Many Palestinian women in Gaza have resorted to taking menstruation-delaying pills due to the desperate and unsanitary circumstances created due to the ongoing Israeli aggression in the besieged enclave, Al Jazeera reports.

According to Dr Walid Abu Hatab, an obstetrics and gynaecology medical consultant at the Nasser Medical Complex Khan Younis, the tablets keep progesterone hormone levels raised to stop the uterus from shedding its lining, thus delaying a period.

Doctors say the pills have side effects such as irregular vaginal bleeding, nausea, changes in menstrual cycle, dizziness and mood swings.

However, some women say they have no choice but to take the risk amid Israel’s relentless bombardment and blockade of Gaza.

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