SAN DIEGO – June 6, 2022 – May 28th was Menstrual Hygiene Day, which recognizes the efforts to end period poverty, the lack of hygienic sanitary products and menstrual education, to destigmatizes menstruation. However, this is an issue women face daily and so Blue Shield of California Promise Health Plan sponsored CouldYou?’s first health education campaign in the United States, which will distribute 1,000 menstrual cups to immigrant, refugee, black, indigenous, and women of color, as well women living in rural communities across San Diego County.
“According to the World Bank, girls not completing 12 years of school, costs countries $15-$30 trillion in lost lifetime productivity and earnings. Additionally, shame and stigma is associated with menstruation and it’s known that women who suffer from period poverty often experience depression,” said Christine Garde Denning, founder and executive director at CouldYou?. “This is why we are proud that Blue Shield Promise is helping us get menstrual hygiene education and products into the hands of women in San Diego County.”
Preliminary findings reveal that high school and college students in San Diego are missing school three to five days a month because they can’t afford pads and some menstruators are wearing tampons for 16 hours at a time, due to lack of funds. There are college students who are housing insecure and having to choose between basic needs and menstrual hygiene products.
“At Blue Shield of California Promise Health Plan, we take a holistic approach to improving the health outcomes for all women residing in the communities that we serve,” said Kim Bower, M.D., medical director at Blue Shield Promise. “We are proud to support CouldYou?’s goals to increase access to menstrual education and products that are sustainable, hygienic, and sanitary. Our hope is that together we can help increase health equity and improve economic development among underrepresented women across San Diego County.”
Health education will be provided when the menstrual cups are distributed to local communities, organizations and schools in the North Inland, East County and North Coastal San Diego regions. The recipients of the menstrual cups include MAAC Vista, San Diego County Parks and Recreation - Teen Centers, Farmworker Care Coalition, City Heights community, San Diego State University, Catholic Charities, Mira Costa College, Hoover High School, El Cajon High School, and Monarch School.
Menstrual Hygiene Day highlights the importance of good menstrual hygiene management at a global level. One in five menstruators in the US miss school during menstruation and one in four cannot afford menstrual products. Globally, desperate menstruators are using unsanitary products like rags and paper. Every nation, including the US, is affected by period poverty and adequate facilities due to financial constraints.
CouldYou?’s solution, the CouldYou? Cup, is made in the US and FDA registered menstruation cup. It is a molded, one piece small and flexible medical grade silicone cup that can be used for up to 12 hours, to collect menstrual flow. It comes in a biodegradable Ziplock bag with an “Instructions for Use” and a cotton storage bag. Each bag is hand made in Africa, employing girls age 10-17 in Uganda, who are transitioning from being sex-trafficked. The CouldYou? cup costs $10 and with proper care, it can last 10 years, costing $1 per year.
The product is supported by health education and has a data-based monitoring and evaluation model. In partnership with Stericyle, obsolete menstrual cups are recycled into renewable energy once they have been used for 10 years. With sanitary pads and tampons taking 500-700 years to decompose, thus impacting landfills, this sustainable product helps reduce waste, and virtually eliminates total suspended solids, while using less water.
Blue Shield Promise’s sponsorship will allow, CouldYou? to put the CouldYou? Cup in the hands of underrepresented women across San Diego County and provide health education to improve menstrual health equity, the quality of life and ultimately the earning potential of menstruators while promoting equality.