1 in 10 UK women face period poverty forcing some to take dangerous health risks, campaigners warn

More than one in ten women in the UK have struggled to afford period products in the past year, with some having to take dangerous health risks such as wearing tampons for longer than recommended, new research has found.

Period poverty is still a widespread problem in Britain, with some women and menstruating people having to make do with the newspaper instead. Those who choose to leave their tampons in for too long run the risk of serious bacterial infections, such as life-threatening Toxic Shock Syndrome (TSS).

Food and energy were at the top of the list of basic needs that survey respondents said they had to prioritize. Prices of essential goods remain well above pre-pandemic levels, amid fears of a new cost-of-living crisis sparked by conflict in the Middle East. ActionAid UK It warns that there is a “risk of further entrenchment” of period poverty.

The charity’s new survey of 2,132 UK adults, conducted by YouGov in January, found that 11 per cent of women and menstruators struggled to buy menstrual products for themselves or their dependents last year. Worryingly, almost a quarter (22 per cent) of respondents said they had stayed at home as a result; This shows that periodic poverty excludes some from public life altogether.

Almost two-thirds (64 per cent) of those struggling to buy menstrual products in the UK said they had to prioritize buying food instead, while two fifths (40 per cent) said they had to prioritize spending on gas or electricity. Meanwhile, more than a third (36 percent) said they were wearing disposable pads or tampons for longer periods of time, while more than a quarter (27 percent) said they were using tissues or cotton and 6 percent said they were using paper or newspaper instead.

Ruby Raut, founder and CEO of period trouser company WUKA, which partners with ActionAid, said: “In one of the richest countries in the world, people are still being left without essential menstrual products. It’s not only shocking, it’s a failure. Period poverty is keeping people from school, exercising and going about their daily lives. It puts health at risk and limits potential for something as basic as menstruation. Access to menstrual care is not a luxury, it’s a fundamental right. And until then Everyone can enjoy their period with dignity.” “We can manage, we have a lot of work to do.”

As Ms. Raut’s personal experience highlights, period poverty is a problem that spans the globe.

he said Independent: “Imagine being 12 years old, getting your first period… and instead of being consoled, you were told you had to leave your home because you were ‘dirty’. This was my reality growing up in Nepal. I had something to use, but I had no dignity. There were no proper toilets or facilities at school. I would use makeshift diapers, always afraid it would fall out, and sometimes it did. I would be so embarrassed, I would go home.”

“This experience made me realize that period poverty isn’t just about access to products. It’s about shame, lack of education, and not having a safe space to manage your period. And no girl should feel that way just because she’s on her period.”

Period poverty means not being able to afford goods (in Malawi, for example, a single pack of pads can cost more than a day’s salary), but it also means lacking access to clean water, bathrooms and private spaces; data shows that more than 400 million children worldwide lack proper toilets at school.

Independent It approached the UK government for comment.