The everteen® Menstrual Hygiene Survey 2018 is the third such survey from everteen®, the complete feminine intimate hygiene expert, with a commitment to create accurate awareness on menstrual hygiene. Analyzing responses from more than 2000 women from 85 Indian cities, this survey covers:
• Percentage of urban Indian women using sanitary pads versus more modern methods of menstrual hygiene such as tampons and menstrual cups.
• Primary driving factors while choosing a sanitary product for menstrual hygiene management from among price, comfort, quality and health.
• Impact of periods on mood
• Impact of periods on productivity
• Incidence of leave from work due to periods
• Impact of periods on choice of clothes and how women dress
• Impact of periods on peace of mind and worries related to spotting and staining
• Incidence of vaginal infections during periods in last one year
• Preferences of women towards changing sanitary products at common toilets in public places including malls, cinemas and offices
• Impact of periods on physical activities such as swimming, dancing, yoga and gym
• Impact of periods on attending social gatherings such as family functions, parties and dates
• Awareness among Indian women on most used sanitary products in developed countries
• Percentage of women searching and trying new sanitary products
1. everteen® Menstrual Hygiene Survey 2018
Copyright @2018: W&D Group, the owner of the brand everteen®, is the authorized owner of the information contained in this document. The contents in this document can only be used for awareness and
educational activities. For attribution, please use everteen® Menstrual Hygiene Survey 2018 when referencing any finding from this survey. everteen® conducts several awareness and educational activities so as
to promote appropriate intimate health & hygiene practices among females. The everteen® Menstrual Hygiene Survey 2018 is one such educational endeavor for understanding the broader impact of menstrual
periods on a woman’s lifestyle. The information generated through everteen® Survey shall be used for educational and awareness activities only.
2. everteen® Menstrual Hygiene Survey 2018
Research Objectives
To understand the impact of menstrual period on the quality of life,
daily routine and lifestyle of women.
To understand behavior and perception of women towards sanitary
products in managing good menstrual hygiene.
3. everteen® Menstrual Hygiene Survey 2018
Data Collection: Online and offline
Format: Close-ended MCQs
Respondents: 2128 menstruating women
Scope: Open to women across India
Participation from 85 cities in 19 states across India
Sampling Technique: Random sampling
Methodology
4. everteen® Menstrual Hygiene Survey 2018
Profile of Subjects: Menstruating women residing in urban setting
Respondents
5. everteen® Menstrual Hygiene Survey 2018
INFERENCE:
Unlike western world where over 60% of women have graduated to more convenient & environment friendly methods of
menstrual hygiene like tampons and menstrual cups, more than 92% Indian women still use sanitary pads. Only about
7% of urban Indian women use more modern methods of menstrual hygiene (3.7% tampons and 3% menstrual cups).
Most used sanitary products
6. everteen® Menstrual Hygiene Survey 2018
INFERENCE:
Contrary to popular belief, price is no longer the key driving factor for choosing menstrual hygiene method. Over 95% of
urban women look for comfort, quality and health as primary factors while choosing a sanitary product for menstrual
hygiene management.
Key influencers in choosing a sanitary product
8. everteen® Menstrual Hygiene Survey 2018
INFERENCE:
Menstrual periods have a major impact on the quality of life of women. 66% women said they felt irritated or depressed
during menstrual periods. Almost one third said their mood was not impacted by periods. Surprisingly, 4.1% women said
they felt happy and confident during periods!
Impact of periods on mood
9. everteen® Menstrual Hygiene Survey 2018
INFERENCE:
Menstrual periods directly impact the productivity of almost 58% women. More than 49% of women are not able to focus
on work during periods. More than 8% women have to suffer criticism for not performing tasks properly during periods.
Impact of periods on productivity
10. everteen® Menstrual Hygiene Survey 2018
INFERENCE:
Menstrual periods impact a woman’s growth in career. More than 46% of the working women said they had to take a
leave from work due to periods. Among these, approximately 40% women took leave more than 3 times in the year
during periods.
