Teenage girls have been urged not to use toilet rolls and rags during menstruation period to prevent themselves from contracting infections.

Instead, parents must endeavour to provide their teenage girls with sanitary pads every month for proper hygiene.

Mrs Beatrice Sarfo, the Midwife in-charge of the Duayaw-Nkwanta Health Centre, who gave the advice, entreated adolescent girls to try as much as possible to change their sanitary pads at least twice every day during their menstrual or ovulations periods.

She was addressing pupils and students drawn from the various basic and Senior High Schools in the Municipality at a forum held at Duayaw-Nkwanta in the Tano North Municipality of the Ahafo Region.

The Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection organised the forum aimed at sensitising the school children and their teachers on issues relating to child rights, gender, social protection and sexual reproductive health care.

Mrs Sarfo observed that the use of toilet rolls and rags during menstruation was very dangerous because users could easily be infected with or contract life threatening infections as they grow into adulthood.

She said the upbringing and development of the girl child was the responsibility of parents, and advised them not to be harsh, but draw their girls closer to them especially during their adolescent period.

Mrs Freda Prempeh, the Deputy Minister of Gender, Children and Social Protection, advised the students to observe personal hygiene and avoid bad peers who could influence them and truncate their education.

She also advised them to abstain from pre-marital sex, and concentrate on their books to enable them to pass their exams well and benefit from the free SHS programme.

Mrs Prempeh, also the Member of Parliament for Tano North constituency in the region, advised parents to provide their children with basic educational needs to sustain their interest in schools.

She noted that with the implementation of the free basic and SHS programme, there was no justification for any Ghanaian chid to be denied formal education.