Attitudes and Conceptions of Menstruation and Menstrual Hygiene among Schoolgirls (Morocco)

Abstract

Menstruation is an important part of a girl’s life, and inadequate knowledge about this process can have an impact on reproductive health. Menstrual hygiene is the aspect given the most importance in health education for girls. A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in Marrakesh among a population of schoolgirls. A total of 364 schoolgirls 12–20 years of age and attending middle and high schools were randomly selected to participate in the study. The data were collected anonymously in direct confidential interviews and analysed with SPSS.21. Our descriptive findings show that many of the girls lacked adequate knowledge about the origin of menstrual blood (54.7%) and about the physiological cause of menstruation (77.2%). More than half of the respondents (69.2%) reported a negative reaction to their first menstruation. There was a significant correlation between their knowledge about menstruation and the education level of both their mothers (P < 0.001; X2 = 25.15) and fathers (P < 0.001; X2 = 26.01). We conclude that the girls had misconceptions about some physiological menstrual traits but that their menstrual hygiene was generally sound.