LONDON, October 26, 2022 — Flo, the #1 leading female health app, has launched the Pass It On Project. As a company, Flo will offer free Flo Premium to women across 22 countries — including Ethiopia, Haiti, and Nepal — providing access to detailed cycle and symptom patterns records and unlimited access to expert content and its virtual chatbot. The Pass it On Project is a give-back program aiming to help women living in countries where access to safe and credible health information is limited. The countries were selected based on health literacy and health satisfaction rates data from the World Health Organization (WHO), GDP per capita rankings from the World Bank, and other metrics.
WHO defines health literacy as an individual’s ability to adequately comprehend health information and to implement this knowledge into their everyday life in order to “maintain or improve quality of life.” Low health literacy is a direct contributor to the spread of misinformation and leads to poor health outcomes and unhealthy behaviors, especially in the areas of menstruation and sexual and pregnancy health.
Existing research conducted in the countries included in Flo’s prosocial initiative points toward a dramatically low level of menstrual health literacy and the dangers it may pose. In Kenya, research found that only 12% of girls felt comfortable discussing period management with their mothers, while one in four did not associate menstruation with pregnancy. According to research by UNICEF and WaterAid, only 32% of girls in Bangladesh, 66% in Egypt, and 18% in Malawi were aware of menstruation before their first period. In Egypt, 74% of girls who were unaware felt shocked, afraid, or cried during the first occurrence. Similarly, in Bangladesh, 69% felt scared.
“At Flo, we’re building a better future for female health by helping women harness the power of their body signals,” said Cath Everett, VP of Product and Content. “This is, without a doubt, one of the most important initiatives Flo has ever undertaken. When it comes to health, knowledge is power. We already know that Flo Premium improves attitudes toward health literacy among its users, so we believe that granting free access to Flo Premium can drive real-world impact on health literacy rates at scale. By offering Flo Premium to those who need it most, we hope to empower women and people who menstruate across the globe to better understand their bodies, advocate for their unique health needs, and subsequently become the change makers in their respective countries.”
In tandem, Flo will launch a dedicated research study to assess how the use of Flo Premium improves menstrual health literacy and contributes to overall health and well-being. The research will also aim to shed light on disparities in health literacy and menstrual cycle stigma in these countries. See the full list of countries included in the initiative here.
In March 2022, Flo made its Premium subscription free for the following 3 years to all Ukrainians in order to provide trusted health information and support during a time of overwhelming stress. Since then, over 1.2 million Ukrainian users have activated their subscriptions, unlocking Flo’s full suite of health information and resources.
*Update: From October 19, 2023, the Pass it On project is available to all Android users for one year from upgrade.
ABOUT FLO:
Flo is the most popular women’s health app globally; it is the #1 recommended app for period and cycle tracking based on a survey among US OB-GYNs. Over 240 million people have downloaded Flo, and 48 million people use it monthly. With over 100+ medical experts, Flo supports women and people who menstruate during their entire reproductive lives and provides curated cycle and ovulation tracking, personalized health insights, expert tips, and a fully closed community for women to share their questions and concerns. Flo prioritizes safety and keeps a sharp focus on being the most trusted digital source for women’s health information. The Flo health app is available in more than 20 languages on iOS and Android. For more information, please visit https://flo.health.