Why do Japanese women not visit an ob-gyn despite their health challenges?

A recent survey showed that many women in Japan have never visited obstetrics and gynecology (ob-gyn) unless they get pregnant, even their health challenges.

44.7% of women who have never been pregnant have never visited an ob-gyn. For this reason, 31.9% claimed they didn’t want to spend money, and 29.9% answered that their unwellness was not serious.

In addition to that, the survey also reveals umpteen shocking results. Over 85% responded that they feel unwell physically. Half of them have unwellness correlated with an ob-gyn, many of that are related to the period; period pain (30.6%) and premenstrual syndrome (known as PMS) (25.6%). Many women deal with them themselves without visiting an ob-gyn, such as taking over-the-counter medicine or supplement, and 1 out of 5 don’t deal with them.

Another survey shows that recognition of PMS and endometriosis in Japan is higher than in other countries. However, the point is that substantial numbers of women in Japan suppress their symptoms due to social norms that dictate that women should overcome them as they were born as women.

What does neglecting their symptom bring women?

The condition of periods is crucial to assess women’s overall health, as the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the American Academy of Pediatrics define. The more inherent PMS a woman has, the more challenging situations arise, such as disturbing the normal functioning of their body, depression, and fatigue. Additionally, a well-known period symptom, a continuous painful period, may indicate endometriosis.

What is the root cause of the hesitance to visit an ob-gyn?

The root cause of this issue is that sex education in Japan is further behind international standards. Although the school curriculum includes some facts about menstruation, details such as how to deal with periods are not included.

The result of a research NHK conducted from 2021 to 2022 reflects the issue. More than half of all respondents and about 80% of respondents aged 40 and over answered that education about menstruation had been conducted separately for boys and girls at elementary school. In addition, 36% of the male respondents answered that they “had never been educated about menstruation,” and 21% answered that they “do not remember whether they were educated or not.” It shows the possibility majority of elementary schools educate about menstruation only for girls.

A female respondent replied, “I felt the unspoken rule that menstruation must be kept secret because of taking education about menstruation conducted separately for boys and girls.” A male respondent answered, “I didn’t know menstruation could be so hard and affect their life until I dated a woman.” The research implements the existing education triggers social incomprehensiveness of women’s well-being and is potentially associated with the absence of visit ob-gyn.

Some groups that take action to confront the issue

Seiri Kaiteki Project (Project for Comfy Period) focuses on enlightening people about the importance of women’s wellness and the necessity of supporting women’s wellness in workplaces and society, aiming to realize a society in which women don’t have difficulties due to menstruation. For instance, they hold webinars for women collaborating with female celebrities and medical experts to enable women to access the ob-gyn easily and have the opportunity to understand their bodies and periods. They also inform companies and society to promote understanding of women’s periods.

WOMEN’S WELLNESS ACTION is a community which has a vision that women’s health changes the world. They work to advocate sexual and reproductive health and rights. They offer events and seminars to prevent unwanted pregnancies and gynecological diseases as well as reclaim women’s human rights. They deliver the information about women’s health on Instagram.