Menstrual Hygiene Awareness, Beliefs, and Attitudes towards Menstruation among Female Secondary School Students in Rural Communities of Udenu Local Government Area, Enugu State, Nigeria

Abstract

Menstrual hygiene awareness plays an important role in shaping adolescents 'beliefs and attitudes toward menstruation, particularly in rural communities where misconceptions and cultural taboos remain prevalent. The study assessed menstrual hygiene awareness, beliefs, and attitudes towards menstruation among female secondary school students in rural communities of Udenu Local Government Area, Enugu State, Nigeria. The study was guided by the three specific objectives and three null hypotheses. A descriptive cross-sectional survey design was adopted. Population for the study comprised of 2,421 female secondary school students from the 16secondary schools in Udenu Local Government Area, Enugu State. The sample for the study was 369 female secondary school students, selected through simple random sampling technique. Aself- developed Menstrual Hygiene Awareness, Belief and Attitude toward Menstruation Questionnaire (MHABAMQ) was used for data collection. Data were analysed using frequency, percentage, mean and standard deviation to answer the research questions, while Chi-square and t-test statistics were used to test the hypotheses at the 0.05 level of significance. The findings revealed that the respondents had a moderate level of menstrual hygiene awareness and a moderate level of negative beliefs regarding menstruation. The respondents demonstrated a positive attitude toward menstruation. There is no significant difference in the menstrual hygiene awareness possessed by female secondary school students in Udenu LGA, Enugu State based on class level, there is significant difference in the belief and attitude toward menstruation n possessed by female secondary school students in Udenu LGA, Enugu State based on class level, Hence, the study concludes that although the respondents demonstrated moderate menstrual hygiene awareness, positive attitudes, misconceptions and cultural beliefs surrounding menstruation persist among female secondary school students. The authors recommends among others that ministry of education, school authorities should strengthening school-based menstrual health education programmes to improve menstrual hygiene awareness, dispel misconceptions, and promote positive beliefs and attitudes toward menstruation.