Table 3.
Percentage of adolescent women in rural India who exclusively used hygienic methods during menstruation, by selected background characteristics, NFHS-5 (2019–21)
| Background characteristics | No. of women exclusively using hygienic methods [N, weighted] | Percent of women exclusively using hygienic methods (weighted percentage) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yes | No | ||
| Individual level variables | |||
| Age at menarche (in years) | χ2 = 84.14, p < 0.001 | ||
| ≤ 12 | 7368 | 44.7 [43.4,45.9] | 55.3 [54.1,56.6] |
| 13–15 | 31,986 | 42.3 [41.7,43.0] | 57.7 [57.0,58.4] |
| ≥ 16 | 1240 | 49.4 [46.9,51.9] | 50.6 [48.1,53.2] |
| Age at marriage (in years) | χ2 = 67.93, p < 0.001 | ||
| Not marriage | 34,339 | 42.5 [41.9,43.2] | 57.5 [56.8,58.1] |
| < 18 year | 3515 | 40.1 [38.4,41.9] | 59.8 [58.2,61.6] |
| ≥ 18 year | 2813 | 46.5 [44.8,48.3] | 57.5 [51.7,55.3] |
| Respondent’s education | χ2 = 3784.92, p < 0.001 | ||
| No education | 746 | 15.0 [13.7,16.4] | 85.0 [83.7,86.3] |
| Primary | 1088 | 19.4 [18.0,20.9] | 80.6 [79.1,82.0] |
| Secondary | 35,302 | 44.5 [43.9,45.2] | 55.5 [54.8,56.1] |
| Higher | 3536 | 62.0 [60.1,63.8] | 38.0 [36.2,39.9] |
| Religion | χ2 = 726.11, p < 0.001 | ||
| Hindu | 33,767 | 43.0 [42.3,43.6] | 43.0 [56.4,57.7] |
| Muslim | 4630 | 35.4 [33.7,37.1] | 64.6 [63.0,66.3] |
| Christian | 948 | 55.5 [52.2,58.8] | 44.5 [41.2,47.8] |
| Others | 1326 | 61.9 [59.2,64.5] | 38.1 [35.5,40.8] |
| Social groups | χ2 = 669.44, p < 0.001 | ||
| Scheduled Caste | 9734 | 42.4 [41.3,43.5] | 57.6 [56.5,58.8] |
| Scheduled Tribe | 4076 | 36.6 [35.2,38.0] | 63.4 [62.0,64.8] |
| Other Backward Classes | 17,363 | 41.3 [40.4,42.1] | 58.7 [57.9,59.6] |
| Others | 7442 | 51.2 [49.8,52.6] | 48.8 [47.4,50.2] |
| Household wealth status | χ2 = 7990.03, p < 0.001 | ||
| Poorest | 4864 | 24.4 [23.4,25.4] | 75.6 [74.6,76.6] |
| Poorer | 6938 | 32.4 [31.4,33.3] | 67.7 [66.7,68.6] |
| Middle | 8766 | 43.1 [42.0,44.2] | 56.9 [55.8,58.0] |
| Richer | 10,068 | 54.6 [53.5,55.7] | 45.4 [44.3,46.5] |
| Richest | 10,036 | 65.4 [64.2,66.6] | 34.6 [33.4,35.8] |
| Region of residence | χ2 = 9356.93, p < 0.001 | ||
| North | 7321 | 58.2 [56.8,59.6] | 41.8 [40.4,43.2] |
| Central | 7563 | 24.9 [24.1,25.7] | 75.1 [74.3,75.9] |
| East | 10,849 | 40.6 [39.3,41.9] | 59.4 [58.1,60.7] |
| West | 5254 | 56.2 [54.4,58.1] | 43.8 [41.9,45.7] |
| South | 8519 | 67.5 [65.7,69.2] | 32.5 [30.8,34.3] |
| North-east | 1165 | 30.1 [28.5,31.8] | 69.9 [68.2,71.5] |
| Type of home | χ2 = 18.86, p < 0.017 | ||
| Marital | 4803 | 44.3 [42.8,45.7] | 55.8 [54.3,57.2] |
| Natal | 35,690 | 42.4 [41.7,43.0] | 57.6 [57.0,58.3] |
| Other | 59 | 39.0 [30.7,48.0] | 61.0 [52.0,69.3] |
| Head of the household | 119 | 36.9 [29.9,44.5] | 63.1 [55.5,70.2] |
| Exposure to mass media | χ2 = 4628.47, p < 0.001 | ||
| No exposure | 5969 | 25.5 [24.6,26.5] | 74.5 [73.6,75.4] |
| Low exposure | 19,866 | 43.8 [43.0,44.5] | 56.2 [55.5,57.0] |
| Medium exposure | 12,921 | 55.3 [54.3,56.3] | 44.7 [43.7,45.7] |
| High exposure | 1916 | 56.7 [54.3,59.1] | 43.3 [40.9,45.7] |
| Discussed menstrual hygiene with healthcare worker | χ2 = 74.28, p < 0.001 | ||
| No | 39,531 | 42.4 [41.0,43.7] | 57.7 [57.0,58.3] |
| Yes | 1140 | 51.5 [48.5,54.6] | 48.5 [45.4,51.5] |
| Working status | χ2 = 53.52 p < 0.001 | ||
| Not working | 5350 | 42.5 [41.1,44.0] | 57.8 [56.0,58.9] |
| Working | 563 | 33.8 [30.7,37.0] | 66.2 [63.0,69.3] |
| Respondent owns a bank account | χ2 = 157.30, p < 0.001 | ||
| No | 1591 | 34.2 [32.2,36.3] | 65.8 [63.7,67.8] |
| Yes | 4322 | 45.0 [43.4,46.7] | 55.0 [53.3,56.6] |
| Respondent owns a mobile phone | χ2 = 199.93, p < 0.001 | ||
| No | 3935 | 38.0 [36.4,39.6] | 62.0 [60.4,63.6] |
| Yes | 1977 | 50.9 [48.6,53.2] | 49.1 [46.8,51.5] |
| Community level variables | |||
| Proportion of women with secondary level of education in PSU | χ2 = 4842.97, p < 0.001 | ||
| 0–25% | 7978 | 72.0 [71.0,73.0] | 28.0 [27.0,29.0] |
| 26–50% | 11,983 | 60.9 [59.8,61.9] | 39.1 [38.1,40.2] |
| > 50% | 20,272 | 45.1 [44.1,46.1] | 54.9 [54.0,55.9] |
| Proportion of poor women in PSU | χ2 = 5589.15, p < 0.001 | ||
| 0–25% | 21,148 | 43.2 [42.2,44.2] | 56.8 [55.9,57.8] |
| 26–50% | 8330 | 59.5 [58.3,60.8] | 40.5 [39.2,41.7] |
| > 50% | 10,755 | 70.1 [69.2,71.0] | 29.9 [29.0,30.8] |
| Proportion of SC/ST women in PSU | χ2 = 14.03, p = 0.1672 | ||
| 0–25% | 16,985 | 56.8 [55.8,57.7] | 43.2 [42.3,44.2] |
| 26–50% | 8272 | 58.3 [57.0,59.6] | 41.7 [40.4,43.0] |
| > 50% | 14,471 | 57.3 [56.2,58.4] | 42.7 [41.6,43.8] |
| Total | 40,223 | 57.4 | 42.6 |
Note: Figures in parentheses are 95% confidence interval; χ2 test applied for each variable, PSU: primary sampling units