81% of French women subscribe to the idea of reimbursement by Social Security for all hygienic protection.
- We call “rules” the blood flow that women experience each month for a period ranging from 3 to 7 days, and this from puberty until menopause.
- Women’s relationship to this periodic event evolves in many ways.
What is the relationship of French women to their periods? A new Ifop study for Eve and Co gives many answers.
1 in 3 French people say they have had to go without protection during their lifetime
At a time when Scotland has introduced free periodic protection for all women in the country and when the Minister for Higher Education has decided to set up distributors of free protection in French universities for the start of the 2021 academic year. , “the question of menstrual precariousness remains more than ever the daily life of too many women in our country”, analyze the pollsters in the preamble.
Thus, 1 French woman out of 3 declares having had to deprive herself during her life of protection for lack of sufficient means. At the time when the survey was carried out, this reality affects some 12% of the women questioned, in particular the youngest – 29% of 15-19 year olds and 37% of 20-29 year olds – and the poorest (48% of women receiving less than €900 per month).
“Even if I expected it, the proportion of women affected by menstrual poverty will always shock me. I myself have friends who experienced it when they were young adults or students, but it marks to know that Women do not have the means to buy periodic protections and fold toilet paper to replace them. Unfortunately, few people are aware of this phenomenon which can concern women in our entourage without us being aware. hope that through this type of survey, we will become better aware, and above all better take into account, the distress that these women are still experiencing in 2021 in our country”, comments Marie-Justine Hosin, founder of Eve and Co.
Free hygienic protections: a plebiscite
The women surveyed are in favor of devices that allow the free provision of sanitary protection: 92% of them are in favor of the installation of free distributors in public establishments, 90% approve of an identical measure in companies and 81% subscribe the idea of reimbursement by Social Security for all hygienic protection. 73% of them also say that they would be likely to use it. “The suggestion of sick leave won less support, but nevertheless the majority, 2 out of 3 women being in favor”, writes Ifop.
However, the cost of protection remains a secondary factor (34%) of choice for women, who favor the comfort provided (82%) and respect for their intimate health (66%), far ahead of ecological concerns (33 %). As for the tampon, it is used less and less (19% in 2021 compared to 33% in 2004), particularly by the younger generations, who are more suspicious of their composition and the possible toxic shocks that it can cause. The development of alternative solutions, such as menstrual panties, also explains this trend.
Periods have a strong impact on the sexuality of French women
Last lesson of the survey: the rules have a strong impact on the sexuality of French women. 55% of them refrain from having penetrative sex during their period, and 22% have already suffered a refusal from their partner when they wanted to make love while bleeding.
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