The transdisciplinary nature of menstrual poverty and its complexity in practice: characterizing the phenomenon and its aspects

Menstrual poverty is characterized by a lack of access to adequate supplies, information, and infrastructure to experience the menstrual cycle with dignity. This condition goes beyond the absence of menstrual pads, mainly affecting people who menstruate and who already live in situations of poverty and vulnerability. This research aimed to characterize menstrual poverty as a transdisciplinary and multidimensional phenomenon, by presenting the economic, social, environmental, and cultural factors that contribute to the worsening of menstrual poverty. The methodology used was qualitative and exploratory in nature, based on a literature review, aiming to construct a robust theoretical framework to meet the research objective. For this purpose, 15 documents addressing the topic were analyzed, including: 6 reports, 5 scientific articles, 3 website pages, and 1 book. As a result, it was understood that menstrual poverty is characterized as a transdisciplinary and multidimensional phenomenon because it is simultaneously a social, economic, cultural, environmental, gender inequality, and public health problem. Among the factors found at the core of menstrual poverty are the stigmatization of menstruation, economic deficits, the acquisition of menstrual hygiene products, impacts on educational development, lack of access to basic sanitation, and harmful effects on health. Thus, it is concluded that the approaches necessary to effectively address the phenomenon of menstrual poverty need to involve all these areas, recognizing that its causes do not concern only one area of knowledge.