Investigation of Young Women’s Awareness of Menstruation and the Role of Pharmacists in Appropriate Self-care Practices

Abstract

Education regarding menstruation is provided in elementary and junior high schools under the curriculum guidelines established by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. However, in recent years, young people who have become increasingly dependent on internet searches have become prone to making simplistic self-judgments based on the incorrect information they find, including information regarding how one should address menstruation symptoms. Therefore, the present study conducted a questionnaire survey of young women to evaluate how consumers learned about appropriate self-care practices during menstruation. Three-quarters of the respondents mentioned that they first learned about menstruation during elementary school, which is the most predominant content that respondents had learned, including the mechanisms of menstruation. The number of women who had learned about the use of menstrual pain relief drugs was greater among younger generations, accounting for only 16.8% of the study population. More than half of the young women purchased over-the-counter menstrual pain relief drugs, but only 10.3% consulted with pharmacists at pharmacies before purchase. This survey revealed that approximately 30% of the women were not satisfied with the way they dealt with menstrual pain. Pharmacists, with knowledge of diseases and physiology, are expected to raise awareness of their role as accessible advisors who support self-medication and recommend medical consultation when necessary, with their expertise to help consumers practice appropriate self-care.