Period poverty is a wide-ranging problem that is rooted in the lack of resources of girls and women to take care of their menstrual needs. For some, this can be a lack of basic equipment such as toilets in the home, school and/or work place, and for others this can mean not having money for tampons, pads, or pain medication for cramps. Overall, menstruation can lead to women and girls not being able to go to school or work altogether.
Over time and throughout many different cultures, there have existed myths and taboos around menstruation. Many myths concerning periods have similar themes – the idea that women are somehow unclean, or emit a toxic substance when menstruating.
In the texts of many monotheistic religions, (i.e. Judaism, Christianity and Islam) as well as other eastern philosophies, i.e. Hinduism and Buddism, there are statements about the behavior of women and girls while menstruating that can be interpreted negatively. These taboos and dogmas can contribute to the lack of education and understanding that perpetuates period poverty.
According to Global Citizen:"Many girls and women cannot afford menstrual materials. The tampon tax, known as the “pink tax,” is named for the frequent marketing of the color pink toward women. Although some countries around the world have lifted the tax on period products as luxury items, others continue to use it as a form of gender-based discrimination. In Bangladesh, many families cannot afford menstrual products and use old clothing, according to the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF). And in India, only 12% of menstruators have access to sanitary products, leaving the rest to use unsafe materials like rags and sawdust as an alternative, the Indian ministry of health reported."
According to Plan International, in the Western world:
"One in seven girls have struggled to afford sanitary wear; one in five girls have had to switch to less suitable sanitary wear due to cost, and more than one in ten girls has had to improvise sanitary wear due to affordability issues. Despite period products being available widely in the UK, 10% of girls have been unable to afford sanitary wear at some point."