When the England Lionesses’ away kit shorts were changed from white to blue in 2023 in response to players’ concerns about menstruation, some commentators hailed it as an encouraging step toward greater period positivity. Three years later, it’s clear that the UK is anything but period positive. A growing number of women feel embarrassed or ashamed during their period, and many women still report being stigmatised or misdiagnosed or grappling with menstruation-related health and wellness issues or period poverty – and it’s just not on.
Some of the most eye-opening menstruation health and wellness statistics we’ve found include:
- 97% of girls aged 12 to 18 experience painful periods
- 92% of girls aged 12 to 18 need to change their daily activities due to heavy bleeding
- 96% of women aged 16 to 40 experience period pain
- 93% of women aged 16 to 40 have heavy periods
- 35% of girls said they were told pain is normal
- 25% of girls said they were told heavy bleeding is normal
- 69% of people who menstruate have had a negative experience at work because of their menstruation symptoms
- 87% of women and girls have experienced mental health problems in relation to their period
- 22% of people who menstruate feel embarrassed about their period
We’ve looked at statistics and trends over the past few years to gain a better understanding of menstruation health and wellness in the UK and further afield in 2026. This is what we found.
Menstruation in the UK: An Overview
A study published in Cleaner Energy and Technology revealed that around 15 million people in the UK menstruate over a span of approximately 37.5 years. Every year, many of these people use an estimated 3.3 billion single-use menstrual management products, such as pads and tampons, as well as reusable products like menstrual cups, discs, and period underwear.
According to the NHS, the general rule is that most women have a period every 23 to 35 days, lasting 2 to 7 days. Most women lose 20 to 90ml of blood over the course of one period.
For most British women who menstruate, the experience is uncomfortable and often associated with heavy bleeding. The Just a Period survey found that 97% of girls aged 12 to 18 experience painful periods, with 24% saying this happens every time they have a period. Of those who experience pain, 42% describe the pain as severe. 92% of girls in this age group say they need to change their daily activities due to heavy bleeding.
A similar survey of women aged 16 to 40 found that 96% experience period pain, with 51% saying this happens with every period. 62% said they experience severe pain, while 24% described their pain as very severe. 93% have experienced heavy periods, with 28% saying they bleed heavily during every period.
Poor Menstruation Education in the UK
Many women and girls in the UK do not know enough about menstruation, issues such as endometriosis, and period symptom management. This lack of knowledge may be because 60% of girls in the UK learn about periods from their parents, who may be ill-equipped to educate them on these topics, according to the Just a Period survey. In contrast, 47% learn about menstruation from teachers, 22% from friends, and 13% from social media.
The girls who learn about menstruation from teachers aren’t necessarily better informed than those who turn to their parents for information.
Another survey found 33% of girls said their lessons only covered the biology of menstruation and didn’t include period management guidance. 28% said they were taught about pads and tampons, but not about alternative products. 25% spent less than an hour learning about periods in their total time at school, and 20% said they were told extreme menstrual pain is normal.
The Just a Period survey highlighted a similar finding. Girls who experienced pain and heavy bleeding were asked what has or might stop them from looking for help. 35% said they were told pain is normal, while 25% said the same about heavy bleeding.
This means a significant number of women experience an unnecessary amount of pain, discomfort, and inconvenience every month, partly as a result of misinformation.
Menstruation’s Impact on Personal Life
Periods, especially those that are painful and/or heavy, can affect people’s personal lives and mental health in various ways. A painful period often involves more than abdominal cramps. People may also experience lower back pain, thigh and leg pain, pelvic pressure, gastrointestinal distress, muscle and joint pains, breast tenderness, and headaches or migraines.
Findings in the Just a Period survey suggest these symptoms can be debilitating. 44% of women are unable to participate in physical activity such as sport, 43% having difficulties eating and/or sleeping, 36% missing education, and 20% being bed-bound.
The disruption some people experience during their periods undoubtedly leaves them feeling low, which is exacerbated by the impact of hormonal fluctuations on their sleep cycles and emotions.
How Menstruation Impacts Work
Menstruation’s negative impact isn’t limited to outside of work hours. Millions of people in the UK know full well how periods can disrupt their work lives, either by causing them too much pain to work or by potentially exposing them to bullying, stigmatisation, teasing, or unsupportive attitudes.
According to the CIPD’s Menstruation and Support at Work report, 69% of women have had a negative experience at work because of their menstruation symptoms. 61% said they worked when they haven’t felt well enough to do so, and 53% have had to miss work because of their symptoms.
When asked if they had told their manager their absence was due to their menstrual cycle:
- 49% said they have never told their manager
- 20% say they always tell their manager
- 45% of those who do not tell their managers about their periods being the cause of their absence feel their manager would trivialise the problem
- 43% feel embarrassed
- 42% would rather keep their reason private
Menstruation’s Mental Health Impact
Periods can have as much of a negative impact on mental health as they can on physical wellbeing and people’s ability to perform certain activities.
A University of East Anglia study found that women experience sleep pattern disruptions before and during their period, resulting in them spending more time awake at night. During this phase of their cycle, women participating in the study reported feeling more anger than during other phases. They also experienced reductions in positive emotions such as calmness, enthusiasm, and happiness, which correlated with their sleep disturbances.
