PAST PERIODS
May 4, 2022
By Aditi Appalakutty
There is a lot that we don’t know about the history of menstruation. So, here are eight facts about the periods of the past.
In Ancient Rome it was commonly believed that women on their periods could somehow make farm bugs as well as natural disasters disappear.
In Vienna a doctor, Bela Schick, believed that women on their periods had destructive effects. He claimed that they stopped the fermentation of beer as well as the rising of dough. He even gave this phenomenon a name, menotoxins.
Many American women in the 1870s used suspenders with pads called Hoosiers. They were a type of menstrual belt that paved the way for menstrual products today.
Many 19th Century German women would freely bleed into the petticoats of their Victorian dresses.
For tampons Ancient Egyptians used softened papyrus.
In Ancient Egypt many women would take their menstrual blood and rub it on their body parts. It was thought to ‘cure’ sagging breasts and thighs.
Many in the Middle Ages believed that period blood was a cure for leprosy. This idea of menstrual blood having healing effects has travelled through centuries and areas.
In 1700s France the smell of a woman on her period was considered arousing because it showed fertility.
History shows us what can be learned from the past, and through this list we know that so much can be learned about how to properly speak about menstrual cycles. Many of these facts are disturbing and seem inhumane; however, now we understand the hardships of the past as well as how we can approach the future.
References:
https://www.totm.com/history-menstruation-5-interesting-facts/
https://www.totm.com/history-menstruation-5-interesting-facts/