The role of health and hygiene factors in adolescent girls’ health

Abstract

The social system has an important role in nurturing the sound health of adolescent girls who are the future mothers of a nation. An attempt is made to identify the impact of nine social factors concerning health and hygiene issues of adolescent girls on their mental and physical health. Using a multi-stage cluster sampling method, 250 adolescent schoolgirls are surveyed across the five districts of West Bengal on a 3-point Likert Scale. Descriptive studies establish an inverse relationship between the level of experience (negative to positive) to different health and hygiene factors and health-related problems. One-way ANOVA outcome shows that experience with factors like privacy for changing pads, disposal facilities for menstrual waste, sanitation facility, restrictions during menstruation, quality of the adsorbent, and role of parents/guardians, teachers and society towards menstrual hygiene and waste management have a significant impact on mental health problems. On the other hand, factors like experiences regarding privacy for changing pads, restrictions during menstruation, quality of absorbent and the role of parents/guardians have significant impact on physical health problems. The study brings new light into the social outlook and its impact on adolescent health.