I just had a socially awkward outburst
I couldn't help it! Reading about the concerns on the part of male scientists* that life in zero-g would cause women's menstrual flow to go backwards caused me to sputter, out loud, "Men are so stupid!"
Of course, they're not. I mean, the person who write to Straight Dope has a female name, and she felt it necessary to ask the question, and furthermore Cecil Adams (on whose writing I have a slight crush, shh! don't tell him!) is a man, and he gets it:
Unsurprisingly, to women anyway, most of the anticipated problems never materialized. There's no evidence retrograde menstruation occurs in space, and even if it did, it probably wouldn't cause endometriosis: reverse flow seems to trigger this condition only in those who experience it chronically. Returning women astronauts who've menstruated in space report that everything worked the way it usually does....
Female astronauts do face some challenges in space. Internal medicine specialist and space buff William Rowe notes that women are more likely to develop decompression sickness during their periods.[**] That's a problem mostly during space walks, so he suggests any excursion by a woman be timed for a different part of her cycle. Before you peg Rowe as a chauvinist scumbucket, note that he also thinks women are, on the whole, better suited than men to a low-gravity environment. In a 2004 article in the Journal of Men's Health and Gender,[***] he argues that for long-term space exploration an all-female crew might be the best bet. His reasons:
(1) Menstruation rids the body of iron. That's a good thing, because space flight can reduce one's production of a protein that normally sops up excess iron, and "increased free iron can be extremely toxic."
(2) Women produce a lot more estrogen than men, and they also have lower epinephrine levels. For reasons we needn't get into, these factors reduce the likelihood of heart attacks and other cardiovascular problems while in space.
(3) Some of the Apollo 15 astronauts experienced pain and swelling of their fingertips while on the surface of the moon. Rowe hypothesizes that this is less likely to happen to women because "estrogen reduces vascular smooth muscle tone."
It might also be pointed out that women on average take up less room in cramped spacecraft cabins, consume fewer resources, and are more inclined to ask for directions when lost. Finally, to be blunt, who would you rather have up there: female astronauts who, worst case, are hormonally challenged on a fairly predictable schedule once a month, or male astronauts subject to random testosterone attacks any time at all?
I guess it just kind of astonishes me that people-scientists, even, who are supposed to be all about empiricism and evidence-based thinking-would not think to consider, seriously, the mechanics of menstruation when reaching their conclusions and getting all weirded out about OMG icky menstrual blood in space.
And yes, onceupon this is for work. No, I don't think I can use it, alas.
* Who, apparently, lack any remotely scientific understanding of how menstruation works, and of the fact that it's not gravity that causes the uterus to contract and the shed uterine lining to slide through the vagina-otherwise we'd all suffer from retrograde menstruation when we go to sleep at night.
** Given that many, many things, including sometimes even coffee or riding the bus, can make me feel ill during my period, and that it's worse when I'm under physical or emotional strain or fatigue, I can see how this would happen.
*** Take note of this for future discussions with MRAs who claim that men's health receives no research or publication attention. There's at least one journal devoted to it.
Of course, they're not. I mean, the person who write to Straight Dope has a female name, and she felt it necessary to ask the question, and furthermore Cecil Adams (on whose writing I have a slight crush, shh! don't tell him!) is a man, and he gets it:
Unsurprisingly, to women anyway, most of the anticipated problems never materialized. There's no evidence retrograde menstruation occurs in space, and even if it did, it probably wouldn't cause endometriosis: reverse flow seems to trigger this condition only in those who experience it chronically. Returning women astronauts who've menstruated in space report that everything worked the way it usually does....
Female astronauts do face some challenges in space. Internal medicine specialist and space buff William Rowe notes that women are more likely to develop decompression sickness during their periods.[**] That's a problem mostly during space walks, so he suggests any excursion by a woman be timed for a different part of her cycle. Before you peg Rowe as a chauvinist scumbucket, note that he also thinks women are, on the whole, better suited than men to a low-gravity environment. In a 2004 article in the Journal of Men's Health and Gender,[***] he argues that for long-term space exploration an all-female crew might be the best bet. His reasons:
(1) Menstruation rids the body of iron. That's a good thing, because space flight can reduce one's production of a protein that normally sops up excess iron, and "increased free iron can be extremely toxic."
(2) Women produce a lot more estrogen than men, and they also have lower epinephrine levels. For reasons we needn't get into, these factors reduce the likelihood of heart attacks and other cardiovascular problems while in space.
(3) Some of the Apollo 15 astronauts experienced pain and swelling of their fingertips while on the surface of the moon. Rowe hypothesizes that this is less likely to happen to women because "estrogen reduces vascular smooth muscle tone."
It might also be pointed out that women on average take up less room in cramped spacecraft cabins, consume fewer resources, and are more inclined to ask for directions when lost. Finally, to be blunt, who would you rather have up there: female astronauts who, worst case, are hormonally challenged on a fairly predictable schedule once a month, or male astronauts subject to random testosterone attacks any time at all?
I guess it just kind of astonishes me that people-scientists, even, who are supposed to be all about empiricism and evidence-based thinking-would not think to consider, seriously, the mechanics of menstruation when reaching their conclusions and getting all weirded out about OMG icky menstrual blood in space.
And yes, onceupon this is for work. No, I don't think I can use it, alas.
* Who, apparently, lack any remotely scientific understanding of how menstruation works, and of the fact that it's not gravity that causes the uterus to contract and the shed uterine lining to slide through the vagina-otherwise we'd all suffer from retrograde menstruation when we go to sleep at night.
** Given that many, many things, including sometimes even coffee or riding the bus, can make me feel ill during my period, and that it's worse when I'm under physical or emotional strain or fatigue, I can see how this would happen.
*** Take note of this for future discussions with MRAs who claim that men's health receives no research or publication attention. There's at least one journal devoted to it.