Asan donates 750 menstrual cups to adolescent girls in Lucknow and Sitapur

Name: Donate a Cup!
Brand: asan store
SKU: DONATE
Price: 900.0 INR
Availability: InStock

September 13, 2024

Curious about Asan’s social impact work? In this blog, we will talk about Asan’s two year menstrual health education and sustainable period product adoption program with adolescent girls in Lucknow and Sitapur, Uttar Pradesh.

In 2021, Asan partnered with Study Hall Foundation’s Pad and Prejudice program team to address menstrual health challenges faced in Lucknow and Sitapur. The program involved menstrual health education and the distribution of sustainable period products to adolescent girls and their mothers.

The program resulted in the distribution of 750 Asan menstrual cups with an 80% adoption rate! Not only did this lead to cost savings of Rs.12,000 per person, but also 240 days of school attendance of productive work gained over a 10 year period.

Fantastic right?! So let’s learn exactly how Asan worked with the Pad and Prejudice team to achieve this.

Understanding the context: period poverty in Lucknow and Sitapur, Uttar Pradesh

Before starting any new program, it’s really important to understand the specific context and local period management practices. That’s why Pad and Prejudice conducted an initial baseline survey, and found the following facts:

Each menstruating individual spends Rs.100 on average on sanitary pads every month.

2. Women and girls experienced leaks and rashes while using sanitary pads.

3. School-going girls did not have a place to dispose of their pads during the day. As a result skipped school or carried back soiled pads in their bags - outlining a direct impact of period poverty on girls’ education.

4. Cloth rag users struggled with drying their rag in sunlight due to menstrual stigma.

5. Many women and girls expressed that their periods cause stress and anxiety.

In Lucknow and Sitapur, the usage of poor quality sanitary pads is very high due to a lack of affordable menstrual hygiene solutions for underprivileged women and girls.

Hence, there was a clear need for menstrual health initiatives that would enable people to manage their periods safely, comfortably, and sustainably.

Why is the Asan menstrual cup the best period product for adolescent girls?

The Asan cup is a reusable period product that is used to collect menstrual flow. It is made from Class VI Silicone (the same material used in heart stents) and has a design patent for its unique removal ring - which makes it the easiest menstrual cup to use.

The Asan cup is particularly well suited to the needs of marginalised communities, including adolescent girls, for the following reasons:

1. Affordability: A single Asan cup can be used for ten years, enabling each girl to save over ₹12,000 ($150) in this period.

2. Comfort: As it is worn internally, users cannot even feel that they are on their period.

3. Capacity: The Asan cup holds three times more fluid than a pad and can safely be worn for 12 hours.

4. Privacy: The cup is small and can easily be stored in private. There is nothing to dispose of or hang out to dry; only the user is aware that they’re menstruating.

5. Better health: Those who switch to the Asan cup experience a reduction in rashes, discomfort, UTIs and reproductive tract infections.

6. Freedom of movement: Daily tasks such as working, going to school and exercise are made possible during periods.

Program design

Understanding the community

To implement this project, Asan partnered with Study Hall Foundation, an NGO based out of Lucknow. Study Hall Foundation runs educational programs and extracurricular activities with young girls, adolescents and youth from marginalised communities - with a strong focus on girls’ empowerment to reach their full potential. Study Hall Foundation’s Pad and Prejudice program team led the implementation of this program in Lucknow and Sitapur.

Through their network, the Pad and Prejudice team identified menstruating girls and women aged between 12-40 that lacked access to safe period care for the program.

Informed choice

To provide various sustainable period product options to the community, the Pad and Prejudice team partnered with EcoFemme, a sustainable cloth pad social enterprise.

For the program in Lucknow and Sitapur, they provided both the Asan menstrual cup and EcoFemme cloth pads as period product options for young girls to choose from.

Working with mothers and daughters

Through past programs Asan has found that when working with adolescent girls, the Asan cup adoption program is much more effective when it also includes their mothers and older sisters. This is because when mothers use the Asan cup themselves, they are able to understand the benefits of making the switch and provide direct support to their daughters. Hence, this program worked with 750 young girls and their mothers and older sisters.

Program implementation

Program implementation involved two key components and a total of 2 to 4 sessions were conducted with each participant group. Each session involved between 20-35 girls and women, creating a safe space for community members to ask questions and raise any concerns.

1. Menstrual health educational sessions

To address the importance of menstrual health education in schools and the wider community, Pad and Prejudice started the program by conducting in-depth educational sessions with tailored curriculums across ages groups 13-45.

The educational sessions involved key topics such as understanding the reproductive anatomy, the menstrual cycle, tracking your period, and changes that occur in our bodies during puberty.

2. Period product training sessions

The 2nd session of the program focused on familiarising the community with sustainable period products and product distribution.

In-depth training about using Ecofemme cloth pads and the Asan menstrual cup were provided to each group - with a space to ask questions and understand the benefits of these products.

Following this, participants were given the option to take either or both products depending on their preference. The participants were also provided with phone numbers of the Pad and Prejudice team so that they could receive hand-holding support through the switch to sustainable period care.

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Program outcome

The main objective of this study is to find out how the Asan cup has had an impact on the overall menstrual experience of adolescent girls.

After concluding the school sessions and community intervention, interviews were conducted with a sample size of 50 Asan cup users across Lucknow and Sitapur. This included adolescent girls and women between 13-45 years.

Here is what we found:

Stories of impact

The adoption of the Asan menstrual cup was very successful in Lucknow and Sitapur. See what users have to say:

Shalu, 16

Year 11 Student at Prerna School

“I feel really comfortable using my Asan cup. It’s great and much better than using pads. I feel tension free and can enjoy my life easily while on my period without any hassle.”

Jyoti, 24

HR Assistant with Study Hall Education Foundation

“Since I started using the Asan cup I have no problems with my period – especially dealing with rashes from pads. I also don’t have to run to the bathroom all the time to change my pad now or worry about leaks. I’m really happy and have also helped my sister make the switch to the Asan cup.”

Simran, 17
"I feel free with the cup. There are no fears of staining her clothes now. With the cup it's to commute and go about my daily activities as the cup doesnt leak."
Kalpana, 35
"I have polio in one of my legs which caused a lot of difficulty for me to use pads. Mobility was a challenge especially during periods as pads gave me bad rashes. The Asan cup has made my life so much easier."
Afsana, 20
"I have very heavy bleeding during periods, but with the Asan cup managing periods has become easy. I don't have to change pads every few hours anymore."

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We would like to thank the Pad and Prejudice team for their dedication towards program implementation in Lucknow and Sitapur.

This program was sponsored through Asan’s 1-for-1 donations program. Asan is super grateful to everyone who bought the Asan menstrual cup - your purchase makes a huge difference in period poverty alleviation.

Thank you to Ecofemme for donating their cloth pads towards this program.