Table 3: Comparison of Awareness regarding Menstruation and Hygiene between the Two Groups

Comparison of Awareness regarding Menstruation and Hygiene between the Two Groups:

Before the commencement of menses, 78 individuals in the premenstrual group and 85 in the postmenstrual group were aware of the menstrual cycle. The organ where the bleeding originated was known to the responders. Twenty premenstrual participants and sixteen postmenstrual participants believed it to be the stomach, whereas thirty one premenstrual participants and sixty eight postmenstrual participants believed it to be the uterus. The remaining participants were unsure. Menstruation was perceived as a physiological process by 59 individuals in the premenstrual group and 86 in the postmenstrual group, while God-given menses were believed by 25 in the premenstrual group and 12 in the postmenstrual group; the other individuals were in the dark.
In both groups, moms were the primary source of information, followed by siblings and then peers. Twenty respondents in the premenstrual group and forty in the postmenstrual group attended menstrual hygiene classes in their schools.

Discussion:

When girls reach puberty, the most significant event is the commencement of menstruation. Girls frequently have a lot of questions and concerns around their periods.
Giving girls accurate information about menstruation at the proper age can help them avoid forming false beliefs and a number of harmful genital and urinary infections, which have a significant negative impact on our primary care doctors. Menstrual hygiene, therefore, is crucial in assessing a woman's overall health.

Millions of women and girls worldwide lack access to menstruation products that are suitable and safe, as well as knowledge and resources on menstrual health management techniques (21). This increases their vulnerability to infections and other health problems, and it also makes them more likely to experience prejudice and stigma throughout their menstrual cycle (22).

According to a research by Alam et al., Gupta et al., Dasgupta et al., and Kamath et al., the majority of females in the premenstrual group were early adolescents, whereas the postmenstrual group had a higher proportion of late adolescents.[23–26] Similar to the findings of Chaudhary N and Gupta MK's study, the majority of respondents in both categories were Hindu and belonged to mixed families.[27]

In house maximum respondent share her room with their siblings. Most of the girls of both group coming from joint family.

The majority of respondents to this survey had regular menstrual periods, according to the study's findings. Nonetheless, the majority of those surveyed had moderate to severe menstruation symptoms, such as weakness, dizziness, cramping, and bodily pain. In a research done in Australia, where women often reported menstruation symptoms, similar findings were noted (28). According to the study, over 50% of the participants had vaginal discomfort, premenstrual syndrome, and leukorrhea throughout their menstrual cycle. A quarter of the respondents reported having problems with poor vaginal odor even after their periods ended, and almost half of the respondents experienced these problems during their menstrual cycle. The results aligned with research carried out in India, where married women living in rural areas experienced comparable symptoms (29). Insufficient understanding of menstrual health and inadequate awareness of efficient hygiene management techniques might result in heightened gynecological morbidity in females and worse health-related quality of life (30). According to the present study's findings, the majority of respondents were aware of female menstrual hygiene, however only half were aware of any health issues linked to irregular menstrual cycles. In a research done in India, where women were aware of menstrual hygiene habits, similar findings were noted (31). The majority of respondents to the current study felt guilty while purchasing sanitary pads, which indicated that the majority of respondents thought that good menstruation health services were necessary in our culture. The results are consistent with an Indonesian research where adolescent girls experienced embarrassment when purchasing menstruation items. (32)

Adolescent females across age groups held varying conceptions around menstruation. Similar to the findings of Alam et al. and Deo et al., only59 girls in the premenstrual group and 86 in the postmenstrual group understood that menstruation was a physiological occurrence. The remaining girls continued to see it as an illness or a divine punishment.[33,34] This demonstrates unequivocally that the majority of teenage girls in India were not taught proper menstrual hygiene, despite the introduction of free and mandatory education for those aged 6 to 14, and that the social shame associated with menstruation exposed them to even worse health consequences.

While in a review led by Dudeja et al. 56.4% girls knew about the process of menstruation before menarche and 60.7% girls uncovered mother as their wellspring of data while 31.8% announced that they got data from their friends.(35) Different wellsprings of data were sisters, friends, and relative. A study In Ethiopia revealed teacher to be the principal source of this phenomenon of 43.1% of girls[ 36].

Conclusion:

Teenage girls in the premenarchal and postmenarchal groups, respectively, expressed embarrassment during their periods, which amply demonstrated the stigma and unfavorable attitudes towards menstruation that are more prevalent among premenstrual females. There was a discrepancy found between the post menarchal group's teenage girls' understanding and behaviors of menstrual hygiene. Therefore, despite those who are informed before onset of menarche  tend to have better practices, unprepared females who experienced an early menarche displayed more unfavorable attitudes and beliefs connected to menstruation.

Ultimately, it is critical to have a holistic approach to menstrual health, viewing it as a human rights and health concern with physical, biological, and social ramifications that extends beyond menarche. This entails making education, information, and scientific research accessible, particularly with regard to diseases like endometriosis and polycystic ovaries, in order to guarantee that menstruation health is regarded as an essential component of the right to health rather than merely a health concern. Eradication myths and misunderstandings at the rudimentary level lingering in the public domain is important.

Abbreviations:

BMI- Body mass index
SPSS- Statistical package for the social science
STIs- Sexsually transmitted infections
US- United states of America

Conflict of interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest
Acknowledge: 

We acknowledge the academic staffs of the schools from which data were collected. We also want to thank to the students for their participation in this study and their guardians to allow their children and also allow us to collect socioeconomic information from their families. We are also grateful to department of Human Physiology , Vidyasagar University for there support.

Contribution:

AM implemented the study. AM is collected and analyzed data. AM analyzed the data. PD drafted the manuscript. SB revised the manuscript. Finally, all authors approved it.

Funding: No any funding.