Assessment of menstrual practices in reproductive age Shimla City of Himachal Pradesh

Background :Menstruation or menses is the natural bodily process of releasing blood and associated matter from the uterus through the vagina as part of the menstrual cycle.Menstrual practices are influenced by taboos and socio-cultural restrictions for women.Material & method: population based Cross-sectional study involving 32 wards of Shimla city. Sampling unit was household in MC Shimla. Sample size estimated 640 stratified random sampling was done for selection of sampling unit. Results:Perception regarding menstrual hygiene was considered by 71.4% of the respondents and 24.1% as important & only 4.5 % regarded it as slightly Regarding practices of menstrual hygiene 88.4% respondents use disposable pad for menstrual hygiene and 48.59 dispose off them in household waste. Conclusion :Menstrual hygiene perception was regarded as very important by majority of respondent as well as good practices were followed by majority.