Georgia Must In-Cyst: Bringing Comprehensive Menstrual Education to Georgia

In the wake of Roe v. Wade being overturned, the United States was alerted to how shockingly little the American public knew about their own reproductive health. For years, students have been struggling to find adequate educational material surrounding puberty, specifically menstruation. Too often, menstruation gets pushed aside, with teachers who cannot engage their students or staff who refuse to do so. This lack of menstrual instruction profoundly impacts children, with only 43% of students ages 13-19 receiving rudimentary period instruction.

Turning instead to online forums, 59% of students report that learning about periods online contributes to misconceptions and negative stigma. 

Moreover, a gap in menstrual knowledge leads to menstruating individuals being unable to identify abnormal period symptoms. As such, common menstrual disorders like endometriosis go undetected, leading to chronic pain and other issues. Insufficient menstrual instruction doesn’t just impact those who menstruate, but also close friends and family. The key to combating these outcomes is legislation requiring comprehensive menstrual education, fostering a better understanding of one’s health and body. 

This deficiency in menstrual education not only gives rise to misinformation but also a complete disregard for women’s health. Endometriosis is a menstrual disorder where endometrial tissue grows outside of the uterus and causes symptoms like inflammation and chronic pain. While this disorder impacts one in every 10 women, similar to the rate of diabetes in the U.S., it is rarely discussed in schools. Only 50% of U.S. women know about endometriosis, a worrying statistic when approximately 9 million women have the disorder. As a result, the delay between the first endometriosis symptoms and actual diagnosis is 11.4 years in America. Left untreated, endometriosis can lead to ovarian cancer, cysts, chronic pelvic pain, and fertility issues. This pain is not just physical, but also financial. The annual cost per patient from inability to work or time off due to endometriosis is $16,000 in the U.S. 

After establishing that puberty and menstrual curriculum is lacking, as well as the diagnosis delay this causes, the need for policy intervention is clear. This intervention requires comprehensive menstrual education, teaching puberty, menstrual disorders, period poverty, stigma, menopause, and other “taboo” health topics effectively. This will boost confidence in advocating for health, reduce diagnosis delays for menstrual disorders, and make periods less stigmatized overall. 

Currently, the Georgia Department of Education does not have a single health standard that requires or mentions teaching surrounding periods. Only one health standard even mentions puberty, stating, “[Teachers must] Identify the changes that occur during puberty.” This standard is too broad to yield meaningful results. Georgia must study other states’ policies to define puberty, including physical, emotional, social, and reproductive development learning goals. 

In California, Assembly Bill 2229 was signed last year to extend the “Healthy Youth Act” to include menstrual health instruction. This bill adds menstrual health to the required sexual health education section of the Act, a topic that Georgia already mandates instruction on. The extension stresses the importance of truly comprehensive education, not simply what a period is and is not. 

The California law requires discussions about premenstrual syndrome, menstrual disorders, menstrual irregularities, menopause, and menstrual stigma to be discussed within the classroom. Taking inspiration from A.B. 2229, Georgia should expand its one-line puberty standard to include full, comprehensive menstrual education. This would provide a platform for menstrual instruction, separating it from sex education and giving menstruation proper attention. Additionally, while schools teach sexual education later in life, the current puberty requirement requires students to learn about their bodies in the fifth grade. Expanding menstruation education at a young age will prove vital. 

As the gap grows between menstrual health knowledge and disorders like endometriosis, legislators must support menstruating individuals effectively. Young people cannot rely on online forums for answers, as misinformation continues surrounding menstruation and menstrual disorders. Fewer students spotting menstrual disorder symptoms increases diagnosis delays, making education critical for timely recognition and intervention of issues. 

Georgians cannot wait longer for solutions. Without legislative action, more people will suffer unnecessary pain, fertility risks, ovarian cancer, and chronic conditions. The call to action is clear: Georgia must in-cyst on comprehensive menstrual education.