Ever wondered if your man thinks about your menstrual cycle?
No, neither have we. However, a new survey has revealed some interesting insights into how the average guy views his partner’s periods.
Historically, men have been portrayed as not being ‘in sync’ with their partners, particularly when it came to their menstrual cycles, but according to survey results presented by Teva Pharmaceuticals Europe at the 17th World Congress of the Academy of Human Reproduction in Rome, these assumptions are antiquated indeed.
The survey of over 10,000 heterosexual men and women in Europe, found that men estimated the average period to last 5.2 days. That compared with 4.6 days, for women taking hormonal combined contraception, and 5.0 days for those who were not.
Males also reported they perceived mood swings, irritability and pelvic pain as the top three symptoms experienced by their partners (69%, 65% and 57% respectively) while underestimating the physical impact, such as menstrual cramping.
Female respondents also reported these as the top three symptoms experienced, though their reported incidence for pelvic pain, irritability and mood swings was reversed (70%, 62% and 61% respectively for women not taking hormonal contraception). The top three symptoms were reported at a lower rate in women taking hormonal combined contraception (59%, 55% and 56% respectively).
“Prior to hormonal birth control becoming a contraceptive option, men had little awareness of what a woman experiences during menstruation.” said Dr Iñaki Lete, Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University Hospital Araba, Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain, who led the study.
“Menstrual symptoms were also less prevalent historically as women experienced fewer periods throughout their lives because of the later onset of menstruation, a greater number of pregnancies and the longer period of time during which they would breastfeed. In the 50 years since the first contraceptive became widely available, men have become increasingly aware of how their partner experiences menstruation.”
“These findings reflect wider societal changes, particularly where couples are encouraged to discuss previously taboo topics such as menstruation and contraception.”
Interestinly, among men who indicated that they had an opinion on the frequency of their partner’s periods, four in five said they were open to having a discussion with their partner about contraception options which could help extend the time between periods as they acknowledged that having fewer periods will improve their partner’s wellbeing.
Most of the younger men reported they would support spacing periods while most of the older men indicated they would support suppressing periods entirely.
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