The Menstrual Cycle Through the Ages
(This article was written in association with the elää wellness menstrual cycle program released in April of 2025. You can find more about the program and join here!)
Have you ever paused to think how our ancestors wayyyy back when handled their periods? What were their viewpoints? How did they understand and view why women bled about 1x/month? They definitely didn’t have the research or focus on it that we do now, so how has the menstrual cycle and our view of the menstrual cycle evolved over time?
Let’s walk through a bit of the timeline and fun (read: not-so-fun) facts.
The Attitudes of Menstruation in Ancient Greece & Ancient Rome
Aristotle
Aristotle viewed women as inferior to men based on the logic that men provide the “seed” for fertilization, whereas women just provide the location. Many of his theories on menstruation were based on this viewpoint that women were the minority player in reproduction. He argued that men’s semen was productive because it allowed for fertilization and procreation, whereas women’s “semen”, or menstrual blood, did not accomplish the ultimate goal of reproduction, which further proved his logic that women were inferior. (He even called menstrual blood “semen’s inferior”!) If that wasn’t enough, Aristotle also called women “mutilated males” and said that “we should look upon the female state as being as it were a deformity, though one which occurs in the ordinary course of nature”. Aristotle also compared menstrual blood to the blood of a sacrificed animal. Sooooo that about sums it up!
Hippocrates
Unlike Aristotle, Hippocrates, “the father of modern medicine”, viewed women as completely formed, separate entities than males and necessary for reproduction. He reasoned that women’s bodies were more “sponge-like” than men’s, so we absorbed more fluid in our bodies. Once that fluid had built up, we had to get rid of it somehow, or else it would lead to illness or death. He viewed menstruation as a necessary way for us to help rid our bodies of illness. He sought to be able to “control” menstruation in order to control our ability to contribute to reproduction. His main focus was not to control it to help our overall health, as he believed that our health and happiness were dependent on our ability to reproduce. He also believed that women on their periods could “sink ships, spoil cheese, tarnish silver, and kill livestock”. Woah. The power.
Pliny the Elder
Pliny the Elder was a Roman physician in 77 CE who wrote a 37 volume encyclopedia that included theories on menstruation. He paints the picture that women on their periods are isolated, walking through fields naked and looking disheveled. Here is a comical list of some of the things Pliny wrote about for women on their periods…or even being around women on their periods…
Pregnant women will miscarry if touched or even looked at by a woman on her period
Pregnant women will miscarry if they come into contact with menstrual blood or even “Step over it”
Menstruating females will kill plants, insects & make seeds infertile
Menstruating females will make bees leave their hives
Purple, thought to be a royal color & hard to make, would tarnish at a woman’s touch if she was on her period
Overarching Themes
Women on their periods were viewed as unworthy, shameful, toxic, uncontrollably powerful, and sick. Women had a sole job of reproduction that would fulfill their happiness and health, and it was imperative that we be able to control that ability. Men tried to justify healthcare treatments and intimacy with under-age females based on their bleeding patterns or lack- thereof. Females who didn’t menstruate were often given treatments to help them bleed and get rid of the excess toxicity within their bodies. Historically, periods were a sign of inferiority and shame, so much of what we are working against today can be traced back to these illogical viewpoints.
The Evolution of Feminine Hygiene Products and Marketing
This is an excerpt from a poem called “When Grandma was a Girl” found in a Kotex booklet in 1943.
“If she drank milk, the cows were doomed.
If she entered a wine cellar, wine went sour.
Flowers would wither at her touch…
Meat would soil if she dared salt it.
A look from her eyes would kill a swarm of bees.”
A bit extreme for a campaign marketing feminine hygiene products, no?
When we see feminine hygiene products marketed today, what are some of the top selling points? The first things that come to my mind are “all-day protection”, “leak-proof”, “odor-free”, and “compact sizing”. As much as I love feminine hygiene products, is the marketing playing into the ancient logic that a woman on her period is shameful and that menstruation should be hidden?
So what about today?
If we look back in history, women handled feminine hygiene in a variety of ways. Some bled through their clothes while others used yucca fibers, twine, and other fibers to make a thong-like belt (shown in the above gallery). Tampon-like objects and material were also used, with the first cardboard applicator showing up in the 1930s. The combined applicator and tampon showed up soon after in 1936, although it was not widely adopted until the 1950s. Throughout this history as feminine hygiene products became more mainstream, the advertising used to market these products only reinforced the idea of shame and secrecy, focusing on the idea that periods shouldn’t “stop us” from traveling, working, playing sports, or being “dainty women”. I know we have come so far when it comes to chatting about the menstrual cycle, the importance of the menstrual cycle, and de-stigmatizing our periods. I truly believe there are so many brands that are focused on improving how we view our periods and the products used to support our menstrual cycles. The focus is shifting towards decreasing the toxicity within our period care products, reducing shame around our periods, and being more public & vibrant with our period care. I love what brands like Viv for you V are doing in the space, creating beautiful, period care packaging, while also focusing on sustainability.
Resources
Coleman, A. Why are we so uncomfortable? The confusing taboo in Ancient Rome and the Modern Era. The Claremont Colleges Library. Accessed March 12, 2025. https://pressbooks.claremont.edu/clas112pomonavalentine/chapter/why-are-we-so-uncomfortable-the-confusing-taboo-of-menstruation-in-ancient-rome-and-modern-america/#:~:text=Menstruation%20to%20Aristotle%20is%20not,significant%2C%20if%20any%2C%20backlash.
Weissman, A. Period pice: Menstruation’s Hidden History. History Colorado. Accessed March 12, 2025. https://www.historycolorado.org/story/2024/08/16/period-piece-menstruations-hidden-history
Bell, J. What was it like to get your period in Ancient Greece? A Q&A with historian Helen King. Clue. Accessed March 12, 2025. https://helloclue.com/articles/culture/what-was-it-like-to-get-your-period-in-ancient-greece
https://www.vam.ac.uk/articles/a-brief-history-of-menstrual-products
