Every month, almost 2 billion people around the world menstruate. And yet we still refer to it as “that time of the month” or similar euphemisms. For the International Menstrual Hygiene Day on 28 May, there is renewed urgency to bring this topic back into public debate – where menstrual health remains one of the most invisible issues.
This is not just a matter of language or embarrassment: what we do not name becomes marginal, and what is marginal is easily ignored – in policy, in education, and in rights.
Menstruation is not a universal female experience, but a complex reality that cuts across bodies, identities and different life conditions. When society fails to recognise these bodies – whether cisgender women, trans people, or non-binary people – it erects barriers that, far from being symbolic, limit access to essential goods and services, to healthcare, as well as to information and participation in society.
Access and inequalities: period poverty
Talking about menstruation means talking about human rights. UNESCO’s international guidelines on comprehensive sexuality education highlight that sexual and reproductive health must be an integral part of education programmes, including key topics such as anatomy, puberty, reproduction and body image. However, these standards are still not fully implemented and, in many contexts,lack of access to adequate information and resources prevents this right from being fully realised.
This adds to the issue of period poverty: in Italy in 2024, only 22% of people said they always have access to their preferred menstrual products, while 16% couldn’t afford them at all or could only do so rarely – in a context where menstrual products are still taxed as non-essential goods. In addition, 43% do not always have a sufficient supply of products. The situation is even more critical when it comes to hygiene conditions: only 15% always have access to adequate spaces to change, wash and dispose of products. In other words, more than 8 in 10 people are not able to manage their period with dignity at all times.
These figures show that menstrual health is still not fully recognised as a fundamental right. When access, spaces and information are missing, menstruation becomes a concrete driver of inequality and exclusion:in Italy, students miss an average of 6.2 school days per year due to menstrual pain, while women are absent from work for an average of 5.6 days per year. Despite this, the world of work is still lagging behind: in the absence of national legislation, only a few companies have introduced specific support measures.
So how can we build educational, work and social environments that recognise people’s needs without turning them into a reason for exclusion?
Towards change: when younger generations challenge taboos
In recent years, signs of change have begun to emerge, largely thanks to the engagement of younger generations. In Italy, some secondary schools have introduced menstrual leave for educational purposes, allowing students to take up to two days per month off in cases of severe and certified menstrual pain, without these absences affecting their academic progress.
Many of these initiatives have not come from institutional top-down reforms, but from student activism, which has brought menstruation out of the private sphere and into public discussion. Young people are not only demanding new protection tools, but are also questioning how society frames the relationship between health, wellbeing and participation.
Comprehensive Sexuality Education: a key tool
Inequalities linked to menstrual health cannot be addressed without starting from the need to guarantee access to inclusive, rights-based sexuality education, which helps prevent stigma, misinformation and exclusion from an early age.
Data confirms how strongly menstruation is still surrounded by embarrassment and silence: more than 4 in 10 people do not always feel comfortable using words such as “period” or “menstruation”.
UNESCO guidelines are clear: for sexuality education to be effective, it must create spaces for dialogue, exchange and learning, where young people can ask questions, express doubts and engage with trusted adults and experts in a safe, non-judgemental environment.
In this direction, Bottom-Up Talks responds to the need to create safe spaces for dialogue and exchange for young people through Youth Advisory Boards (YABs). The project strengthens peer support to promote sexuality education and raise awareness of gender-based violence, through peer education activities and training pathways designed by and for young people.
Today, what is needed is not restriction or censorship: it is structured, accessible and age-appropriate programmes. If we want to build a more equal, inclusive and just society, we must work together to guarantee the right to sexuality and emotional education for all.
About BOTTOM-UP TALKS
BOTTOM-UP TALKS – Preventing teen-dating and school-related gender-based violence and promoting psychological well-being from the bottom-up is funded by CERV-2024-DAPHNE programme.
Partners
- CESIE ETS (Italy, Coordinator)
- C.O.I.R.A.G. ETS – Confederazione di Organizzazioni Italiane per la Ricerca Analitica sui Gruppi (Italy)
- KMOP – Kentro Merimnas Oikogeneias Kai Paidiou (Greece)
- CSI – Center for Social Innovation (Cyprus)
- House of Diversity Education (Lithuania)
- FEA – Femmes Entraide et Autonomie (France)
For further information
Read more on the project fact sheet, visit www.thegendertalk.eu, follow us on Facebook and Instagram.
Contact Ruta Grigaliunaite: ruta.grigaliunaite@cesie.org.
