“But I think there’s always been that stigma”: Adult women’s perceptions of menstrual product advertising

Abstract

The global value of the menstrual product market recently surpassed 40 billion dollars, yet little attention has been paid to how menstrual product advertising may impact women’s perceptions of menstruation. We interviewed a diverse cohort of 18 adult women to understand how menstrual product advertising shapes women’s interpretations of their bodies and the menstrual process. Three themes emerged, including gendered stigmatization, depictions of hyper-feminine women, and false narratives about periods. We concluded that dominant patriarchal images of women on their periods persist in female-targeted advertising and offer solutions for advertisers to eliminate stigmas and encompass inclusivity.

Declaration of conflicting interests

The authors declare no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this manuscript.

Funding statement

The authors did not receive funding for this research.

Correction Statement

This article has been corrected with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.