Parallel Plights in Advancing Menstrual Equity: A Scoping Review of Period Poverty in India and the United States.

Abstract

As calls for improved menstrual health management have gained momentum in sociopolitical contexts, period poverty and menstrual equity have gradually been established and recognized in the discipline of public health. These conversations typically take place in the context of low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) where donor-sponsored projects are already underway. Nevertheless, research on period poverty in high-income countries (HICs) is seldom performed. In addition, current literature on the topic tends to generalize HICs and LMICs, thereby ignoring crucial cultural and socioeconomic distinctions that necessitate a more detailed comparison of individual countries facing period poverty. This case examines the current body of research on period poverty in the United States and India, and compares the causes, effects, and approaches toward ameliorating this phenomenon. Through performing a scoping review of the current literature on period poverty, this case illustrates that-as opposed to the breadth of research available on period poverty in LMICs-research on period poverty in HICs is underrepresented. In addition, the findings demonstrate a stunning parallel between the contributing factors of period poverty in India and the United States, suggesting that the current approach to isolate conversations on the topic based on regional economic incongruencies is inappropriate. Finally, this case identifies dismantling the stigmatization of periods, investing in water or hygiene infrastructure, promoting the economic mobilization of females, and reforming menstrual health curricula in schools as essential to ending period poverty.