“Due to the siege imposed by Israel, humanitarian aid is unable to enter the Gaza Strip . . . Limited supply on period products [for menstruating women] have caused a spike in price, leading to the conundrum on how money should be rationed; obtaining food for their families or having sanitary napkins for their periods. Having two major disparities, limited access and inflated prices, women and young girls have resorted to taking birth control pills to delay their periods.”
Amidst the ongoing oppression and widespread genocide occurring in Gaza, Palestine, period inequality is a persistent issue faced by females of all ages in this region. With more than 690,000 menstruating women displaced in Gaza, it is estimated that ten million disposable pads and four million reusable sanitary pads would be needed each month to satisfy the needs of the population, per United Nations Population Fund.
Due to the siege imposed by Israel, humanitarian aid is unable to enter the Gaza Strip, therefore making it impossible to access these products. Limited supply on period products have caused it to spike in price, leading to the conundrum on how money should be rationed; obtaining food for their families or having sanitary napkins for their periods. Having two major disparities, limited access and inflated prices, women and young girls have resorted to taking birth control pills to delay their periods.
Periods occur when a woman’s progesterone and estrogen levels decrease, hence the usage of birth control to maintain stable levels of hormones. A placebo is often taken with birth control to lower the elevated hormone activity and maintain a healthy monthly blood withdrawal. However, with no placebo taken, women in Gaza are continuously delaying their period which can lead to health risks such as blood clots as well as phantom periods.
Norethisterone tablets have been distributed in Gaza as they are more readily available and cost less than half of the price of sanitary pads. This period-delaying pill keeps hormone levels raised to prevent the uterus from shedding and is used as a preventive measure by women all over Gaza from various ages.
In a report released by Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Hatem Muslim, a Pharmacist in Rafah, attests that mothers have been starting their daughters on the pill as a preventative measure and to help ensure that they will not have to wait hours for the bathroom where sanitary levels are disparagingly low.
The blockade imposed on Palestinians has significantly rendered the water distribution in Gaza. Following the United Nations, 13 gallons of water is recommended per person each dayfor personal hygiene and hydration. Families in Gaza are reported to have only 5 gallons per day that must be shared with each other. This results in limited hygiene care and women being unable to properly clean themselves while on their period.
Poor sanitation during menstruation can lead to reproductive and urinary tract infections and in extreme cases birth complications and infertility in the future. Lacking enough water for the greater population of Gaza obfuscates how it directly harms women and their reproductive health when discussing the ubiquitous issues like obtaining sanitary items and proper hygiene care and the future issues that include proper and regular periods, in addition to low fertility rates.
These glooming truths of period inequality faced daily by Palestinian women of all ages has proven time again to be a humanitarian crisis amidst the ongoing oppression on the 25-mile coastalstrip.
The perpetual truths of this issue remain steadfast as the United States continues to fund the massacre of the Palestinian population, as seen with sending over 3 billion dollars in less than one year for Israeli military aid.
In a study conducted by the U.S Campaign for Palestinian Rights, it is reported that 1,322,199 American children can become recipients of free or low-cost healthcare if the money were to be redirected to domestic issues rather than sent abroad. These funds, if used within the borders of the United States, could offset healthcare inequality within the states as well as inform the young girls about period health, while significantly reducing the hardships and health violations faced by Palestinian women.
Works Cited:
Alsaafin, Linah, and Ruwaida Amer. “No Privacy, No Water: Gaza Women Use Period-Delaying Pills amid War.” Al Jazeera, Al Jazeera, 1 Nov. 2023,www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/10/31/no-privacy-no-water-gaza-women-use-peri od-delaying-pills-amid-war.
Batrawy, Aya, and Abu Bakr Bashir. “Another Layer of Misery: Women in Gaza Struggle to Find Menstrual Pads, Running Water.” NPR, NPR, 11 Jan. 2024, www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2024/01/11/1224201620/another-layer-of-mis ery-women-in-gaza-struggle-to-find-menstrual-pads-running-wa.
“Menstrual Health and Hygiene.” World Bank, World Bank Group, 30 May 2023, www.worldbank.org/en/topic/water/brief/menstrual-health-and-hygiene#:~:text=P oor%20menstrual%20hygiene%2C%20however%2C%20can,future%20infertility%20and%20birth%20complications.
“U.S. Military Funding to Israel Map.” US Campaign for Palestinian Rights, 8 Apr.2024, uscpr.org/activist-resource/us-military-funding-to-israel-map/.
“Women in Gaza’s Crowded, Unsanitary Camps Turn to Birth Control to Delay Their Periods | CBC News.” CBCnews, CBC/Radio Canada, 9 May 2024, www.cbc.ca/news/world/gaza-period-product-women-use-birth-control-to-skip-menstruation-1.7179069.
Sara Ehab Hassan is a recent graduate from the University of California, Berkeley, with a degree in Sociology and a minor in Ethnic Studies. She is the daughter of two Egyptian immigrants, and she spent her summers growing up visiting Egypt and her family that lives there. Following the attacks on October 7th, 2023, she has participated in personal and academic research on Gaza, Palestine, such as analyzing and comparing news headlines on the events, along with examining the words used to explain the ongoing events and how it influences biased narratives.
