The Duchess of Edinburgh sought to break down taboos surrounding menstrual health as she said period products should not be kept out of sight in cupboards at home.
The Duchess, 59, patron of Wellbeing of Women, told girls at Harris Girls Academy in East Dulwich, London, she believed tampons and sanitary pads should be on display at home, adding: “Let’s get them out of the closet.”
When asked what came to mind when talking about periods, the Duchess spoke candidly about her fears, saying: “When you have heavy periods worrying about when you stand up from a chair. That’s the worst one.”
She also spoke about how tampon sizes relate to flow rather than body shape. She said: “If you were going shopping and your friends are going for the mini and regular tampons are you going to feel self-conscious saying; ‘I need the big guns’?
“It’s not because of the size what you are thinking: ‘Oh I must be really big down there.’”
The Duchess, who has two children, Lady Louise, 20, and the Earl of Wessex, 16, was told that some of the girls were aware of friends forced to stay at home during their periods because they could not afford sanitary pads.
She was joined for the event by Lynn Cooper, Deputy Lieutenant for Greater London, and Prof Dame Lesley Regan, chairman of Wellbeing of Women and Women’s Health Ambassador.
Dame Lesley accompanied the Duchess and led a workshop for girls aged 15-18.
The Duchess told three boys who joined the group at the end of the workshop that they were “very brave” for agreeing to talk about periods.
She said: “I think bringing boys into the conversation is very important. I’ve been to many countries around the world and other countries seem to be more progressive.”
One boy said his sister was “very moody” before her periods.
Dame Lesley explained that it was due to hormonal fluctuations, saying: “Hopefully you’ll be more sympathetic now, but I’m sure you were anyway.”
The Duchess joked: “Just lock the knives away.”
When asked about the period products she used, Dame Lesley said she was “happily menopausal” to which the Duchess replied: “Ditto!”
Tanya Simon-Hall, owner of Adeno Gang, which runs workshops about menstrual health in schools and colleges, said afterwards: “The Duchess said, ‘Even I learnt something new’.
“They all got a takeaway from the session so they can go on and inform other people.”
Dame Lesley, the government’s ambassador for the Women’s Health Strategy and chairman of Wellbeing of Women, said that girls need to be told about menstruation at a younger age.
“Ten is now the average age that girls start to menstruate so they need to know about it earlier. Not masses of details but something to put over in a positive way.”
She added that she wanted every medical professional to ask about female patients’ periods, even if they are presenting with seemingly unrelated symptoms.
She added: “The Duchess was very helpful on our campaign on the menopause two years ago and now with our campaign, Just a Period, we hope to make it something that everybody talks about – over the dinner table, the breakfast table, in the petrol station, even.
“The Duchess demonstrated that she is really open, receptive and, of course, she has a daughter, too.”
Janet Lindsay, chief executive of Wellbeing of Women, said: “My experience of seeing the Duchess in these situations is that she is very good at making everyone feel comfortable.”
Meanwhile, the Duke of Edinburgh continued his tour of the remote South Atlantic island of St Helena with a visit to Jacob’s Ladder, a run of 699 steps leading from Jamestown to the fort at Lavender Hill.