Word: menstrual
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...notices that this Osama is different--"like a nymph," one man says. After landing a menial job, the girl is taken to the men-only prayer ritual, where each lad is instructed in the proper washing of the male genitals. Her deceit is discovered when she has her first menstrual period, and she is married off to an old mullah...
Women too seem to have problems getting interested in sex when their testosterone levels are too low, which is why Procter & Gamble is experimenting with testosterone patches. Says Altman: "When women are having normal menstrual cycles in their prime reproductive ages, their ovaries make two times more testosterone than estrogen." A few days before ovulation, triggered by surging levels of testosterone--along with other hormones including progesterone and estrogen--sexual desire peaks, according to new research by Martha McClintock of the University of Chicago that dispels a long-held theory that fertility precedes desire...
Probably the most controversial issue in the chemistry of sexuality is the role of pheromones. In 1971 the University of Chicago's McClintock, then a Wellesley undergraduate, proved scientifically what women in dorms had known for decades: menstrual periods become synchronized when women live together. It's probably because of pheromones, she said--olfactory chemicals that we can detect even though we're not aware of them. In 1998, she did experiments that proved this hypothesis, but, unlike animal pheromones, no human versions have been isolated...
...Because menstrual cycles and sexuality are part of an overall system, it's possible that pheromones could trigger desire. Perfumemakers that market pheromone-based scents have latched onto this notion. It's plausible, says Altman, "but I don't think the science is very good on it." Pfaus agrees: "I hope it's true. Totally on faith, I believe it. The problem is that the scientist in me says, 'O.K., but what are these pheromones, and who has shown...
...stimuli or by self-stimulation, Whipple found that the body's pain-killing center in the midbrain is activated during peak arousal. Signals from this part of the brain instruct the body to release endorphins and corticosteroids, which can temporarily numb the raw nerve endings responsible for everything from menstrual cramps to arthritis and migraine for several minutes. Activating this region also reduces anxiety and has a calming effect...