Menstrual Practices in Operational Military Women

Women's sex-specific health care and hygiene needs are part of military readiness for female service members and important for their leaders to ensure unit readiness. Promoting readiness that includes women's health needs contributes to the overall strength of the military. Because women comprise over 15% of today's military force and growing in proportion, readiness for military women has obtained increased attention in research and health practice. Menstruation is a sex-specific experience that must be part of the consideration for individual military readiness. Little research has explored the in-garrison readiness of women, particularly for women in high operations tempo settings, when considering menstruation management. The specific aim of this study was to explore how active duty U.S. Air Force women manage their menstruation while living day-to-day in a military culture.

A qualitatively driven mixed-method design using ethnography was conducted. Data collection included multiple sources: observations, questionnaire data, interviews, and focus groups among a group of Air Force Security Forces women.

Data from questionnaires (n = 16) and interviews or focus groups (n = 10) were analyzed. Themes included knowledge, cop culture, and support. Comprehensive findings demonstrated that women were knowledgeable about menstruation and menstrual suppression, but did not practice it. No women in the study were suppressing menstruation. Military culture had minimal impact on menstrual practices, whereas knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs gained from family and friends was more influential on how women in this study managed menstruation.

This study was the first to use a qualitatively driven mixed-method design to explore military women's menstrual practices in an operational setting. This study can be used in collaboration with other evidence to promote health of military women through clinical education and support in command environments. Future research should consider other operational settings where women are expected to maintain a high level of readiness.