If you get your period, it means you didnt get pregnant during your last cycle. Menstruation, periodic discharge from the vagina of blood, secretions, and disintegrating mucous membrane that had lined the uterus. It occurs on a regular basis in uninseminated sexually reproductiveage females of certain mammal species although there is some disagreement in definitions between sources, menstruation is generally considered to be limited to primates. Yet monthly menses continue to be the standard for women. Moreover, they propose that suppressing menstruation has remarkable health. The first page of the pdf of this article appears above.
Sorry, we are unable to provide the full text but you may find it at the following locations. At a minimum, it is a nuisance that requires planning and expensive sanitary supplies and paracetamol to avoid messy discomfort. The corpus luteum produces progesterone which causes the endometrium to begin secreting various substances which make the uterus more receptive to implantation of a fertilised ovum. Brazilian gynecology professor elsimar coutinho, in his book is menstruation obsolete. Menstrual suppression has been recommended for medical conditions such as endometriosis, but it is also being proposed as a lifestyle choice for women who dislike menstruation or find it inconvenient. Cycle lengths of new world monkeys tend to be shorter than for higher primates. The cultural story of menstruation by elissa stein, are you there god. The 1st day of your menstrual cycle starts on the 1st day of your period aka menstruation. Menstruation menstruation, or having a monthly period, is a normal and natural function of most womens bodies. Menstruation, also known as a period or monthly, is the regular discharge of blood and mucosal tissue known as menses from the inner lining of the uterus through the vagina. The case against menstruation was laid out in the book is menstruation obsolete. Menstruation, menstrual cycle, abnormal uterine bleeding. However, the author, a pioneer in the development and testing of oral.
The secretory phase of the menstrual cycle begins after ovulation when the ruptured graafian follicle develops into the corpus luteum. Although its focus is predominantly subsaharan africa, many of the issues raised are relevant to girls in most lowincome countries, although there may be differences in popular practice and beliefs. Menstruation is the shedding of the uterine lining endometrium. The menstrual cycle is often conceptualized in the biomedical literature as a unidimensional, biological, and pathological aspect of womens bodies and health. During your period, blood and tissue from the lining of your uterus flows out of your vagina. However, periods may occasionally start as young as eight years old and still be considered normal. It is simplicity itself to eliminate menstruation with safe, inexpensive, and widely available oral contraceptive tablets. Menstrual suppression has been recommended for medical. Coutinho claims that women menstruated a lot less in the past because of pregnancy, poor nutrition, nursing, and so on, and says menstruation has no proven benefit to those not trying to conceive a child. Their periods come like clockwork, starting and stopping at nearly the same time every.
Menstruation, or period, is normal vaginal bleeding that occurs as part of a womans monthly cycle. Women who are menstruating have been branded as impure and, in a not too distant past, were accused of turning cows milk sour or. This is defined as excessive menstrual blood loss which interferes with a womans physical, social, emotional andor material quality of life. The englishlanguage categories are general, anthropology and sociology, environment, and medicine and psychology. Any woman can tell you that menstruating is a pain, literally and metaphorically. Find, read and cite all the research you need on researchgate. In industrial societies the average woman has few children and therefore may have 450 menstrual cycles during a lifetime. If no pregnancy occurs, the uterus, or womb, sheds its lining. Menstruation often commences between the ages of 12 and, although it can commence at any time between 9 and 17 years of age. Menstrual suppression has been recommended for medical conditions such as endome triosis, but it is also being proposed as a lifestyle choice for women who. Moreover, they propose that suppressing menstruation has remarkable health advantages. Birth control options that reduce or eliminate periods are. A girl i interviewed said, ours is a fairly new religion compared to others so no mythological concepts or superstitions are present. Articles in the professional and popular press have asserted that menstrual suppression is a reasonable lifestyle choice.
Research studies tend to use a loss above 80 ml per menses to define menorrhagia, although women who complain of. There is also a general germanlanguage list contributed by petra habiger general. The main premise of this provocative book is that menstruation is unpleasant, unnecessary, and even unhealthy. Menstruation hygiene management for schoolgirls this guide outlines the problems experienced by menstruating schoolgirls in lowincome countries. The biological significance of the process in humans can best be explained by reference to the reproductive function in other mammals. For example, coutinho interprets menstruation mainly as a control mechanism enforced by a male and christian dominated society. Elibrary welcome to the cwhn womens health database, our comprehensive bilingual collection of womens health publications and resources from across canada and the world.
The authors of articles in this special issue address the myriad ways. The perception of periods a qualitative study into the. It was only after the appearance of oral contraceptives in 1960 that, for the first time in human history, women were given the option of controlling their own menstrual cycle. Menstrual disorders are a disruptive physical andor emotional symptoms just before and during menstruation, including heavy bleeding, missed periods and unmanageable mood swings. Feminist social science scholars recognize that the biological event of menstruation is experienced and perceived within a broader sociocultural context. The book proposed that as a result of earlier menarches, later first births, and. Menstruation obsolete how suppressing menstruation can help women who suffer from anemia, endometriosis or pms, the notion of menstrual suppression has been actively discussed and debated amongst women, medical professionals and scholars alike. Heavy menstruation is flow more than 6 days andor more than 16 soaked regular size menstrual products 80 ml blood loss per period. The first period usually begins between twelve and fifteen years of age, a point in time known as menarche. Your uterus doesnt need the lining to grow a pregnancy, so.
Annals of medicine about john rock, the pill and the catholic church. Graphic4 menstruation is one of the most prominent anthropological taboos to have left its mark on present day society. Only two nonprimate species are known to menstruate the elephant shrew and bat. The discussion does not involve wresting control of womens bodies in order to place it in the hands of doctors, nor exhortations to conceal evidence of menstruation, nor attempts to suppress or erase womens femininity. Pdf on jun 1, 2001, p warner and others published is menstruation obsolete. The argument has merit for women with specific diseases such as endometriosis or anemia caused by menorrhagia. Overt menstruation where there is bleeding from the uterus through the vagina is found. Get a printable copy pdf file of the complete article 209k, or click on a page image below to browse page by page. The menstrual blood is partly blood and partly tissue from inside the uterus. Menstruation, also known as a period or monthly, is the regular discharge of blood and. Mhm booklet is intended for adoles cent girls and young women. Some women get through their monthly periods easily with few or no concerns. The mechanism of menstrual bleeding involves pgf 2 a.
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