Unusual idea for a museum...period!

Think you've been to every kind of museum on the planet? Does another cultural or artistic exhibit coming to your town make you yawn and say, "Been there, done that"? Well, here's a new twist on an age-old subject: The Museum of Menstruation. The Museum, located in a suburb of Washington, D.C., is devoted to the rituals and culture of menstruation. Visitors can see exhibits tracing the history of pads, tampons, special menstrual underwear, and more.

As the Museum's brochure explains, "A particular weight is put on the history and philosophy of menstrual hygiene advertising; the museum owns over 1,000 ads from many countries, as well as patents, booklets and other printed and visual material."

To the best of my knowledge, the Museum isn't on the Internet yet, although it's been covered extensively in the press. But just wait: it might actually do some good to have a home page on the worldwide web devoted to a topic that's seldom discussed, but probably should be.

Consider this: studies show the average age of menarche (or onset of menstruation) in this country is 12.5 years, and it may be occurring at progressively earlier ages.

"The age of a girl's first period has been falling for decades," said Ellen Creager, Knight-Ridder News Service, writing on the subject. "At 14.8 a hundred years ago, the age fell to 12.5 in 1988. Observers believe that a new government survey being conducted this year will show the age slipping even lower, as more girls age 10 and 11 report menarche."

The average age of menopause is somewhere between 51 and 52. This means a woman today, assuming she's in good health, and allowing for interruptions in her normal menstrual cycle due to pregnancy, will have periods monthly for almost 40 years of her life.

Accordingly, maybe a Museum of Menstruation isn't such a bad idea. If it gets people talking about a perfectly normal physiological function which is sometimes considered a "taboo" topic, and enhances education surrounding menstruation, it might be a very good thing indeed.

The Museum, which has been open to the public since August 1, 1994, publishes "Catamenia," a free quarterly newsletter addressing the social and historical aspects of menstruation and menstrual hygiene, mainly in industrialized countries. Mr. Harry Finley, the editor, is also the creative spirit behind the Museum. (Curiously , Finley's grandfather, Alexander Finley, started the Miss America contest). For a copy of "Catamenia," or for more information about the Museum, contact:

Museum of Menstruation
P.O. Box 2398
Landover Hills Branch
Hyattsville, MD 20784-2398
U.S.A.
Phone: (301) 459-4450
FAX: (301) 577-2913

Joel R. Cooper
The Medical Reporter/Joel R. Cooper Creative Services
Medical & Healthcare writing, editing and reporting
P.O. Box 370314
Denver, CO 80237
Telephone: (303) 337-6299; FAX: (303) 337- 9201
e-mail: jcooper@medreport.com