Absence from work due to menstrual periods
11. everteen® Menstrual Hygiene Survey 2018
INFERENCE:
Menstrual periods restrict a women’s freedom to wear clothes. As many as 79% of the women said periods impacted their
choice of clothes and the way they dress.
Impact of periods on choice of clothes and dress
12. everteen® Menstrual Hygiene Survey 2018
INFERENCE:
Menstrual periods cause back-of-mind worries for a majority of women. Over 70% women claim periods affect their
peace of mind. Out of these, 22% women are highly conscious of worries related to risk of staining or spotting on
clothes.
Impact of periods on peace of mind
13. everteen® Menstrual Hygiene Survey 2018
INFERENCE:
The need for complete feminine hygiene cannot be understated with nearly 49% women reporting of some vaginal
infection and discomfort during periods more than once in year. Among women who had experienced gynecological
problems during periods, over 42% women suffered more than 3 times in the last one year.
Gynecological problems during periods
14. everteen® Menstrual Hygiene Survey 2018
INFERENCE:
Women avoid changing sanitary products at a public toilet. Nearly two-thirds have either never used a public toilet or used it
rarely for the purpose. Over 74% women said they felt uncomfortable changing the sanitary product in a common toilet
at public places including cinemas, offices or malls.
Changing sanitary products at a public toilet
15. everteen® Menstrual Hygiene Survey 2018
INFERENCE:
More than 60% of the physically active women are not able to pursue outdoor activities such as swimming, yoga,
gym, exercise and dancing during periods.
Impact of menstrual periods on physical activities
16. everteen® Menstrual Hygiene Survey 2018
INFERENCE:
Menstrual periods restrict 31.5% women from attending social and personal engagements like family functions,
parties and dates.
Impact of periods on attending social engagements
17. everteen® Menstrual Hygiene Survey 2018
INFERENCE:
Only 25% of the women were aware that tampons are the most prevalent sanitary product in developed countries such as
the US and the UK. While 46% women admitted that they did not know which product was most used by women in
these countries, another 22% answered the question incorrectly.
Awareness on most used sanitary products
18. everteen® Menstrual Hygiene Survey 2018
INFERENCE:
Despite major advancements in making periods comfortable, nearly 83% women have not searched for new sanitary
products in over a year.
Nearly 52% women have not changed their sanitary product in 2 or more years, out of which more than 25% women have
never changed it ever since onset of their periods.
Searching and trying new sanitary options
19. everteen® Menstrual Hygiene Survey 2018
• 92% of Indian women still use sanitary pads. About 7% of Indian women have graduated to more modern methods of menstrual hygiene
such as tampons and menstrual cups.
• Contrary to popular belief, price is no longer the key driving factor in choice of menstrual hygiene products. Over 95% of women look for
comfort, quality and health as primary factors while choosing a sanitary product for menstrual hygiene management.
• 66% women said they felt irritated or depressed during menstrual periods. One third women said their mood was not impacted by periods.
• Menstrual periods directly impact the productivity for ~58% women. More than 49% of women are not able to focus on work during periods,
while 8.4% of women said they were criticized for not performing their tasks properly during periods.
• As many as 79% of the women said periods impacted their choice of clothes and the way they dress.
• Periods impact peace of mind for >70% women. 22% women are worried a lot about staining or spotting on clothes.
• Nearly 49% women had vaginal infection and discomfort during periods more than once, out of which, over 42% women suffered more than
3 times in the last one year.
• >46% of working women had to take a leave from work due to periods, out of which ~40% took leave more than 3 times in the year.
• Two-third women have either never used a public toilet or used it rarely for the purpose. >74% women felt uncomfortable changing sanitary
product in a common toilet at public places including cinemas, offices or malls.
• >60% physically active women are not able to pursue outdoor activities such as swimming, yoga, gym, exercise and dancing during periods.
• One thirds of the women who attend social and personal engagements like family functions, parties and dates feel that they are not free to
do so during menstrual periods.
• 46% women said they did not know which product was most used by women in developed countries such as US and UK.
• ~83% women have not even tried to search for new sanitary products in over an year. Nearly 52% women have not changed sanitary product
in 2+ years.
Summary