Nineteen-year-old Nigerian innovator, Titilope Olotu, is redefining women’s health with a groundbreaking invention: a biodegradable menstrual pad capable of generating digital health insights from period blood using artificial intelligence. Her innovation, called PADÍ, blends biotechnology, sustainable materials and AI-driven analysis to turn a monthly routine into a window into women’s health.
At first glance, PADÍ looks like a regular sanitary pad, soft, disposable and made from eco-friendly banana fiber instead of plastic. But beneath the simple design lies a bio-sensing layer that reacts to menstrual fluid, producing color changes linked to biomarkers such as iron indicators, pH balance and infection markers. After use, a user flips the pad to view the results, scans it with the PADÍ mobile interface, and receives a personalized health summary and preliminary medical-style report powered by machine-learning interpretation of the captured data.
The idea is elegant: instead of waiting for symptoms or scheduling expensive lab tests, women can get early clues about issues like anemia, bacterial infections, hormonal imbalance or low-grade inflammation simply by tracking what their body already reveals each month. While the system doesn’t replace medical diagnosis, it gives women a proactive tool, particularly those who lack easy access to healthcare or regular check-ups.
Olotu says her vision grew from two realities many women face: limited menstrual health support and rising concerns over plastic-based pads that take centuries to decompose. By combining biodegradable pads with real-time health screening, she hopes to solve both a health and environmental problem at once.
Her journey has already drawn global attention. She has secured grant funding of about $38,000 to build and test the technology, rolled out early-stage pilot programs, and developed an initial platform where users can store results, track cycle-linked changes and even share reports with medical professionals. The innovation has earned her recognition in the global youth innovation space, and her nonprofit outreach through Period Padi has reached thousands of girls across multiple countries with pads, reproductive-health education and wellness support.
Still, PADÍ is in its pre-clinical phase, meaning laboratory testing and validation are currently underway. Regulatory approvals and larger clinical studies lie ahead, a necessary step before mass-market release. Olotu is clear that her goal is not to replace medical laboratories or doctors, but to give millions of women a way to spot warning signs early, stay informed and seek help sooner.
For a 19-year-old university student, the ambition is bold: democratize women’s health diagnostics, bring dignity and intelligence to menstruation, and use technology to close gender health gaps that have existed for generations. If the technology succeeds at scale, menstruation could transform from a silent biological process into a vital monthly health check, empowering women across Africa and beyond.
From a biodegradable pad made from banana fiber to artificial intelligence analyzing period blood, Titilope Olotu has shown what happens when innovation meets empathy and a real need. Her work represents a new frontier in femtech, sustainability and preventive care and it began in the mind of a Nigerian teenager determined to change the story of women’s health.
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