Publications

A PERIOD. + Always® Study: What 1,011 Mothers Told Us About Period Conversations With Daughters

A new national survey by PERIOD. and Always® shows that moms are leading the first-period conversation and are determined to give their daughters a better experience than they had.

Conducted by Worthy Strategy Group and fielded by Change Research, the study surveyed 1,011 U.S. mothers of daughters aged 7–15 in May 2026. Nearly every mother is talking with her daughter about periods or plans to. But the findings also show where that conversation falls short, and those gaps carry real consequences for girls’ health.

Since 2019, PERIOD. and Thinx have released the State of the Period Study, the only publicly available research tracking period poverty and stigma among U.S. teens.

Every two years, we survey about 1,000 teens ages 13 to 19 who menstruate, asking them directly about their lives. Can they afford period products? Can they find them at school? Have they missed class because they didn’t have what they needed? How does stigma shape the way they feel about their bodies, their schoolwork, and their place in sports and activities?

Four editions in, the study gives a clear picture of how period poverty and stigma are changing, and where they aren’t. It puts teens’ own voices at the center of the conversation and gives advocates, educators, and lawmakers the evidence they need to act. Read the 2025 State of the Period Study.

But data alone doesn’t change anything. People do. Period poverty isn’t a personal failing. It’s a systemic problem built into our schools, our policies, and our silence. Solving it takes leaders who will use this evidence to change the policies, budgets, and norms that keep products out of reach and perpetuate stigma. That’s why PERIOD. invests in young advocates, equipping them to organize, push for change in their schools and statehouses, and lead the movement for menstrual equity

See what nearly 1,000 teens told us: dive into the State of the Period Study.