Randomised trial, 2011
Do different sanitary pads affect sleep during menstruation?
No. Neither pad A nor pad B changed sleep quality compared to each other or to sleep during the follicular phase.
What they did
A crossover study where 17 women aged 18-40 used two different absorbent pads on the 2nd and 3rd day of their period. Sleep was measured using polysomnography (brain wave monitoring) and questionnaires. They also measured sleep during days 7-10 of the cycle as a control.
What they found
Both pad types produced the same sleep results. Sleep quality during menstruation did not differ significantly from the control condition.
What it means for you
Your choice of sanitary pad doesn't appear to affect how well you sleep during your period. The study was small and only tested two nights of pad use in one location (São Paulo, Brazil).
17
women
18-40 years
age range
28-30 days
cycle length
About the study
- Original title
- Sleep quality based on the use of different sanitary pads during menstruation
- Authors
- Hachul H, Andersen ML, Tufik S
- Journal
- International journal of gynaecology and obstetrics: the official organ of the International Federation of Gynaecology and Obstetrics
- Year
- 2011
- Study design
- Randomised trial
- What was tested
- Using two different types of absorbent pads on consecutive nights during menstruation
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1016/j.ijgo.2011.05.015
Topics
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