Space
Space Menstruation: How Do Female Astronauts Handle Menstrual Periods In Space
Sam D
First Posted: May 12, 2016 05:10 AM EDT
Nearly 60 women astronauts have followed in the footsteps of Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman to venture into space more than five decades ago in 1963. However, the main question that often arises is how women face the challenge of having their periods in a spacecraft.
"When women first went into space, it wasn't known what the effects would be," said Dr. Varsha Jain from Kings College London, who also authored a recent essay on menstruation in spaceflight. "It can happen normally in space and if women choose to do that, they can".
According to a report, it seems that the female menstrual cycle does not change even as most of the systems in the human body are impacted during space travel. The International Space Station (ISS) has waste disposal facilities that can handle human blood, though this was not the case initially. However, in reality, most female astronauts opt for contraceptives to delay their periods, both in preparation and during the course of space flight, implying that they don't want to deal with menstruation in space.
The question is that with missions lasting up to six months on the ISS, and future missions to Mars reportedly involving journeys up to three years, could there be adverse implications of artificially delaying periods with pills? Jain says no such research has been done apart from studying the results of long term contraceptive use on Earth, which shows it can be taken continuously for years. However, a mission to Mars would mean addressing the practicality of carrying the weight of an estimated 1,100 pills.
The researchers, therefore, wants to draw attention to more long lasting options known as Long Acting Reversible Contraceptives (LARCS) which are now thought to be a reliable and safe alternative, both health wise and from the view point of waste disposal as there is no packaging to deal with.
Jain however mentions that taking birth control pills is advantageous for female astronauts, because bone density is affected during space flight and the estrogen in pills helps with bone density. The ingredient of Estrogen is lacking in LARCS. The researchers will be further investigating the implications of using contraceptives in space, including LARCS. In the meantime, the experts will continue to work with women astronauts in flight.
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First Posted: May 12, 2016 05:10 AM EDT
Nearly 60 women astronauts have followed in the footsteps of Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman to venture into space more than five decades ago in 1963. However, the main question that often arises is how women face the challenge of having their periods in a spacecraft.
"When women first went into space, it wasn't known what the effects would be," said Dr. Varsha Jain from Kings College London, who also authored a recent essay on menstruation in spaceflight. "It can happen normally in space and if women choose to do that, they can".
According to a report, it seems that the female menstrual cycle does not change even as most of the systems in the human body are impacted during space travel. The International Space Station (ISS) has waste disposal facilities that can handle human blood, though this was not the case initially. However, in reality, most female astronauts opt for contraceptives to delay their periods, both in preparation and during the course of space flight, implying that they don't want to deal with menstruation in space.
The question is that with missions lasting up to six months on the ISS, and future missions to Mars reportedly involving journeys up to three years, could there be adverse implications of artificially delaying periods with pills? Jain says no such research has been done apart from studying the results of long term contraceptive use on Earth, which shows it can be taken continuously for years. However, a mission to Mars would mean addressing the practicality of carrying the weight of an estimated 1,100 pills.
The researchers, therefore, wants to draw attention to more long lasting options known as Long Acting Reversible Contraceptives (LARCS) which are now thought to be a reliable and safe alternative, both health wise and from the view point of waste disposal as there is no packaging to deal with.
Jain however mentions that taking birth control pills is advantageous for female astronauts, because bone density is affected during space flight and the estrogen in pills helps with bone density. The ingredient of Estrogen is lacking in LARCS. The researchers will be further investigating the implications of using contraceptives in space, including LARCS. In the meantime, the experts will continue to work with women astronauts in flight.
See Now: NASA's Juno Spacecraft's Rendezvous With Jupiter's Mammoth Cyclone