When are New Zealand teens taught about periods?

Learning about menstruation is a bit haphazard and often happens after getting a period for the first time, according to a group of young New Zealand women interviewed by RNZ.

The six young women, aged 13-19, said information on menstruation came in dribs and drabs from a variety of different sources.

Half of them said they learned about period products online. Most of them started out using pads and tampons and took some time to get their hands on new period products like period underwear.

They all said there is a knowledge gap between parents, school education and what period products teenagers want to use.

"When I got my first period I didn't tell anyone for the first year. I ended up learning about it from the internet, looking up what was happening to my body and trying to make sense of that." - Lali, 19, from Hamilton

Social media was a major source of information for those in the group who received limited period education from parents or school.

"Just TikTok and each other. TikTok is your Google sometimes...When doing research, you hear multiple things and you just decide which one makes the most common sense. We compare it to each other and do our own research on Google," said Maia, 19, from Hamilton.

Aren't they learning about this at school?

Period education in schools is inconsistent. It falls under relationship and sexuality education with the what, when and how to teach students left up to individual schools to determine.

However, the national curriculum states that students should be able to "describe the characteristics of pubertal change and discuss positive adjustment strategies" at around years seven and eight, according to Julia Novak, curriculum and te whāriki general manager at the Ministry of Education.

The average age of a first period in New Zealand is 13.2 years, according to a 2018 report. This finding led researchers to argue that period education in high school is too late for half the girls.

Only one teenager in the focus group received period education in primary school and before she had her first period. Even then, the education did not include any instruction on how period underwear or menstrual cups worked, despite those products being readily available in supermarkets and elsewhere.

"At my primary school, we were split up into girls and boys and everyone was put into groups of five or six. We talked about puberty and how stuff happens. They showed us how to use a tampon and a pad and about the menstrual cycle. So I learned a lot from school." - Eleanore, 13, from Auckland

Eleanore started off using pads and tampons when she first got her period, because those were the only products she learned about in school. Her mum later bought her period underwear, which she finds easier to manage.

Five out of the six teenagers in the focus group cited period underwear as their preferred period product. Only one uses a menstrual cup (no one else was game to try it, potentially showing a lack of awareness of how the product works).

Period underwear, period swimwear and menstrual cups all hit the market in the last decade, creating a revolution in period products. Today's teenagers have options that their parents didn't have, and may not know how to use or have confidence in.

Parents - as well as grandparents raising grandchildren - are often ask questions about new products during education courses by Yessenia Sandoval. She heads up the Wellington-based organisation Endo Warriors, which provides free products and education with a focus on endometriosis, a condition that can cause heavy and painful periods.

"There's definitely a lot of questions that people have and there's a lot of mums out there and parents that look at period underwear that have never used those products and are like 'how do I explain to them how this works?'"

Period underwear is reusable but has a high upfront cost - about $30 for a quality pair, Sandoval added.

'I just knew there was blood…'

Wellington 13-year-old Jane was given period underwear by her mum before she got her first period. Her mum taught her how to manage cramps, but it wasn't until year seven that she was taught a broader lesson on periods.

"I just knew there was blood, but at school in year seven, they actually explained it to everyone, boys and girls. That's when I was like 'oh, that's how that works. That makes sense'," she said.

Ongoing research into New Zealand's period literacy found that less than 50 percent of survey respondents aged 16 to 34 years old had a "functional menstrual health literacy." Researchers defined this as "understanding of how hormones within their body can affect them and what symptoms are associated with menstrual cycle changes or disruption."

About half of females surveyed could correctly quantify what a normal or heavy blood loss amount was and 38 percent did not know the typical length of a period. This could leave many to endure heavy or long periods without seeking help.

The teens indicated there was an oversight or failure from parents and the education system to teach about periods holistically.

"Understanding the phases of your menstrual cycle and understanding how they affect more than whether or not blood is coming out of you..." said 19-year-old Lali.

"Everyone should know that you have more energy in your ovulation phase because that is how your body is going to be acting. Or that you need more sleep in other phases."

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