These findings may help explain some of those focused on mental health in the Just a Period report. 87% of women and girls have experienced mental health problems in relation to their period, with 28% experiencing this every period. Respondents also said their period symptoms made them feel:
- Sad (43%)
- Unmotivated (40%)
- Anxious (39%)
- Down about their appearance or themselves (38%)
- Depressed (33%)
- Angry (31%)
- Lonely (19%)
In some people, these negative feelings may be linked entirely to hormonal changes and/or sleep disruption. However, in others, these feelings may also arise from feelings of stigma or shame, not being taken seriously, being teased or bullied, feeling helpless as a result of under-education or misinformation regarding menstruation, or the stress of not being able to afford pads, tampons, or other products.
Menstruation, Shame, Stigma, and Dismissal
One of the most alarming findings of last year was that the percentage of women in the UK who feel embarrassed during their period increased from 8% in 2022 to 22% in 2025. When asked about the reason for their embarrassment, 58% said they were scared blood would leak onto their clothes, and 30% said people would see them taking sanitary products to the toilet. 12% said their partner, friends, colleagues, or parents make jokes about their period.
The State of Period Equity report also highlighted this issue, although it found that 53% of women reported having been shamed in relation to their period symptoms. 32% said they experienced this more than once. One explanation for this is that the stigma around menstruation is still prevalent in many communities, encouraging or exacerbating feelings of anxiety, embarrassment, and shame in people who menstruate, 10% of whom have been told not to speak about their period in front of others.
Unfortunately, people who menstruate don’t only need to contend with cruel jokes and unnecessary stigmatisation. There are also times when menstruation’s impact on their health and wellbeing isn’t taken seriously. According to the Just a Period survey, 50% of women say their period symptoms have been dismissed by someone, with this person most likely to be their partner (26%), a male family member (26%), healthcare professionals (23%), or a female family member (20%).
Period Symptom Management
Even though a variety of period symptom management options are widely available in the UK, 31% of women say they have never approached a healthcare professional for help. Of those who have, 43% spoke to their GP, 19% spoke to a pharmacist, 8% called NHS 111, 6% vised A&E, and 5% consulted a private medical specialist.
There’s no one-size-fits-all solution for managing period symptoms, so women sometimes need to try different approaches until they find one that works. The most common options include:
- Over-the-counter pain relief (62%)
- Heat therapy (48%)
- Hormonal pill (34%)
- Prescribed painkillers (23%)
- Antidepressants (16%)
- Medication to reduce heavy bleeding, such as tranexamic acid (14%)
- Hormonal or copper coils (9%)
Although the majority (69%) of women do seek medical help, 67% said healthcare professionals could have done more to support them. 50% of women felt their symptoms weren’t being taken seriously, while 42% felt their appointments were rushed, and 28% said they didn’t receive sufficient information. As we saw above, almost a quarter of women said medical professionals were most likely to be dismissive of their symptoms.
In addition to contributing to these women’s frustration and embarrassment, such treatment by medical professionals may be a form of gaslighting that sees women second-guessing themselves, downplaying their discomfort, and struggling through pain for which effective treatment is available.
Period Poverty
Also impacting women’s physical and mental health, period poverty is a growing reality in the UK. Let’s face it – periods are expensive. WEN pointed out that each period costs an average of £10 in sanitary products, which works out to around £130 a year and almost £5,000 over a lifetime.
According to ActionAid, the number of women who struggle to afford period products rose from 12% in 2023 to 21% in 2024. Of these approximately 2.8 million people, 41% kept pads or tampons in for longer, 37% used cotton wool or tissues instead of sanitary products, 13% used socks or other clothing, 9% used paper or newspaper, and 8% reused disposable pads (which comes with the danger of infections caused by bacteria).
This happens because these people who menstruate need to prioritise other everyday basics over menstruation products. For 60%, this meant prioritising food, while 48% had to prioritise gas or electricity, and 24% had to purchase period products for a dependent instead of themselves.
If ever there was a case for employers, schools, and the government to provide free or heavily subsidised menstruation products, this is it. People who menstruate deserve to be treated with dignity, and any claims of this happening are sham if their physical and mental health isn’t being taken seriously.
The Menstruation Market
This begs the question: How big is the menstruation market? One report valued the global feminine hygiene products market at US$43.25 billion in 2024, forecasting it to reach $45.56 billion in 2025. The report also predicted the market will grow at a CAGR of 6.98% to reach $73.07 billion by 2032.
This growth will undoubtedly be spurred on by innovations being developed by FemTech startups, such as Emm’s smart menstrual cup offering personalised health insights and DITTO Daily’s all-in-one Cycle Supplement providing relief from physical and mental period symptoms.
Period Positivity: Be the Change
Glossary of Technical Terms
Menstruation:
Commonly known as a period, is the normal monthly discharge of blood and mucosal tissue from the inner lining of the uterus through the vagina. It occurs in individuals with a uterus as a natural biological process when a released egg is not fertilised and pregnancy does not occur.
Jack Bradley
Web Developer
