This New Period App Puts Filipino Girls in Control of Their Menstrual Health

(SPOT.ph) In the Philippines, the topic of menstrual health remains a hushed conversation between mother and daughter, which is often postponed until the day a girl experiences her first period. Even then, there’s a lot of information that gets left out.

But menstrual health is about to take a welcome step forward for Filipino girls with the introduction of Oky Philippines, a local period tracker app filled with body-positive features. The best part? The app was created with the Filipino context in mind, offering Tagalog as a language and even some tailored content for Mindanao users.

A multi-country initiative backed by UNICEF, Oky isn’t technically new—the first iteration of the app went live in Indonesia and Mongolia in 2019 but it has since expanded to more East Asia and Pacific countries. 

Also read: Painkillers Aren't Enough Sometimes: Why Women Need Menstrual Leaves

Oky Philippines: The period tracker app for girls, by girls

What sets Oky apart from other period tracker apps like Flo and Clue that focus on fertility is that Oky is both age and culturally appropriate to a specific demographic (in this case, the Philippines). It has a gamified approach to period education and management through personalized avatars and menstrual health quizzes.

You’ll have to create an account and answer personalized questions for Oky Philippines to provide more accurate information about you and your body. Don't worry about this step too much since Oky is user-friendly even for those who have limited connectivity or mobile literacy.

Besides period tracking, Oky also has an encyclopedia section that is packed with relevant information on gender, puberty, and of course, menstrual health. (It will even educate you about your human rights!)

What’s more, Oky can be for boys, too. They can also explore the encyclopedia section to learn about puberty and other topics that are relevant to adolescent boys (or it can just help them understand girls better).

The Oky Philippines app is a joint product of the UNICEF, Department of Health, Department of Education, Commission on Population and Development, and the National Youth Commission.

For now, Oky Philippines is only available on Android. iOS users can download the international version of Oky Period Tracker in the meantime.

For more information, visit the Oky Period Tracker official Facebook page.

Also read: SPOT.ph Roundup: 5 Menstrual Products to Try That Aren't Sanitary Pads