What is the main idea of the news item? [originaltext] When boys and girls re

When boys and girls reach puberty, their bodies go through many physical changes. But for girls in Africa, the onset of menstruation can bring with it discrimination, unwanted sexual advances and the end of their education. Now a pilot study in Ghana says it doesn’ t have to be that way.
    The study says when free sanitary protection is provided to secondary school girls there is a sharp drop in absenteeism and increased participation in household chores and socializing.
    Oxford University Professor Linda Scott led the study, which involved more than 180 girls in four remote villages in Ghana. She says menstruation is often a taboo subject. Cost and lack of availability are two reasons rural girls in poor countries go without sanitary protection.
    What’ s more, Professor Scott says girls are perceived differently once menstruation begins. Scott says a girl without sanitary protection faces serious consequences.
    Many of the girls, she says, simply get discouraged and drop out of school. But they face a physical risk as well.
    Scott says the long-term consequences are "huge." While education for both boys and girls is critical for a nation’s development, ensuring girls remain in school can bring many benefits.