<i>Chhaupadi</i> practice in Nepal: A literature review
Supriya Joshi
Abstract
Abstract Chhaupadi is a cultural practice where women are considered untouchable and forced to stay in separate huts during menstruation and child‐birth. There is limited evidence on the practice's causes and effects, and the objective of the current systematic literature review is to fill this important gap. The studies included in the review ( n = 18) capture the experiences of women in far‐ and mid‐west districts in Nepal. Despite chhaupadi 's criminalization by the government, 70%–80% of women in western Nepal are forced to practice it. The primary concern of the practicing women is safety. The practice is rooted in religious norms that consider menstruating women impure. Communities enforce chhaupadi by creating an environment of fear, telling women that if they do not follow the restrictions, bad things would happen to their families. A few studies examined the health implications of staying in chhaupadi huts and found negative effects. However, additional research is needed in a number of areas including on how the practice—including having to share sleeping quarters with animals—affects women and children's physical and mental health, childbirth experience, and post‐natal care, and how women are navigating the path between the community that forces them to practice chhaupadi and criminalization of the practice by the state.