In short:
Participation rates in female sport drop off steadily after the age of 11.
A recent survey revealed 68 per cent of Australian women miss sport because of their period and researchers worry this attitude starts in primary school.
What's next:
Netball star Kiera Austin and menstruation researcher Olivia Bellas want to see more done to teach young girls about their periods.
Diamonds netballer Kiera Austin started playing the sport at the tender age of six, and loved hitting the court with her friends.
But when Ms Austin hit puberty she turned around, and all her friends seemed to have disappeared.
Ms Austin fears a lack of education about menstruation is behind the decline in numbers.
"I remember thinking, oh gosh, where have all my friends gone?" she said.
"I think it was a bit of a shock to me. I was so in love with the sport.
"A lot of girls drop off quite quickly. We have such a high participation at the 'Net Set Go' age (5-10) and then as soon as they get a little bit older into that team sort of space, they just drop off."
The latest data from menstrual product charity Share the Dignity's period survey revealed 68 per cent of Australian women miss sport because of their period and researchers worry this attitude starts in primary school.
Sports stars like Ms Austin are getting involved, calling for comprehensive education and opening a dialogue about period empowerment.
"If having a period was a reason that you're being held back, that would just break my heart, because sport is such a massive part of my life, and it's given me so much," Ms Austin said.
"I would hate to think that having a period or not knowing enough about your period, and the different types of cycles that exist … would be a reason why a lot of young girls are dropping out of sport."
An 'uncomfortable pairing'
Ms Austin said there were lots of reasons why young girls disengage with competitive sport as they get older, but period health was not part of the conversation.
Share the Dignity's Bloody Big Survey is the world's largest survey on experiences, attitudes and insight on menstruation.
The intersection between sports and periods is labelled "an uncomfortable pairing", with more than three-quarters of girls missing sport due to a fear of leaking.
Data from Ausplay shows female participation in organised sport peaks at ages 9 to 11 at 60.8 per cent then progressively drops as they hit puberty, reaching a rate of 25.2 per cent as they enter adulthood.
Ms Austin believes early education has the power to destigmatise the "taboo" sporting issue.
"If more young females can have access to education, without even having to go and find it themselves, their understanding of their own body is going to be even greater," she said.
Gaps in education
But early menstruation expert Olivia Bellas said the Australian curriculum was not keeping up.
Her study, conducted with Flinders University, found girls were getting their periods younger and often were not equipped to manage menstruation when playing sport.
The average age at which girls get their periods has been declining for decades worldwide.
Approximately 13 per cent of Australian girls get their periods between ages 8 to 11, according to Ms Bellas.
"They're starting to have periods or they're starting puberty, and they actually don't have any idea what's going on with their bodies," Ms Bellas said.
The words 'period' and 'menstruation' are not mentioned in the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority's (ACARA) core primary school guidelines.
In years 5 and 6 'menstruation management' is listed, but is non-compulsory.
"They don't even say anything about menstruation specifically, it's like 'puberty', which is very vague and non-specific," Ms Bellas said.
"Different schools are going to approach that differently.
"Having specific guidelines for period education in schools that explicitly state topics to teach students in school … would allow a more standardised period education across Australia."
Encouraging discussion
Her study found the schools providing education did so off their own back, largely driven by passionate teachers, but just as many schools didn't teach period education at all.
The study also uncovered a physical education teacher who told young girls they were 'faking it' when they complained about painful periods.
"They've had a male PE teacher that is just not sympathetic, or just doesn't believe that this student has their period," Ms Bellas said.
Ms Bellas said there was a lack of support and education across the sector.
"I think it would make for a more comfortable environment for everyone, not just the students, but for the staff, to be able to broach these conversations with their students and just basically normalise menstruation," she said.
In a statement, ACARA said students learn about reproductive and menstrual health in an age-appropriate way throughout schooling.
While Ms Bellas and Ms Austin acknowledged education was getting better, they both said there was still a way to go.
Ms Austin tackles taboos around periods in a web series with her fellow teammates and competitors, in partnership with a private health insurer.
"As an athlete, you have such a platform to kind of educate and advocate for these sorts of things," she said.
"So I think continuously advocating for period health, learning about it, talking about it … it's not something that's not normal, it's not something that's unclean.
"Just kind of hearing those conversations, makes it feel like it's something that's allowed to be spoken about."
Loading