TLDR:

A study was released this week testing period product absorbency using human blood for the first time… like ever. As in tampons and pads have never been tested using blood until this moment, only saline or water. Yeah, I’m not ok either.

This means that what we’ve been reading on period labels in terms of “absorbency levels” has never been accurate and is just another example of the ways that women and people who menstruates’ health isn’t prioritized, or even talked about.

And going down this rabbit hole led us down another that really overcooked our grits — per this read from Vulture, period products weren’t allowed to be advertised on TV until 1972 nor talked about on-screen until 1985. Meanwhile, menstruation has been happening since the beginning of time. WTF.

Here’s The Thing:

I remember in middle and high school, doing the covert tampon shuffle, a choreographed dance passed down from mother to daughter, older sister to younger sister, upperclasswomen to freshmen. We all know the moves: There’s the desperate whispered plea for supplies telephoned from ear to knowing ear. The concealed tampon grab — plucked from purses and backpack front pockets and nestled into sweatshirt sleeves to take the bathroom, followed by the jacket passed discreetly from a friend to wrap around your waist lest anyone see the blood-stained jeans sure to bring social suicide.

This month has been an interesting month for period news (more on that in just a second), and it got the Honey crew talking about the euphemisms jokingly used to belittle our experiences. “On the rag,” “lady business,” “Aunt Flo,” were thrown around, often derogatorily, to trivialize the very real hormonal fluctuations and physical manifestations of our menstrual cycles.

The Women’s World Cup brought us some uplifting period news, with renowned coach Dawn Scott making headlines for her innovative approach to sports medicine using players’ menstrual cycles to dictate diet and exercise leading to a competitive edge. And just last month, Wimbledon announced it would now allow women tennis players to wear dark undershorts beneath their white skirts.

The Takeaway:

We’re done being discreet about bodily functions that affect 50% of the world’s population 12 weeks (if you’re lucky) out of the year. Why are we so quick to tolerate—dare I say be entertained by—film and TV depictions of blood and gore born by violence, but get queasy at the mere suggestion of menstrual blood? Don’t answer that. We know. But there’s no day like today to start deconstructing the cultural shame and stigma surrounding periods to make things easier for the next generation. May they never have to learn the sacred shame choreography of adolescents past. Amen.

Required Reading:

• Proud Menstruating Student –The New York Times
• Menstrual cycle shame ‘hurts mental health’ – BBC
• What We Still Don’t Know About Periods: The stigma surrounding menstruation may have had severe consequences for research into reproductive health – The New Yorker
• First study to compare absorption of period products using human blood finds that discs can hold the most – The Guardian