Period shaming

A few days ago, a woman run her marathon during her period, decided to let the blood run freely. Kiran Gandi did this to raise awareness about women that don't have acces to tampons.

The reactions where numerous, a lot were bad, as many from women than from men.

Everybody is sweating in a marathon, and that fluid doesn't bother anybody, or at least people think it's normal enough to not talk about it. But period blood is also a natural fluid, so why people would be bothered about it ?

There really is a period-shaming.

Some people will say it stinks or it is unhygienic, but sweat also does, an sometimes waaaay more ! Actually, blood only stinks if it stays a long time in contact with oxygen. But if you use a silicon cup instead of horrible/chemical/wrong for health/wrong for environment tampons, your blood won't smell !

Some others will show blood scare them. That's because people often associate blood with pain. But this blood doesn't come from a wound ! It is just a natural cleaning ! We women have a self cleaning sexual organ ! We should be proud of it !! I don't say women don't suffer when they have their periods, i am a big defender of a compulsory day off every month (we can dream) But it is for each woman to decide if she feels okay to run a marathon or not !

There is such ignorance about this subject, because of too much taboo !

Some people said she should bleed way more than the spot left between her legs. Usually women think they bleed a lot because they never really observe their own flow. When you start using a silicon cup you get to really know your body, and understand we never loose more than 30 to 40 ml / month ! So in one marathon, you will never be able to see a flood of blood running down the legs, that's a myth ! Still, it's the women that should eat more read meat than the men, to compensate this loss... ;-) (for the non vegetarians of course)

Edit, 2 weeks after. Kiran Gandhi was interviewed :

Edit September 23rd.

All that said about making periods just normal stuff, I'm a big opponent to tampons. Here's a story that could convince anybody that would not already be :

Toxic Shock: Why This Woman Is Suing a Tampon Company After Losing Her Leg

French version :

Choc toxique : j’ai perdu une jambe à cause d’un tampon hygiénique

A French girl has launched a petition against the fact that tampons sellers don't advertise about the dangers.

Some other informations about this, quote in French :

"Les tampons sont blanchis au chlore, procédé utilisé dans l’industrie de la pâte à papier qui a comme principale fonction de rendre le produit blanc. Ce procédé de fabrication laisse des traces de dioxine dans les tampons. Ce composé organochloré a la propriété de s’accumuler dans les tissus adipeux de l’organisme et de n’être jamais évacué. La dioxine est aussi directement absorbée et stockée de manière quasi-permanente dans les tissus vaginaux.
La dioxine est la substance de synthèse la plus toxique jamais étudiée et ses effets sur la santé des femmes incluent, entre autres, le cancer du col de l’utérus et l’endométriose.
En plus d’absorber le sang menstruel, les tampons absorbent jusqu’à 90 % des sécrétions
utiles à l’équilibre interne du vagin, asséchant du coup les parois et modifiant le pH, ce qui favorise le développement des infections chroniques"