papers by Joan Bellavista in
Current site
Google Scholar
Close
, and
Sandra EscapaUniversity of Barcelona, Spain

Search for other papers by Sandra Escapa in
Current site
Google Scholar
Close

Content Metrics

May 2022 onwards Past Year Past 30 Days
Abstract Views 637 637 66
Full Text Views 362 362 27
PDF Downloads 148 148 12

Altmetrics

Dimensions